Commissioner Secretary School Education Department UT Ladakh, Ajeet Kumar Sahu launched (DRISHTI) on December 19.

DRISHTI is a flagship program of the Directorate of School Education Department, Ladakh in collaboration with Kaivalya Education Foundation. The programme aims at enabling teachers for impactful digital distance learning.

Director School Education Ladakh, Mohammad Mumtaz Ali; Director & Core Team Member Kaivalya Education Foundation, Kartik Varma, and Program Director Kaivalya Education Foundation, Zeeshan Hassan were also present in the virtual launch programme.
 
Ajeet Kumar Sahu said that COVID 19 outbreak and subsequent lockdown puts a greater impetus on using digital support for teachers and students is emerging. There is a strong need for a system where teachers are leveraging technology and tools to blend instruction to children and engage with parents. To ensure uninterrupted learning of students, it becomes critical to prepare teachers on technology, digital tools, and platforms.

Program DRISHTI is a unique, first of its kind program designed keeping in mind how teachers can leverage existing content for immediate impact and how to bridge the gap by curating and disseminating new content at scale ensuring the long-term sustainability of blended learning in the future. The program will be supported by Kaivalya Education Foundation in collaboration with Google India.

Sahu emphasized continuous teacher professional development and newer expectations from teachers in post COVID world, extending support to teachers through such flagship programs that use a multiprong approach including building digital literacy. 
 
Director, Mohammad Mumtaz Ali spoke about the importance of capacitating teachers on digital skills and highlighted initiatives by DSEL in the UT of Ladakh to bridge learning gaps. He emphasized the importance of enabling teachers at scale to ensure sustained impact and sought active participation from DIETs and CEO offices to make this program a success.
 
Director & Core Team Member Kaivalya Education Foundation, Kartik Varma along with Program Director J&K, Zeeshan Hassan thanked the School education department for the opportunity to support Program DRISTHI. It was stated that Google India is supporting Kaivalya Education Foundation to deliver this program.

A plan was presented where Kaivalya education foundation will closely work with a cohort of Master Teachers to further capacitate the teachers of the UT at scale to ensure students' learning.