COVID-19 lockdown: IGNOU Pune conducts orientation online

The Open University conducted the session via ‘Facebook Live’. During the session, the students were asked to put their queries in the comments section. 

The Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), Pune division, conducted its first orientation session online on March 27 following the rules and norms of the lockdown. The Open University conducted the session via ‘Facebook Live’. During the session, the students were asked to put their queries in the comments section available below the video box and the same were answered by the IGNOU staff member who was conducting the orientation.

According to the assistant regional director of IGNOU, S Saunand, the Open University was initially thinking of ways to reach out to the list of students who registered for various programmes such as undergraduate, postgraduate, diploma courses. Later they came up with the idea of going live on Facebook. Subsequently, the university shared a link with the students.

Talking about the conducted online session of the orientation, the regional director of IGNOU’s Pune division, MS Parthasarathy stated students from various regions like Nashik, Sangli, Satara and Kohlapur participated in the online orientation session. This the first time any university conducted its orientation session online. The members from Pune were excluded from this session as the members were more than 200. The university will conduct orientation sessions for these students in a phased manner. During the session, the university’s aim was to give students an idea regarding its system and functionality.

Amid the nationwide lockdown due to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, academic institutions are exploring different ways to keep going with its process of teaching and learning. While some are conducting classes and examinations online, IGNOU came up with the idea of conducting orientation sessions using Facebook’s live feature.

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