It has been three weeks since educational institutions closed doors due to the nationwide lockdown that was implemented to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the country. However, keeping in mind the welfare of class XII government school students who will be attending the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), teachers are preparing them with the help of online mediums.
According to sources, in December 2019, as many as 574 government school students in the district applied for NEET that will be held later this year. The State government had planned to provide NEET training classes to students at 413 centres across the State, after the class XI public examination, which was postponed. Due to lockdown, NEET coaching classes were also postponed by the School Education Department (SED).
With students suffering, unable to prepare for NEET, government school teachers began preparing them for the test with the help of WhatsApp and other online portals. Ashokapuram Model Government Higher Secondary School Headmistress S Rajalakshmi said, "Three students have applied for NEET from our school this year. As soon as class XII public examination ended, we started to prepare them for the exam. Our postgraduate teachers have been sending NEET materials to students frequently through WhatsApp and a group for the same has been created on the messenger. If students have any doubt, they are getting it addressed over phone."
Othakalmandapam Government Higher Secondary School Assistant Headmaster P Moorthy said, "We have a NEET centre in our school campus. Due to lock down, the NEET classes have been postponed. However, our teachers are preparing the five students who will be writing NEET this year using online platforms. They are monitoring students regularly and they are conducting classes online. Students are attending the online NEET test frequently through private portals that offer such tests and are sharing their scores with teachers who will then guide the students. Students need only have a smartphone and access to internet."
Teachers of CCMA Government School, Pollachi Girls Government School and private schools are preparing students the same way and so are many private NEET coaching centres in the district.
