Teachers responsible to identify and nurture students’ talents: Prakash Javadekar

News

By

-

December 13, 2018

The Union Minister for Human Resource Development (HRD) Prakash Javadekar has said that the teachers have the onerous responsibility of identifying and nurturing the talents in the students and encouraging them.

He was at National Bal Bhavan, New Delhi, to inaugurate “Kala Utsav (Festival of Arts)”. Addressing the audience at inaugural, Javadekar said, “Present day students are bogged down so much in studies that they have no time to spare for manifesting and nurturing their talents.”

“In order to provide enough time to students to develop their talents, the syllabus is proposed to be reduced by half the present syllabus,” He added.

On the occasion also present was National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) Director Hrushikesh Senapaty who said that this is the fourth edition of Kala Utsav. He further added that the Kala Utsav National Competition is a unique initiative to showcase the artistic talents of school students at the national level.

Over 370 children from all States and Union Territories except Karnataka are participating in the four-day national level competitions being held in vocal music, instrumental music, dance and painting Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan and Navodya Vidyalaya Samiti teams from are also participating in the summit.

Kala Utsav National Competition was launched in 2015 with a view to promote arts in education by nurturing and showcasing the artistic talents of school students, children with special needs too will have the opportunity to display their talents.

Delhi Govt soon to introduce cleanliness curriculum in schools

News

By

Akash

-

December 13, 2018

The Delhi Government is soon going to introduce a curriculum aimed to inculcate habits of cleanliness and hygiene among school students, said state’s deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia who also holds education portfolio.

To draft ‘cleanliness curriculum’, the Government has also asked suggestions in this regard from teachers and principals of government as well as private schools in the national capital.

“While students are contributors of garbage in schools they have no role in cleaning it or maintaining the cleanliness. We want that students should develop these habits and take responsibility of cleanliness in schools,” Sisodia said.

“In other countries, students are even responsible for mopping their classes, dusting the desks and watering plants. Students should have a sense of belongingness for their classrooms and school,” he added.

“The cleanliness curriculum will be activity based. Neither there will not be any book for it nor will a separate period be allocated. I have asked for suggestions from teachers and principals about what activities can be included in the curriculum,” Sisodia further said.

Schools Key to Develop Eco-Friendly & Safe World

Magazine

By

Akash

-

December 13, 2018

As the need to develop an eco-friendly world turns a serious affair, school children’s awareness can be vital. Influencing children at an impressionable age can actually be a game-changer. To instill a sense of care, it’s significant to build a habit of precaution for an environmentally sensitive society, writes Sandeep Datta of Elets News Network (ENN).

Just visualise a world, 10 or 20 years from now, where we along with our children would struggle to lead a normal healthy life. It would be far more difficult than it already is. We would be striving to survive. There would be no one but ourselves to curse as contributors of the dangerously polluted surroundings.

Looking at the way the climate change is affecting seasonal change, something needs to be done. After all, it isn’t wise to let things deteriorate around us and be spectators to our own deaths due to steadily polluting environment. Schools hold the key to trigger a steady and widespread change.

There is need to be pro-active and do something which may start with – awareness and a collective will for a comprehensive change. Can awareness programmes and initiatives involving children help in the long run? Let’s delve into it and explore much more.

Being Eco-Friendly – Taking Baby Steps

It’s important to first agree to turn eco-friendly. Equally important is that acting in this direction should not remain limited to just turning off lights before leaving a room or segregating garbage for recycling.

The approach to eco-friendly world involves actual practices that influence how communities, businesses and individuals conduct themselves. Perhaps, there is a need to change the way we live.

Eco-friendly products promote green living that help in energy conservation and also prevent air, water and noise pollution. They prove to be a boon for the environment and also prevent human health from deterioration.

To encourage youngsters to engage with their environment, eco-school is an initiative that allows them to actively work for protecting it.

Environment-Friendly Programmes of Different Hues

Eco-Schools Programme

To encourage youngsters to engage with their environment, eco-school is an initiative that allows them to actively work for protecting it.

The Eco-Schools programme is a way for schools to embark on a meaningful path towards improving the environment in both the school and the local community. Besides, it also has a life-long positive impact on the lives of young people, their families, school, and local authorities.

Through this programme, young people experience a sense of achievement at being able to have a say in the environmental management policies of their schools, ultimately steering them towards certification and the prestige which comes with being awarded a Green Flag.

Starting off in the classroom, the initiative expands to the school and ultimately fosters change in the community at large. It is also about having a life-long positive impact on the lives of young people, their families, school staff and local authorities.

In Britain, various programmes like Energy and Greening the School-Run are worth inspiration.

Energy

The Carbon Detectives’ Kit allows schools to work out their carbon footprint and compare them to other schools. The Sustainable Learning programme encourages schools to make energy reductions of 10% on average and develop a better understanding of how energy and water is used within their buildings.

Greening the School Run

The Walk to School movement, run by the charity Living Streets, encourages children and parents to leave the car at home when it comes to the school run. Its annual walk-to-school month has inspired over two million primary school-aged children to take part in activities.

School Food

The Food for Life Partnership is a network of communities across England, committed to transforming food culture, one school at a time. The Better Nursery Food Now campaign, led by the Soil Association and Organix, calls on the government to put in place clear rules to ensure high quality food is served in all nurseries. It includes a Facebook page where dissatisfied parents and nursery workers can post their experiences.

How Some Indian Schools are Making the Difference?

Ahead of the festive seasons, various schools were approached to explore how do they alert and make students aware about developing an eco-friendly world? It was simply an eye-opener how much vital schools can prove to be.

School Initiatives at a Glance

According to Kanak Gupta, Vice President, Seth M R Jaipuria Schools, they have set up pollution control boards.

“We were one of the first schools in India to install an air quality monitor which helps to “Flag The Pollution” levels in the school on any given day, with a Red Flag hoisted where levels are above 200, and Amber Flag when between 200 and 60 and a Green Flag when the Air Quality in the school meets acceptable standards of 60 and below.”

Special Activities to Aware Students

“Creating awareness is the first step. For instance, in collaboration with a citizen’s initiative, MyRightToBreathe we did something called VrikshaBandhan during Raksha Bandhan where students tied twigs to trees, taking a vow to protect them. Recently, we did Navra-tree where every class takes a vow to plant a tree for each of the nine days, and so on. We conduct regular workshops to educate students and teachers about the ill effects of pollution. We also engage our sweepers and all Grade 4 staff to attend regular workshops,” Gupta said.

“We even do workshops to teach parents how to segregate and compost their waste. We have separate waste bins for separate types of waste, conduct workshops with the school sweepers and cleaners to educate them as to how to go about waste segregation. We have tied-up with reliable waste collection agency for apt recycling of waste collected at school, encouraged parents to put an absolute stop on plastic tiffins, adds Gupta.

Manju Rana, Principal cum Director, Seth Anandram Jaipuria School, Vasundhara, Ghaziabad, says being an eco-friendly school Green Diwali echo reverberates in their entire campus and they also spread the word in the neighbourhood areas too.

“We provide an advisory / flyers reminding ways to celebrate safe and eco-friendly Diwali without crackers. Buy earthen lamps, use environment friendly products for home decoration, reuse the décor and gift wraps, use natural colours for rangoli decoration, use jute bags for shopping, follow Buy- One Give-One rule. Donate to the needy.”

“Children design various catchy and thought provoking mock advertisements are issued in public interest to celebrate Green Diwali “Students conduct mass awareness programmes and urge Resident Welfare Associations to hold community fireworks for brief period of 30 minutes on a single day.”

“We hold Eco-friendly Rangoli making competition, instilling in them the spirit of competitiveness along with environment sensitivity.”

“We always support and promote Eco Friendly celebration of all Indian festivals. Children make Rakhis using cloth, clay and other biodegradable materials. On the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi , students of Eco club of the school make Ganesha idol with biodegradable or recyclable materials. They spread awareness and urge people to make ritualistic immersions in buckets instead of immersing the idols in water bodies. During Holi, we make and use organic colours at home with the help of flower or plant extracts,” Rana added.

Sona Dhingra, Principal, Children’s Academy, Kandivali East, Mumbai says they have undertaken various initiatives while playing an important role for environment. According to the principal, Children’s Academy’s other initiatives include:

LED Lights: We have replaced tube lights with less power consuming LEDs. This has reduced power consumption by around 260 W per tube light. Undaunted by the financial hassles that we faced during the inception of this idea, the reduction in global warming as an outcome made us march ahead in this venture.

Proper Ventilation: Apart from having a sturdy infrastructure, we also have classrooms which are well illuminated with natural light. This has reduced the necessity of switching on lights during the day time. Also, ample ventilation has ensured that our class rooms remain cool even during summers. We have ensured that we reduce Green House Effect by having non-AC class rooms.

The Eco-Schools programme is a way for schools to embark on a meaningful path towards improving the environment in both the school and the local community

E-Circulars and E-Magazine

The school communicates with the parents via its school portal and e-circulars and SMS services. To save paper, we have an e-school magazine, uploaded on our school website.

Reuse of Plastic

“Our students have taken the initiative to demonstrate and mentor their fellow students on how to reuse plastic milk packets and transform them into utility items like baskets.”

Solar Panels

“We have installed a total of 97 panels, each having the capacity to produce 300 Watts of electricity. In totality, these panels can generate 29.1 KW D.C. The same is converted to A.C. and synchronised to the grid. As the frequency of the solar panel is higher than local grid power, it travels faster and can optimise the load on itself so that there is less power drawn from the non- solar electric sources. The residents in the vicinity of our school were inspired by our move and took steps to install such panels in their buildings as well.”

Anirban Bhattacharya, General Manager-School Operations, Seth M R Jaipuria Schools, says, “We are extremely aware of the hazardous environment problems and pains every citizen is going through. We encourage non-usage of plastics, use of natural colors, facilitate and boost clean up initiatives, educate them. For instance, we have Diwali celebrations without fireworks; we celebrated Rakhi with Vrikshabandhan. We also believe in decorating the surrounding neighbuorhood by natural means.”

According to Anna Correa, Principal, St Stanislaus High School, Mumbai, a number of initiatives have been undertaken towards the objective of building an eco-friendly world.

“The theme for this year is Care for Creation and the cover of the Calendar and many competitions carried out in the school like poster, elocution, debate and quiz have been around Caring for our common home – our environment.

“The school has two dustbins in every class and on corridors for dry and wet garbage. Children are advised about segregation. The wet garbage goes to a tumbler compost machine and the compost generated is used for gardening.

“E-waste collection is also done and special bins are placed for this purpose.Use of plastic bags and single use plastic bottles is expressly forbidden.

“Students participate in road and beach clean up activities. There is also a campaign with an NGO called ‘Phenk mat Stanislite’, where special Ecocommanders and Eco-captains have been appointed to prevent littering on the campus.

“Regular workshops for students and parents have heightened awareness,” Correa added.

Conclusively saying, it’s high time we realised the dangers of being contributors to an ecologically dangerous world. While many schools have made a beginning in the right direction, there is a need to take the message into every household through schools and its students. Let’s make the difference together. Let’s build a safe and livable world to gift our children a better tomorrow.

Experiential learning: Looking beyond textbooks

Article

By

Akash

-

December 12, 2018

Nowadays, the emphasis is on making learning more student-centric and inspiring them to pursue careers that feed their passion. It becomes possible due to experiential learning, which helped students to gain first-hand experience and identify lessons that are interesting for them, observes Sampreeth Reddy Samala, Founder and CEO, Worldview Education.

Sampreeth Reddy Samala, Founder and CEO, Worldview Education

Taking down notes written on a board, rote learning and later replicating the same on exam sheets is an old-fashioned method of teaching, especially for school students. These days most teachers are confronting students with shorter attention spans who are unable to concentrate on the lessons being taught in the classroom. Even as over-exposure to technology and digital media are identified as causes for lack of attention in classrooms, an equal amount of blame has to be attached to an outdated mode of information delivery and rigid forms of teaching, which haven’t kept pace with other developments. In the earlier days, information was disseminated to students without paying attention to whether all the students have absorbed the concepts or not.

In their book, Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development, Keeton and Tate have defined experiential learning as, “Learning in which the learner is directly in touch with the realities being studied. It is contrasted with the learner who only reads about, hears about, talks about, or writes about these realities but never comes into contact with them as part of the learning process.”

In experiential learning, the emphasis is often on direct experiences and in-context action as the primary source of learning. Here, the instructor acts as a guide and helps students to bridge the gap between theory and practical learning. In a broader sense, experiential learning is all about learning through doing; the learner is an active participant in the educational process and not a passive recipient to it.

With experiential learning, the idea is to engage students in critical thinking, problem-solving and decision making in real-world contexts that are personally relevant to them. Students should feel the need to experiment, explore new things, learn in a safe and controlled atmosphere, and gain real-time feedback. This kind of learning will enable them to develop an emotional connection with the subject, leverage real examples for inspiration and enhance their experiences in a manner that leaves them with rich stories to share with their friends and peers.

Presently, a lot of schools and other educational institutions have been welcoming the idea of experiential learning and promoting such programs for the holistic development of students. However, there is an application vacuum, which the students are experiencing. Most of the times, there is a limited focus on the purpose of experiential learning and students do not gain much knowledge through industrial visits or camps.

Experiential learning should be able to incorporate techniques that encourage students to engage in their learning on a multi-sensory level. The whole activity should then prompt reflection, change and action in the form of new skills, attitudes, mindsets or practices. Experiential learning should enable the brain to function in various ways so that each sensory system becomes more developed and supports higher functioning.

Students who are exposed to this form of learning tend to feel more engaged and occupied in their learning process and are able to self-assess themselves with the help of criteria and standards. They are able to share more about their learning experiences, write a reflection report and obtain feedback on their report from an expert/teacher. The high engagement levels enable the students to achieve their goals faster while working in a team.

Experiential learning also allows enhanced collaboration and teamwork among students, right from the beginning. As a result, they learn in a more interactive environment and are able to recall their lessons in a better way. In this process, they also understand the significance of effective communication, learn the nuances of body language, effective listening, understand scripts, etc.

There are several educational institutions encouraging progression and self-motivation in students and are providing experiential learning options in the classroom. Worldview, a person-centric experiential learning platform for the next generation with an overriding focus on transformational leadership, is offering experiential learning programs for middle and high school students. The programmes designed at Worldview- FutureSake, Nature Turks and various Model United Nations engagements- aim to equip the students in developing their personal adaptive capacities, which are at the core of leadership in this fast-changing 21st century. (Views expressed by author are a personal opinion.)

IIM Ahmedabad to provide management training to CAs

News

By

Akash

-

December 12, 2018

The Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad is going to train the chartered accountants (CAs) in management skills.

One of the most premier B-schools of India and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) – National professional accounting body have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in this regard.

Under the MoU, the two institutes will “create and co-hosting open-enrolment and customized training programs exclusively for CAs,” according to the official release.

During the training programmes, participants are likely to be exposed to emerging concepts, technology and business practices in achieving operational excellence. As part of the MoU, IIM Ahmedbad is going to organise a five-day residential programme – Advanced leadership programme for Chartered Accountants from December 24 to 28.

“Mutual collaboration will bring a new dimension to accounting and management education in India. The courses conducted under the MoU will provide opportunity for CAs to enhance their management skill sets which are required for key positions in business and industry,” said Naveen N D Gupta, president, Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI).

Not a taboo! Buy sanitary pad in schools, Chamoli shows the way!

News

By

Akash

-

December 12, 2018

Keeping the hygiene and security of girls in mind, the district administration of Chamoli is planning to install sanitary napkin vending machines in all the girl schools of the city.

Swati S Bhadauria, District Magistrate, Chamoli

Students will be charged Rs five to get a sanitary pad from the vending machines. It is expected that the machines will be installed by the end of December 2018. In the first stage, the vending machines will be installed in the 20 girl schools of Chamoli.

Speaking about the initiative, Chamoli’s District Magistrate Swati S Bhadauria said, “Sanitary napkin vending machines will be installed in the GGIC Gopeshwar, Gauchar, GIC Badagaon, Ghinghran, Pipalkoti, Nandprayag, Ghat, Langasu, Karnprayag, Naini, Nagnath, Pokhari, Kulsari, Bantoli, Tharali, Lolti, Deval, Gairsain, Bhararisain, uchchatar madhyamik vidyalaya Vijayasain.”

“E-classes will also be conducted as model ones in all the aforesaid schools,” added Bhadauria.

The step has been taken after considering the hesitation among girls in buying the sanitary pads from shops. After successful implementation of initiative’s first stage, the vending machines will then be established in the 100 schools of Chamoli.

Is MBA still a sought after course?

Magazine

By

digitalLEARNING Network

-

December 11, 2018

Even if a huge number of management schools have opened in different parts of the country, MBA continues to charm a lot of youngsters who join it despite not being business graduates. For many, it is a ladder of success. But is MBA still as much fascinating as it once used to be a decade ago? finds out Akash Tomer of Elets News Network (ENN).

Other than the graduates from top 20 B-Schools of India, only seven percent Master of Business Administration (MBA) students from Indian business schools got jobs immediately after the completion of the course, according to an ASSOCHAM report.

Similarly, in 2016-17, more than half of MBA graduates could not get hired in campus placements, says the data by All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) shows.

The above data is sufficient enough for students to determine whether pursue an MBA/other business courses or not. Moreover, the present economical conditions and job crunch across the globe is also a big reason of worry for students to check if investing a huge amount in MBA is still beneficial or not?

Economic liberalisation in 1991 in India started unshackling the private sector leading to a growth in demand for business managers. Companies were willing to pay a handsome amount to this new breed of executives who seemed capable of putting family-held or other traditional businesses on fast track. MBA became a sought after career among the youth.

But, nowadays, with industries transforming at a rapid rate, it is important to figure out that is there any scope left for MBA graduates in coming years or a new course aligned with the latest industry-trends is needed. It has become fashionable of late to cast doubt on the merits of getting an MBA degree, especially one from a two-year programme that costs well into the six figures. Yet, there has been no shortage of applicants to any of the most highly selective schools that routinely reject the vast majority of candidates who apply to them.

So what are the key reasons that influence people to still dream of having an MBA degree?

The Association of International Graduate Admissions Consultants (AIGAC) released its annual survey on MBA/business courses applicants who had quite a bit to say about this question. 1,377 candidates who have recently applied to at least one business school responded to the web-based survey.

Majority of the people think that top reason for a student to pursue an MBA is good salary and a good position in an organisation.

The perception is erroneous, as MBA aspirants do not consider the degree as a way to make more money and achieve great status. There are various other factors that motivate most of the candidates who invest in any such programme to get a globally competitive business management degree.

As per the survey, desire to acquire new skills and knowledge about business was at the top of the list, cited by 57 percent of the prospective students. Second on the list, cited by 49% of the respondents, was access to job prospects, including the opportunity to transition into a new career, with the degree. Not far behind was access to a strong network and the opportunity to advance a career within the same industry (both checked off by 48% of the sample).

In addition to that the business courses across the globe have some unique features which make it one of the most sought after programmes in higher education.

Unique Knowledge

Cut-throat competition is a reality and to lead others in this competition, it is necessary that a candidate has unique set of skills and knowledge in his/her respective domain. Business courses being well linked with industry offers such set of skills to every candidate pursuing them.

Specialisation

There is an increased specialisation of careers in the service sector. This has led to emergence of specialised subjects in which students can pursue courses in business administration/ management. Through subjects such as finance or marketing, candidates will not only learn the basics of business, but also be able to create a niche for themselves. Students can look for the availability of a course as per their interest in best B-schools of India online or through appearing for their entrance exams, if any.

Better Pay and Scope for Promotions

Pursuing a course such as MBA, PGDM or PGPM may change the direction of one’s career. It is an added academic achievement, which may increase the likelihood of getting a raise and promotion. It may also open up opportunities for jobs that one was not eligible for before because of its orientation towards leadership and team- building.

Entrepreneurship Skills

Startup India and other initiatives have made the Indian economy conducive to the establishment and growth of businesses. The curriculum of a business course inculcates the capability of differentiating between a good and bad business strategy. Candidates will learn how to give their business a global outreach, how to adopt techniques to attract external funding, and how to hire the best minds in the job market.

Having an MBA on CV may translate into job security because one will still be able to find a job even if your business does not perform favourably.

Emerging economies are proving to be fertile ground for MBA graduates because it is easier to navigate unstructured markets with a structured mind. Companies are constantly looking to expand in such economies, and they need professionals trained in business and management to give direction to their growth. The increase in domestic and foreign demand coupled with expansion in finance, real estate, education and investments are expected to cause a surge in India’s growth story, and a business degree is best designed to take advantage of it.

13th World Education Summit strengthens Government-industry-academia partnership

Article

By

Akash

-

December 10, 2018

The Government-industry-academia partnership was strengthened, as a galaxy of edu-leaders, decision-makers, industry leaders and regulators of prominent educational institutions, came together to brainstorm the roadmap of education in the steadily changing innovative world at the 13th World Education Summit (WES) in Mumbai.

Organised by Elets Technomedia Pvt Ltd,the two-day educational extravaganza was held from 8-9 December in Mumbai. Inaugurated by Meeta Rajiv Lochan, Principal Secretary; State Project Director, State Project Directorate – RUSA, Government of Maharashtra; Lt. Col. Kailash Bansal, Director, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE); Major Harsh Kumar, Secretary, NCERT, and Nitin Kumar R Toprani, District Planning Officer, Government of Gujarat, the grand congregation served as a platform for numerous edu-leaders and stakeholders of the education sector to discuss and deliberate upon latest innovative practices in the education sector.

Underlining the importance of entrepreneurship among youth on the first day of the summit, Lochan, the Principal Secretary, said, “Nurturing entrepreneurial skills along with inculcating cutting-edge skills related to digital technology such as AI among students is very important and Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) Maharashtra is laying focus on this aspect.”

Speaking on this occasion, Dr Archana Thakur, Joint Secretary, University Grants Commission (UGC), said: “New India calls for an intelligent application of technology and with such a focus, we are employing all our resources to nurture country’s youth.”

Describing the rich educational heritage of India, Major Kumar, Secretary, NCERT, said, “It is important to know about our past to move confidently in the future and in India, we used to have an excellent schooling system known as ‘Gurukul’ which helped children in their holistic development.”

Highlighting the role of latest IT innovations in promoting startup culture across the country and nurturing entrepreneurship among students, Ramanan Ramanathan, Mission Director – Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) and Atal Tinkering Lab, said, “Industrial revolution 4.0 offers great opportunities for the educational ecosystem of India. It can help India become a knowledge economy soon.”

Stating that key projects are being envisioned by Atal Tinkering Lab projects under its future template to encourage start-ups across the country, Ramanathan said, “In recent times, a number of projects, unique to the needs of the country’s youth have been initiated across the country and many more are in the offing.”

Navin Mittal, Commissioner, Department of College and Technical Education, Government of Telangana, said, “While on one hand extracurricular activities help students to develop holistically, on the other, it is important for the present education system to collaborate with edu-tech industry for bringing innovation in teaching-learning processes.”

“All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) is involved in a number of initiatives to enhance vocational and entrepreneurial knowledge base of students, especially those in far-flung areas, which require customized solutions,” said Lt Col Bansal, Director, AICTE.

Anil Swarup, CEO, State Development Council, Jharkhand, and former Secretary, School Education, Government of India

Highlighting the role of public-private partnership in education, Anil Swarup, CEO, State Development Council, Jharkhand, and former Secretary, School Education, Government of India, said, “There are good people in both sectors –– private and public. Both are required to enhance the educational ecosystem of the country and hence I am a great believer of PPP model in education.”

“The solutions to our educational woes will not come from the US, the UK or Finland but from our motherland, meaning — enough indigenous educational models exist across the country that require hand holding now. There are success stories in states such as Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh etc, which were earlier considered to be among the lowest performing regions. But the status quo has now been changed,” the former Secretary of School Education added.

On the occasion, a special issue of the digitalLEARNING magazine was also launched. As part of the mega event, a galaxy of edu-leaders, decision-makers, regulators and industry leaders participated in several panel discussions holding significance for the education sector.

Stressing on the need for bridging trust-deficit between educators and students, Mark Parkinson, Investment Director, International Schools Partnership Limited (UK), said, “We need to create an educational ecosystem in which students trust educators, this is relevant across the globe.”

Ryan Pinto, CEO, Ryan Group of Institution, while participating in the CEO Panel discussion on Industrial Revolution 4.0 held during the summit, said: “We want to encourage experiential learning in our schools so that students remain passionate all the times.”

Advocating for increased thrust by educators on producing “better human beings”, Pinto added that Siri, Google and Facebook will not be able to tell us how to be a good person, so this limitation of the present IT-led times needs to be addressed too./

On a similar note, Dr Manjula Pooja Shroff, MD and CEO, Kalorex Group, added, “In today’s digital age, the mental strength of students needs to be nurtured because machines can do everything except being emotional.”

The educational extravaganza witnessed participation from various eminent key stakeholders of Government, preschool, school, higher education, skill and vocational training, edu-tech, and start-ups sector.

The notable edu-leaders participated in the summit included: Dr A Ashok, Secretary and Commissioner, Board of Intermediate Education, Govt. of Telangana; Amol Arora, Managing Director, Shemrock Group Of Schools; Shreevats Jaipuria, Vice Chairman, Seth M R Jaipuria Schools and Jaipuria Institute of Management; Debshankar Mukhopadhyay, CEO, Zee Learn Limited; Raghav Podar, Chairman, Podar Education; Anil Mammen, Chief of Learning, Design and Social Impact, Tata ClassEdge; Anirudh Gupta, CEO, DCM Group of Schools; Lakshmi Rao, Academic Director, Jain Group of Schools; Reekrit Serai, Director and Dean, Satluj Group of Schools; Mahesh Shetty, Whole Time Director, MT Educare, and Divya Lal, MD, Ebix Smartclass Educational, among others.

Dr Ravi Gupta, Founder Publisher and CEO Elets Technomedia Pvt Ltd and Editor-in-Chief digitalLEARNING magazine, on the occasion said: “Education has an important role to play in nation-building and one important aim of World Education Summits, being organised since 2011, serves as a platform for industry-academia-government partnership to help and better showcase innovations and initiatives that are playing an enabler role for this purpose.”

Visit Here For: 15th World Education Summit 2019, Mumbai

Digital learning disrupting pedagogical processes in universities

Article

By

Akash

-

December 10, 2018

The day-to-day growing use of technology has forced the universities to change their traditional ways of teaching and learning, observes Rohit Prasad, Co-founder and Director, SRV Media Easebuzz.

Rohit Prasad, Co-founder and Director, SRV Media Easebuzz

The world has been witnessing a digital revolution since the middle of the last century. We are now standing on the edge of the Fourth Industrial Revolution that will further alter the way we live and work. According to the World Economic Forum, this industrial revolution will blur the lines between the physical, digital, and biological sphere. Sure enough, dramatic changes have been taking place all around us and the education industry is no stranger to this.

It wasn’t long ago when students had to rely on traditional communication such as television ads, newspapers, pamphlets, etc to gain important information about universities and colleges. However, as the world is moving towards digitisation, so is higher education. Nowadays, students have access to all the data about a university online. Students have access to information regarding the programs, fees, hostel, placements, alumni rating, infrastructure, and all other important details they need to compare various universities and colleges when choosing the best one for them.

Furthermore, newer forms of online education are creating a tough competition for traditional universities. There are various online platforms that provide a valid certificate from well-known universities. This ensures that students can gain new knowledge and certifications without having to leave their jobs. Considering how the costs of traditional universities are constantly rising, students find online courses to be more cost-effective and flexible.

Therefore, more traditional universities and colleges have started investing in digital activities. Today, everything from registering and paying for entrance test, applications, and admissions has moved to the digital platform.

These digital changes have also permeated into how colleges communicate with potential students. A few years ago colleges also had to depend on traditional communication to reach potential students. Today, thanks to digitization, colleges can now reach their audience with a comparatively lower budget. Let’s take a look at how digitization is changing the admission process of universities and colleges.

Social Media

32% of students follow universities and colleges on social media platforms before they make a decision, according to a study. Students also directly communicate with alumni and current students via Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and other social platforms to discern if a particular university is a good match for them.

Considering how students turn to social media at every step of the admission process, universities are also using social media platforms to communicate with students at these steps up until their graduation. This communication can be in the form of online ads, organic posts, informative posts, etc.

SEO

Since most people turn to Google, Yahoo or Bing to look for information about various programs, it’s important that students can find a university on these search engines.

Students look for information about things they are interested in and usually only visit those websites or blogs that show up on the first page of a search engine. For instance, if a student is looking for “best b-schools in India”, he/she will only open those links that the search engine provides on the first page.

Therefore, showing up on the first of a search engine is extremely important if a university wants to attract its audience to them. To ensure that a university is visible to its potential students another digital strategy that is utilized is Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

Good SEO ranking ensures that a university shows up higher on a search engines page which can be the deciding factor between gaining or losing a potential student. There are various digital marketing experts at SRV Media that can help colleges improve their SEO rankings.

Website

Along with a good social media presence and SEO ranking, it’s important that a university’s website is also up to the mark. A university’s website is one of the first places that students visit during their research. Therefore, having a quality website is a must. There are various factors that together, make a great website such as how user-friendly it is, its layout, how responsive it is, and if it offers relevant information. The website reflects the image of the university, therefore, it’s important that the website is modern. An outdated website will lead people to believe that the university is also outdated. This is an image any university must avoid at all costs, especially in today’s competitive market.

Furthermore, a modern and well-designed website lets universities track a visitor’s on-site activity so that they can send emails and mobile messages with relevant and personalized information depending on what stage of the marketing funnel a particular lead is in. For instance, if a student has filled the registration form but hasn’t made the payment, universities can send personalized messages to them encouraging them to pay for a course they are interested in. This kind of structured and pointed communication is only possible if a university has decided to incorporate technological and digital advancements in their admission process.

The other important thing to consider is creating a responsive website. A responsive website is one that responds to the particular device a person is using to browse through the website. For instance, a website looks different on a desktop, tablet, and mobile. Having a responsive website is extremely important if a university wants to gain higher rankings by Google. All these factors together create a good website and help education institutions to increase the number of enrollments.

Online Payments

These days, online payments have become the norm. Online payments are convenient, safe, and easy. Therefore, a lot of educational institutes are also offering online payment options to its students. Colleges partner with trusted payment gateway agencies to ensure that all payments are secure and easy to make without any technological complexities.

The recent initiative of discouraging cash payments by the Government of India is also another reason why universities and colleges are partnering with payment gateways like Eazebuzz. Such a partnership ensures that colleges don’t have to waste their time with unnecessary paperwork that is a huge part of the college admission process.

All in all, the digital revolution that is seeping into the admission cycle of universities and colleges is changing the way a university gains enrollments. With the help of the right digital strategies, a university or college can attract the right audience at the right time.

Teaching cadre to be streamlined in J&K

News

By

Akash

-

December 10, 2018

To streamline the teaching cadre in Jammu and Kashmir, the Governor Administration of State has approved the action plan recommended by a committee set up three months ago.

The committee was constituted on August 13. It mandated to devise a comprehensive strategy to review issues of all teachers in the school education department and also those funded under the ongoing centrally-sponsored scheme “Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA)”.

“The State Administrative Council (SAC) met under the chairmanship of Governor Satya Pal Malik here, considered the departmental proposal based on the recommendations of the committee and broadly accepted the action plan proposed by the committee,” an official spokesperson said.

The decision would enable streamlining the cadre of Rehbar-e-Taleem (ReT) teachers by transitioning them in the regular cadre of teachers and meeting the salary deficit of SSA and Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) teachers, which is over Rs 1,400 crores per annum, out of the state budget,” the spokesperson said.

“Thus, all the teachers will get a regular monthly salary on time consequent to the assimilation of various cadres of teachers into one regular teaching cadre,” he added.

Over the years, school education department has been facing immense difficulties due to multiple cadres of teachers, requirement of additional funds to meet out salary of both SSA and RMSA teaching faculty and a host of other related issues, which were directly or indirectly impacting the quality of education in government-run schools and leading to avoidable chaos and confusion among the teaching fraternity.

LATEST NEWS

EDITOR PICKS

Top Trending News

POPULAR POSTS

Top Trending Categories

POPULAR CATEGORY

Latest Articles