Bhubaneswar: The SSEPD Department of Odisha Government has planned for extensive interventions for visual impaired students in the Special Schools with a mission to make subjects such as Science, Mathematics, and Computational thinking accessible for this community. The Department will run VE Experience Centre to showcase the latest educational aids and teaching learning materials for inclusive education. Besides, Pragya: Capacity Building Programme for teachers, Computational Thinking (CT) games for students, Subodh: Accessible Learning Management Platform for students and teachers will be undertaken.
The Department will rope in Vision Empower, a Bengaluru-based enterprise for the purpose. This collaboration will be supported by Microsoft Research and IIIT, Bengaluru to have various interventions in 27 special schools for visually impaired run by the Government. Vision Empower (VE) will meet the pedagogic needs in the study of science, mathematics, foundational Braille reading and Computational thinking skills of the students with visual impairment, enhance digital literacy and capacity building of the teachers.
SSEPD Department will provide space and facilities for setting up of Experience Centre at Integrated Infrastructure Complex, Jatni. It will support for translation of VE Teachers Reference Materials in Odia, provide collaboration with Red Cross Braille Press at Berhampur for printing of Science and Math Braille Books in Odia for each student also. VE interventions will be rolled out in all the special schools for 3 years and may continue afterwards, if required. Teachers with blindness will be trained on usage of various Apps that can be used in Android Phones, Computers/Laptops.
A MoU will be signed very soon in this direction between the SSEPD Department, Government of Odisha and Vision Empower, gearing up the effort of SSEPD Department to empower VI students for their meaningful participation in State’s education eco-system.
