Shillong, Sept 5 : Director of School Education & Literacy in Meghalaya, Swapnil Tembe, on Thursday highlighted the launch of the Chief Minister’s “CM Impact” initiative. Aimed at improving education in the state, Tembe explained that the program is designed to address key academic challenges, particularly for students who struggle with specific subjects.

“The CM Impact is a mission mode project, not a long-term one, so we expect results soon. The idea is to provide resources, such as the Diet Book—a question bank and set of concepts designed for students who need targeted help on specific topics,” Tembe said. He also emphasized the introduction of remedial classes under the CM Impact initiative.

Tembe reminisced about his school days, sharing how remedial classes were offered after pre-boards. “This is something we’ve been missing for a long time. While some schools do organize these classes, CM Impact will now structure this process. Teachers will conduct remedial sessions after identifying students’ weak areas, helping them in these exam centers,” he noted.

The long-term focus of the initiative is also on strengthening the education foundation. Tembe explained, “We have started working on the foundation. If you ask higher secondary teachers, they’ll say the problem lies in secondary education; secondary teachers will point to upper primary, and so on. We are addressing these issues gradually.”

Digitalization of Education

Addressing the state’s plans for digitalizing education, Tembe confirmed that steps have already been taken. “We have integrated QR codes in textbooks, allowing students to scan and access related videos. Of course, Universal Connectivity Technology (UCT) remains a challenge, but through Samagra Shiksha and the state government, over 400 schools now have Information, Communication, and Technology (ICT) resources like computers. These are primarily in secondary and higher secondary schools. However, with over 9,000 elementary schools, there’s still a long way to go.”

Tembe acknowledged that despite efforts towards digitalization, traditional classroom teaching remains irreplaceable. “During COVID, we saw that while online classes are possible, they can’t replace in-person teaching. The role of the teacher and the classroom is irreplaceable.”

Bagless Days Implementation

Providing an update on the implementation of ‘bagless days,’ Tembe confirmed that the initiative is already in practice. “If you look at the school calendar we released last year for 2024, we have allocated 10 bagless days. Schools are already implementing them. On these days, students don’t bring textbooks and instead engage in activities like maintaining a nutrition garden, sports, or career counseling,” he explained.

Tembe also shared that detailed guidelines have been issued by the Directorate of Educational Research and Training (DERT) for senior classes. “We released the guidelines today, specifying the activities for these ten days. Moving forward, we will release guidelines for all classes.”

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