Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Monday virtually launched the ‘Rajasthan ke Shiksha me Badhte Kadam’ programme including a Bridge Course for School Students for learning class attendance-loss due to Covid-19 in last 2.5 years.

The ‘Bridge Programme’ is announced with a financial provision of Rs 75 crore in the budget 2022-23 to compensate the educational loss of children due to Covid-19.

Addressing the selected audience at his residence, Gehlot said that this remediation programme ‘Rajasthan ke Shiksha me Badhte Kadam’ has been started for the students of classes I to VIII in the academic session 2022-23 to compensate the learning loss due to the corona pandemic.

In this bridge course, the students will be taught in easy and enjoyable manner, he said.

Besides this, he also inaugurated the ‘Field Orientation’ programme for teachers, education officers, guardians and children.

Gehlot claimed that his state has emerged as a Model State in the country with its unique innovations in the field of education.

The establishment of Mahatma Gandhi English Medium Schools and vision of efficiency-based education is becoming ideal for other states. In the last few years, not only the education infrastructure has developed, but academic progress has also taken place. Continuous efforts were made to ensure that students do not miss their studies despite teaching being suspended due to corona, according to CM.

Emphasis will be given to learning instead of mugging up in the bridge course under ‘Rajasthan ke Shiksha me Badhte Kadam’. Four periods for the first three months and two periods for the rest of the entire session will remain fixed in the bridge course for class I to VIII.

Under the scheme, efficiency based workbooks will be prepared for more than 75 lakh students and the efficiency will be assessed thrice in a year. In this programme, besides regular parents-teachers meetings, efficiency based holistic report card of the students will be prepared. Programme of capacity building of teachers will be organised to effectively implement this programme and the facility of the TeachingAid app will be provided for all teachers from classes III to VIII.

CM said that the State Government wad responsive towards the problems of the teachers and is committed to reduce the non-teaching responsibilities so that they can successfully implement the bridge course.

Chief Minister said that Mahatma Gandhi Government (English Medium) Schools were started as ‘Flagship Scheme’ in 2019 to develop proficiency in the English language and to ensure access to English medium education to poor. So far, 1206 English Medium schools have been opened across the state, he maintained.

The Education, Art and Culture Minister Dr BD Kalla was among other cabinet colleagues who participated in a poster release of the ‘Rajasthan ke Shiksha me Badhte Kadam’ ceremony too.