leader speak
Public and Private Initiatives in Education While many trends are surfacing within the IT industry, we see cloud computing gaining momentum
T
his past year has been good for the education sector, and saw stable and good market growth. The policies pertaining to education have also progressed, and as such we have seen much integration of technology into the system, whether it be through the implementation of accessible technology for the disabled, to on demand computing, or to the adoption of cloud curriculum. Successful integration of these technologies has allowed for better IT offerings for students across the board. Some of the current trends we are seeing in India include the deployment of MultiPoint server technologies which helps improve efficiency amongst schools. Furthermore, we are seeing increased focus on integrating technology
use in classrooms. Microsoft offers sites such as www.innovativeteachers.com and www.saksham-ms.in to teachers, to help them leverage new teaching methods and training modules. This past year has seen significant developments in policy making. A turning point was the roll-out of Right to Education (RTE), which offers the chance of accessing premium schools for all students. There has been a greater push to include and leverage ICT programs and accessibility features to provide a more inclusive environment for students of all backgrounds. While many trends are surfacing within the IT industry, we see cloud computing gaining momentum. In 2012 will see a shift of IT Capex to Opex, through a shift
Irina Ghose, Director – Education, Microsoft India to the cloud. This will allow universities to buy server time and storage space on demand.
Imparting Skills to India The best way of addressing the problem is to make education and training demand driven.
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Pearson, the largest Education Services Company in the world, has been involved in lot of interesting projects in India. One of those projects is the skills training. We have set up a skill joint venture with very good local partners and now our work has started to gather steam. In our endeavours we are having lot of support from public organisations like the National Skill Development Council. Shortage of skills is a real competitive drag on Indian economy. This fact has been recognised by the government and by eminent members of the public. That is why government is now stepping in with support in form of funds and
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policies. The number of skilled people required is 220 million people. This is huge number and substantial efforts need to be made for training so many young people. The best way of addressing the problem is to make education and training demand driven. We need to understand where the demand, in form of jobs, is coming from. The industry needs to get involved- the construction industry, the services industry and so forth. At Pearson, we also recognise of providing vocational training at an earlier stage of a person’s education. Such training can have the effect of seeding the skill related talents in our workforce.
Khozem Merchant, President, Pearson India