Bihar Education Minister Krishna Nandan Prasad Verma said on Friday that technology can play a key role in improving the quality of education.
The minister was speaking in Patna at Education Conclave organised by the Elets Technomedia Pvt Ltd, a premier technology and media research organisation, in association with Microsoft as presenting partner.
“The schools with not enough teachers can use smart classes, e-learning and digital learning to boost the education sector. A digital revolution is needed in the State’s education sector so that students may study through computers and enjoy the learning,” he said.
“The State Government is working towards making the education system transparent. It is the reason that only deserving candidates can qualify the exams,” the minister added.
Patna’s Mayor Sita Sahu participated as the Guest of Honour in the conclave. In one year, she has worked with various government education departments to improve the sector in the district.
Kameshwar Jha, Vice-Chairman, Bihar State higher Education Council, Government of Bihar, was also present at the conclave and he stressed on Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) model to improve the education sector in the district.
Other Eminet dignitaries include Prof Dolly Sinha, Pro Vice Chancellor, Patna University; Dr R K Pande, Vice Chancellor, Dr C V Raman University; Jaidevrath, Senior Director, Microsoft; Abdul Hamid, Secretary, Patna Municipal Corporation and Nand Kishor Kushwaha, Member, Food Commission, Government of Bihar.
The conclave witnessed the confluence of policymakers, heads of schools and higher education institutes, university vice-chancellors and officials from the edu-tech corporate. Over 200 schools and higher education institutes participated in the conclave from all over Bihar.
The conclave witnessed panel discussions on the topics like: Transformative Practices towards Ensuring Quality in Higher Education, How to Scale up Personalised Learning in School Education and Reforming Education in The Age of Technology.
During the conclave, top universities, B-schools, Engineering Colleges and Schools were also felicitated by digitalLEARNING magazine for their exemplary work in the field of education.
In a bid to discuss issues and showcase the best practices, achievements and success stories from the education sector, Patna is set to host Elets Education Conclave Bihar on Friday.
With Microsoft as presenting partner, Education Conclave Bihar 2018 will witness the congregation of eminent edu-leaders, policymakers, and stakeholders from the education industry.
The day-long conference is meant to foster partnerships between government officials, schools, colleges, universities and corporate to bridge the industry-academia gap.
With Dr C V Raman University as university partner and Vawsuma as Associate Partner, the conclave is to be organised by Elets Technomedia Pvt Ltd, the premier technology and media research organisation.
The Education Conclave is scheduled to be inaugurated by Krishna Nandan Prasad Verma, Education Minister, Government of Bihar. The conclave will also witness deliberations from Sita Sahu, Mayor, Patna; Kamleshwar Jha, Vice-Chairman, Bihar State higher Education Council, Government of Bihar; Manoj Kumar, Principal Secretary, Department of Education, Government of Bihar and Atul Sinha, Director, Department of Science and Technology, Government of Bihar.
During the conclave, various panel discussions will be conducted on topics like transformative practices towards ensuring quality in higher education, how to scale up personalised learning in schools and reforming education in the age of technology education.
A roundtable will be held on the subject: The Importance of Creating a Culture of Innovation.
During the conclave, top universities, B-schools and engineering colleges and schools ranked by digitalLEARNING magazine will be felicitated.
Punjab’s Government colleges will have an online attendance system from the next academic session. Simultaneously, to streamline the higher education system in the state, an audit of the colleges will also be introduced.
According to a official release after a meeting chaired by Punjab Minister for Higher Education Razia Sultana with government college principals, “To streamline the higher education system in Punjab, all government colleges will adopt online admissions criteria from next academic session. Each college will be required to submit a monthly progress report of its academic and other activities.”
“No Principal will have any power to relax attendance of any student. Necessary directions in this regard will be issued soon by the government. Attendance of students will be marked online from the next academic session,” a spokesman said on condition of anonymity. He added that various issues related to improve the higher education standard in Punjab were discussed during the meeting.
“It was decided to lift academic activities and action plan for the next year, online admissions, ensuring maximum attendance of students, faculty development, status of NAAC accreditation, the introduction of an academic audit, subject combination in undergraduate courses, best practices in colleges, motivational lecture series by eminent personalities and status of libraries,” the spokesman added.
The poor performance of Nagaland’s government school students in the High School Leaving Certificate (HSLC) examinations conducted by the Nagaland Board of School Education is a point of concern for State’s education department.
The 294 government schools of Nagaland comprise 41 government higher secondary schools (GHSS) and 253 government high schools (GHS). Students from 233 schools appeared for the examinations in 2018 of which 27 schools recorded zero pass percentage while 12 schools have score hundred per cent pass percentage in the HSLC exams 2018.
Addressing a meeting in this regard, Education Department’s Principal Secretary Smita Sarangi said that the pass percentage in the government schools was 40.77 per cent which is 1.83 per cent lesser than that of last year
“The total enrolment of class 10 students in government schools was 5,798, of which 4,163 students appeared for the HSLC examination but only 1,738 qualified,” she said.
During the discussions, the participants including district education officers, head masters, assistant headmasters and teachers in-charge of GHSS and GHS with nil pass percentage, highlighted the key reasons for the poor performance of the schools. According to them, lack of sufficient teachers, non-availability of subject teachers to teach Mathematics, Science and English, neglect of rural schools, weak foundation of students in government schools are the contributing factors for poor performance of government schools in Nagaland.
Emphasising on the need to motivate teachers and students to improve the quality of education in government schools, School Education Advisor K T Sukhalu said, “The advisor said despite appointing 2,700 teachers under the SSA scheme, the quality of education in the elementary and primary sections had gone down instead of improving. The government schools are not only having nil result but there is also poor enrolment of students, which is disheartening.”
He said “Teachers are in a noble profession on whom the parents have put their entire hopes. All of us need to change our attitude and approach to ensure an end to the nil pass record
Government school teachers from across the country can now directly send their nominations for National Award, announced Union Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar.
“In the new system, government school teachers or principals can nominate themselves online. Three teachers will be selected from every district and ultimately six teachers will be selected from every state. An independent jury at national level will select 50 outstanding teachers/ heads of schools for the National Award. Teachers can also upload the videos of their work done,” Javadekar told reporters at New Delhi.
Till last year, three teachers used to be selected from every district and likewise 6 teachers from every State. Later, an independent jury at national level used to select 50 outstanding teachers/heads of schools for the National award for Teachers.
All teachers who are working in government and government aided schools of States/UTs, Central Government Schools i.e. Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs), Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs), Central Schools for Tibetans (CTSA), Sainik Schools run by Ministry of Defence (MoD), Schools run by Atomic Energy Education Society (AEES) and schools affiliated to Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) are eligible to apply for National Award for Teachers.
On the occasion of International Yoga Day, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu stressed on the need to include Yoga in school curriculums to “create a healthy nation”.
While participating at an International Yoga Day event at the Bandra Reclamation Sealink Promenade, the vice president said that the ancient Indian discipline was an invaluable gift from India to the world.
“The practice of Yoga is important for positive thoughts. If it is included in the school curriculum it is possible to create a healthy nation. Yoga also helps in relief from stress due to the changing lifestyles,” Naidu said.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis who also performed asanas at the event referred Yoga as an ancient science and also suggested that it is important in the modern day world. He also said that practicing Yoga is essential for youngsters to live a good and healthy life.
BJP MP from North Central Mumbai Poonam Mahajan, local MLA and Mumbai BJP chief Ashish Shelar and Union minister Babul Supriyo also participated in the Yoga event held in suburban Bandra.
Maharashtra Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao took part in a special Yoga session organised by Kaivalyadhama and The Yoga Institute at the Raj Bhavan.
Several government employees also performed various exercises during the Yoga day event at the State Secretariat.
PTE Academic is the world’s leading computer-based test of English for study abroad and immigration, Vikas Singh, Managing Director, Pearson India, in conversation with Elets News Network (ENN).
How has PTE Academic evolved over the years? Where all is it accepted?
Vikas Singh, Managing Director, Pearson India
PTE Academic was launched in 2009 after a comprehensive research and development programme led by some of the world’s leading experts in language assessment. In 2011, PTE Academic was accepted as proof of English-language ability for Australian student visas and has since been adopted by all Australian universities as proof of English language ability. Pearson has invested heavily in digital, biometric and forensic security measures, driving up the standards in high-stakes testing. As a relative newcomer to the market, Pearson has been able to place cutting-edge methodologies and technology at the heart of its service. We believe PTE Academic is the most secure, reliable, objective and accurate test in its field.
PTE Academic is accepted by thousands of renowned colleges, universities, training providers and professional associations, academic programmes across the US, UK, Canada, Singapore, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand including Harvard Business School, Yale University, INSEAD and London Business School. It is also accepted by professional bodies that provide registration and assessment including CPA Australia, Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, Institute of Public Accountants, Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA), Australian Computer Society (ACS).
PTE Academic is also accepted for visa purposes by the Australian and New Zealand governments.
How is PTE Academic different from other online testing systems?
PTE Academic is the world’s leading computer-based test of English for study abroad and immigration. The computer-based test uses cutting edge technology to ensure score reliability and integrity of the testing process. It also offers the fastest score reporting in the market, with test takers receiving their results typically within five business days. Our automated scoring system is based on complex algorithms that were trained by testing a data sample of over 10,000 students with over 120 native languages. We fed thousands of human marks into our system and found that the standard error measurement between our system and a human rater is less than between one human rater to another.
Does Pearson provide any training to prepare the candidate for the PTE Academic test?
PTE Academic offers a range of test preparation materials online, including a fully scored practice test – and this website should be the first stop for test takers looking to appear in the test. Sometimes though, the best way to prepare for a test is to join a class and receive tuition face-to-face. All around the world there are also private language schools who run PTE Academic preparation courses. You can choose from the list of test preparation course providers.
Please give details about the syllabus of the PTE Academic test for all the categories.
The three-hour test comprises of three sections on Speaking & Writing, Reading and Listening which includes elements like essay-writing, summarizing text and audio, fill-in-the-blanks, Multiple Choice Questions etc. There are twenty different question formats, ranging from multiple choice through to essay writing and interpreting information.
PTE Academic assesses real-life, academic English, so the test-takers (get to/can) hear excerpts from lectures and view graphs and charts. They also hear a range of accents in the test, from British and American to non-native speakers, hence exposed to the type of accents one encounters in everyday life. Part 1: Speaking & Writing (77 – 93 minutes). Part 2: Reading (32 – 41 minutes) Part 3: Listening (45 – 57 minutes).
How can one best prepare for PTE Academic test? Can you share some tips?
To achieve a desirable score in English proficiency tests, the aspirants need to practice listening, reading, writing and speaking together. The test-takers can prepare for PTE Academic using a range of official course books – The Official Guide to PTE Academic or Practice Tests Plus to understand the test format and do the preparation. For the best PTE Academic preparation, learners can opt to do an online Scored Practice Test. For both native and non-English speakers, we have pre-designed courses, both online and face-to-face; available that will not only help in scoring better but also improve the fluency of language. To score well in an English language test, leaners must follow the below tips:
Read frequently as it is an easy yet enjoyable way to expand vocabulary and language comprehensiveness
Practice to brush up your writing and listening skills until you feel confident
Make good use of the dictionary to learn and master the English language
Understand the test format to avoid any surprises
Learn time management as it will help you answer all the questions during the test
The Indian Institute of Technology – Banaras Hindu University (IIT-BHU) and Amazon Internet Services Private Limited (AISPL) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to develop cloud-ready job skills among students.
AISPL will train the students by providing access to the AWS Educate programme and to by assisting in establishing a Cloud Research Lab on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML). The lab will help students in pursing the use researches focused on AI and ML through use of AWS Cloud technology.
The MoU was signed in the presence of Union Human Resources Development Minister Prakash Javadekar in New Delhi.
Speaking on this occasion, Javadekar said, “This is very important occasion as Amazon is joining hands with IIT-BHU for giving essential free services in Cloud Computing, Data-sets and many other new technologies, which will empower our students and faculties to do better and focused research.”
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi is always pushing hard for new research and innovation efforts. The Prime Minister rightly believes that unless we innovate, we don’t attain the sustainable prosperity and to attain the sustainable prosperity, our research and innovations have to go to the next level,” He said. Shri Javadekar said that today’s collaboration is a new milestone and a major step in this direction.
He said, “IIT- BHU, which is the part of BHU family with the existence of more than 100 years, is now using the cutting edge technology which will also enrich the research of other Indian Universities.”
Under the MoU, IIT-BHU gains access to the resources in AWS Educate programme and curriculum designed for higher education institutions to incorporate in their courses. The collaboration will help accelerate cloud-related technical expertise for students and boost their readiness as they prepare to undertake the industry-recognized Certification.
Himachal Pradesh Government to boost school education sector in the State has sanctioned six new central schools.
Currently there are 25 central schools in the State, the new schools will help Himachal Pradesh Government’ objective of improving the education standards as well as to provide education to the children belonging to minority and economically weaker sections of the society.The government, however, has not yet decided on the places where these schools will come up.
According to Education Secretary of Hiimachal Pradesh Arun Sharma, after a meeting with Secretary HRD (School Education) R Subrahmanyam, the permission for setting up the six new schools in Himachal has been granted.
In another very important development in Himachal Pradesh, the proposal by the State Government to establish a model library in Bilaspur has also been approved.
Speaking on the latest developments in the education sector of Himachal Pradesh, Sharma said, “Initially, proposal was only of Rs two crore but now we will be adding to it. There will be several modern facilities, including digital section. The project could well be nearly Rs eight crore and first of its kind in the state”.
Bihar Board 10th result 2018 have been further delayed and likely to be announced 6 days later i.e. on June 26.
BAs per reports, the class 10th result of Bihar Board have been delayed in view of the 42,000 answer sheets that were reported missing. The answer copies of more than 40,000 matric students were found missing from an evaluation centre in Gopalganj.
The Principal, Centre Adminsitrator, and the Night Guard of the concerned centre have been arrested after preliminary investigation. The Principal of SS College had filed an FIR on June 17 about the missing answer sheets.
The board has said that this will not affect the result as the evaluation and marking had already been completed.
Around 17.6 lakh candidates appeared for the Class X exam conducted by BSEB from February 21 to 28. Total 448 candidates barred from the examination for malpractices and 93 examinees were caught for writing papers for the other.
The result is supposed to be announced by the State Education Minister Krishnanandan Prasad Verma. The Principal Secretary of Education Department, R K Mahajan, and Board Chairman Anand Kishore will also be present at the event.
