But is this exposure to the Web creating a gap between Internet savvy students and their teachers?

A study conducted to investigate the growing dissonance between pupils and teachers due to some students being more Net-savvy than their tutors, found that students complained their teachers "don't use the Internet in class or create assignments to exploit Web material". Even those schools that encourage the use of technology, according to the study, frustrate some students who complain that "many of the Internet-based educational assignments they receive consist of little more than completing digitised worksheets."

"After teaching in India and abroad, my main view is that in schools like Bishop's (Pune), teachers are still slightly alienated from the Net and Web culture in general," says Ms K Felfeli, who taught at the Bishop's school until a year ago, and now teaches in the UK. "Students, on the other hand, are Net savvy and begin to feel their teachers may not be 100 per cent with them, and that as far as Internet technology is concerned, they are "uncool". This leads to friction. I'm confident that this will change very quickly. Schools in India are beginning to realise that they have to ensure every teacher keeps up with Net trends in order to be up-to-date with what their students know. So whatever dissonance there may exist now, will disappear in time. It won't be long before teachers and students here will be dependent on the Web for marksheets, results, feedback forms, and time tables, just like most schools in the UK and US," she says.

John Bastable, Director of the Mercedes-Benz International School in Pune, feels that in "good schools" there is no such disparity between teachers and students. "It's important that teachers are trained to use computers. This can help in their task of educating students," he says.

Bastable makes a valid point: "Some students are more able with computers than a few of their teachers. However, the IT teacher is still better than his/ her students. Being able to use a computer doesn't necessarily advance you very far in other subjects where the teachers are usually still way ahead. Also, there have always been some gifted students having more expertise than their teachers in certain areas. Chess prodigies, martial artists and sportsmen are often more advanced than many of their teachers, but in one area only. Good teachers always encourage such excellence in their students. They are not threatened by it!"

He states that his school encourages all teachers to promote computer skills among students. "We bring in experts in the field to take students as far as they want to go with computers. We use the Internet to enhance teaching and integrate computers into every subject. We're also putting Internet terminals into every working area of the school."

G Balasubramanium, Director of Academics, CBSE Board, feels that the knowledge and technology divide is not unique to the field of education alone: "It is a part of the social dynamics. This provides enormous opportunities for students, but I am sure it is no threat to teachers. The teaching community is also responding to changes and upgrading their skills. The CBSE is making efforts to provide technology integration in classrooms." Rohini Dasgupta, a primary school teacher, agrees that this is a necessity: "Unless schools are provided with computers and Internet facilities, there's bound to be a gap between teachers and kids, simply because the previous generation wasn't exposed to the Net."

Students agree that their teachers trail behind when it comes to IT and the Internet. "For us it's a norm, for them it's a novelty," says Amit Deshpande, a class VIII student. Priyanka Rao, in class X, states the obvious: "There was no Internet fad when they were our age."

Several students admit they'd like their teachers to be Net savvy, in order to make classroom discussions and homework more research oriented. "We could benefit from egroups and discussions with our peers in other schools and cities," says Chaitrali Gesota, also in class X.

Chaitrali is one of several students who favour the role of the Internet in education. Ms Felfeli talks of the amount of positive feedback she received after creating a basic, yet comprehensive Web page for Bishop's: "Imagine if every teacher in the school asked students to email their problems and concerns -- Students would enjoy the fact that their teachers are as well versed with technology as they are!"

Ms Felfeli is positive that education bodies in India are trying to close the Web culture gap between teachers and students. "Setting up Internet courses for teachers, cyber-classrooms, and Web page competitions are part of this effort. I'm sure in a few years Indian schools will be on par with their Western counterparts as far as the Net is concerned."

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