A School That Stands Out Like A Giant

The Govt. school in Drass operates in the harshest of climates in the country.  Located in the second coldest inhabited place in the world, the school struggles against all odds to provide high quality education to children in the area.

With more than 500 students and 15 teachers, the school is making significant strides towards uplifting society in possibly the most difficult environments in the country.  It is contributions from such institutes that make us proud to be Indians and a part of this journey to a better life for all.

The Background

From the start, the school has struggled to ensure that students reach the school to attend classes.  With temperatures reaching -300 C, the school is often out of reach.  Students from far flung areas struggle to reach the school.

During the pandemic, the school realized that online classes was the way to keep the students engaged.  Experimenting with mobile phones and web cameras, teachers somehow managed to continue classes, albeit in a limited and ad-hoc manner.

Once the lockdown restrictions eased off, the school decided to resort to hybrid classes.  To do this, Mr. Imran who leads the IT infrastructure of the school, decided that investment in a good quality hybrid classroom system was of paramount importance.

The Mandate

Mr. Imran drew up a list of requirements that had to be met to ensure that the school got only the best:

• Quality of video had to be 1080 p or better to ensure that students got the best in terms of picture quality
• The audio system had to deliver crisp audio so students and teachers in the classroom could clearly hear remote students
• The microphone had to not just pick up every word spoken in the classroom but also suppress ambient noise
• The system had to be easy to install and operate to ensure that only minimal external support was required
• Local suppliers had to possess capabilities to support the system in case of technical issues 
• The system had to be rugged to withstand such extreme cold temperatures

The Solution

After evaluating multiple products of video conferencing for education, the school selected the AVer VC 520 Pro 2 because it met all the requirements. During a series of tests, Mr. Imran tested every aspect of the camera and the Bluetooth speakerphone to ensure that the school did not face any surprises after procurement.  He found that:

• The VC 520 Pro 2 is compact, easy to install and easier to operate
• With 12x zoom, the camera was able to cover the entire classroom and focus on the whiteboard
• The Bluetooth speakerphone delivered high quality audio
• Powerful array microphones in the speakerphone picked up the teachers voice clearly

The Impact

After deploying the video conferencing for education system designed by A&T, the school has started conducting hybrid classes – with some students sitting in the classroom and others joining remotely – all interacting with each other just as they would in a regular, in-person class.

The institute has also been conducting video conferences with senior officials  

The system has helped remote students learn better since the high quality camera and microphones delivered realistic video and sound

Being easy to operate, all the faculty have started using the hybrid classroom system effectively.

“After implementing the hybrid classroom solution designed by A&T, we have seen a marked improvement in the attendance.  This will definitely lead to better results for the students” says Mr. Imran

• Students are since they can learn from the comfort of their homes.
• The school is able to plan the school year better
• Teachers are excited since they do not need to struggle with ad-hoc video conferencing systems.  
• Recording the lectures has begun and the institute will be creating a digital library of classes

“We are thankful to team A&T for working closely with us right from the demo and evaluation stage up to the final deployment” says Mr.Imran.