Online educational system is making its presence felt among college students. According to a report, the government is planning to introduce Aakash tablets in college libraries, so that students can get them issued like books and then return them after use. Announcing this plan, HRD minister Kapil Sibal said, “All issues have been resolved. We will receive 70,000 improved Aakash tablets from Datawind (the company supplying the tablets) by January-end.”
The idea of promoting education through modern equipment is being welcomed by students. Keshav Saraf, student and founder of dupedia.com (a website that provides free DU notes and books), feels it is a great idea to issue Aakash tablets in libraries. He says, “It is good because students who cannot afford to purchase costly tablets will now have access to Aakash. A system of issuing tablets will promote e-learning, which will save money because we won’t spend much on purchasing hard copies of books. I feel it is an eco-friendly step and will surely make students more tech savvy.”
The introduction of this tablet in mainstream education is a good move, feels Saurabh Mehra, a DU student. He says, “Like the West, even our students deserve to get the best technology.”
Even though this move promises to make e-learning accessible for all, a few students feel it won’t be an easy start. Saloni Singh, a second year DU student, says, “Aakash tablet has a battery life of just three hours, whereas a lecture at college is of minimum two hours. I don’t think students can make full use of it during college hours. I feel it should be sent to the rural areas also where people actually need to learn about usage of internet for studies.”
These days many students have their own android enabled phones so the plan won’t be immediately popular, feels Ankita Chauhan, a second year student at JMC. She says, “Most of us have mobiles which have more memory space than Aakash. Many students even have android phones, which have a better and faster operating system. I doubt if many students will switch to Aakash.”