Convergence of Thought Leadership across the Globe

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July 1, 2011

The Millennium Development Goal of Universal Primary Completion by 2015 is by no means the only challenge in front of education systems across the world. It is only the first step toward the definitive goal of lifelong learning for all citizens, which is as relevant for the poorest countries of the developing world as it is for the countries of the developed world. With an endeavor of so much promise and reform, this special issue of digitalLEARNING is being presented at the World Education Summit, which is a confluence of global thought leaders to mull over the issues pertaining to the global education scenario.

All countries, no matter how far they are today from universal primary completion, must simultaneously invest in and promote the balanced development of all levels of their education systems. In a globally integrated and highly competitive world economy, multi stakeholder partnership initiatives can be effective in supporting and even expediting the ongoing education reforms for a more sustainable education system. Irina Bokova, Director General, UNESCO has emphasised that the partnerships of education programme have several assets. It is an effective advocacy channel and provides the tool to strengthen the understanding and coordination between stakeholders.

With a vibrant global education community working towards realising education opportunities for all, there is a need to raise awareness and support the implementation of relevant, sustainable and scalable national education sector plans on a global level through the increased commitment of the private and public sectors.
India is undergoing a wonderful transition period in education with guided by a visionary leadership. With the passage of the Foreign Education Provider Bill, establishment of the campuses of Indian institutions outside the country, coming over of global schools with foreign alliances, Indian education has certainly become globalised both inwards and outwards. The world in which we live today, demands global education for our students. Our geopolitical environment and economic fates are getting increasingly inter-connected. This situation clearly indicates that one needs to develop a new set of competitive skills to become a global workforce. The influence and prominence of the Indian students has already long been established on the global forefront.

It is about time for us to share our lessons, practices and ideas with each other globally and to convert these efforts into a sustainable way to not only promote global harmony but also to bring the global community on a united platform. It is indeed a historical and proud moment for the digitalLEARNING magazine, having covered a journey of more than six years, as it sets to present the World Education Summit 2011 in India along with IGNOU. We welcome all of you to join, share and contribute to the larger spectrum of education that has already gained momentum.

faculty Deficit in higher education

Magazine

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digitalLEARNING Network

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July 1, 2011

There is an urgent need to focus on shortage of teaching faculty in higher learning, which can be done by attracting top rank holders in universities and institutions of higher education

We are on the threshold of a new era in the history of human civilisation. An era dominated and often driven by knowledge. Access to knowledge and an ability to use it for one’s own advantage have become more important than access to natural resources and capital. The emerging knowledge economy depends critically on the ready availability of adequate human resource with the right knowledge and intellectual skills.

India with a billion plus population and a varied demography has an excellent window of opportunity in this new economy. However, our educational system needs to be substantially upgraded to impart globally competitive training if we have to make use of this opportunity. India has seen major investments and promises of new investments in higher education in the recent times both by the government and by the private sector. The biggest challenge for India is however, the non-availability of competent faculty to teach in these institutions. This challenge defies simple and quick-fix solutions since, it takes several years of hard training to groom a competent teacher in any branch of higher learning. It is a well known fact that a career in teaching begins late with the average age of person being close to 30.

The increasing number of career options, attractive salaries in some other streams of employment that are high in demand, globalisation of the market place for trained people, all dissuade potential students to take up teaching careers. The salary scales and the career options in a teaching position offer little to offset the disadvantages of late entry. Consequently, the best of students today have little motivation to take up higher education and research leading to teaching as a career. This will only lead to further shortages of good quality teachers in the coming years. Any corrective measure will require several years to show results. Clearly, there is an urgent need to attract the best students to teaching careers with reasonable opportunities and a nurturing career option. While it would be difficult to match corporate compensation packages, the teaching profession at the highest level has always had an aura to attract committed students and it is this attraction that one should make use of while removing some of the well known disincentives.

A good measure could be targeting the top rank holders in universities and other institutions of higher learning such as the IIT’s, IISER’s, IIM’s etc. having a first class masters degree in basic sciences, social sciences and humanities, first class bachelors degree in engineering, medical sciences and other equivalent degrees. Within one month after declaration of results, by a process of interviews or personal discussions, admit about 200 candidates (crème dela crème) as Junior Faculty Interns for a period of two years and depute them to pursue M.Phil. or M.Tech. in selected Institutions of Higher learning. During this period, they are attached to a guide/mentor and 20 percent of their time is to be devoted to teaching assignments (tutorials, lectures, assignments, student guidance, etc.). The Junior Faculty Interns are to be paid a stipend equivalent to the total emoluments of a lecturer in a central university. On successful completion of Stage I as a Junior Faculty Intern for two years, and after an evaluation of the candidates for a teaching career, they should be admitted for Ph.D. in selected Institutions as a Senior Faculty Intern. Again, working under a guide or mentor, they will devote nearly 20 percent of their time in teaching-related activities. A Senior Faculty Intern would be entitled to a stipend equivalent to the total emoluments of a senior lecturer in a central university. On successful completion of Stage II as a Senior Faculty Intern and after an Evaluation of the candidates for a teaching career, they should be deputed to leading Institutions in India and abroad for two years for Post-Doctoral studies. On successful completion of Stage III and after an evaluation of the candidates for a teaching career, they should be offered Assistant Professor positions in any of our Institutions of higher learning. In addition, the candidates should also be provided a start-up research grant. A limited horizontal induction at Stages II – IV may be resorted to in the beginning. The scheme will thus build a pipeline to supply quality faculty to our Institutions of higher learning in all branches of knowledge at a very affordable cost without any major new investments in infrastructure. The present strategy of poaching teachers from elsewhere is unlikely to take us far.\\

“Management Education Can’t Rely Upon Outdated Nostrums”

Interviews

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digitalLEARNING Network

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July 1, 2011

Professor Philip Taylor, Academic Director of Programmes, Strathcylde SKIL Business School shared his thoughts and views on the Indian education scenario and their roadmap for the Indian market with Pragya Gupta. Excerpts:

How do you see India as a market for higher education?

All informed commentators, including the Government of India, acknowledge that the demand for higher education is set to grow significantly in the short to medium term. For the next few decades, India’s population will remain young, and higher education will be needed to equip them to play their rightful roles in the knowledge economy. Due to the economic growth in the Indian economy, and as more and more families join the relatively better off sections of society, the demand for higher education is likely to grow at an accelerated pace. Expansion will grow apace particularly in the area of business and management studies at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

What pedagogical innovations are you planning to bring in India?

Strathclyde SKIL Business School (SBSS) is adopting a unique and coherent approach to delivering education in India through our state-of-the-art campus in Greater Noida. This is not an off-shored facility but a fully integrated campus within the University of Strathclyde that has a unique partnership with SKIL.

A key element in our pedagogy is the importance of delivering high quality education that applies theoretical knowledge emanating from cutting edge research to concrete practical setting. Strathclyde’s philosophy is best encapsulated in the fulfilment of its mission as ‘The Place of Useful Learning’. This underlying principle will inform the first programme to be delivered by SBSS, the Master in Management which commences in September 2011, and the Bachelor in Business Studies which follows in September 2012 and then the MBA in September 2013.

What are the challenges enduring in the Indian market? What are the key issues that need to be addressed to produce more skilled and quality workforce?

The main challenge in the Indian market is to ensure that the demand for business and management undergraduate and postgraduate education can be fulfilled by premium provision which ensures that students are able to access the highest quality learning experience.

Managers in the contemporary Indian context face the enormous challenge of leading their organisations in conditions of rapid change. Indeed it could be argued that the only constant is change. It follows that the emerging generation of business and management graduates and postgraduates are equipped with ability to apply their knowledge in complex and contradictory situations.

How can management education in India be reinvented in a way that can project it to the forefront of leadership and management training worldwide?

Management education in India cannot consist of rote learning or rely upon outdated nostrums. Successful managers must be able to draw upon the knowledge derived from the very cutting edge of critical management research and be steeped in an approach which understands the vital need for creative application of problem solving based upon that knowledge. In this sense advanced theoretical understanding based upon contemporary research is of great necessity for informed managerial and business practice.

What are your expectations from the Indian government?

We believe that the Indian Government is very focussed on the importance of making education available to the Indian population across all geographies and at all levels. In order to do this, we are seeing the Government moving away from what was largely a prescriptive regime towards a more participative environment where the learners and educators are able to interactively decide what the content of education needs to be, and how this should be designed and delivered so that it can be harnessed for the betterment of both society and the individual. We expect this trend to continue and indeed accelerate both in scope and pace.

Please share you plans and roadmap for the Indian market?

India is a focus area for us, and we see the Indian market to be one of the core areas for us. We have started with management education in Greater Noida, and over the span of the next three years, we will be rapidly expanding the scope to cover undergraduate students and persons with experience with the BBS and the MBA programmes. Our plans are to set up other centres across India in the years ahead, and also to expand the disciplines to cover Science and Engineering, other subjects in which the University of Strathclyde is a recognised leader.

Kindly shed light on the reason for the collaboration between SKIL and Strathclyde?

SKIL Infrastructure is one of the leading infrastructure developers in India. In our early discussions, it became evident that SKIL was bringing the practical perspective from India to the equation. This is critical in any such venture

"Higher Education Drives and is Driven by Globalisation" : Prof K S Rangappa, Vice Chancellor – Karnataka State Open University

Interviews

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digitalLEARNING Network

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July 1, 2011

Prof K S Rangappa, the Vice Chancellor of Karnataka State Open University has three decades of research and teaching experience as Junior and Senior Research Fellow, Lecturer, Reader, Professor and Director at Post Graduate Department of Chemistry, University of Mysore. Prof. K S Rangappa highlights evolving higher education in India and role of ICT in an interview with Pragya Gupta, digitalLEARNING bureau

How do you see higher education evolving in India with respect to global scenario?

Globalisation is changing the structure of higher education radically by moving the services across boundaries, instead of the movement of people across the borders as witnessed earlier. Such migration of education from its location to new locations in search of clients is necessitating institutions of higher education in India to reorganise themselves to withstand the competition from the developed countries. Globalisation helps realise the benefits of free trade, and thus comparative advantage and the division of labour. It is also supposed to enhance efficiency and productivity. In this context there is a need for a common table to discuss the issues and challenges faced in higher education, the World Education Summit 2011 event is an answer to this.

One response to the danger of losing one’s job due to the erosion of professional qualifications or to the loss of markets, causing the breakdown of enterprises, is to increase the average level of active population qualifications. This could be accomplished through both enhanced initial education and training and through expansion of continuing education. The latter will involve upgrading, extending or reconverting professional knowledge and skills, in order to keep abreast of market needs, either as an employee or a self-employed person. Higher education should be able to produce, in the long run, enough graduates to assure that they reach roughly one-half of the active population. Continuing education and training should take the shape of genuinely learning, touching not only the whole occupationally active population but also all remaining members of the civil society.

Prof. Rangappa received his PhD from the University of Mysore (1982) and has been awarded the DSc degree by the University of Mysore for his independent research contribution (1998). He is the Fellow of The Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC; UK) and Fellow of National Academy of Sciences (FNASc) India.

Apart from the research activities of his own group, he has developed several National and International (Indo

Building Excellence in Education : Smt D Purandeswari, Minister of State, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India, India

Interviews

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digitalLEARNING Network

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July 1, 2011

Smt D Purandeswari,
Minister of State, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India

Smt D Purandeswari, Minister of State, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India shares plans, outreach and challenges in education while talking to Dr Rajeshree Dutta Kumar and Pragya Gupta

Please share your views on ideal scenario of education system in India.

First, we must remember that education is the fastest driver of socio-economic change. It is very important that we have a very strong education system that will support our needs and requirements and also support country’s growth and development. In order to respond to the challenges and issues within our own country, we need to bring in reforms in our education system. Education system introduced by colonial rulers had outgrown its relevance and there was grave necessity to put an education system in place that addresses our requirements.

The University Education Commission was thereby constituted under the leadership of Prof S Radhakrishnan. His recommendations emphasised that the then education system did not have any relevance and did not relate to modernity. He urged that the education system must change itself according to the needs and requirements of the nation. More than 50 years after, time has now arrived to bring in changes in order to suit the needs of our education system.

Globalisation is a reality and is here to stay, entailing that there is a need to prepare children not only to support the growth and development of the country but also that of the globe. This indicates the need to churn out global citizens. In view of that we are now looking to bring changes in the education. I would like to call the current education scenario interseting and challenging. Interesting because of exponential expansion in education sector be it elementary, secondary or higher education and challenging because not only do we need to firm up our education system to ensure that that they grow as global citizens.

Can you share with us the initiatives undertaken by your Ministry?

The ministry has made significant achievements under the leadership of Shri Kapil Sibal as he set a 100 days target so that we can achieve it without any complacency seeping into the system. That is how we have been bringing certain legislations like RTE (Right to Education) bill and were able to do amendments. We are looking at the exponential expansion in higher education sector. We are now looking into different bills to come in. We are looking at Education Tribunal bill. We are looking at Foreign Education Provider bill, which is presently there with the law ministry. Once it will be recognised by them it will be introduced. We are looking at establishing an education tribunal to address the issues, which education institutions faced. Suppose if there is a professor or teacher in a college or school who feels that their terms were not fulfilled or they were misled, they can approach the tribunal. Because we do not want institution to be hanged in a courtroom for long to get their cases resolved. Rather, we want fast track tool in education institution.

We are also looking at Prevention of Education Malpractices Act. The students who have been cheated by the institution or if they find that said conditions have not been fulfilled in terms of faculty, infrastructure, fee, etc., then the students can take them to court with this act. I am sure parliament will support this bill, which will bring great change in the education system.

How can our children cater to the global requirements in the light of shortage of skilled workforce? How can industry support us?

Children must support the requirements of our country first then they can go to become global citizen. There has been an apprehension that there is a great gap between what the universities are offering, the industry and market requirements and what universities are churning out. There has been a long debate. My own experience says that four-five years ago when we opened dialogue with private sector to come to the table and discuss about their needs so that we can put them into operation, we did not see enthusiasm by private sector or the industry then.

But today we see that the private sector is willing to come forward and we also want to stretch out our hands to them and sit together to discuss with them so that our children should get meaningful education. It is happening because today both of us look at it as a win-win situation. We considers it as a win-win situation because we are ensuring children employment. If we work with industry then we will ensure providing children with gainful employment. Industry considers it as a win-win situation because unless we give them quality education, there will not be quality manpower out of university. So the situation is such that both of us have to sit together.

What are the initiatives taken by your Ministry for promoting vocational education?

Vocational stream is also the focus today. Honourable Prime Minister has emphasised that we need to up skill 500 million children by 2020. The Skill Development Council has been constituted and it is under the review and purview of Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). Skill development is spread across 17 ministries and departments, and in order to avoid overlapping, the PMO has taken the responsibility to coordinate and review the situation.

Under the skill development mission we have Polytechnics. This mission concentrates and focuses on skill development. In this processes, we can now see piecemeal development happening but there is no proper certification available. When it comes to skills that our children have actually acquired, we feel that the certification is important as this certificate will be recognised wherever the child goes across the length and breadth of the country. Probably, we will think of tying up with the international bodies as well. Presently, we are focusing on children’s skills being recognised and they be given due employment.

Secondly there would be no exploitation of any child. Today, if a child does not undergo formal education system, his / her skills are not recognised and there is an exploitation and under payment. National Vocational Education Qualification Framework (NVEQF) has been constituted, which will probably be the national body that will certify the skills acquired by students. We have opened dialogue with various industrial sectors so that we could work together. We want them to give us guidance in the form of curriculum that a sector requires.

We also have to see how do we integrate vocational education to conventional education. A child after sometime may realise that he is interested in going back to college, and it will not be possible unless we establish a connect between the two. Unless this connection happens, we do not think that there will be respect and dignity that will be given to vocational education. It has been looked down as a stream where ‘not so good’ children go. So that apprehension should be dispelled and dignity should be given to vocational education.

We interacted openly with sectors like automotive, IT, ITES, Construction and are looking forward to interact with hospitality sector also. These are sectors that generate lot of employment. We are looking at different levels of skills required in each sector. We have constituted a committee to be a part of NVEQF and asked them to give us direction on the curriculum and testing of the skills of the children .

Do you see any direct relationship between conventional higher education system and that of vocational?

We do want them to be in relation with each other. Unless, we give the child vertical or horizontal mobility, in vocational education, which will give options like multi entry and multi exit, the child will not want to come into vocational education. Today we cannot have children who just come out of secondary school education and get into the higher education where there is no employment opportunity for them. We rather have them skilled and then gainfully employed to offer better support to their families and contributing to the growth of the country.

“Prevention of Education Malpractices Act will lend a hand to the children who have been cheated by the institution”

Do you advocate Vocational education for schools?

Yes. It will give the child a feel of what vocational education is. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has already incorporated vocational education into the curriculum at the level of secondary education. A child in class 8th to 10th is already exposed to vocational stream. It helps in exploring the child’s latent talent. Once the child gets the feel of Vocational education then the child can take it up further too.

Can you share with us the impact on GER (Gross Enrolment Ratio)?

Drop out ratio in school education has seen positive changes as it has came down. For GER, we go according to the census and 2001 census has revealed that GER in Higher Education is not more than 12.4 percent. Today, it is expected to be around 14 percent, according to general estimate, since we have not got the figures in hand. Various surveys have emphasised that if our economy has to be sustainable, then GER needs to be 20 percent whereas international average is 23 percent. All developed countries are anywhere between 40-70 percent. So we know there is herculean task ahead of us. Vocational education can help in achieving GER in one aspect. Distance education can help us achieving our target. These are various aspects within the education sector that can help us in achieving GER but we also have to look at the literacy level. Presently, literacy level is around 65 percent and we want to enhance it to 80 percent. In terms of diversity it is a challenge to reach out to diverse sectors. So even 65 percent achievement, keeping in mind the multitudnal diversity of the country, is a wonderful feeling. Of course we can not get complacent. We have to set a target of 80 percent for the literacy level. So the distance education, the vocational education, and the skill development mission will help us to achieving the set literacy rate target.

The mandate of Right to Education enhances the accessibility of Education. Does the act address quality and quantity aspects?

Right to Education addresses both qualitative and quantitative aspect of education. Quantitative in terms of improving accessibility. Through SSA (Sarva Siksha Abhiyan), to a large extent, our focus has been on accessibility because accessibility, equity and quality are the key pillars of our education system.

First is accessibility, unless we have children coming to school, we cannot talk about quality. So all our focus has been on how we make education accessible. We need to create the infrastructure so that the child can actually access the school within the kilometer range for an elementary level. Since, we have reached that quantitative in SSA, we are now looking at secondary education and we have the flagship programme RMSA (Rashtriya Madhyamik Siksha Abhiyan) where we are looking at lower primary, lower secondary school at every three kilometers and higher secondary school at every five kilometers. Now that is also a herculean task keeping the geographical largeness of the country and the numbers and demographies in the country.

In this regard, we have also requested the state governments because RTE is not the legislation that is going to be only implemented by Government of India. It is the legislation, which is going to be implemented closely with the state governments. So the state governments need to play their part very effectively and responsibly. We have asked them to have GIS (Geographical Information System) mapping of all the schools for the citizens to know where the schools should be and what we mean by neighborhood schools. Because there are areas in some states where all the schools probably are concentrated in a particular place. It is very important to address the geographical disparity.

After we have addressed the quantity, our focus is on quality. Now if you look at RTE bill very closely, we can not have quality education being given to our children unless we have qualitative teachers in the class. RTE lays down the qualifications for the teachers. It also says that teacher have to pass the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET), which has been introduced by NCTE (National Council for Teacher Education), a nodal organisation to lay down the qualification for the teachers to be covered under RTE. We are ensuring the qualitative teachers are now going to be put in place.

NIOS (Natinal Institute of Open Schooling) should ensure, as an open schooling system, to impart skill oriented programme that may give age relevant coaching to the child to be brought into the conventional education. As far as quality is concerned, once we have qualitative teachers in place, we have great organisation like (NCERT) National Council for Education, Research and Training, which is going to come up with National Curriculum Framework widely respected by all states and across the country.

Technology has Made Teaching Easy : Amit Gupta, CEO – S Chand Group, India

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digitalLEARNING Network

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July 1, 2011

A mechanical engineer with specialisation in operations management from Yamaha Motor Company, Amit Gupta, CEO, S Chand Group realises that e-learning is a way of life. In an interaction with Dr Rajeshree Dutta Kumar and Pragya Gupta, he shares insights about e-Learning and school education in India.

Share your views on the current education scenario. What is the role of e-learning in our school education?

I personally feel, e-learning is something that is already a part of life. Today, computer based learning, the internet, mobile and technology in general, across multiple domains has made information accessible to everyone. It has a major role in our school education. In school education your subject knowledge is not very important, but social skills are. The technology has made teaching very easy. Policy makers should provide teachers and educators with flexible technology-aided educational solutions tailored to the unique needs of students. I feel that e-learning is a way of life.

How can the private players facilitate e-learning?

Let the private players interact at large with the education system. Giving an ‘actual shape to PPP models’, allowing more private participation and benefit to maximum number of schools. Students today are exposed to technology in every aspect of their life. Therefore, it is key that our schools provide them similar 21stcentury learning environment in their classrooms too. Healthy competition stimulates growth and ensures striving for excellence, avoids complacency. e-learning is an exciting, growing field; but a large number of challenges are there. I am hopeful that the strengths of S. Chand will ensure our leadership in this new arena as in the field of publishing.

What is the role of technology in creating a better teaching-learning environment for students and teachers?
We should train our teachers and empower them to be able to use tools and technology effectively in their teaching practices. We should provide the basic infrastructure for sustained change in the form of technology – enabled learning environments. We need to provide spirally organised multimedia content based on sound pedagogical approach. This will ensure that the students can grow from one level of learning to the next, constructing new ideas based on their existing knowledge. Project-based learning allows students to acquire 21stcentury skills in the context of real-world scenarios. The integration of video and other media to support instruction links students with outside resources and enables teachers to address many learning styles at once. Never before have we had so much information as to how children learn, and we must seize this opportunity to bring about the much needed change in the way curriculum transaction takes place in our classrooms.

What specific issues within the e-education sector can your product
or services address?
We have our own standing in the field of academic textbooks. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt brings with them the complete understanding of emerging needs; they bring experience, content, products and investments. This is complemented by us to help meet local needs and carry out joint development. We launched a programme called Destination Success. This programme is a technology-enabled education solution using world-leading K-12 content. It is an interactive learning proposition that meets all the elements of CBSE’s directives. We have implemented this programme quite successfully in huge private schools in India and abroad and it has benefitted students and teachers. Today, worldwide the role of publishing companies has changed. In S.Chand, we have to recover knowledge partner. We have to re-structure as a learning and knowledge company. We need change to bring overall awareness in terms of the mindsets of people, in order to accept holistic learning and adopt e-learning. We are complementing K-12 education and bringing the latest instructional design and pedagogical inputs to the classroom. These issues are presently not being handled in teacher training. We will be bringing services in the knowledge sector, not only for academic purposes but for using assessment as a tool for identifying areas which need special attention or enrichment supplements. We have also partnered with global leaders to bring to India products for learning literacy and language skills in English and for learning mathematical concepts and computational skills. The first prerequisite for developing a 21stcentury learning community is the involvement of all the stakeholders including district leaders, principals, teachers, students, parents, and the business community. It is imperative that all stakeholders be involved in putting together a roadmap to bring about the requisite changes in the educational system, to prepare students for the workforce. The moot question here is – how prepared are we really to address this urgent need? The answer, unfortunately, is no.

Do you feel that reforms are needed in upgrading the curriculum?
Education reforms are a must and there must be involvement of educationists. We are not using technology in a proper way in our school education and it is not a one-way process. Right to Education (RTE) is something which I welcome. There must be some public private partnership model in it. Ministry of Human Resource Development has no plans for PP in school education. But there is tremendous disconnect from plan to implementation in Government approach and there is no clarity. We have taken professional development as a separate vertical. First, we are working with CBSE. Also, we have a lot of training workshops for the use of technology. When the CBSE urged schools to follow the guidelines as stated in the National Policy of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in school education, we decided to throw in our lot. The CBSE schools were asked to set up at least one classroom for each class in the schools equipped with technology that would enable usage of digital instruction materials. That was when we decided to branch out into this emerging sector .

What other challenges you find in our education?
There is a disconnect between what is being taught in classrooms across the country today and the expected skills a student needs to be ready for the 21st century workspace, is stating the obvious. In a world fast shrinking to a global village, skills like global literacy, computer literacy, creativity, critical thinking, problem solving, effective communication and collaboration skills are essential for any child to grow up to be an effective and productive part of the society. \\

Technology plays a major role in universalising education : Eduard Metzger, CEO, Director-Technology (EMEA) ,CYBERNETYX Intreraktiv UG

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digitalLEARNING Network

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July 1, 2011

Eduard Metzger
CEO, Director-Technology (EMEA) ,
CYBERNETYX Intreraktiv UG

Eduard Metzger, CEO, Director-Technology (EMEA), CYBERNETYX Intreraktiv UG in an interview with Pragya Gupta, talks about development of education in India

What are your views on technology adoption in India with respect to the west?

In our view, the Indian education sector is developing very well due to investments into new technologies. The whole world today is looking very optimistically at the expansion of the Indian education sector based on strong fundamentals of ICT. Due to the sheer size and volume of the Indian education sector, we believe technology can and will play a very vital role in the access to widespread education in the country.

What is the market size for digital classrooms according to you andwhat is growth forecast?
Globally, the market for digital classrooms is growing, especially in India, this market is growing very fast. But till now, the penetration of digital classrooms is rather limited in India than in certain other countries in the EU, perhaps even less than five percent vis-àvis a 95 percent plus penetration in the UK and some other countries in the EU. On the market analysis arena, though there are certain reports available on the public domain, there is a dearth of any validated data on the exact size of the market in India. Due to the advent of a good number of education content providers working on the build-operate-transfer (BOT) project financing model in India and thus the increasing affordability and awareness about the revolutionary benefits of interactive technologies in classrooms, we believe that an install-base of 100,000 IWB units can be accomplished in the next 1-2 years in the Indian subcontinent with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) exceeding 25 percent year on year and the global annual market size can reach 1,000,000 units as soon with a CAGR of around 15 percent. Overall, it’s a great time to be in the ICT industry in the global education sector.
Please share your strategies to emerge as the preferred brand. What are your plans to enhance your presence in Indian schools?
Our strategy is to deliver advanced and next-generation technological solutions at a low price. We believe that technology for education shouldn’t be expensive and every student should have a chance to access these assets. Our focus is on developing next-generation intuitive products for the classrooms, which make the process of teaching and learning more fun. We are very aggressive in our presence in the Indian schools. Today, we are already working with several partners in India, including some of the world’s largest education companies to increase the penetration of our natural-user technologies in the schools.

India’s supplemental education represents a US $15 billion market opportunity over the next decade. What are your plans to utilise the opportunity?
Our plans are to develop more products like touch-interactive devices for the educational sector and other sectors and to promote EyeRIS, our flagship stereoscopic interactive whiteboard solution along with continuous improvements. Our products will help the students in form of hardware and software to make the best of their learning. Additionally, we develop special features on demand by our clients, so that they get the sense of ownership and provide them the best support we can give. Further, we are developing several technological tools beyond IWBs, like Optical trackers, Fiducial-touch engines, Augmented Reality setups and so on, which will act as tools to aid the technology- based expansion of education in India.

What is your view on Foreign Education Provider bill?
We welcome this decision as very positive step which will create opportunities
for world-class universities to set foot in the country and also enable Indian universities to collaborate with them. Overall, we believe that this move will increase the standard of education and promote state-of-the-art infrastructure and technology in education. There is need for quality education
and the existing institutes need to tighten their belts and improve the quality of
education to be able to compete with the universities who come here. It is good for students, as they do not have to go abroad and they can admissions at a lower cost. As a technology-solution provider for the education sector, it’s good for us as the awareness about world-class interactive solutions will increase manifold.

Tell us more about the genesis of your organisation in the e-learning
domain?
It all began with the idea of an afford- able and next generation interactive whiteboard solution for schools. We have always believed that devices like IWBs can do much more than their current state in the industry and have developed all our interactive solutions based on the same notion. Our approach has always been to work very closely with our clients and develop a product, which perfectly fits their needs. This way our products could grow in a very healthy way. We have developed a good understanding for the right needs of our clients. We believe that every customer is an asset to us and a source of new ideas. Today, the widespread global recognition that we have received and accolades for our EyeRIS and other interactive products are a bright testimony to that.

Please shed some light on new product development?
Cybernetyx has strong continuing development on EyeRIS to add functionalities like touch-less interactivity, augmented reality and pattern-recognition to the product line, making it even more diverse and advanced than the existing breed of interactive whiteboard solutions. EyeRIS has been raised ground-up to serve as a tool to access the educational content and other digital data in a hyper-interactive way using touch-less gestures, and iPad-like multitouch capabilities, and we are constantly striving to make that experience
better for our clients. Additionally, our newer touch-enabled devices, Interactive-Walls and Touch-Tables, are getting ready for a global launch in the latter half of this quarter, with amazing capabilities and utility across various verticals. As discussed before, we are keen on partnering with organisations having similar focus on the educational industry to augment the widespread access to our interactive solutions. \\

“Digital Medium needs to be in Sync with Tech Age” : Anita Bir, Principal- RN Podar School

Interviews

By

digitalLEARNING Network

-

July 1, 2011

Anita Bir, Principal, RN Podar School, in conversation with Rachita Jha on her perspective of technology in school education

What will be the new avatar of schools in the digital age?

Children today are digital natives and we have to keep pace with them; we have to bridge the digital divide

Children today are digital natives and we have to keep pace with them; we have to bridge the digital divide – it is a necessity today for schools to be equipped and not be intimidated by technology. Moreover,n the country today needs to address the availability of quality education to a large number of children distributed across urban and rural areas-and this can only be possible using technology as one of the solutions. The availability of teachers, especially good teachers is a major problem in schools, and to resolve this difficulty, distance education will be the way forward for school education in India, and technologies such as Skype and video-conferencing can be viable solutions for them. Our approach towards brining technology to schools is also gaining much recognition amongst students and parent. This shows that the school is making an effort to keep pace with the latest teaching and learning aids, in addition to creating a collaborative learning environment. Also, a disconnect and barrier that the child faces when he or she compares school to the home is broken, when he uses similar social networking or technology applications for connecting with classmates and teachers in the school itself. Technology, Internet and digital medium are the only way forward for schools to be in sync with the technology age.

How do you ensure the effective use of interactive boards in your
school?
We were the first schools to introduce interactive boards in all our classrooms
way back in 2006. And initially when we brought-in this technology, it got
the students excited but the teachers were apprehensive on being equipped to
teach using a tech tool. We then created a group of seniors students, who provided hand-holding for the teachers and this created a new wave of collaborative learning between the teachers and the taught. This introduced the teachers to the world of technology and created interest even among subject teachers in languages such as Hindi and Sanskrit to use the software. So, the introduction of the interactive boards also taught us of the various ways that the teachers and students can integrate technology in schools effectively. Not every teacher is aware of the interactive boards and, therefore, when we induct new teachers, we ensure that they undergo an in-depth orientation programme on the software and how it is used in the classrooms.
How can Facebook and other social networking sites be used for
schools and support teaching and learning?
We have created an appetite for brining in latest technologies in schools in the minds of teachers and students alike. We don’t content ourselves with a single technology platform that we adopted few years ago. We have tried to constantly adapt and keep pace with the new technological advancements that are taking place. Keeping this in mind, lately we have started with our Facebook initiative, which has proved to be a huge success. It was more a social platform for interaction. We then planned to extend the experience into the classroom and experimented with Google docs and cloud computing. Each classroom created Google accounts for the students and parents and a sharing platform was created for all parentteacher and teacher-student interaction and information sharing. Today, we have 3000 parents with email accounts and
are part of the school cloud ecosystem. So it’s not just the school but also the parents who are using the platform to interact with oth er teachers. The connectivity with students and parents has become much closer and faster using the Google groups and docs applications.
How can a school nurture employ ability skills in students to help in
career development?
We realised early that it is not enough to give school students academic skills;
they need to have life skills. They should develop the ability to think and have
an opinion and express their views. Planting the seeds of thought is very important. They have to learn the adaptive skills. The jobs that are coming up today are not what the schools could have prepared the students for, so we
as a school aim to build the adaptability skills so they are ready to take on anything new in life. I think the real world is coming to schools and technology
has helped us prepare students for the future work environment.
Tell us your views on the steps taken by CBSE to create a progressive
school environment?
As a step forward in this regard, CBSE has now introduced a number of vocational courses to orient the students on the various opportunities that lie ahead of them. Another initiative is introduction of technology tools to get school education related data for all CBSE and other remote schools in India. We now do a Continuous Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) in which the Board evaluates the child over a period of time, this data is then sent to the Board electronically and the Board prints the report card for each student based on continuous performance and not just one final examination.
What are your recommendations for the planning commission with
respect to school education?
We are talking about a young India; this young India should be educated. And if
we have to educate such large number of children in the scenario of paucity of teachers, school infrastructure, and books, we have to harness technology to
make education for all a reality. And distance education will play a critical role
in this. The government should therefore have more planning and investments laid out for distance education to reach to larger sections of society that are yet to avail the benefits of quality education.

Tell us how do you plan to leverage technology in your school in
the future?
Open source applications such as Google apps and Google docs have proved as a
major boon to us. As a school, we have always believed in transparency in sharing information; and Google application is just an extension of that. It helps us to connect with our teachers, students and parents on one platform. As knowledge expands only by sharing, this platform has set in a new culture of collaborative learning using Google doc ecosystem for teachers, students and parents to benefit. \\

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