Madurai Collector T.G. Vinay and Corporation Commissioner S. Visakan on Thursday inaugurated online skill development classes for students of Class 8 and 9 of Corporation schools in the city.
The 11-day programme would see interaction of artists, scholars, professors, authors and experts from various fields with students through the online platform.
“The programme has been initiated to keep the students engaged during the lockdown. Experts will motivate and guide them on how to choose their career path. We felt this was important as students are susceptible to depression during the lockdown period,” said Mr. Visakan.
The sessions would be held between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. on various subjects such as history of Madurai, paper art, essay writing, personality development and art from waste and English writing.
Already, online classes were being conducted for Class 10 students to prepare them for their board examinations, scheduled to begin on June 15. Special online classes were also held for around 50 high-scoring students to prepare them for the National Eligibilty-cum-Entrance Test.
Maria Selvanathan, Headmaster, Sethupathi Pandithurai Corporation Higher Secondary School, said the students enjoyed the first session on Thursday.
“While skill development programmes are common at private schools, it is a luxury for Corporation school students. However, those who do not have smartphones and internet connectivity cannot attend these sessions,” he said.
Thoothukudi Corporation too began a similar exercise, launching a 10-day life skill development workshop for students of Corporation schools.
A team of experts would train the participants online in drawing, oration in English, arithmetic, story-telling and other skills. As reopening of schools was getting delayed due to lockdown, private schools had started online classes for students. The Corporation, on its part, had started the online workshop in order to enrich life skills of its students.
“The classes are being conducted between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. everyday to teach the students modern art, environmental science, virtual tour of zoological parks, history of Thoothukudi, oration in English, general knowledge, story-telling, time management, skill development and so on,” said V.P. Jayaseelan, Commissioner of Thoothukudi Corporation, who inaugurated the online classes on Tuesday.
A team of experts, including artist Marudhu, writer Thamizh Selvan, historian Shankar Ram and actor Soori, would handle the online classes.