With an aim of developing the interest of government school children of Jharkhand in mathematics and science using STEM techniques and latest educational tools, the Science and Mathematics teachers of the State are being trained under the iRISE- Inspiring India in Research Innovation in STEM Education programme.
The project is being run by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, Royal Society of Chemistry, British Council, Tata Trust and Tata Technologies.
There are four strands of the iRISE program and one of them is 'Teacher Development Strand (TDS) under which teachers are being trained.
The iRISE program has various phases and in the first phase a 3- day residential training was given to selected teachers of the State. Thereafter, some teachers trained in the first phase were then selected on the basis of the activities done in the class. In the second phase, the selected teachers will go to the Indian Institute of Science and Education Research, Pune for a 10- day residential training.
The teachers who receive the 10- day training will be known as Innovation Champion (IC). In the third phase, all Innovation Champions (ICs) will organise day- based workshops in their respective districts with the help of IISER Pune. Under this program, a kit will also be provided to all the schools, which will prove to be very helpful for the teachers to conduct activities in the school.Under the iRISE program, the training of 74 teachers from five districts namely Garhwa, Latehar, Palamu, Giridih and Hazaribagh concluded on Monday.
In the workshop organised in Ranchi, the selected teachers got the guidance of State Education Project Director Shashi Ranjan, Director Jharkhand Council of Educational Research and Training, (JCERT) and State Project Officer Abhinav Kumar. In the workshop State Coordinator from IISER Pune Shivani Puls, Akshay Kulkarni, Vaishnavi Kulkarni, Zahida Shaikh, Shubhangi Wagh and Mohammad Taqi were also present.
The objective of the program is to promote innovation and creativity by encouraging critical thinking and experimental mindset in teachers and students. Teachers are to be made aware of modern models and activities in the Integrated Labs, Science Laboratories and STEM Labs set up in government schools by Jharkhand Education Project Council, Ranchi.
Maximum number of students from the State are also to be registered in Inspire Awards – Manak, which is a long-term plan of the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India to encourage innovation among the children of the country.
In the training, priority has been given to understanding instead of memorizing. It is being ensured that children can acquire practical education in relation to mathematics and science by connecting with the surrounding environment and on the basis of daily life events. Science and mathematics can be made interdisciplinary and accessible to children. After the success of Maharashtra, Bihar and Uttarakhand, Jharkhand is the fourth state where this program has been implemented.