Facebook Launching Courses In India Centered Around Jobs, Digital Safety, Augmented Reality

Facebook Inc FB is partnering with an Indian government-run school body, the Central Board of Secondary Education, to provide a curriculum designed for secondary school students.

What Happened

The social media giant will offer courses related to digital safety, online well-being, and augmented reality for both students and teachers in India, in partnership with the school board, reported TechCrunch.

The program is aimed at helping students prepare for current and emerging jobs. It will also help students stay safe on the internet and help them make “well informed choices.”

In the first phase of the program, training will be provided to 10,000 teachers, and in the second phase, 30,000 students will receive instruction. 

Why It Matters

India’s Union Home Minister of Human Resources Development, Ramesh Pokhriyal, said that teachers and students could begin applying Monday for the programs, reported TechCrunch.

The three-week AR training will cover the use of Facebook’s Spark AR Studio. Facebook and CBSE will also utilize its Instagram Toolkit for Teens in the program.

Last year, Facebook launched a digital literacy drive in India called “Digital Udaan” in collaboration with Reliance Jio, an Indian cellular and internet services provider. 

The Facebook-Jio initiative, provided in 10 languages, targets first-time internet users and engages users on Internet safety and mobile application use, reported Mint, an Indian business publication.

In April, Facebook invested $5.7 billion in Jio and picked up a nearly 10% stake in the Indian internet services firm.

Price Action

Facebook shares traded 0.21% higher at $233.90 in the after-hours session on Thursday. The shares had closed the regular session 1.74% lower at $233.42.