Bringing “Science” to life in government schools of Mizoram

Science classrooms in Mizoram are stepping into the digital future. The STI Hub Mizoram, in collaboration with the Online Labs (O-Labs) initiative of Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Kerala, recently introduced immersive digital science sessions in Aizawl — giving high school students a whole new way to learn.

Guided by O-Labs resource person Mr. Sibin Babu, the STI Hub team conducted sessions at Govt. Tuikual South High School, Govt. Dinthar High School, and Kendriya Vidyalaya. More than 250 students from classes 9 to 12 participated, exploring science concepts through interactive demonstrations rather than just textbooks or chalkboard diagrams.

To ensure that every child could fully engage with the content, local staff translated the sessions into Mizo, making the demonstrations accessible to all and encouraging students to ask questions without hesitation.
The most exciting part for students and teachers alike was the virtual reality (VR) headset demonstration. For many, it was the first time they had experienced stepping into a lab virtually — observing and performing experiments in a 360° immersive environment. The thrill of “walking inside” science experiments sparked curiosity and made concepts much easier to grasp.

O-Labs, or Online Labs, is an educational initiative pioneered by AmritaCREATE (Amrita Center for Research in Analytics, Technologies & Education) at Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham in partnership with CDAC, Mumbai, under a research grant from the Department of Information Technology, Government of India. The platform provides high-quality online labs in Science, Mathematics, and English for classes 9 to 12, fully aligned with NCERT and SCERT curricula.

Already reaching over four million users worldwideand having over 170 interactive simulations, O-Labs allows students to access experiments anytime, anywhere. It supplements physical lab work with quick access to theory and encourages self-directed learning by letting users explore, perform, and repeat experiments at their own pace. Instructional videos are also freely available on YouTube, making the platform even more accessible.