FROM I D E A TO REALITY: IMPACT OF

MOOC ON VILLAGE SCHOOL STUDENTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY MOOCs can play an important role in enhancing knowledge base of students in rural area, where

there is no access to quality education.

The most amazing fact about this journey was the minimum inclusion of secondary facilities like

computer and internet. The outcome of the journey indicates that even with little input the results

can be a tremendous.

Introduction Schools, Government and non government organizations are constantly trying to find ways to deliver

quality education to the masses, in the least possible cost. But it had turned out to be mammoth task

to deliver as planned because of connectivity issues of remote areas to the urban areas and

availability of resources like infrastructure, quality teachers and access to best of the world available

otherwise to their urban counterparts. The technology came to rescue in the form of MOOC (massive

open online courses) to resolve these problems. But mere presence of MOOCS was not enough to

solve the issues, as the delivery of lectures and voice, accent and language itself were a barrier. The

same lectures when were explained in the native tongue by a facilitator it worked wonders.

Conception of Idea The very first thought of this journey crossed my mind when I joined the MIT edX MOOC The

Challenges of Global Poverty 14.73x. It was during this course that inspiration of doing something

for the society was planted in my head and heart too. And then Arhata World came into being with

the objective to bring together the enrollees of the course. Course mates were brought together and

hence I was invited to share this story at First Ever edX and MITx certificate acknowledgment

event in the world, which took place in New Delhi, India on 7th December, 2013. While chatting on

Skype I had a chance to talk to Prof. Anant Agarwal (founder and CEO of MIT-edX). I just

happened to asked him "why can't we develop MOOC for school students in their native languages

which will solve the problem of poor quality of education clubbed with inferior teachers and

teaching aids. That very day a MEET UP was organized by Bal Bharti Academy and ASSOCHAM for

the people pursuing or already MOOCs certified. And there, I met Mr. Maninder Singh Nayyar, who

helped me to frame this idea into a reality by launching a pilot project titled "Wings" -MOOC pilot

project by Arhata World and Bal Bharti Academy. On our way to execution, we were joined by three

more noble partners to help us with this initiative.

The purpose of this initiative was to break the barriers, for the accessibility to infrastructure, fine

teachers and quality of education in rural and remote areas by using MOOC (massive open online

courses) and thereby reducing cost on infrastructure and increasing quality of education.

Purpose

The purpose of this initiative was to break the barriers, for the accessibility to infrastructure, fine

teachers and quality of education in rural and remote areas by using MOOC (massive open online

courses) and thereby reducing cost on infrastructure and increasing quality of education.

Location

Chota Mawana is a village in the Mawana Tehsil and is situated before the main town Bada Mawana or Mawana which is a town in Meerut district in the Uttar Pradesh state of India. In the northeast side of town is Mawana sugar works. Its name comes from the word "Muhana" means Gateway. It is supposed to be the Muhana of Hastinapur kingdom. Electricity came to the village in 1964. The main occupation of this town is farming of sugar cane. As per 2001 India census, Mawana had a population of 69, 199. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Mawana has an average literacy rate of 53%, Which is lower than the national average of 59.5%: male literacyis 61%, and female literacy is 44%. In Mawana, 17% of the populationis under 6 years of age.

Figure 1

Location of village Chota Mawana in Meerut district in the Uttar Pradesh state of India

Target Group

The children in rural area in the Age Group 7-15 years Who are studying in government schools, village schools and madarsa or other primary schools.

Organizer

Bal Bharti Academy Bal Bharti Academy is a Non-Government, Non-Profit NGO registered under Section 21,

Indian Societies Registration Act, 1860, engaged in various developmental, training and

other socially important activities since 1970.

Bal Bharti Academy's outreach to the disadvantaged and under privileged sections has covered

various skills like stitching and tailoring, sewing, embroidery, hygiene and sanitation, tourism

sensitisation and English language skills. We have covered children, the elderly, handicapped

and men and women from weaker sections of society.

Bal Bharti Academy is committed to work with various sections of society in order to facilitate

access to employment opportunities - be it through focused skill oriented training, soft skills,

personality development, job oriented training or through assessments and certifications that

further improves employability. Bal Bharti Academy is also bringing together industry and the

government for specific interventions that will assist in creating employment opportunities by

promoting entrepreneurship, mentorship, innovation and creativity. Address: A -24, LGF, C.R. Park, New Delhi-110019 Phone Number: 011 - 41047806 Website: www.balbharti.co.in Email: info@balbharti.co.in

Partner

The concern Consortium for Competence in Education and Research for National Development is a focused approach towards overall development and strengthening system of education on a global scale. It will usher in better cultural mix, offer excellent options to education providers as well as to the students to choose from, act as a facilitator, and promote education through a globally recognized platform. CONCERN aspire to make world "a global village" by bringing foreign students closer to India and Indian institutions closer to the world. CONCERN not only saw fruitful discussion on important topics that were validated by experts but also saw a participation from more than 1700 students studying in Intermediate/ A- level (12th standard) who visited to acquire more knowledge about various education providers of world. Address: A -24, LGF, C.R. Park, New Delhi-110019 Phone Number: 011 - 41047806 Website: www.balbharti.co.in Email: info@balbharti.co.in

Project incharge Saurabh Kumar Gautam Project Head Bachelor of Technology and MIT edX achiever Phone:+91-9599354511 Email: saurabh.gautam@live.com Rahul Dubey Reasearch Assistant Pursuing bachelor of Technology

Mentor Mahinder Singh Nayyar CEO Bal Bharti Academy, New Delhi

Methodology

1. Selection of Location

2. Selection of Subjects

3. Student interaction

4. Introduction

5. Question Paper Preparation

6. Question Paper Answer Set

7. Preparation of the Lectures

8. Translation of the Lectures

9. Setting Up Of MOOG System at the Site

10. Recording Set-Up

11. MOOG Lectures Start

12. Completion of the Course

13. Exam and Video Recording of the Test

14. Test After the exam

15. Results Analysis

16. Conclusion

1. Selection of Location (Meerut)

We selected location on the basis of its status as a Rural Area, because that is where we have lack of proper education facilities and procedures. In this project, villagers were helpful and were active as supporting characters. The children in the village do not have very clear picture of lots of concepts due to insufficient exposure and poor infrastructure.

2. Selection of Subject (Math, Science and Computers)

Presently Science, Maths and Computers were the most complicated subject for the students here, if we are able to teach these subjects according to our project, then we can teach any subject that is for sure. 3. Introduction and Interaction We created interactive study sessions for the students based on technological aides like projector

and computers etc., we introduced them as a Teacher and a Friend as well.

4. Question paper Preparation

We have prepared question paper based on the teaching standards being followed in the class as per their grade and also on their personal grade proficiency level.

5. Lecture Preparation We prepared lectures on the basis of the topics of their interest and we assembled videos mentioned in concepts that are clearly defined by us. 6. On site teaching

On site teaching started with Projector, Laptop, Speaker and at a make shift MOOCs learning hub.

7. After Test

Regular test were conducted after teaching the subject Science, Maths and Computers at continual interval. After teaching through the local MOOCs (Massive Open Online Course), which was setup exclusive for the "Project Wings", these papers were checked and graded and marks were recorded.

8. Result Analysis

The Comparison between the existing knowledge of the three subjects with the results after teaching the students using Moocs were made.

Figure 2

Location of village Chota Mawana in Meerut district in the Uttar Pradesh state of India

Figure 3

Location of village Chota Mawana in Meerut district in the Uttar Pradesh state of India.

Date of Events: December

15 December 2013

We traveled from office to Noida City Center from where we took a bus for Meerut and after a journey of 60 kms, we reach Meerut and then get ready for work, then we make a site office in the city hotel.

16 December 2013

On the second day we reached the site Chota Mawana and we checked the site location and had a detailed interaction with the children to know their understanding and the challenges faced by them and their outlook towards learning for our project requirement and we discussed about our project with the students and after that we start making arrangements for the site office and as well requirements for the site.

17 December 2013 We selected some students those who were interested and willing to spend in 20 days with us during the project. After briefing them about basics and our new technique of teaching through videos, we gave them forms to fill up and selected some volunteers who were willing to help us in setting up a make shift MOOC learning hub.

18 December 2013

We collected and arranged the filled up forms and then started with one to one interview to analyze the status of their learning and knowledge. We told them about the subjects which we will teach in our project by the help of videos, during this discussion talked about personality development also and we played a online math's computer game.

19 December 2013 On this day, we told them about computers and its applications using videos and then how to switch

on and off. Then we made the students aware of other applications of computer, which are essential

for the project and in our day to day life. We also discussed about agriculture, general knowledge

and education etc. by the help of technology.

20 December 2013 We had conducted computer exam on the basis of self knowledge of students prior to any study of

computer subject through videos. Then we discussed the paper after collecting the same.

21 December 2013

We told them about parts of computer and function of each part of computer with live demonstration through a projector then we told them how to operate mouse/ touch pad and how to use a keyboard and the use of keys on a keyboard, like shift, enter and control. Also gave them notes with a picture of keyboard to familiarize them with a key board. Since most of the students don't have access to computers and application of computer at home or in school.

22 December 2013

Holiday (prepared papers and arranged materials for next week).

23 December 2013

Today we introduced math to the students through video presentations and played an on line number game. These games are based on simple addition, subtraction, division and multiplication etc. Or we can say that these games were simply based on BODMAS rule.

24 December 2013

On the ninth day we conducted test for maths on the basis of general concept then we played a computer game during the testing time and we also conducted an interactive talk to improve interaction with each other and personality development. So if required, they can teach each other and dependence on teacher is reduced.

25 December 2013

On the tenth day, we showed them how to use Google & Internet and what is the application of internet and in how many ways we are using technology and computers to implement the project. How to use Google to find answers and to improving the knowledge? And how to use internet to convert tough task into easy work and so many other types of application of internet and they were asked to prepare mathematical table as home work.

26 December 2013

On this day we conducted personality development class with the help of relevant videos; in the personality development class we taught them to interact with each other or any person and few other things that could prove to be beneficial for their personality grooming. The objective of this exercise was to make them self dependent and if required they know how to learn without a teacher, that is if?

27 December 2013

On this day we have conducted science pre assessment to understand their existing comprehension level and proficiency. Later we discussed the science paper with students after the exam.

28 December 2013

On this day we showed them an educational movie" Taare Zameen Par" which is a Hindi movie motivating children to follow what they desire. Afterwards we discussed about the movie and it helped them to get a break from regular learning and it proved to be a motivational factor for maintaining the interest in class.

29 December 2013

Holiday

30 December 2013

On this day we introduced them to the computers through a video and taught them about computer with help of another visual. Since this is the base of our project then we told them how to operate and use computer in different sectors through the videos. We educated them about keyboard and its functions in the computer, what is the use Microsoft office in our work and where do we use Microsoft office.

31 December 2013

Students searched their queries and found answers using Google and even tried to find about history of India and also searched about the cities like New Delhi, London and looked at the photographs and even searched and they were amazed to see the application of internet and some even read news and see cricket scoreboard they realized, that they can find everything and anything, what was missing there were the live streaming of videos as high speed internet was not there in that area.

JANUARY

01 January 2014

We celebrated New Year 2014 as per the wishes of students, and again we conducted talk about day to day life and how to keep the morale up and keep studying even if you don’t have teachers or facilities.

02 January 2014

On this day we conducted post assessment for computers. Later we introduced them to plants, parts of plant and function of roots in the plant, food process and some other uses of roots in the plant system as part of science class by the help of videos.

03 January 2014

On this day we taught them math's with the help of the videos, in the science class we showed them how the digestive system work in the our body and what is the process of food digestion in the digestive system then order and function of each body part in the digestive system.

04 January 2014

On this day we conducted science class on solar system and showed them videos and we went on a live tour of star and planets with a celestial software and which was something out of world for them but required the translation in their native language i.e. Hindi

05 January 2013

On this day we conducted science paper again but this time we taught them and we got good result as compared to first result then we showed them a self shot science movie with discussion about the paper.

06 January 2014

On this day we taught them math’s with the help of the videos and even taught them a Chinese formula for faster multiplication of two digit numbers and then played a "Quick Calculate” which aimed at solving simple maths problems in a very short time.

07 January 2014

On this day we conducted post assessment for maths for comparison of result and then discussed about the paper. We also discussed a bit about playing with numbers and how they can improve their math’s with self learning.

08 January 2014

On this day we discussed about our project with the students to get the relevant feedback then we announced the closing of lecture with the results and prize distribution.

09 January 2014

We did the concluding of project at the site and settlement of the bills at the site and deposition of the material and IT products at the site

Challenges Faced

Internet Connectively

This really was a big problem. As for any MOOG project internet is most important for accessing any

course and information. We used mobile dongle for internet but speed was exceptionally slow even

to open websites and the access was only for 2G Internet, so to overcome this, we downloaded

lectures and videos on the computer during the night stay in city site. This way we kind of made a

small MOOG on a local computer which was accessed during the class.

The other alternative we found was High speed internet or decent internet is not available we can

use a hard disk and a wifi router to make a localized MOOG which can be updated on monthly or

yearly as per requirement of the courses

Computer Penetration

In the Village Chota Mawana after a small survey with students of the class we came to the following

conclusion, we realized that Computer penetration at individual level as well as school level is very

low. Among the 51 students only two students have a computer at home.

2students

Out of the class size of the 51 Students only Two students have computers at homes, and two students have used Internet.

29.4%

Have used a Computer ever in life in that area which is very low as compared to schools in Urban Areas, and this can be solved by keeping Computers for students a school.

26/51

Students have computers in their school. But most of them have not used a Computer

Mindset of Parents

The parents didn’t believed that this kind of teaching will help their children because when a child can't learn in school under a teacher and pressure and scolding how can he learn with just videos with no scolding. They had apprehensions about the videos because they thought that the children will be watching movies just like they do watching television and this problem was overcome by letting parents come and observe the class as they wish and we even opened the class room for any child who wants to learn and join late. So from the target of just 20 students it went to 51 students full time and there were many who came just to learn and give tests and didn't bother that they will be registered for the project or not.

Material Requirements

The material required was procured before hand and rest was arranged during the weekends from the nearest city but the electricity really was a big problem at the place during the class timings. The electricity was not there so we used a portable generator and used an inverter for power back up and we used to charge the batteries for laptop and phone full during the 4-5 hours of electricity supply.

Hardware Requirements

The requirements like computer, speakers and laptops were a problem so we took them before hand so we don’t have any problem at the project site during the project.

Result Analysis

Before Percentage Analysis of students

In this process we have selected 51 students and we conducted the exam for different subjects (Math, Science and Computer) without any prior teaching and any other assessment. Then we got following results:

Figure 4

Chart Showing Before percentage of the students

Sl.No Percentage No. of Students

1 . 0-20 8

2 20-40 25

3 40-60 14

4 60-80 3

5 80-100 1

After Percentage Analysis of students

In this process we again conducted the exam for the same students whom we had selected before the test. But this was post the Wings Moocs Pilot Project classes were conducted for these students and results were:

1

Figure 5

Chart Showing After percentage of the students

Result Analysis Before and After Exams Pre and Post Assessment of Results: After both the exams, on checking the papers we analyzed the result which is very different as compared. For pre assessments there was only one student who got above 80% and remaining students got below 80%, Majority share of students exist in the twenty to forty percent category. But when we discuss about the second process, maximum students are shifted to higher percentage. According to post assessment results, 10 students are appearing in the range of 80-100% and only four students are there who got below 40%, which is a commendable change in the results.

Sl.No Percentage No. of Students

1 . 0-20 3

2 20-40 15

3 40-60 22

4 60-80 10

5 80-100 1

Figure 6

Chart showing before & after Percentage of the students.

Feedback

Children

"We wished we had this in our school we would have attended the school every day without scolding

in school"

- Billu

"Sir! We want this computer and laptop in school so we I can learn more and teach my friends"

- Draksha Praveen

"We want more friends to come here and we can travel Delhi using internet"

- Ayushi tyagi

" we can learn anywhere not just in school even a home can become a school with a internet

and laptop"

- Vimal kumar

Testimonials

Children (Children enjoy and study when they learn through Moocs) (Tv ke padhane se bacche maza krke padhte hai)

-Sabreen Mother of Guizar & Tmnna

"He used to get a beating to go to school but for the Video class (Moocs) He was ready before the time

(Unhe school Jane ke lie roz maama padta tha lekin moocs ki class Jane ke lie wo waqt se phle tayyar hojate the)

-Anita Mother of Billu

“My children can miss anything but never miss a Moocs Learning class"

(Mere baccho kuch bhi miss kar sakte the lekin Moocs ki class nhi)

- Momeena Mother of Shabna,, Chandni & Roshan

Reports 1. Form 2. Survey of computer penetration 3. Attendance sheet 4. Assignment sheet 5. Testpapers for maths, science, and computers 6. Typing test on MS word 7. Activity sheets for drawing 8. Videos 9. Testimonials- parents 10. Feedback from students