DIKSHA, NISHTHA and CPD: Experiences and Perceptions of School Learning-Facilitators

Abstract

We live in the digital era and technology plays a vital role in it. We can witness new advances and improvements each day. To keep up with the trends, it becomes important for all of us to be aware of such advances. We can see developments and changes taking place in every field. The education sector is one of the most prominent sectors and is witnessing a lot of changes. The pandemic has put us in a situation where the only option we are left with is to integrate technology with education. We have been witnessing a number of technological innovations daily that are being used to make teaching and learning easier and more effective. More and more ways are being looked upon to reduce the efforts and make learning a joyful experience. Technology is not only helping in the classroom teaching, but also in the preparation of the teachers (learning facilitators) to teach. The role of the learning facilitator has shifted from being the central source of knowledge to being a facilitator. However, the role of the learning facilitator still remains a significant one. Therefore, it is expected that they should be fully prepared to deliver their hundred per cent in the classroom. To increase their efficiency, several professional development courses are taken up. Nowadays, technology is being used as an aid to conduct such training and workshops of the learning-facilitators and learning facilitator educators. The current study highlights the integration of technology in the Continuous Professional Development (CPD) of the learning facilitators. It also takes into account their say on e-training. The perceptions of 20 government school learning facilitators currently undergoing the NISHTHA integrated training programme on the DIKSHA portal have been taken into account. The data was collected using a questionnaire which had open-ended as well as rating scale-type questions. The responses were collected with the help of Google forms. The responses reveal mixed perceptions of the learning facilitators on e-training.