After switching classes for school students into virtual mode due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Kerala government has initiated an online project for those who wish to study foreign languages. The project launched under the Education Department’s Additional Skill Acquisition Programme (ASAP) will provide online classes for foreign languages like French, German and Japanese. The initiative was launched keeping employment opportunities in foreign countries in mind.

“Working from home could largely be the future. Youngsters who are searching for jobs can avail these opportunities in foreign countries from their homes through this. It is for this purpose that foreign language courses have been started with the help of foregin embassies,” said an official release.

German language training is offered by Indo-German Language and Cultural Society (Goethe-Zentrum), French will be offered by Alliance Française de Trivandrum and Japanese by the Alumni Society of Association for Overseas Technical scholarships (ASATC).

Those who have completed 15 years of age or above can register for the classes. Courses will begin from the last week of August. Those who wish to enroll can register at the official site of ASAP. The fees for the courses range from Rs 5,200 to Rs 6,900 and the course durations vary from 90 to 125 hours depending on the languages chosen.

The official release states that training in more foreign languages like Spanish and Arabic will be started soon.

The Additional Skill Acquisition Programme (ASAP) started by the Kerala government under the General Education and Higher Education Department is primarily focused on providing skill based training for school and graduate students in the state. The training, which includes special skill courses that can be chosen by students, along with proficiency courses in English language and Information Technology, is being provided free of cost, giving a focus to students from financially backward families.

The project, started in 2012, has been widely successful and has been expanded to 1,052 educational institutions across the state, offering 83 courses from 24 sectors.

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Watch how children in Kerala's Idukki access online classes: