2020 was the time when the whole world came to a standstill as the Covid-19 pandemic hit mankind with its waves of upheaval in the lives of many.
Education was one of those areas severely affected and, while before Covid, parents and teachers might have struggled to get their wards to give up the smartphone to concentrate on their studies, the closure of in-class learning meant that, now, children had to get on to smartphones in order to learn!
This was, naturally, extremely problematic for many, including many thousands of students in Meghalaya, where poverty, power cuts and poor internet connections could prove a hurdle too high to scale for the pandemic batch of students.
Some, though, managed to make the new normal work and they have shone in the results of the Secondary School Leaving Certificate (SSLC) examinations, which were declared by the Meghalaya Board of School Education (MBOSE) today.
Naki Kampher Rani, of St. Margaret’s Higher Secondary School, who was sixth in the SSLC, used this medium to her advantage.
According to Naki, apart from the lessons her teachers gave online, she used to watch tutorials in YouTube channels to get a grasp of the various subjects.
“If you know how to properly use social media, it benefits you,” the topper said.
Naki, who studied for four to six hours daily to prepare for her exams, also said that to get good results is due to one’s hard work. She also said that if a student is inquisitive and keeps on looking for answers and asks the teachers for an explanation then one is sure to succeed.
Meanwhile, 17th-ranked Manroi Khonglah Mukhim of St. Mary’s Higher Secondary School, Shillong said that she faced difficulties due to online classes but received support from her parents and teachers.
Phindari Akor Lyngdoh Nongbri, who was 19th, of St. Mary’s Higher Secondary School, Shillong said that she did not expect to be in the top 20. “My aim was to get good marks,” she said.
Phindari said that due to the pandemic it was a difficult time but thanked her teachers for success.
She said that she also used social media to learn and is interested in science and wants to pursue physics.
Principal of St. Mary’s Higher Secondary School, Sister Sonia Chacko said that the past few months have been quite challenging for schools the world over.
“All institutions have been trying to adapt to online ways of teaching and learning. The schools that have been successful are the ones who adopted digital technology for administrative purposes and online learning early on. We are proud to say we are one among them,” Sister Chacko said.
The principal said that having understood the benefits of going digital well before the pandemic, the school was able to confidently meet the challenges of the lockdown.
“We have been able to deliver live classes, provide online assignments, and above all conduct seamless online examinations as well during the pandemic,” she added.
The school secured four positions in the SSLC examinations with a 99 pass percentage and one position in HSSLC arts examinations with a 100 percent result.
