Abstract:

The education system in rural India has severely suffered during the pandemic. Schools and Universities were closed for more than 16 months from March 2020 to September 2021. Due to a lack of IT infrastructure in the universities in small towns where children from villages study did not have online education facilities. Hence, children especially girls missed out on their studies. To date due to non-functional trains, girls are not able to visit their respective Universities. The objective of this study is to find how information technology can help these girls in being connected with their higher education institutions. The author conducted two participatory workshops on online education, for 25 girls and then 35 girls in Piprai, a village in Uttar Pradesh in India. Results show a majority of girls from ages 16 years to 25 years carry a basic smartphone and 3G connection. This can be very useful for girls. With guidance, they can access the online course material and chat with their faculty in towns.

Keywords:

Online education, Village, Pandemic, Girls' education.