Odisha struggles with digital literacy, only 33.3% school teachers trained: UDISE report

Odisha is facing significant challenges in advancing digital literacy in schools, as highlighted by the recent emphasis of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 on integrating these skills into education.

According to the UDISE+ report for 2023-24, Odisha does not either have adequate computers or teachers to train students. Worse, only just over 30% of the state's teachers are equipped with computer-based teaching capabilities, with a higher concentration in private institutions.

The state's teaching workforce, comprising 335,000 teachers, sees only 33.3% of them trained in computer skills. There's a noticeable gender divide, with 34.7% of women teachers receiving training compared to just 32.5% of men. Many schools do not even have a dedicated computer teacher, with many students who have not even seen smart boards.

Of the 61,693 schools in Odisha, 48,671 are government-run and 6,042 are private. However, only 24.9% of these schools are equipped with operational computers, a figure that plummets to 16.1% among government schools. In contrast, 67.7% of private schools report having working computers.

The disparity extends further with only 3.9% of government schools integrating teaching devices with PCs or desktops, and just 25.7% featuring functional smart classrooms. Mobile phones are used as teaching aids in 29% of these schools. 

While there is a notable lag in providing functional computers, internet access is available in approximately 81.4% of government schools, placing Odisha amongst leading states for public education internet accessibility.

Education expert RN Panda has emphasised the pressing need to overhaul teacher training programmes to cultivate educators proficient in comprehensive education, including digital literacy.