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IIT JAM 2019 registration to begin from September 1, Exam on February 10, 2019

IIT JAM 2019

IIT JAM 2019 Important dates have been announced. Online Registration for IIT JAM 2019 will begin from September 1, 2018, and the test will be conducted on February 10, 2019.

IIT Kharagpur will conduct Joint Admission Test for M Sc (JAM) in 2019 for Biological Sciences, Mathematics, Physics, Biotechnology, Chemistry, Geology and Mathematical Statistics papers. IIT JAM 2019 will be a computer-based test and will be conducted in two sessions: 9 am to 12 noon and 2 pm to 5 pm.

The last date to register for IIT JAM is October 10, 2018. IIT Kharagpur will conduct the exam in collaboration with eight zones: IISc Bangalore, IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, IIT Guwahati, IIT Kanpur, IIT Kharagpur, IIT Madras and IIT Roorkee. For more details regarding the exam, aspirants can refer the official website:  jam.iitkgp.ac.in.

The candidates with a Bachelor’s degree are eligible to apply for the exam. As per IIT JAM Eligibility Criteria, the General/OBC (NCL) category candidates must have scored at least 55 percent aggregated or 5.5 out of 10 CGPA/CPI without rounding-off in the qualifying degree. For the candidates belonging to SC/ST and PwD category, the minimum aggregate marks are 50 percent and minimum CGPA/CPI is 5.0 out of 10. Aggregate marks or CGPA/CPI will be considered after taking into account all subjects, including languages and subsidiaries, all years combined.

MoS-HRD suggests exploring internship opportunities in agriculture and other fields

MoS-HRD

The Minister of State for Human Resource Development Satypal Singh has suggested the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) to explore internship opportunities in different fields including agriculture to create more job opportunities and enhance employability among youth.

While speaking during an event organised at AICTE headquarter on Saturday, the minister said, recent initiatives of the AICTE will help technical institutes’ students learn new skills in future.

“The country needs development in other fields besides industry. Internships in agriculture and other such fields could help train a large number of youths in the country. Efforts should be made to start internships in these fields besides technical and professional subjects,” he said.

He also said that the overemphasis on getting degrees and diplomas has lowered the standard of education in the country.

The minister has also presented awards to technical institutes with best record of internship in 2018 during the event.

Manipal Institute of Technology, Maharaja Agrasen Institute Of Technology, and Chandigarh University were the top three institutes with the best internship records were.

Internshala – An internship and training platform helped over 8,000 students from more than 1,500 colleges and institutes affiliated to the AICTE in availing internships in the summer of 2018.

“The AICTE has signed agreements with platforms such as Internshala to provide internship opportunities to students of colleges and institutes affiliated to it,” said AICTE Chairman Anil Sahasrabudhe.

ASU: Nurturing Young Leaders

Apeejay Stya University

The Apeejay Stya University (ASU) aims to promote academic autonomy and empowerment, risk-taking and commitment for exploratory research across disciplines among its faculty and students, says Aditya Berlia, Co-Promoter, Apeejay Stya and Svran Group and Pro-Chancellor, Apeejay Stya University, in conversation with Elets News Network (ENN).

What are the innovative methodologies adopted by Apeejay Stya University (ASU) that differentiate it from other higher education institutes of India?

Aditya Berlia
Aditya Berlia, Co-Promoter, Apeejay Stya and Svran Group and Pro-Chancellor, Apeejay Stya University

The Apeejay Stya University was established in 2010 as a centre of global learning. The objective behind the university was the positive transformation of society through value-based education among students. In a short span, ASU has been bestowed with numerous national and international awards and accolades. ASU – India’s first Industry-Centric Technology and Liberal Arts University is the result of Apeejay Stya & Svran Group’s commitment of developing a knowledge-based society.

The teaching-learning practices followed at the university emphasise on trans-disciplinary approach and encouraging research across all programmes and disciplines to solve complex problems.

At ASU, each course is carefully designed and vetted, and is revisited regularly in sync with the changing market dynamics based on a markto- market approach. ASU allows its students to graduate at their own pace (early or late) by choosing their own customised path and have the freedom to choose their own majors and minors.

How does skill and vocational training help the university to train its students for a better future? How is the university leveraging the role of industries in this regard?

India’s greatest challenge in the next decade will be to employ more than 15 million young people entering the workforce each year. The curriculum followed at ASU helps its students to be industryready graduates. Moreover, industry interfaces, workshops and mentoring by industry leaders help students in gaining the requisite skills and flair to face the challenges of the 21st Century.

ASU has multiple associations with industries across the globe including CII, FICCI, ASSOCHAM, PHDCCI, NEN, AIMA, NHRD, MEDICI Institute, World Brand Congress and CMO Asia. ASU also nurtures the concept of entrepreneurship through an E-Cell in association with National Entrepreneurship Network and has a unique Incubation Cell in association with PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry and various industries.

Research is a very important aspect of higher education, how is the university encouraging its students for research activities?

ASU is a centre for innovation and research in Applied Science & Technology, including support for research in emerging technologies, Biosciences, Clinical Research, Pharmaceutical Sciences and Electronics. State-of-the-art research and technology incubation facilities are available to students and researchers. We provide research opportunities across all levels including real-time industry-led research.

Along with education, career related guidance is also very important for youth, what steps have been taken by ASU in this regard?

Career related counselling and guidance is provided to ASU students during their academic journey. Each school at ASU has notable industry CEOs as part of their Advisory Boards. The Corporate Resource Centre of ASU has an excellent placement record achieved through extensive training and competency building modules.

Seth M R Jaipuria School Ensuring Nation Building with Quality Education

Quality Education

The school ensures holistic development of all students through holistic and integral education under the supervision of a team of committed, innovative, and motivating teachers, says Shreevats Jaipuria, Vice Chairman, Seth M R Jaipuria Schools and Jaipuria Institute of Management, in conversation with Elets News Network (ENN).

What are the ways in which your school has reached out and connected with its neighbouring community?

Shreevats Jaipuria
Shreevats Jaipuria, Vice Chairman, Seth M R Jaipuria Schools and Jaipuria Institute of Management

Understanding the community around us is an integral part of a good education. We have multiple programmes and opportunities through which our school and college students reach out to the community around them. These include community service, group projects and cultural activities.

How do teachers qualify school’s expectations and receive support from your school in achieving the organisation’s vision?

We have a strong belief in teachers’ development and learning as it paves the way to success for any educational institution. We provide multiple training opportunities in school and outside school to teachers on pedagogy, and subject knowledge. Moreover, we provide them with new teaching ideas for each and every topic in the syllabus through close to 1,00,000 lesson plans developed by us.

How does Seth M R Jaipuria Schools encourage developing leadership capacity in its students?

Leadership can’t be taught in a traditional classroom setting. It is developed through practice. From a primary level, the school should make students participate and take responsibility both within and outside the classroom.

What are the values inculcated by the school in its students to be successful in life ahead?

The most important skill in today’s world is the ability to learn itself. We try to inculcate selflearning in our students, and try to make them self-motivated from a very young age. In today’s world no success is possible without the ability to work with people and in teams. This requires empathy and listening skills. It gives not only a pathway to success but also makes one a better human being, who understands and helps people around himself or herself.

Also Read: Seth M.R. Jaipuria Schools: Embedding Best Practices From Around the World

How do you perceive the present-day educational system in our country?

There are many world-class institutions both at the school and higher educational level. But the average quality of institutions is very poor. We need to bridge this gap between a few great and mostly poor institutions.

What are the challenges faced by the Indian education system? How can it be resolved?

The greatest challenge is to improve access of quality education. We need to build schools that invest in improving the skills of teachers, and give students the skills to be required not only today but in the coming years as well. There are many institutions that are able to do this outside metropolitan cities.

What is the vision and motivation behind starting a new educational institute?

Whenever we start a new educational institution, our focus is on how we can give a differentiated learning experience to the student. We strongly believe that education has to be learner-centric and participative. My vision is to make quality private education available to students across towns and cities in India. For far too long, quality institutions have been concentrated only in metropolitan cities and a few state capitals. This must change.

Kalorex: Shaping Glocal Learners

Kalorex

Kalorex believes in empowering children and helping them to succeed in all spheres of life. The group has added new dimensions to its portfolio ensuring that it covers every segment of the society, says , in conversation with Elets News Network (ENN).

In the rapidly evolving educational landscape, how the Kalorex group ensures quality education to children of every age group?

Dr Manjula Pooja Shroff
Dr Manjula Pooja Shroff, MD & CEO, KALOREX Group

Our vision is to provide quality education to all target groups of the society. Be it the underprivileged section or even the middle and high income group. All our schools cater to K-12 education. We even offer franchise options for our preschool segment as stand-alone schools. So, we practically cover students from the early care age to grade 12 in most of our schools. We ensure intake of teachers who are experienced and also trained in the new-age pedagogies. We have many training programmes offered in-house to keep the teaching quality high.

What are the measures adopted at the schools under Kalorex group to nurture global citizens along with nurturing dedication, devotion and compassion among them?

“Shaping Glocal Learners” (Global + Local) is our motto. By this, we intend to give global experiences even within local environments. So we have programmes through the British Council, Department of Education and Training – Queensland, Desh Apnayein initiative and teacher exchanges through USEFI, running in all our schools where students and teachers get the best exposures of international teaching practices and values.

Our inbuilt Kalorex Taxonomy defines Glocal Learners as students who are 21st century citizens, with enquiring minds and a sense of ownership to their country and care for the environment. Students partake in drives and programmes towards civic responsibilities and duties. Our lesson plans also imbibe values and sensibilities through experiential pedagogies.

How is the technology helping education sector to evolve itself leading to improved teaching practices and learning outcomes?

Technology is the driving force of the education system today. Teaching-learning practices are moving away from teacher centric to student led. The teachers are trained to use the vast online resources available to enhance the learning experience for the students and facilitate enquiry. The knowledge is no longer confined to text books, so Flipped and Blended methodology is practiced widely in our schools. The change is now visible where the old-school mindsets are changing and teachers are learning new technologies and strategies to use for their classroom practices.

How do you meet the expectations of parents and requisite government standards simultaneously for your school?

I believe the system has to work hand-in-hand with the society and the government. Parents will definitely have expectations of their child’s school and so it is important to keep them in the loop for any academic or administrative decisions. Our all schools follow the regulations and standards set by the Government but we also believe that we must set the bar high for ourselves. For this reason, we set certain quality standards for ourselves and conduct audits and trainings towards them. We try and incorporate the latest pedagogies and technologies to keep up with the fast pace of learners and expectations of the parents.

What is your vision and mission for upcoming years?

Our vision is always to be focused on providing quality education with a mission to keep our systems evolving and dynamic as per the needs and demands of the educational sector.

Akshara International Schools, Hyderabad: Instilling Life-Long Learning Among Children

Akshara International Schools

Whitney Rapp and Katrina Arndt, authors of the “New Teaching Everyone: An Introduction to Inclusive Education” say “You need to imbibe the interests of students to make learning relevant, authentic and valuable”. Akshara International Schools group belong to that league of abodes of ideal learning.

“At Akshara, our journey is eternal, handholding the tiny-tots in their march to acquire knowledge, values, intelligence and more importantly the life skills. We give utmost priority to on blending intensive sports training along with academics”, says Jagan Mohan Rao, Chairman, Akshara Group.

Currently Akshara Group is operating with five campuses at LB Nagar, AS Rao Nagar, Kukatpally, Chintal and Wanaparthy in Hyderabad. The group is marching ahead to expand to prominent cities of India. “We work closely with students to excavate innate skills, unshackle inhibitions, unearth unique talents to turn them successful in all endeavours” shares Saritha Rao, Executive Director, Akshara International Schools.

No wonder they are those whose behavioural traits, perceptions, beliefs, and values a student incorporates and embraces is regarded as the Role Model. Every teacher at Akshara plays that role to guide students. In doing so, they draw inspiration from many teachers from the past like Swami Vivekananda and Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, and inspire students to achieve their fullest potentials and greatest dreams.

“Literacy in itself is no education. Literacy is not the end of education or even the beginning. By education I mean an all-round drawing out of the best in the child and man-body, mind and spirit” said Mahatma Gandhi. Akshara International Schools also works to bring unified development through world-class infrastructure, academic plans, well-laid playgrounds and sports infrastructure.

As the re-inventor of the Gurukul concept, Rabindranath Tagore once said, “the main objective of teaching is not to give explanations, but to knock at the doors of the mind”, Akshara group also follows the same concept. Teachers at Akshara evoke students so as to ideate, expand and explore their thinking nerves. They play the role of ideas’ incubators.

“With a catchphrase ‘The Future Begins Here’, our centralised teams of Academics, Administration and Corporate Communication make use of technosavvy applications. Together, our teams are destined to enrich the learning experience for students, encourage teachers to enhance their horizons and enable parents in realising their dreams about children”, further shares Jagan Mohan Rao.

At Akshara, a feature-rich Parent Mobile App has been enabling parents to get regular communication, day-to-day personalised updates on student’s performance, direct connect staff. The mobile application is accessible for both Apple and Android platforms. Akshara campuses use techno-friendly communication channels such as SMS, Email, IVRS Phones, Website, Social Media, YouTube, etc. All the events are livestreamed using Facebook Live and YouTube Live.

“At Akshara, we strongly believe in an adage children are born with wings, akshara helps them to fly. Our team always motivate students by engaging students in explorative and activity based sessions during their daily interactions. Our primary focus is to transform students as Global-Ready Citizens”, says Saritha Rao.

The team at Akshara aims to bring the most beautiful rainbow in lives of students which will be full of energy, enthusiasm, participation, competitiveness, sportsmanship, creativity and leadership skills.

Teachers affect eternity; no one can tell where their influence stops. The teachers at Akshara, are working towards making the difference the great leaders dreamt of. Akshara International Schools Group determined to transform every child into an innovative, confident and competent achiever to contribute to the advancements and betterments of the future world.

The vision of Akshara is to deveop a culture of learning that nurtures enquiring minds, imbibes universal values and pursuit of excellence for global settings.

Education can be instrumental in making world a better place: PM

Narendra Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said education plays a pivotal role in one’s life and it could be instrumental in making the world a better place to live in, adding the coming generations will be indebted for the good deeds bestowed to them.

 “Your education and intelligence have trained you to think out of box. Ensure that you use these skills not only to keep pace with the changes around us, but also to drive progressive changes that make our world a better place. Generations to come will thank you for it,” the PMO tweeted quoting the Prime Minister.

Modi said it while speaking during a convocation ceremony at Gujarat Forensic Science University where he underscored the importance of skill and will power to make things happen in any field.

Citing Swami Vivekananda, Modi said, he used to say each soul was potentially divine. Each one of us has tremendous strength that is waiting to be explored.

“The first step towards manifesting this strength is to believe. Believe in yourself Believe in your abilities Believe in your potential,” the Prime Minister said.

Lauding the efforts of Gujarat Forensic Sciences University (GFSU) for exemplary work in the field of forensic science, Modi said, “It is a matter of pride that in a short time, GFSU has achieved such a bench-mark of academic excellence that the National Assessment and Accreditation Council has awarded this University an ‘A’ Grade.”

Speaking on the occasion, the Prime Minister also highlighted importance of DNA technology in forensic investigation.

“Looking at the importance of DNA technology in forensic investigation, our government has approved the DNA Technology (Use and Application) Regulation Bill 2018. Through this bill, we will ensure that all DNA tests remain reliable and the data is safe,” he said.

Speaking about the Gujarat Government’s priority to contain law and order in the State, Prime Minister said the Raksha Shakti University, National Law University and GFSU, were established with similar motive and the three universities act as a complete package for law and order.

 

UGC likely to set up more accreditation agencies for Higher Ed Institutes

UGC

The University Grants Commission (UGC), in its efforts to enhance the accreditation capacity, is likely to set up more accreditation agencies for providing recognition to Higher Education Institutes.

UGC is also expected to set up an Accreditation Advisory Council (AAC) for recognition of Assessment and Accrediting Agencies (AAAs). The council will comprise 10 members who would recommend AAAs to the commission for recognition.

AAC will also be responsible to devise norms and processes for assessment and accreditation of academic quality in Higher Education Institutes or their programme(s) including Technical Education Programmes conducted therein by AAAs.

Any Government or Semi-Government agency can submit application for recognition as AAA. The said agency must also be registered as a Company u/s 8 of the Companies Act, 2013 or a society formed and registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 or a Trust formed under the Indian Trusts Act 1882 or any other law for the time being in force.

After recognition, The AAA will provide its assessment on verifiable and objective criteria and follow the standards specified by the UGC in respect of academic quality.

After UGC’s recognition of AAAs, any Higher Education Institute applying for recognition will have to provide three choices for accreditation agencies at the time of submitting their application.

At present there are only two accreditation agencies – National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) and National Board of Accreditation (NBA).

Digital Transformation in Education: Insights

Education

First arrived steam and simple machines that mechanised some of the work our ancestors had to perform. The next phase of change was about electricity, the assembly line and the beginning of mass production. The third era of industry came to light with the advent of computers and automation, when robots and machines began to replace human workforce on those assembly lines.

Manju Rana
Manju Rana, Principal-cum-Director, Seth Anandram, Jaipuria School, Vasundhara, Ghaziabad

Now we are on the precipice of what the World Economic Forum calls the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0). A 2011 German Government initiative marks a new wave of automation developments in manufacturing. In this era, computers and automation came together in an entirely new way – with robotics connected remotely to computer systems equipped with machine learning algorithms that can learn and control processes with very little input from human operators.

Technology is no longer a good-to-have; it has become an integral part of our lives and a mandatory skill requirement. In terms of penetration and completeness, technology touches all business sectors across world economies and its correlation to drive stronger economic transformations with time.

In factories of the future, there will be virtual manufacturing ecosystems where human beings and machines work together as peers and collaborative robots (cobots) with enough intelligence to contribute across the ecosystem. Artificial intelligence (AI), IOT, Big Data, Automation, ubiquitous mobile super-computing, intelligent robots, self-driving cars, neuro-technological brain enhancements and genetic editing are among the words thrown around by technologists today. The evidence of drastic change is all around us and it’s happening at an exponential speed.

The nub is that we need to reinvent education to equip the workforce of tomorrow. It’s beyond doubt that education is at the centre of preparing present and future generations to thrive. The education system is now requiring transformation from a system based on facts and procedures to one applies knowledge for collaborative problem solving.

Curriculum designing and learning experiences that encourage learners to solve real world challenges collaboratively solving interesting will be the key to thrive in this century. Dire need of the present-day education system is that Education 4.0 should be the vision for the future of education, which:

  • Responds to the needs of “industry 4.0” – where man and machine align to enable new possibilities
  • Harnesses the potential of digital technologies, personalised data, open source content, and the new humanity of this globally-connected, technology-fuelled world
  • Establishes a blueprint for the future of learning – lifelong learning – from childhood to schooling, to learn in the workplace, to learn to play a better role in society

To build a relevant and impactful schooling experience to the youth that enables to take on the challenges of future, the conventional brick and mortar schools have to transform drastically. From an early age schools should enable children to pick up voluntary self-motivated non-segmented learning paths. Such life-long learning paths should not only provide sustenance in economic or social definitions but also help children unlock their potential.

Traditional learning is like simulation before the real-life begins. Pupils spend close to 18 years before they are declared “ready for society”. As a rule of thumb, schools now need to take a leave from other domains and engage in effective knowledge sharing. As micro blogging platforms like facebook and twitter gain popularity where people can be both producers of content and consumers of it (prosumers), schools will also have to keep pace and transform themselves along similar lines. In the classroom, teachers shouldn’t be knowledge centers but enablers that guide students in the direction of what they seek. Such an ecosystem would turn one-to-one interaction into many-many interaction that is conducive to ideation and collaboration.

To promote innovation among students, the NITI Aayog has set up a target to establish 5,000 Atal Tinkering Labs (ATLs) by March 2019 covering all districts in the country. This indeed is a commendable initiative of the Central Government, which goes well in sync with the mission.

These labs are innovative work & play spaces for students between grade 8 to 12 to stimulate innovations combining science and technology. The aim of ATL is to promote innovation and entrepreneurship in schools, universities and industry. Seth Anandram Jaipuria School at Ghaziabad and Kanpur are privileged to have been successfully running Atal lab for the past one year. We were amongst the very first fleet of schools to receive the Government grant to set up lab in our premises. The lab provides latest gadgets, software for new age designing, coding, 3D printing, robotics, IOT etc for neoteric thinkers and innovators to showcase their talent, creativity and novelty of ideas. (Views expressed by author are a personal opinion.)

Shobhit University: Promoting Traditional Learning with Global Outlook

education

Shobhit Institute of Engineering and Technology (popularly known as Shobhit University, Meerut), is a NAAC accredited deemed-to-be university u/s 3 of the UGC Act, 1956.

Ranked among top institutions of India, the university aspires to make academic issues and commitments as key concerns of the young generation and thereby, make a significant contribution to the academic developments wherever they are in the world. By fostering quality education, research and innovation, the university endeavours to empower youth.

Kunwar Shekhar Vijendra
Kunwar Shekhar Vijendra,Co-founder & Chancellor, Shobhit University

Shobhit University adopts the latest and innovative methodologies for studies. As a completely purpose-built development, the campus is more compact than most similar institutions, with all major facilities easily accessible from a central parade.

The University’s academic centers and programmes focus on education and research in specific disciplines and areas of study, and share the knowledge gained with the nation and the world. The faculty works with students to develop their academic skills, both in general and in the context of specific courses or assignments.

We are committed to creating the best learning environment and providing the right equipment and facilities, to help our students achieve their potential during studies. Our students learn in a variety of ways, including case studies, role-plays and simulations. Because we know that no single approach can effectively address the range of challenges they will encounter throughout their career, this diverse set of education is designed to give them the breadth and depth of skills and experience they will ultimately need for achieving success.

At Shobhit, we are working to achieve excellence in research, and to ensure that our research contributes to the well-being of the society. We are a research-intensive university that shares the values of high-quality teaching within an environment of internationally competitive research. We seek to provide a creative and supportive environment in which ideas are generated and flourish.

The university is open to diversity in perspectives, experiences and traditions as essential components of a quality education in a global context. Excellence as the standard for teaching, scholarship, creative expression and service to the university community are crucial for the members of the university. The university lays stress on social responsibility in fulfilling its mission to create, communicate and apply knowledge in a world shared by all people and held in trust for future generations.

The University Training & Development Centre understands that active engagement of the industry with the academia is vital for developing the required skills in the future professionals. Lack of industry engagement in Indian Higher Education Sector has been sighted as one of the key reasons for outdated curriculum, irrelevant research initiatives, inappropriate training and mentoring of students and faculty etc.

Shobhit University is a preferred destination for recruitment among young universities in India. More than 200 renowned corporate, research organisations and institutions are patronising our students by providing excellent job offers. The university has evolved into a campus of Excellence. Our excellent talents are placed in the best of the corporate houses in India and abroad.

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