Science practical in UP government schools had always been limited to books. Students had never seen any specimen in Biology classes, and concave and convex lenses in Physics or various chemicals and beakers of Chemistry classes were seen only in books. Now, under the Rashtriya Aavishkaar Abhiyaan, each district in Uttar Pradesh has been given Rs 45,000 to set up model science laboratory in two upper primary schools of each block. On Thursday, the first such laboratory at Meerut’s Upper Primary School, Begamabaad in Sardhana block was inaugurated on Thursday.
Udit Kumar, block education officer, Sardhana, said, “The model science laboratories are being set up under the Rashtriya Avishkar Abhiyaan, which was started by former president Dr APJ Abdul Kalam. It focuses on developing innovation and experimentation skills among students. This is for the first time that the school will have a laboratory to conduct small experiments for which not many equipment are needed. Earlier, they were only taught from textbooks.”
The school will also introduce science clubs for students – who will soon be given mathematics kits too – so as to make numbers fun for students. The school has as many as 56 students and runs classes from Class VI to Class VIII.
The science laboratory has basic equipment needed for Physics, Chemistry and Biology and also a computer and a projector – the money for which was collected by the school teachers. “The teachers contributed money for the projector and the computer that has been set up in the science laboratory as we did not have any fund for these. This is the first such lab in Meerut that has been inaugurated. Other science labs are in the process of being established,” said Kumar. The laboratory was inaugurated by the chief development officer Ayarka Akhori.