NIOS Launches Recording Studio

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May 1, 2011

NIOS’ new studio, inaugurated by Dr. D Purandeswari, Minister of State for Human Resource Development, will be used to record programmes for Vidya Darshan to telecast programmes with NCERT at a 12-hour stretch each

The hub of national news channels, radio stations, NOIDA, has seen the launch of a channel ‘Vidya Darshan’ on 13th April 2011. A Recording Studio, set up in premises of the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS), was inaugurated by the Honourable Minister of State for Human Resource Development, Dr. D. Purandeswari. Staff members from NIOS headquarters, Regional Centre Delhi and CWC were present at the occasion.

The Studio will be utilised for recording programmes for the proposed The Studio will be utilised for recording programmes for the proposed 24×7 School Education Channel, VidyaDarshan. While the NIOS proposes to telecast its programmes for 12 hours at a stretch, the NCERT will take up the remaining 12 hours in this channel. The NIOS has been utilising the electronic media to make the teaching and learning process more effective and efficient.
Audio and video programmes produced by the NIOS are significant components of the multi-channel package offered by NIOS. These programmes are also broadcast and telecast on Gyanvani and Gyandarshan channels. Further, the NIOS being one of the apex organizations for the flagship programme of Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) to universalise secondary education, the setting up of the Studio is a step in the direction of building its own infrastructure. Dr. Purandeswari, in her inaugural speech emphasized on the strong role to be played by the Open Schooling System at various levels in the implementation
of the Right To Education Act. She urged the NIOS to shoulder this responsibility with credibility and quality to reach out to about 80 lakh children who are out of school. She also pointed out that the 24×7 channel would be an innovative method to make learning interesting for learners by including interactive sessions to capture the interest of learners.
Appreciating the NIOS initiative to start a Community Radio Station soon, she felt that the NIOS should innovate and investigate new ways such as increased use of technology to reach out to the learners. Dr. S.S Jena, Chairman, NIOS, in his welcome address spoke about the milestone achieved by the NIOS in the form of the Recording Studio in its premises. He hopes that the NIOS would now be able to produce quality audio and video programmes to supplement its self learning material popularly referred to as “Teacher in Print”. Programme ended with vote of thanks by Sri G.G Saxena, Secretary,

Promising Future for Digital Content in Education

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May 1, 2011

Digital content has been one of the key elements for promoting and engaging students in the education sector. The massive opportunities are well being explored by educators all over the globe. Muti media content and technology has enabled educators to make their teaching learning process more engaging and exciting. The phenomenon is increasingly catching up in urban metros across India.

It is also encouraging to note that the decision makers are waking up to the need for enabling rural schools with ICT. The trend can be exemplified by the efforts of the Department of Information Technology which has announced a pilot project of setting up ICT centres in 247 out of 480 secondary and senior secondary schools in Ajmer. Several more initiatives by different State governments have shown that digitisation is going to make its presence felt in the rural hinterlands!

The recently launched Sakshat tablet demonstrates the continued attempt of the Ministry of Human Resource Development to bridge the digital divide in education. The tablet has been developed as a part of the National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technology that aims to link 25,000 colleges and 400 universities on the subcontinent in an e-learning programme via the Sakshat portal.

Digital classrooms are now going to become a mandatory requirement in K12, with the Central Board of Secondary Education issuing a directive to all affiliated schools to digitally enable their classrooms

Not only in India, digital content has come to address several issues of national importance in other countries. The Bangladesh government has facilitated a National e-Content Repository which will be used to promote trouble free access to available information on different areas including education, health and citizens rights. Open content today serves as a key solution for addressing the affordability and accessibility issues in higher education.

Opportunities also mean challenges, including those of producing pedagogically sound and good quality digital content for education. Setting principles and guidelines for quality and efficiency would help practitioners and designers consider the fitness of the digital content and the purpose which it serves. Issues such as the lack of infrastructure, training requirements and resources are key challenges that need to be addressed in the process of digitising school curriculum. Educational institutes May be open to change but the impediments that come in the way need to be productively addressed to ensure that the benefits are reaped by all.

Digital Learning in Management Studies

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May 1, 2011

Most top B-schools today, including INSEAD, Kellogg, Wharton, are focusing on hands-on learning in a bigway. Even companies today emphasise the use of experiential learning in the corporate training setup

Harvard Business School (HBS) invented the Master of Business Administration degree (MBA) in 1921. We are now 10 years away from celebrating 100 years of the MBA degree. After having pioneered various pedagogical methods such as case-based learning, HBS recently announced “bold, brave things” that will set the course for the entire field of management education for the next 100 years. From pure lecture based learning to projects to capstone to case studies, we are now seeing an evolution towards hands-on learning methods such as simulations, multimedia case studies and experiential learning tools.

It is indeed nice to see the hands-on component gaining ground in the management curriculum. In fact, the verb “manage” comes from the Italian word, maneggiare (to handle), which in turn derives from the Latin wordmanus (hand).

Most top B-schools today, including INSEAD, Kellogg, Wharton, are focusing on hands-on learning in a big. Even companies today emphasize the use of experiential learning in the corporate training setting.

The following drivers are likely to provide an impetus to digital learning in the management domain.

Safe Learning Environments

Airplane pilots undergo rigorous flight simulator exercises before they are allowed to man an actual aircraft. Doctors practice their skills on a cadaver long enough before they are allowed to do the real thing. When stakes are high, when lives are impacted, when actions are irreversible, it is imperative that a learning environment is created where the learners experience reality and experiment with their decisions in a safe manner.

Come to think of it, modern businesses are also high stakes, they also impact lives immensely and the actions of business managers are often irreversible. Doesn't it logically follow that business managers should also undergo such a training process in a virtual environment?

Need for Continuous Learning

There is a popular folklore about elephants and their mahouts in Kerala. In order to curb the free-roaming instinct of elephants, the mahouts tether a baby tusker to a strong tree with a chain. The baby elephant tries with all his might to free itself from the shackles. However, it is not yet strong enough to liberate itself. With all its efforts to break the chain going in vain, the elephant gives up its quest for freedom and stops struggling.

The most amazing part of the story is that the lesson learnt by the baby elephant is etched so deeply in its psyche that even when it grows up to be one of the strongest animals on the planet, it doesn't try to test its might against the chain. Even when it is tied with a tiny rope to a weak tree, the elephant doesn't break free. The mighty elephant limits its capabilities because of the lessons of the past.

Many of us, much like the elephant, succumb to the lessons of the past. Learning new paradigms is only one side of the equation for today's managers to cope with the onslaught of rapid changes in the business environment. The other essential side is unlearning the old paradigms. Walking around with remnants of concepts, ideas and habits that belong to an older paradigm is a sure-fire recipe to poor performance.

How can managers equip themselves with key skills to cope with the change? Clearly, paper based case studies from the '80s and '90s don't help because there have been so many fundamental transformations in the last few years that these case studies offer very little value in terms of reality.

There is a need for real-time learning systems that help learners unlearn and learn on a continuous basis. The dynamic nature of the multimedia cases, for example, can help the user understand how decisions taken and lessons learnt in the past, that May have been effective at that time May not be valid in the current scenario.

Removing silos in management education

Silos are bad. This message is hammered into an MBA grad's mind during the program. However, if you pay close attention to how the curriculum is structured in these programs, you would notice that there is a deep silo. Marketing professors don't interact with Finance professors and professors in the operations department don't have an idea of what is taught in the accounting course. Are not silos bad for B-schools and consequently, for the MBAs that go through the system, just as they are for companies? Are B-schools guilty of not doing what they preach? If yes, how can this be rectified?

Management education should be integrated and holistic. Technology based delivery method should be used to highlight the interconnectedness of the management domains and encourage students, for instance, to learn the financial aspects of a marketing campaign, the supply chain consequences of a new product introduction, the HR perspective of a system's change in an interconnected fashion. This approach is akin to the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software helping to remove organization silos and to integrate the enterprise.

From pure lecture based learning to projects to capstone to case studies, we are now seeing an evolution towards hands-on learning methods such as simulations, multimedia case studies and experiential learning tools

Facebook-isation of Learning

Mark Zuckerberg in one of his recent interviews mentioned that education is ripe for Facebook-isation. Learning inherently is a social activity. Students learn as much from the professors as from peers. It is interesting to see how students challenge each other, collaborate and construct meaning collectively. This form of learning is highly engaging, interactive and durable and produces much better learning experiences compared to traditional forms of learning.

Web 2.0-isation of management learning

Let's rewind back to the early days of the world-wide-web. If we jog our memories a little, we'd remember that websites in those days served the purpose of disseminating information in a predominantly one-way fashion. This is usually referred to as the Web 1.0 era. We are now living in the Web 2.0 era where hyper-interactive multi-way flow of information is the norm (In fact, experts have already started talking about the advent of the Web 3.0 era). Users not only require interaction with the website but the means to share their experiences with the other users of the site. Increasingly, we see this online trend spill over to the way businesses function as well. Businesses today interact and co-create products and services along with their end users. Given this trend, the key question we need to ask is, isn't it time that learning also became Web2.0-ised?

The reality, however, is that even today, knowledge is imparted largely in the Web 1.0 style. The instructor assumes the role of an expert and delivers a lecture, with very little interaction between him / her and the students, leave alone interaction between the students. This method of delivery is ripe for disruption. Social learning platforms that help students collectively construct meaning will go a long way in engaging students and elevate the learning.

Clearly digital learning is the way forward for management education. We are likely to witness a lot of innovations happening at B-schools and corporations alike for training a new breed of managers.

Technology Enhancing Intelligence, Capabilities : Anil Goyal, Director-Mexus Education Pvt Ltd

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May 1, 2011

Every child is intelligent and effective use of technology can act as a tool to help students to discover and enhance their intelligence and capabilities. As the Director of an education innovations company, Mexus Education Pvt Ltd, creating futuristic technology based model for education Anil Goyal strongly believes that the next big trend in ICT in education will be the paradigm shift from IT hardware and software to edutainment as the mode of education delivery in each classroom in India. In conversation with Rachita Jha shares his passion for innovative use of technology in classrooms

What made you start futuristic technology based education business?

If we compare the kind of education that was delivered during the Gurukul times with today, we find that although there were many techniques used in those times the content/information was less. Today we have the requirements to expose our learners to new areas of expertise, new challenges in higher education and new skill sets. Parents today also want to highlight specific abilities in their child and chart out his higher education path accordingly. This is an area, where interactivity through technology has become important, as the teacher now in his/her 40 minutes of classroom interaction has to deliver the best of her learning to student. This can be easily done using an innovative mix of various digital tools such as multimedia, interactive digital content and concept-based stimulators. However, in the overall philosophy of quality education delivery, technology can only act as a tool to enhance the multiple intelligence capabilities of millions of school students who go through the daily grind in our education system each day and teachers will always play role of facilitators in connecting the knowledge with the learner.

Please tell us about the journey of educational technology at Mexus?

Initially when we started in 2008, the major thrust area for us was on innovation in education and classrooms. We spent most of our time and resources in understanding the teaching gaps, understanding the many constraints that the teachers face in delivery of curriculum and make it new and innovative.

To ensure that we do not replicate what is already present in the market, we interacted with schools, teachers and students to understand more on the challenges in using the existing array of digital content.

It helped us to get a hands-on understanding on the gaps that exist in the current educational technology scenario. What we observed is a dry presentation of content that is picked up from textbooks, that is windows based or explorer based.

The Howard Gardner theory of multiple intelligences, by far, has been the foundation philosophy of all our educational initiatives and we strongly believe that each child is intelligent

Industry meets Academia via BITES

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May 1, 2011

Enhancing the quality of education and helping build quality manpower for IT industries, Board of IT Education Standards (BITES), in association with Karnataka technical education institutions, has bridged the industry-academia gap through innovative skill development programmes in IT. In conversation with Rachita Jha, Dr R Natarajan, Chairman, BITES shares his views on the emerging trends of technology in education sector. Excerpts:

What are your views on the adoption of IT platforms in Indian education and the content delivery?

India has witnessed massive initiatives in the last few decades both in public and private sector to employ IT platforms for enabling and enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of student learning. The National Program on Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL), a project funded by the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), was first conceived in 1999. The main objective of NPTEL program is to enhance the quality of engineering education in the country by developing curriculum-based video and web courses. This is being carried out by seven IITs and IISc Bangalore as a collaborative project.

In the first phase of the project, supplementary content for 129 web courses in engineering/science and humanities have been developed. Each course contains materials that can be covered in depth in 40 or more lecture hours. In addition, 110 courses have been developed in video format, with each course comprising approximately 40 or more one-hour lectures.

In the next phase other premier institutions are also likely to participate in content creation. Also there are several initiatives in the private sector to develop content and offer modular courses employing IT tools, at the school as well as the college levels.

What are the key activity areas outlined by BITES in its vision of fostering successful high quality industry-relevant IT education?

We have developed vision and mission statements for Board of IT Education Standards (BITES) through a workshop involving the participation of industry professionals and academic experts constituting our stakeholders. We aim to serve as a catalyst for nurturing excellence in our IT educational institutions, ensuring employability of our graduates, promoting quality of work of our faculty, strengthening interactions and networking among stakeholders, and enhancing global competitiveness of our IT industry. We have also obtained ISO 9000-2008 certification in order to streamline our activities.

Nine Key Activity Areas:

Advice on policy
Competitions and awards
Curriculum development
Databases
Faculty development
Industry-institute interaction
Institutional development
IT education standards and
Leadership development

What are the most successful technology platforms in Karnataka that are changing the paradigm of quality education?

Karnataka is an active participant in the TEQIP (Technical Education Quality Improvement Program), a World Bank-assisted national project for quality enhancement in technical education in India. Some proactive institutes, including Visvesvaraya Technological University, which affiliate almost all the technical institutions in the state, have several schemes for faculty development and quality improvement. Several major IT industries in Karnataka like WIPRO Mission 10X Program, Infosys Campus-Connect Program, TCS Sangam Program, also have active industry-institute networking programs. The Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) too has several initiatives for institutional development and employability enhancement, such as Employability Bridge. Technical institutions utilise the NPTEL and EDUSAT programs, both to overcome the faculty shortages and for supplementing classroom learning.

What are the major challenges that BITES faced in its success?

In our mission to offer quality technical skills, one of the key challenges that we face each day is of availability of scarce resources of faculty expertise and experience. The paucity of faculty is further challenged by their strict academic commitments and their time for taking up skill development programmes. It is very difficult to conduct faculty development programs for teachers during the academic session.

What is the importance of faculty training in IT education programmes and how do you train them in this?

Faculty members are the key to effective and efficient student learning. Their role has, however, undergone a significant change in recent years, as a result of several factors, including the diversity of learning opportunities available to the 21st century learners, the unique characteristics of Gen X learners, the proliferation of IT tools and platforms. The faculty member of today is more a coach or mentor rather than a dispenser of knowledge. The teacher is no longer the sage on the stage, but a guide on the side.

Distance Education will play an important role in making ‘education for all’ a reality. How do you perceive IT as a catalyst for faster realisation of the dream?

From an e-Learning 2.0 perspective, conventional e-learning systems were based on instructional packets that were delivered to students using Internet technologies. The role of the student comprised learning from the readings and preparing assignments evaluated by the teachers whereas, the new e-learning places increased emphasis on social learning and use of social software such as blogs, wikis, podcasts and virtual worlds. This phenomenon has also been referred to as Long Tail Learning.

How can we have more private-industry partnerships in vocational education? What is its current scene in Karnataka?

Vocational Education can play a significant role in at least two ways: as a formal qualification conferred by ITIs, or as employability-enhancement programs, which may be conducted by stand-alone finishing schools or provided by the employers as induction or in-service programs. There are a few private Finishing Schools in Karnataka. There are also private agencies offering programs for development of soft skills, which seem to be the major area of employability deficit.

What will be the role and importance of standards-setting in technological education in the coming years? BITES’ mantra to success.

The MHRD has been pro-active in establishing appropriate regulatory agencies in higher and technical education. Many reforms, now in the offing, would be passed into law through bills pending in the Parliament. In distance education, the regulatory responsibility rests with the Distance Education Council, comprising IGNOU, UGC and AICTE.

BITES bring together major players in higher and technical education, with particular reference to IT, including industry, academia and government. Key reasons for our success have been collaboration, engagement, and motivation, with the stakeholders. It is also important to have the leaders from these sectors on the board to engage in constructive dialogue and together work towards a common goal.

Collaborations: The Main Focus of UKEIRI : Sally Goggin, Director Education, British Council India & Sri Lanka

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May 1, 2011

Sally Goggin, Director Education, British Council India & Sri Lanka, in conversation with Sheena Joseph, details out the various strands of the UK India Education and Research Initiative (UKIERI) and its achievements during the past five years

Could you provide us with a brief background of the UK India Education and Research Initiative (UKIERI)?

UK India Education and Research Initiative (UKIERI) was initiated at a meeting between the Indian Prime Minster Dr Manmohan Singh and the then Prime Minster of UK, Mr Tony Blair. The aim was to strengthen and re-affirm the historical linkages that both the countries have shared in diverse areas. Started in April 2006, the main objective of UKIERI has been to enhance educational links between India and the UK. UKIERI has been successful in covering all segments of the education sector by working with universities, colleges, schools and technical institutions.

After the completion of the first five years, both governments have confirmed funding for UKIERI and the programme aims to now deliver systemic change by reaching out to larger numbers.

The School Partnership Strand of the UKIERI has been contributing significantly towards creating a life-long relationship amongst young people in UK and India. Can you provide details of your K12 initiatives?

UKIERI’s cluster school partnership programme has played an instrumental role in promoting the understanding among schools in India and UK. Interaction and cultural exchanges have strengthened school leadership and have equipped school principals, head teachers, faculty members, administrators and students for life in a global society and work in a global economy.

UKIERI has been working with private and government aided schools in India. We have reached out to more than 127 state funded schools and 148 private schools. The exchange of ideas and values between teachers of schools in India and UK have added value to their learning outcomes and have also provided for good and enriching student learning experiences.

What are the highlights of the higher education initiatives of UKIERI?

UKIERI has got an extension of another 5 years and there will be focus on a number of areas in higher education including leadership and related areas that can help build relationships between both the countries.

The aim has always been to promote collaboration and mutual exchange between higher educational institutes in UK and India through research initiatives and focus on areas in economic, educational and technical interest to both countries. The Collaborative Programme Delivery (CPD) strand of UKIERI was set out to facilitate the development and delivery of UK degrees and professional qualifications in India through institutional partnerships. Over the 5 years of the programme from 2006-2011, UKIERI funding was allocated to 27 separate collaborations, engaging 20 different universities in the UK with 23 partner institutes in India.

What have been the major activities under the professional and skills strand of UKIERI?

The Professional and Technical Skills strand of UKIERI has sought to promote linkages and partnerships between UK and Indian Further Education Centres of Excellence to develop collaborative projects, exchanges and work placements. The major focus areas have been Financial Skills sectors which include banking and insurance, Creative Industry including fashion, textiles, film/television and animation and Petrochemical.

We have facilitated 14 links till now between further education institutes in India and the UK against a target of 6 as set up in 2006. All these partnerships were formed through the process of expression of interest, pre bid workshop and project manager’s workshop. The corporate sector has also contributed funding and in-kind support like strategic expertise, representation on project steering committee and staff engagement on the professional and technical skills strand.

After the completion of the first five years, both governments in India and UK have confirmed funding for UKIERI and the programme aims to now deliver systemic change by reaching out to larger numbers

What are the future plans on the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between MHRD, GoI and British High Commissioner for the India-UK Higher Education Leadership Development programme?

The endeavor for the programme was to contribute to the development of Higher Education (HE) leadership in India and the UK by forming working partnerships between Higher Education leaders. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the programme was signed between the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India and the British High Commission.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) on behalf of Indian universities was the implementing agency in India and the Leadership Foundation for Higher Education (LFHE) on behalf of UK universities was the implementing agency in UK for the programme. UKIERI has been responsible for the overall management of the programme. The programme has garnered an extremely positive response from participants of both India and the UK higher education Institutes and has completed two phases by 2010. A number of workshops were organised to bring together these senior leaders to engage, deliberate and discuss the issues of Higher Education in the two countries. These regular interactions have resulted into long term collaborative partnerships.

Could you provide us details of the partnering agencies of UKIERI?

The UKIERI programme is a partnership programme that brings together diverse range of stakeholders and institutions in both countries. The programme garnered funding and support from the UK Government including the devolved authorities of Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales. The Indian Ministry of Science and Technology supported the Research strand of the programme with joint call for bids from year 2007.

Some of the other key organisations that have supported UKIERI have included the University Grants Commission of India, Planning Commission of India, UK Commission for Employment and Skills- UK, Quality Assurance Authority- UK, National Assessment and Accreditation Council of India and Universities of UK.

UKIERI also actively engaged with Indian Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), and Ministry of Labour and Employment (MOLE) in implementing various sub activities and events across the programme strands.

In the corporate sector, Shell, GlaxoSmithKline and BAE Systems have been associated with the initiative as Corporate Champions along with BP which extended support to UKIERI as a Corporate Champion for three years, from 2006-2009 and continued to be actively engaged with the schools strand . KPMG too was associated with UKIERI as the keystone partner for Financial Services Skills Exchange, from 2006-2009, on the professional and technical skills strand.

Vocationalisation of K-12 is the Need Today : Dr Veera Gupta, Secretary- Central Board of Secondary Education

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May 1, 2011

Dr Veera Gupta, Secretary, Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) in conversation with Sheena Joseph, elaborates about the progress of CBSE’s current initiatives in education and also provides snippets about what we can expect from CBSE in the coming months

In order to curb commercialisation, CBSE has recently put restrictions on schools with regard to charging hefty fees. What is CBSE’s mandate in this regard?

CBSE has always supported and worked as per national policy directives. All its policies are directed towards curbing commercialisation of education. Most of the schools affiliated with CBSE are independently managed, having varied fee structures. We have been getting complaints about exorbitant fees being demanded by schools. Also there have been cases where schools have been profiteering through the sale of school uniform and textbooks at the school premises. CBSE will be coming out with a circular to curb such practices.

To address grievances from parents or student bodies regarding the fee structure, CBSE bylaws have prescribed that the school fee should be in consonance with the facilities that are offered at the school. CBSE has been regularly looking into such matters and taking relevant measures.

CBSE has proposed the introduction of ‘Body Science’ as a vocational subject for classes XI and XII. What is the importance of vocationalisation in secondary schools?

Vocationalisation is an emerging issue and since CBSE is a board for secondary and senior secondary education, it will be taking up activities towards the same in this sector.

Secondary education, as has been observed in the last few decades, has lost its character, with it being relegated to the status of merely being a precursor for higher education. Secondary school education in itself does not have an identity, ethos or personality of its own.

However, if we observe the current student trends in India, only 11% of students enter higher education after completion of their schooling. The remaining percentage of students either drop-out before completing secondary education, or might only manage to complete secondary schooling. Entering into higher education may not necessarily be an option for them. Therefore, there has been a need to create a system where vocationalisation of school education is also given adequate importance, with focus on enhancing the skills sets of students between the age of 14-18 years.

Because of its need and requirement in the current situation, there is a sustained effort from policy makers towards vocationalisation. In principle and practice, CBSE will make all efforts to actually implement vocationalisation in its true spirit so that we can reap the advantages of India’s demographic dividend, that is, of being a young nation.

We are going to start a vocational cell which will make concentrated efforts in creating new courses, designing of new curriculum, text books, and evaluation methods to promote vocationalisation.

What is the role of technology in creating a better teaching-learning environment for students and teachers?

ICT is integral to the teaching learning process. In an age where massive expansion of education is required, we cannot do without the use of technology.

ICT is vital for dissemination of knowledge, for evaluation and for keeping data and records. The role of ICT is multi faceted and it has to be exploited to the maximum potential.

The capacity building of teachers in ICT has been a mandate of teacher training colleges and National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE). They have been taking care of the training needs in ICT.

What is the progress of Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) training by the CBSE?

CCE was recommended long back in 1949 as a part of most of the national policies and commissions on education. It was a reform that was long due and CBSE introduced it in 2009. The batch of 2011 will be the first to pass out of the CCE assessment system. CBSE has made all efforts in order to implement it successfully in schools.

We have recently launched a project where CBSE is going to collect evidence of the actual assessments being carried out in schools, by studying the activities done by students under formative assessments. This will provide us with a major feedback on the impact it has made on student learnings as well as the level of understanding and outcomes of CCE among the teachers. The project will be initiated in a few months from now.

Overall, from the responses that we have received, both the teachers and students are satisfied with the entire process. Gradually, fears and apprehensions have allayed.

We have several plans for training of teachers in CCE. Last year we had conducted training of 40,000 teachers all over the country and in this year we are targeting 50,000 teachers.

Could you elaborate on some of the future initiatives that CBSE will initiate in the school education sector?

As expansion in education is high on the national agenda, CBSE is also looking towards expansion, while at the same time ensuring that quality education does not take a backseat. With this in mind, CBSE is going to initiate accreditation of schools which will be separate from the affiliation bylaws. Accreditation will be done by an independent agency which will not rank or rate the school but will accredit it by finding out if they meet the set quality standards. This will go a long way in ensuring quality in school education. This is one of the major initiatives which CBSE is planning in the future.

What are your views on global collaborations among schools in India and abroad?

Diversity is always an indicator of quality. CBSE believes in this idea and this is the reason it has launched CBSE-I (International) which is an international curriculum. Under this we have around 26 schools and the aim is to prepare students for the global environment and culture. We encourage collaborations and would definitely explore opportunities for sharing ideas, expertise, knowledge and excellence globally.

Progressive English Learning with Technology : Jasvinder Singh, CEO- ACTUniv

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May 1, 2011

Language is never learnt. It is acquired. With this philosophy, ACTUniv has taken the language learning for students to the pinnacle of success in a short span of time. In an exclusive interview with Jaydeep Saha, Jasvinder Singh, CEO, ACTUniv talks on various aspect of language learning, and deliverables. Excerpts:

What is the main content that you deliver? How does it enhance education in schools and colleges?

We deliver English Language Lab, the digital content that provides resource on all language aspects serving the needs of the Indian audience. The focus is on development of skills in functional usage of the language, grammar and phonetics besides vocabulary, remedy to regional influences, pronunciation and games. Learners need a practical approach to skill acquisition and a lot of practice. We also provide special content for the Teachers of English and structured curricula besides Trainer manuals and the much needed Training of Trainers. The lessons are practical and represent common practices that are easier for the learner to relate to and comprehend.

What are the basic features that you develop in a child? How competent have they become ever since they are taken care by your technology?

English is a skill and should not be treated like a subject. Our products are interactive and feature several tools for a learner to use and develop the L.S.R.W. skills. It is our endeavour to keep learning simple, progressive and participative. “Leading by example” and “Learning by doing” are the keys. The learners mostly enjoy the freedom to error (with no embarrassment) and remedy such errors with practice. Learners have grown in confidence and are able to express themselves better. The students enjoy learning through language labs and have become passionate about English as a language, which has made the difference.

Over 1100 installations in Indian Institutions and 1000 more by the end of 2011, stand testimony of the products, implementation and training

Please define ILT and CBT.

ILT: Instructor Led Training referring to the training provided by the teacher and CBT: Computer Based Training refers to the self help exercises on a PC. These are the terminology that is associated with e-learning and also with language labs. However, what matters most is the content included therein and the effective use of technology elements to provide training support. In our products we ensure that the teacher as well as the learner is provided with the best of tools to demonstrate, practice and assess covering LSRW and more.

Do your students actually travel through the deserts of Sahara and Rain Forests of Amazon in classrooms? How can an Indian downtrodden suburb primary school benefit from you?

The global orientation is evident in the communication capabilities that we have focused on in our programs, although we don’t take the learners globetrotting, the scenario’s in our product provide exposure to various situations that also compliments other academic subjects.

Our content has been adapted to suit the Indian public especially the majority that is rural. Reaching the rural has its challenges as electricity and computers are a problem and we have addressed these with specialized solutions.

We believe in being practical about functional English and want our learners to be able to use English for everyday chores. The lessons are based on scenarios that are common to every day routine as well as in sync with the ALTE/CEFR framework. The benefit to even the remote school is that their students will be able to understand and use English in conversation. In our experience we have found that the rural students, be it schools or otherwise, are more serious about learning English and are fast learners.

What emphasis do you give on LSRW? How does a language lab work in correcting the vocabulary and pronunciation of a child who uses Colloquial English?

Language is never learnt. It is acquired. If one wants to acquire language, learners must follow natural way of learning things. L-S-R-W is natural way of acquiring language skills. Besides the LSRW, vocabulary and pronunciation aspects, our products provide the much needed remedy to the influence of regional languages. Our products are built with several tools that provide expert audio, graphical patter of voices including the learner’s recorded audio, comparison, intonation and modulation, words and phrases, meaning and association, pictorial reference etc. These tools complement the appreciation of the context.

Please specify your contribution to higher education students in their market-ready attitude. What extra do you put to make them competent?

The Words Worth content is designed to prepare an individual to face the professional environment empowering him with capabilities to face interviews and present their views and expressions through English as a language of communication. Through our initiative more than 1, 00,000 students have benefited. We have also included the much needed soft skills for the students of higher and professional programs.

Please throw some light on RS-CEL and SCOPE. What has been the main content for the uplift?

English is the language of the economy, much needed by a progressing country and even more to India that is in the lead. SCOPE is an initiative of the government of Gujarat and RS-CEL is that of Government of Rajasthan. These are India’s largest state sponsored capacity building initiatives to enhance capacities of the masses with proficiency in English. These programs are a great success as proficiency in English enhances the job prospects of an individual by 300 per cent. The Words Worth content and methodology is deployed in these projects. We are about to introduce a self learning English language tool, which reduces the dependency on teachers in one of these projects.

Please say something about your take on foreign universities, including Cambridge and Trinity. Why PTE-G?

International Language Certification is important as it provides a measure the learner’s knowledge and usage of the language on par with international level. We follow the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) and encourage learners with tests based on these frameworks.

The Pearson Tests of English (PTE-G) certificate is equivalent to IELTS and TOEFL and has been accepted by over 70 universities in Europe for both immigration and study abroad purpose. In India there is a Boon for “Spoken English” but there is no certificate provided for General English by institutes to prove an international validity and certificate for the course. We create “Test centres” of the existing Schools, Colleges, and Universities and private vocational training institutes. By doing so, they can train and provide certificate to their students and raise their linguistic bar.

What and where next in India and abroad?

In India, we intent to reach every corner through our various delivery mechanisms. We have content for both urban and rural markets. There are inquiries from abroad that we are examining and hope to connect in this financial year.

SAE-AAT Media College to offer B.Sc in Visual Communication

Higher Education

By

digitalLEARNING Network

-

April 28, 2011

Access Atlantech Edutainment (I) Ltd. (AAT) Media College and SAE are offering UGC recognised Bsc. Visual communication graduate course, affiliated to the Dibrugarh University, Assam. This course will cover the vast area of media studies with compulsory major Elective in Audio Engineering or Digital Film Making, or Animation and VFX from the fifth semester. This visual communication degree on offer will be the first in India, which will offer employable electives in the final year of study. With audio engineers, film makers and animators much in demand this course will see employers recruiting media professionals who graduate with job equipped skill-sets. The course is offered while keeping in mind that media design is the most dynamic area of visual design, requiring both creative and technical skills. It is structured to equip the student with high – level design ability, an understanding of current technologies, and professional communication skills in the context of current and future media industries. It also aims at producing visual design and media content for online, offline, interactive and multimedia applications. Development of design solutions for cross-platform and developing a professional portfolio of work in preparation for career in media design is also included in the curriculum. Mr.Rathish Babu, CEO, AAT(I) Ltd said, “AAT has always acted keeping the requirement of students and industry in mind. Demand for specialised graduates is the need of the entertainment and media industry for content making. After a couple of years of research and market surveys we have come up with a concise industry oriented curriculum for B.Sc. Degree in visual communication. This course shall see a new vista opening for AAT and the most sought after choice for students looking at joining a course which combines arts, aesthetics and technology.” The degree course is scheduled to commence in July 2011 and application and prospectus would be available in all AAT centers across India.

MNIT students empowering rural youths

News

By

digitalLEARNING Network

-

April 26, 2011

Special councelling sessions on career, healthcare and education have started with an initiative of the Malviya National Institute of Technology (MNIT), Jaipur, students who regularly visit small towns and villages to hold workshops for the youths. Ganpat Yadav, a second year student of MNIT and his group started a project, Polishing Village Diamonds (PVD)', to empower village youths after being aware of an inspirational job of a group of engineering students working for rural development in all National Institute of Technology (NIT) across the country under the banner of National Institute for Technology for Villages (Nvil). Yadav is a resident of Mundro village in Sawai Madhopur district. Being well acquainted with the problems faced by rural students, he came-up with the project to create awareness on the various career opportunities available after Class XII. Currently, the group has 13 members. The group held many counselling sessions in nearby villages. “The high drop-out rate in villages is attributed to the lack of job opportunities for village students,” said Yadav sharing his experience. His group has also tied up with government schools and civic bodies in the villages visited and has plans to hold workshops for teachers. Among their activities is conducting street plays to educate farmers, women and students on various government policies meant for them. “There is clear divide between the urban poor and the rural poor. The latter is completely devoid of schemes in the absence of civil society support,” Yadav said. Pawan, a member of the group, said they have devised a quiz competition with the help of a psychologist to expand the imagination of students. “We have identified some villages with high drop-out rates. This quiz competition will be introduced in these villages at the start of admission season,” he said. The group is also chalking out plan to popularise RTE Act in villages. They felt that this Act meant for the economically disadvantaged groups, primarily live in the rural areas and are left out in absence of an awareness campaign. “This (RTE Act) is the biggest tool for the rural people to empower themselves by sending their wards to premier schools,” Yadav said. The creative arts society of MNIT has extended its support to the group. The society will bear expenses on posters, banners and travel allowances.

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