Survey indicates that only 13% of high school students in rural areas curious about tech powering gadgets

The study also revealed that 66% of students had poor understanding of 21st century skills, which include communication, critical thinking and decision-making

A survey in rural areas shows that only 13% of the students in high school are curious about the technology behind the gadgets that are used in everyday life, with boys slightly more curious (16%) than girls (11%). The survey — Behaviour and attitude of high school students in Karnataka towards technology and 21st century skills — was conducted by Quest Alliance, a non-profit organisation. 

The study was conducted recently among 1,572 high school students across 27 schools in Mysuru and Tumakuru districts. It revealed that 66% of students had a poor understanding of 21st century skills, which include communication, critical thinking and decision-making.

Besides, the survey also found that male students were ahead of females when it came to social media and internet. 

While 65% of male students reported having a personal social media account (Instagram, YouTube, Facebook), the corresponding figure for females was 39%. Similarly, 92% of male students had used the internet in the previous three months to search for more information on topics they were studying whereas the corresponding figure for females was 87%. But, when it came to confidence levels while using computers, female students led with 65% as compared to 58% for male students. 

Announcing the survey findings at a media conference in Bengaluru on November 2, Neha Parti, Director (Schools), Quest Alliance, said that the research clearly highlighted the need for improving 21st century skills and scientific temper among students in rural areas. 

To promote STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education, Kantar, a leading global insights firm, and IBM, a global technology firm, will together launch a programme among 40,000 high school students in nine districts of Karnataka — Mysuru, Tumakuru, Bengaluru Rural, Chitradurga, Yadgir, Raichur, Gadag, Hassan and Chikkaballapura. 

“This programme will provide experiential learning to students through ‘learning by doing’ approach. This means that these 40,000 high school students will no longer need to memorise complex scientific concepts from textbooks. Through this programme, students will get an opportunity to tinker and build tech-based solutions to problems that they identify,” Ms. Neha added.