Ajit Rangnekar appointed fourth Dean of the ISB

Higher Education

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March 28, 2009

The Executive Board of the Indian School of Business (ISB) confirmed the appointment of Ajit Rangnekar as the Dean of the ISB for a term of five years, with immediate effect. At the Executive Board meeting in Mumbai on Friday, January 8, 2010, there was unanimous support for naming Rangnekar as the new Dean. Several candidates were reviewed for the position of the Dean ever since it fell vacant in January 2009. The Executive Board, based on the recommendations of the Dean Search committee, and extensive discussions with the faculty, students, alumni, partner schools, and other key stakeholders, found Ajit Rangnekar to be the best suited for the job.

Speaking on his appointment, Ajit Rangnekar, Dean, ISB, said 'I have always been passionate about the ISB and its vision, and am proud to have been a part of its growth over the years. It is indeed an honour to be entrusted with the responsibility of leading the school in the next phase of its growth. In the coming years, we will continue to strengthen our faculty pool, enhance our research capabilities, and focus extensively on making ISB the best in the world on issues of fast emerging economies. In this journey, I am grateful to have the continued support of the entire ISB community.' Ajit Rangnekar has a background spanning over thirty years in Consulting and Industry, across different countries in Asia. Prior to being formally appointed the Dean, he was the Deputy Dean of the school from March 2003 to January 2009. Before joining the ISB, he was the Country Head, first for Price Waterhouse Consulting and then for PwC Consulting, in Hong Kong and the Philippines. He was head of the Telecom and Entertainment Industry Consulting practice for PwC in East Asia (China to Indonesia). Rangnekar completed his undergraduate degree from the Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai, and Post Graduation in Management from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.

Leeds courses and degrees at JSWS in India

Higher Education

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digitalLEARNING Network

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March 28, 2009

Leeds Metropolitan University, UK and Jagran Social Welfare Society (JSWS), Bhopal have entered into a partnership to start offering the former's courses and degrees in India through the Leeds Met India, Bhopal campus. The campus will begin its first academic year from September 2009 by offering Leeds Metropolitan University's undergraduate courses in the field of business studies, retail marketing management, international business and business and HRM among others. It also plans to roll out post-graduate courses by 2010 including MBA and MSc in various disciplines as well as new undergraduate courses including events management and marketing and advertising management. All the courses will be approved by AICTE. 'We are seeking to make first-class business education of the same standard as the UK available in India and accessible to as many people as possible,' said Leeds Metropolitan University pro-vice chancellor Stephen Parkinson at a press conference in the city on Wednesday. According to him, students will enjoy savings of around 70% on the cost of studying in the UK for availing the same degree.

'The course cost for 3 years, including one semester at Leeds is INR 8 lakh here, as compared to the same course in UK, which will set them back by approximately 24,000 pounds for 3 years,' said JSWS President Hari Mohan Gupta. The 36-acre Leeds Met India campus at Bhopal will have residential facilities including a state-of-the-art library, Wi-Fi access hostel, recreation and fitness centre. The campus will have a permanent resident academic director as well as a business connect centre for interaction with industry. That apart, 30% of the teaching is to be delivered by staff from Leeds. During the one semester in the UK, students will not only get global exposure but also gain access to career guidance support from Leeds. The initial batch will kick off with 30 seats per course.

AMU to offer new course on Data Analysis

Higher Education

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digitalLEARNING Network

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March 28, 2009

Short-term course on Data Analysis has been organised by the Department of Statistics and Operations Research, Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) under the patronage of University Grants Commission (UGC). The short-term course is a part of the UGC Academic Staff College initiative for the professional development of AMU faculty and research scholars. The response from the teachers and research scholars to the course has been massive. About 200 applicants have already been enrolled for the course.

The first batch consisting of 31 participants including Professors, Readers and Lecturers of various departments has started from January 11 with 36 sessions of 19 minutes each. Prof. A.R. Kidwai felicitated the participants, while addressing the inaugural session, especially, the AMU faculty members for their desire to upgrade their skill. Presiding over the inaugural programme AMU Controller of Examinations Prof. Pervaiz Mustajabhig highlighted the usefulness of such courses and congratulated both the Department of Statistics and the Academic Staff College for this laudable academic achievement.

Government studying Frog System e-Education

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March 28, 2009

It was told on Monday by the Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, that the government was studying an e-education method named 'Frog System'. The system was already being practiced in several schools in the United Kingdom and was being studied with an objective of being implemented in Malaysia, if found suitable. According to Muhyiddin, the Education Minister, the method was quite effective and was expected to enhance learning and teaching.

He added that government is putting all its effort to ensure that the quality level of education in schools could be enhanced, especially relating to technology developments in ICT and that this enhancement can support the country to 'leap frog' further ahead. Muhyiddin, who is on a five-day official visit, was given a briefing about the system at Sunbury Manor School in Surrey. He added that the Technology Education Department was to study the suitability and the ways of implementing the same in Malaysia. He added that it would be implemented in Peninsular Malaysia initially before being expanded to Sabah and Sarawak.

One laptop per child programme rejected by India

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March 28, 2009

The government of India has rejected the proposal of $100 laptops from Nicholas Negroponte's one laptop per child (OLPC) project.

The government feels taht there is need for more teachers and better teaching tools. Introducing laptops may affect the creativity, thinking and analytical capabilities of students. The aim of the project OLPC was to provide personal computers to millions of children in countries including Brazil, China, India and Nigeria, as an educational tool. The first working prototype of the laptop was shown in May. Nigeria placed an order of one million of the Linux laptops, although the devices won't go into production until orders for at least five million have been received.

New Zealand spearheads to give boost to students ICT knowledge

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March 28, 2009

In a bid to modernise education using ICT, another $200 million is to be ploughed into the New Zealand's schools, over four years. < ?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

The aim is to ensure young people have confidence in using ICT tools, says Education Minister Steve Maharey. The project will also provide remote schools with satellite broadband at a subsidised rate including schools in the Chatham Islands and on Pitt Island at a cost of $700,000 over two years. Laptops for all teachers account for the biggest item in this year's action plan budget at a cost of $17.58 million. The programme was announced last week, at Wellington's Brooklyn School. It allowed the ministry to demonstrate the country's first tablet classroom. From now on, all 120 Year 5 and 6 students at the school will use Hewlett-Packard tablet computers and styluses, in place of exercise books, for 80% of their work. Next year, the trial will be extended to all students and, potentially, later to other schools. This could prove to be a major source of revenue for HP. The children say the tablets provide for a quicker method of recording data in real-time, but they would prefer a simple spreadsheet rather than the specially set up.

Learn Buddhist philosophy online

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digitalLEARNING Network

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March 28, 2009

Gone are the days when the attendance at the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives used to overflow up to the corridors, with students sitting, standing or squatting on the floor to the stairs. Now, Buddhist philosophy and practice can be learnt online.< ?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

The library offers two, hour-long classes, from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. and from 11 a.m. to 12 noon in which highly qualified lamas teach courses focused on Indian and Tibetan texts or on specific topics of Buddhist philosophy and practice, with instant English translation. The site also features an archive of previous recordings, along with books published by the library. Now, in addition to about 100 foreigners here who regularly attend the daily two classes on Buddhist philosophy and practice, hundreds more can join online. The live web cast of the second class has already begun on www.ltwa.net or www.tibetanlibrary.org. 'The main objective of this website is to make the vast resources of the library accessible to the growing number of Tibetans and non-Tibetans who rely on Internet for information about Tibet and Tibetan studies.

Rural school funds worsen

K-12

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digitalLEARNING Network

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March 28, 2009

Relevant offers Rural schools in the Nelson region are facing financial struggles, with two principals describing the government funding system as 'archaic.' Golden Bay High School principal Roger File said government funding for ICT provision and support staff in particular, was 'woefully inadequate' and the system 'penalises small schools in rural communities.' The school, which has 316 students, raises 30% of its income locally. That amounted to $290,000 in 2007. However, Education Minister Ann Tolley said the Government had no plans to change the secondary schools funding formula and that it was 'quite normal' for schools to raise funds locally.

Golden Bay High School has also suffered another financial setback with the loss of international students from its sister school, Kun-ei Girls' High School in Japan, where the world recession has forced that school to cut back its international programmes. The school is one of many to use international students' fees to supplement its income. The fees make up 10% of the locally raised funds. File said the school would need to go on a major fundraising drive this year to supplement government funding. While funding issues had always been difficult, the school had now been forced to cut back on teacher-aide hours since support workers were awarded a pay increase. 'They deserve that pay increase but we have not been given the equivalent increase [in funding],' said File. The issue was highlighted in the most recent issue of the school newsletter, Goldie, in which File also appealed to parents to pay activities and curriculum donations to reduce the level of deficit.

Educomp launches online math-learning portal

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March 28, 2009

Delhi-based Educomp Solutions Ltd. launches a math-learning portal for classes 6 to 12 based on the NCERT curriculum.< ?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

The product, Mathguru.com, will provide step-by-step solutions for all math problems from NCERT schoolbooks through visual and voice explanation. The subscription to the site comes at Rs 1,200 a year for each student. The company is targeting a subscriber base of 75,000 students in the current fiscal and 2,00,000 students by the end of the next fiscal. The portal would also have solutions categorised on the basis of chapters so that students of other boards can also find solutions to their math problems. Educomp will target private and the top Government schools as students of these schools have the most access to the Internet.

‘Internet in the Classroom’ in Portugal by CISCO

Corporate Updates

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digitalLEARNING Network

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March 27, 2009

Technology in the education sector is growing in importance today across the globe. In the U.S., President Barack Obama has voiced his plans to modernize schools so all children can have access to computers and the Internet. The belief is that having proper skills for these technologies is the best way to prepare and position youth for the future job market they will be placed in. In Portugal, the government has also placed focus on the need for technology in the classroom and has set up an 'Internet in the Classroom' project as part of their information and communication technology literacy (ICT) goals for students. Through improved technology in the classroom, Portugal said it hopes to better establish it's self as 'a leader in ICT to drive economic growth and global competitiveness.' As part of this plan, the nation will equip classrooms with IP-connected multimedia e-learning tools as well as develop a digital platform and content for education and create ICT academies and internship programs, and more.

For the new project, the government of Portugal has chosen Cisco to provide their technologies for high-density local-area network and wireless access in every classroom in every secondary school in Portugal. Specifically, the new project will bring Portugal Telecom, a prime contractor of the project, together with Cisco (News – Alert) to equip 1,220 schools with 215,000 Ethernet ports and 15,000 wireless access points. Cisco's Digital Media System, a suite of digital signage, enterprise TV, and desktop video applications, is helping schools and universities to enhance communications. The company boasts more than 1,000 organizations that have adopted the system in just two years. Using the solution, these institutions are improving campus communications, extending learning beyond the classroom and more effectively disseminating emergency notifications.

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