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editorial
Convergence of Thought Leadership across the Globe
Advisory Board Prof. Asha Kanwar, Vice President, Commonwealth of Learning
Dr. Jyrki Pulkkinen, CEO, Global eSchools & Communities Initiative (GeSCI) Shri Subhash C Khuntia, Joint Secretary, Department School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India Prof. V N Rajasekharan Pillai, Vice Chancellor, Indira GandhiI National Open University (IGNOU) Prof S S Mantha, Chairman (Acting), All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) President: Dr. M P Narayanan Editor-in-Chief: Dr. Ravi Gupta gm Finance: Ajit Kumar dgm strategy: Raghav Mittal Partnerships & Alliances: Dr. Rajeshree Dutta Kumar, Sheena Joseph, Shuchi Smita, Jaunita Kakoty, Ankita Verma Editorial: Divya Chawla, Dhirendra Pratap Singh, Pragya Gupta, Sonam Gulati, Shally Makin (editorial@elets.in) Sales & Marketing: Jyoti Lekhi, Fahimul Haque, Rakesh Ranjan (sales@elets.in) Subscription & Circulation: Gunjan Singh, Mobile: +91-8860635832 subscription@elets.in Graphic Design: Bishwajeet Kumar Singh, Om Prakash Thakur, Shyam Kishore Web Development: Zia Salahuddin, Amit Pal, Anil Kumar IT infrastructure: Mukesh Sharma, Zuber Ahmed Events: Vicky Kalra Human resource: Sushma Juyal Legal: R P Verma
The Millennium Development Goal of Universal Primary Completion by 2015 is by no means the only challenge in front of education systems across the world. It is only the first step toward the definitive goal of lifelong learning for all citizens, which is as relevant for the poorest countries of the developing world as it is for the countries of the developed world. With an endeavor of so much promise and reform, this special issue of digitalLEARNING is being presented at the World Education Summit, which is a confluence of global thought leaders to mull over the issues pertaining to the global education scenario. All countries, no matter how far they are today from universal primary completion, must simultaneously invest in and promote the balanced development of all levels of their education systems. In a globally integrated and highly competitive world economy, multi stakeholder partnership initiatives can be effective in supporting and even expediting the ongoing education reforms for a more sustainable education system. Irina Bokova, Director General, UNESCO has emphasised that the partnerships of education programme have several assets. It is an effective advocacy channel and provides the tool to strengthen the understanding and coordination between stakeholders. With a vibrant global education community working towards realising education opportunities for all, there is a need to raise awareness and support the implementation of relevant, sustainable and scalable national education sector plans on a global level through the increased commitment of the private and public sectors. India is undergoing a wonderful transition period in education with guided by a visionary leadership. With the passage of the Foreign Education Provider Bill, establishment of the campuses of Indian institutions outside the country, coming over of global schools with foreign alliances, Indian education has certainly become globalised both inwards and outwards. The world in which we live today, demands global education for our students. Our geopolitical environment and economic fates are getting increasingly inter-connected. This situation clearly indicates that one needs to develop a new set of competitive skills to become a global workforce. The influence and prominence of the Indian students has already long been established on the global forefront. It is about time for us to share our lessons, practices and ideas with each other globally and to convert these efforts into a sustainable way to not only promote global harmony but also to bring the global community on a united platform. It is indeed a historical and proud moment for the digitalLEARNING magazine, having covered a journey of more than six years, as it sets to present the World Education Summit 2011 in India along with IGNOU. We welcome all of you to join, share and contribute to the larger spectrum of education that has already gained momentum.
Accounts: Anubhav Rana, Subhash Chandra Dimri Editorial & Marketing Correspondence digitalLearning - G-4 Sector 39, NOIDA 201301, India, Phone: +91 120 2502181-85, Fax: +91 120 2500060 Email: info@digitalLearning.in
digitalLEARNING is published by Elets Technomedia Pvt. Ltd. in technical collaboration with Centre for Science, Development and Media Studies (CSDMS). Owner, Publisher, Printer - Ravi Gupta, Printed at Vinayak Print Media D-320, Sector 10, Noida, U.P. and published from 710, Vasto Mahagun Manor, F-30, Sector - 50, Noida, UP Editor: Ravi Gupta
Dr. Ravi Gupta Editor-in-Chief Ravi.Gupta@elets.in
digitalLEARNING / july 2011
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guest editor
Towards Building a Global Knowledge Society Education is one of the most powerful celebrated drivers for reducing poverty, economic disparity, inequality and for laying the basis for unrelenting sustained economic growth. It is fundamental towards building vibrant democratic societies and globally competitive economies. For individuals and for nations, education is the key to create, disseminate and share knowledge. Despite grim challenges of means and resources, our nation has created a very large education system and has built up a vast pool of global citizens equipped with a high order of scientific and technological capabilities, robust humanist and philosophical creativity. While the XIIth five year plan promises to ensure ‘inclusive growth’, and resolves to provide quality education to all, in an effort to fulfill the educational needs of the country specifically for the diverse societies and cultures of the country, the government has chalked out different educational categories like school, higher, tertiary, vocational, skills, technical etc. Amartya Sen recently emphasised education as a crucial parameter for any inclusive growth in an economy. In terms of both education policy reform and incremental domestic and international financing, we should have our focus more on inclusive rather than divisive growth strategies. Access to quality basic education is imperative not only to reduce social and regional disparities, but also to achieve balanced growth and development. The country has the extreme situation of having the largest number of illiterates and out of school children in the world. In answer to this, there have been initiatives towards ensuring that the learning needs of all young people and adults are met to fair and judicious access to appropriate learning and life skills programmes. Community participation has also emerged as a force behind the existing educational opportunities. In order to have measurable learning outcomes achieved, especially in literacy, numeracy and in essential life skills, there is a need to have a comprehensive approach towards ensuring quality and excellence in education. In the present day context, we do have a transparent system that provides for a conducive learning environment supported with higher level of community participation. Teachers are effectively graduating to be facilitators of learning. It is critical to have at least a growth rate of 9 to10 per cent per year in the economic sphere, necessitating the requirement for human skills, especially the research skills. We are happy to be part of a magical decade where there will be no compromise with respect to enrolment and retention of students. For this there must be 100 per cent literacy and 100 per cent enrolment at all levels of education. For this the rural sector is being mobilised and encouraged in the cause of education. The optimistic scenario entails that India will have a well established education system at the elementary, secondary and tertiary levels to be able to develop manpower for different levels of the economy worldwide. Having added 203 million to the population of the literates during the decade 1991-2001, India has definite capability to reach near 100 per cent literacy level by 2025. This ambitious target would call for learning from global experiences of more open, flexible and supplementary routes having an appropriate mix of skills and academic knowledge. In the US, according to the latest statistics 46 percentage of the students go to the Universities through the two-year community colleges which have grown bigger than some of the premier universities over there. The Open University of China for example offers full-time, part time and spare time two-year and three year degree programmes in addition to various modular, certificate and diploma programmes. More than 50 percent of the students enter into higher learning in the Universities through these two-year degree colleges in China. I feel privileged to share with you all that the special issue of digitalLEARNING magazine will be presented at the World Education Summit 2011. While we, as a nation, are going through an interesting phase of transition with various reforms in education, we strive to share and exchange our knowledge and best practices with the countries across globe specially the emerging ones in Africa, East Asia, South America and the Gulf. As the Guset editor, I urge all of you to come and share your vision towards building a truly global knowledge society. With best wishes,
V N Rajasekharan Pillai
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ASIA'S FIRST MONTHLY MAGAZINE ON ICT IN EDUCATION
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vision
Honouring Life,
I
Loynpo Thakur S Powdyel Minister of Education, Bhutan
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had often thought - this was it! The light was retreating. Learning was rapidly becoming an irksome afterthought. I have often wondered why everything else takes the centre-stage but the very source of light should be consigned to the back-stage! It still worries me that almost everything else makes news but the noble sector only becomes relevant when something goes wrong in the society. I have often wondered what might have been the state of our world if Education had received its due. As a soft pillow beneath my aching head comes the first ever Global Education Summit. It should have happened a thousand years ago! But ‘the flag flies still and the city has not fallen’! Here, I have found a ray of hope. We can still redeem the sector noble and launch a new civilization. I would like to offer my deepest tributes to the enlightened minds that saw the reason for this event whose time has truly come. I commend the initiative taken by the Indira Gandhi National Open University, the Centre for Science, Development and Media Studies, and Elets Technomedia Pvt. Ltd. to host this historic Summit. It is a blessing to the world. Its value and its symbolism speak for themselves. Education may not be as newsworthy as the stock market or sports or tsunami. It may be less dramatic than HIV/AIDS or bush-fire or earthquake. But given its due and pursued with honour, the light of learning can redeem the world. I am deeply heartened that the Summit creates a precious space for the meeting of minds and sharing of dreams dedicated to making our world a better place for our children and our children’s children and beyond. Education is at the crossroads of a complex kind today. The attitude to learning and the outlook of the learner often call into question the viability of the whole educational mission. With the rapid ‘mercantilization of knowledge’ and commercialization of learning, the core function of the noble sector is coming to be governed by the laws of corporations and the employment market.
vision
Light and Learning… Change of vocabulary says it all: Are your graduates marketable? Are they employable? Are they saleable? How much further away could we be from the call to build faith and character, to learn the skills of usefulness and to cultivate the virtue of gracefulness that should define an educated person? Scholars have become commodities! The essentially normative architecture of education is being rapidly dislodged by the linear logic of economic efficiency with the result that if a lifeaffirming discipline is at the same time economically not viable, there are not only fewer takers, but its support and succor may be compromised. However, mundane and mercenary a course may be, if it has a material carrot dangling at the end, it does magic! One may wonder, therefore, what, after all, is the purpose
At a time when most of our social, spiritual, emotional and psychological moorings are giving way under the onslaught of mechanistic forces, there is an urgent need to rediscover and reassert the core function of education that combines the need to sharpen brains and skills with the need to build faith and character. When we occupy the most precious segment of our societies – its children and youth – in our seats of learning, for extended periods of time, it falls upon us – their guides and guardians – to give them a vision of the future in which they have a role to play. They will be our leaders tomorrow. If a nation has a dream, it falls primarily upon its education system to uphold it and to advance it. As for my country, the philosophy of Gross National Happiness is our North Star. This de-
If a nation has a dream, it falls primarily upon its education system to uphold it and to advance it
of education? Why do we occupy young people for nine months out of twelve in schools, colleges, and universities if the goal is nothing more than simply getting a job, as important as it is? The Global Education Summit may do well to look back and to look ahead for a more entire view of the human person and of the society of human beings – supposed to be the most highly evolved of all the animals on land, sea and the sky. It is about time to ask what kind of society do we envision? What dreams do we have of the future? Who will build that future? What do we owe our children? If we have a vision of the society ten years from now or fifty or a hundred years from today, we will do our part to progress towards that future one step at a time.
velopment goal is founded on the belief that the ultimate goal of all human beings is the attainment of happiness; that the profound needs of human beings are not necessarily physical or material; and that there is no direct relationship between the level of material wealth and the experience of happiness. Beginning in the academic session 2010, therefore, the Ministry of Education has launched a nationwide programme called Educating for Gross National Happiness to be realized through building green schools for green Bhutan. By hitching our efforts to a sublime goal, we believe that the noble sector will be able to discover its true purpose and perhaps redeem itself. Green schools are conceived of in the belief that education must address the multiple dimensions of a learner’s life.
The elements of a green school include, but are not necessarily limited to, natural or environmental greenery, intellectual greenery, academic greenery, social greenery, cultural greenery, spiritual greenery, aesthetic greenery, and moral greenery. The hope is that our children and youth exposed to these learning experiences will imbibe the right values and acquire the right kind of knowledge to make them better actualized and more fulfilled human beings. Once they complete their education and join the bigger society, they will release the positive energy and goodwill that they acquire at school to the society. A society that benefits from such inputs is expected to be more at peace with itself as well as with the world beyond. This is an experiment. We have no illusions about the challenges such a project presents. And we have our immediate concerns and compulsions as indeed the rest of the world has. We have the obligation to enroll the last child in the last hamlet, meet the Millennium Development Goals, fulfill the promise of Education for All. And all these against heavy odds! But we believe this is the right way to go, however difficult. Education must be taken to the next higher level of engagement than merely being a mercenary pursuit of degrees and diplomas unrelieved by light and learning. Therefore, what the world needs today is a new ethic of learning, a fresh outlook on knowledge. What we truly need is a new civilization – an educational civilization, if you will. No nation succeeds if education fails, but education succeeding, no nation will fail. The equation cannot be more compelling. We have a great opportunity to redeem education and make it a redeemer of the world! Let us do what we can when we can… History will judge what we make of this opportunity. digitalLEARNING / July 2011
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leaders speak
Smt D Purandeswari, Minister of State, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India
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leaders speak
Building Excellence
in Education Smt D Purandeswari, Minister of State, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India shares plans, outreach and challenges in education while talking to Dr Rajeshree Dutta Kumar and Pragya Gupta
Please share your views on ideal scenario of education system in India. First, we must remember that education is the fastest driver of socio-economic change. It is very important that we have a very strong education system that will support our needs and requirements and also support country’s growth and development. In order to respond to the challenges and issues within our own country, we need to bring in reforms in our education system. Education system introduced by colonial rulers had outgrown its relevance and there was grave necessity to put an education system in place that addresses our requirements. The University Education Commission was thereby constituted under the leadership of Prof S Radhakrishnan. His recommendations emphasised that the then education system did not have any relevance and did not relate to modernity. He urged that the education system must change itself according to the needs and requirements of the nation. More than 50 years after, time has now arrived to bring in changes in order to suit the needs of our education system. Globalisation is a reality and is here to stay, entailing that there is a need to prepare children not only to support the growth and development of the country but also that of the globe. This indicates
the need to churn out global citizens. In view of that we are now looking to bring changes in the education. I would like to call the current education scenario interseting and challenging. Interesting because of exponential expansion in education sector be it elementary, secondary or higher education and challenging because not only do we need to firm up our education system to ensure that that they grow as global citizens. Can you share with us the initiatives undertaken by your Ministry? The ministry has made significant achievements under the leadership of Shri Kapil Sibal as he set a 100 days target so that we can achieve it without any complacency seeping into the system. That is how we have been bringing certain legislations like RTE (Right to Education) bill and were able to do amendments. We are looking at the exponential expansion in higher education sector. We are now looking into different bills to come in. We are looking at Education Tribunal bill. We are looking at Foreign Education Provider bill, which is presently there with the law ministry. Once it will be recognised by them it will be introduced. We are looking at establishing an education tribunal to address the issues, which education institutions faced. Suppose if there is a professor or teacher in a college or
school who feels that their terms were not fulfilled or they were misled, they can approach the tribunal. Because we do not want institution to be hanged in a courtroom for long to get their cases resolved. Rather, we want fast track tool in education institution. We are also looking at Prevention of Education Malpractices Act. The students who have been cheated by the institution or if they find that said conditions have not been fulfilled in terms of faculty, infrastructure, fee, etc., then the students can take them to court with this act. I am sure parliament will support this bill, which will bring great change in the education system. How can our children cater to the global requirements in the light of shortage of skilled workforce? How can industry support us? Children must support the requirements of our country first then they can go to become global citizen. There has been an apprehension that there is a great gap between what the universities are offering, the industry and market requirements and what universities are churning out. There has been a long debate. My own experience says that four-five years ago when we opened dialogue with private sector to come to the table and discuss about their needs so that we can put them into operation, we
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leaders speak
did not see enthusiasm by private sector or the industry then. But today we see that the private sector is willing to come forward and we also want to stretch out our hands to them and sit together to discuss with them so that our children should get meaningful education. It is happening because today both of us look at it as a win-win situation. We considers it as a win-win situation because we are ensuring children employment. If we work with industry then we will ensure providing children with gainful employment. Industry considers it as a winwin situation because unless we give them quality education, there will not be quality manpower out of university. So the situation is such that both of us have to sit together. What are the initiatives taken by your Ministry for promoting vocational education? Vocational stream is also the focus today. Honourable Prime Minister has emphasised that we need to up skill 500 million children by 2020. The Skill De-
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velopment Council has been constituted and it is under the review and purview of Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). Skill development is spread across 17 ministries and departments, and in order to avoid overlapping, the PMO has taken the responsibility to coordinate and review the situation. Under the skill development mission we have Polytechnics. This mission concentrates and focuses on skill development. In this processes, we can now see piecemeal development happening but there is no proper certification available. When it comes to skills that our children have actually acquired, we feel that the certification is important as this certificate will be recognised wherever the child goes across the length and breadth of the country. Probably, we will think of tying up with the international bodies as well. Presently, we are focusing on children’s skills being recognised and they be given due employment. Secondly there would be no exploitation of any child. Today, if a child does not undergo formal education system, his /
her skills are not recognised and there is an exploitation and under payment. National Vocational Education Qualification Framework (NVEQF) has been constituted, which will probably be the national body that will certify the skills acquired by students. We have opened dialogue with various industrial sectors so that we could work together. We want them to give us guidance in the form of curriculum that a sector requires. We also have to see how do we integrate vocational education to conventional education. A child after sometime may realise that he is interested in going back to college, and it will not be possible unless we establish a connect between the two. Unless this connection happens, we do not think that there will be respect and dignity that will be given to vocational education. It has been looked down as a stream where ‘not so good’ children go. So that apprehension should be dispelled and dignity should be given to vocational education. We interacted openly with sectors like automotive, IT, ITES, Construction and are looking forward to interact with hospitality sector also. These are sectors that generate lot of employment. We are looking at different levels of skills required in each sector. We have constituted a committee to be a part of NVEQF and asked them to give us direction on the curriculum and testing of the skills of the children . Do you see any direct relationship between conventional higher education system and that of vocational? We do want them to be in relation with each other. Unless, we give the child vertical or horizontal mobility, in vocational education, which will give options like multi entry and multi exit, the child will not want to come into vocational education. Today we cannot have children who just come out of secondary school education and get into the higher education where there is no employment opportunity for them. We rather have them skilled and then gainfully employed to offer better support to their families and contributing to the growth of the country.
leaders speak
tional average is 23 percent. All developed countries are anywhere between 40-70 percent. So we know there is herculean task ahead of us. Vocational education can help in achieving GER in one aspect. Distance education can help us achieving our target. These are various aspects within the education sector that can help us in achieving GER but we also have to look at the literacy level. Presently, literacy level is around 65 percent and we want to enhance it to 80 percent. In terms of diversity it is a challenge to reach out to diverse sectors. So even 65 percent achievement, keeping in mind the multitudnal diversity of the country, is a wonderful feeling. Of course we can not get complacent. We have to set a target of 80 percent for the literacy level. So the distance education,
“Prevention of Education Malpractices Act will lend a hand to the children who have been cheated by the institution” Do you advocate Vocational education for schools? Yes. It will give the child a feel of what vocational education is. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has already incorporated vocational education into the curriculum at the level of secondary education. A child in class 8th to 10th is already exposed to vocational stream. It helps in exploring the child’s latent talent. Once the child gets the feel of Vocational education then the child can take it up further too. Can you share with us the impact on GER (Gross Enrolment Ratio)? Drop out ratio in school education has seen positive changes as it has came down. For GER, we go according to the census and 2001 census has revealed that GER in Higher Education is not more than 12.4 percent. Today, it is expected to be around 14 percent, according to general estimate, since we have not got the figures in hand. Various surveys have emphasised that if our economy has to be sustainable, then GER needs to be 20 percent whereas interna-
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the vocational education, and the skill development mission will help us to achieving the set literacy rate target. The mandate of Right to Education enhances the accessibility of Education. Does the act address quality and quantity aspects? Right to Education addresses both qualitative and quantitative aspect of education. Quantitative in terms of improving accessibility. Through SSA (Sarva Siksha Abhiyan), to a large extent, our focus has been on accessibility because accessibility, equity and quality are the key pillars of our education system. First is accessibility, unless we have children coming to school, we cannot talk about quality. So all our focus has been on how we make education accessible. We need to create the infrastructure so that the child can actually access the school within the kilometer range for an elementary level. Since, we have reached that quantitative in SSA, we are now looking at secondary education and we have the flagship programme RMSA (Rashtriya Madhyamik
Siksha Abhiyan) where we are looking at lower primary, lower secondary school at every three kilometers and higher secondary school at every five kilometers. Now that is also a herculean task keeping the geographical largeness of the country and the numbers and demographies in the country. In this regard, we have also requested the state governments because RTE is not the legislation that is going to be only implemented by Government of India. It is the legislation, which is going to be implemented closely with the state governments. So the state governments need to play their part very effectively and responsibly. We have asked them to have GIS (Geographical Information System) mapping of all the schools for the citizens to know where the schools should be and what we mean by neighborhood schools. Because there are areas in some states where all the schools probably are concentrated in a particular place. It is very important to address the geographical disparity. After we have addressed the quantity, our focus is on quality. Now if you look at RTE bill very closely, we can not have quality education being given to our children unless we have qualitative teachers in the class. RTE lays down the qualifications for the teachers. It also says that teacher have to pass the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET), which has been introduced by NCTE (National Council for Teacher Education), a nodal organisation to lay down the qualification for the teachers to be covered under RTE. We are ensuring the qualitative teachers are now going to be put in place. NIOS (Natinal Institute of Open Schooling) should ensure, as an open schooling system, to impart skill oriented programme that may give age relevant coaching to the child to be brought into the conventional education. As far as quality is concerned, once we have qualitative teachers in place, we have great organisation like (NCERT) National Council for Education, Research and Training, which is going to come up with National Curriculum Framework widely respected by all states and across the country. \\
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Leaders Speak
360 Degree Approach on Higher Education Smt Vibha Puri Das, Secretary, Department of Higher Education is an IAS officer of the year 1976 batch, Uttaranchal Cadre (then Uttar Pradesh), India. Prior to this posting, she was Additional Secretary, Department of Personnel and Training. Smt. Das addressed various educational issues and highlighted the Ministry’s initiatives over a tea with Dr. Rajeshree Dutta Kumar How is your department addressing the partial disconnect between school education system and higher education system and that of higher education and industry’s requirements? I think, this is the time when we are looking at education in a seamless way, from start to finish, from Right to Education (RTE) through Universalisation of Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan, that is, secondary education and towards a huge unprecedented expansion of higher education, so that all of them fit into one comprehensive vision for Education. The fact is that we have huge demographic dividends available to this country and similarly we are going to be well placed in terms of the numbers of primary school leavers and in a few years from now the secondary school leavers who are going to be significantly higher in number than any time in the past. So, we have to be ready with our higher education system to receive the much larger number that is in terms of quantitative dimension. Looking at the qualitative dimension, again the seamless connect is quite evident. The whole issue of Comprehensive and Continuous Evaluation (CCE), and the core curriculum that is cutting across different school boards, constitute an emphasis on quality as well as renewed emphasis
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on school education. To rededicate ourselves to the importance of schooling and quality of school education has been the dominant feature in the recent past. The Quality Initiatives in the 11th Plan have focused on this dimension. So, we need to factor that when we look into higher education scenario, what are the kinds of kids that we are getting into higher education system? Are they well prepared in the school education? Do they have to face lot Smt. Das is an M.A. in Political Science from the Jawaharlal Nehru University. She has also done a Certificate Course in International Approaches to Rural Development and Poverty Alleviation in the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, UK.
She has served the Central Government as Joint Secretary, Ministry of Food Processing Industries, and Executive Director, Central Social Welfare Board. Her other postings have included serving as Principal Secretary and Commissioner, Forest and Rural Development, Uttaranchal and Principal Secretary, Home and Transport of Uttaranchal.
She has also been Additional Chief Executive officer of the Greater Noida Authority, Vice Chairperson, Ghaziabad Development Authority, and Special Secretary (Finance), Government of U.P.
of stress in the school education system? Do they have a large number of Entrance Examination and multiplicity of preparatory tests, which they have to go through? Addressing all these issues are an essential feature of how and what kind of kids we get into the higher education system. So, this has been done so far and now we are looking at streamlining and rationalising the tests that are envisioned for the entry to higher education. I think the seamless connect across different segments of education has never been so well articulated as it is today. Please throw some light on Education reforms that have happened ever since this government has taken hold? When the present government took office, the Presidential address, to the two houses of parliament in June 09, indicated that we would be coming with a new regulator for higher education. Constituting the National Council for Higher Education and Research (NCHER) has been the motive of entire reform process that ministry has dedicated itself to, over the last two years. In the first 100 days, the action plan, that the Minister set for this ministry, was the working of legislative reforms, polity reforms and the introduction of the schemes, which
Leaders Speak
Smt Vibha Puri Das Secretary, Department of Higher Education
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Leaders Speak
were necessary in the 11th plan. So, all the three dimensions that ministry really works in, i.e. the legislative sphere, the polity sphere, and the programme sphere, have been targeted in our approach to reforms.
“The whole issue of Comprehensive and Continuous Evaluation (CCE), and the core curriculum that is cutting across different school boards, constitute an emphasis on quality as well as renewed emphasis on school education”
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What are the Education reforms that you have taken or introduced? In broader terms what the ministry is working towards is providing the necessary autonomy to educational institution because higher education institutions have to function in a sphere where they are completely free from any outside or government control whether in terms of their internal administration, their financial autonomy, their academic autonomy. The Academic autonomy has never been in question, they have completely been autonomous. But, steadily we are increasing and empowering them to see that whatever improvements we can do in terms of their financial and administrative autonomy, we should be able to provide. This is in a larger and in broader direction of reform. Secondly, we find that coming from NCHER, the regulatory mechanism needs to be clearly defined so that the space for each setup institution is clear. Educational Institutions have their space, the regulator has its space, the Government has its own space and we all work in our defined arenas. So, it is in this context that the NCHER is envisioned. The other legislations that we have on the unveil is the prevention of the unfair practice, the mandatory accreditations. The foreign education providers, of course, is a different league altogether. It has nothing to do with quality as such within the domestic domain but it is about enhancing the total number, may be quality by extension. So the direction of reforms in the last couple of year has been clearly of autonomy for transparency, for more accountable institutions and for a total academic experience of quality education. Please give comprehensive overview of your department’s role on the entire promotion of Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER)? GER is the function of total number of children in the age group of 18-24 and
Leaders Speak
the proportion of these children who are actually going for enrollment in higher education. It is largely observed that the a large proportion of kids, who complete class 12 , do come into higher education. The number is enhancing at every stage, so the RTE guarantee that many more children qualify at the end of primary school, the secondary education guarantee that many more children qualify at the end of secondary education and therefore, the number is in increasing. Otherwise if you look at it, about 70 percent of the school leavers do get enrolled for higher education but the total number of school leavers still does remain small. So, we need to grow the number in both place and then we need to grow the opportunities available for children to get into higher education. We have adequate number of hostels so that children do not have to travel too far especially for women as they have problem of travelling in the Indian context, we have special schemes for women hostels. Then, the whole issue of distance Education to ensure that those kids who cannot really afford to attend morning to evening programme of study are able to do it on a flexi time/ anytime learning mode. To my mind the most important mode is technology enabled learning, which is of course the ICT. It is a transforming platform which will reach larger number, enhance quality, and multiply opportunities. So, to my mind these are the different areas where we are looking at growing the numbers. What are the measures taken to ensure quality education to the larger population? How much of quality are we looking at? We are certainly addressing the quality dimension as I said earlier right from school onwards into higher education. Within higher education, seeing that the faculties are well qualified, the regulations from University Grants Commission (UGC) have been made stringent. Regulations from All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) have been changed to ensure that to teach in Engineering College, a doctoral degree is
a mandatory. So, the whole minimum threshold criteria for having qualified teacher have been enhanced. The salary structure for teachers has been enhanced so much that it has become one of the most attractive destinations in terms of financial package available to teachers. So, we are trying to make both the living conditions and working conditions better, to improve the compensation package and infrastructure availability. Do you think universities should have mandate to produce industry ready knowledge and workforce? I think industry should not assume that universities have mandate to produce people who are industry ready. Universities have to produce graduates or post graduates based on comprehensive societal perception; it is not about putting up graduates who fit in into the indus-
sets. For Education as a whole, I think they need to have a broad canvas in mind. We have set the target of over 500 million skilled youth by 2020. How are you going about it? There are no two ways about it. I think scaling of the economy has to be addressed and we are working at it in developing the National Vocational Education Qualification Framework, which will help kids to go laterally, diagonally, vertically, and have multiple pathways of moving from educational to vocational, back to education from vocational and so on. It is going to be the mark of an educated society where kids can learn things, which are relevant for them to get a job and they also have adequate skills to expand the mind and get educated. We are working on the parallel platforms because up to class 8th it is man-
“all the three dimensions that ministry really works in, i.e. the legislative sphere, the polity sphere, and the programme sphere, have been targeted in our approach to reforms� try requirements. It is not something, which any self-respecting university worldwide would do, because universities are not polytechnic that will be manufacturing employees for the industrial workforce. They are in the business of producing educated citizenry. Now, from the educated citizenry, it is for prospective employer to see that kids have the basic skills set; what are the add-ons that they need to give to them so that they become industry ready. So, I think that industry would need to invest in PostEducation Training. We cannot clearly have the universities mandated to produce for each and every kind of employer profile. But, at the same time we are trying to make provision ensuring the engineering and professional graduates are equipped with industry ready skill
datory education for all. But secondary education and beyond can be mixed with skills, polytechnic education so as to see that those numbers are put through into our education. AICTE has improved and modified their regulations to have polytechnic as part of engineering colleges. We have Polytechnic skilling process provided through the digital learning platform so that can be done through remote learning. I think apart from the expansion in the polytechnic; there is going to be an expansion of at least 1000 new polytechnic over the 11th plan period. Around 300 in the government sector, 300 in Public-Private-Partnership mode and another 400 in private sector. So, total number of at least 1000 extra polytechnic will be set up, which will power the way to skill Enhancement. \\
digitalLEARNING / JULY 2011
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Leaders Speak
“ODL will be an Important Tool for Improving GER�
Shri Amit Khare, Joint Secretary, Bureau of BP & CR Education Policy UNESCO, INC & ICC, Department of Higher Education, Government of India, in conversation with Sheena Joseph provides updates on the latest buzz in the higher education sector
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What are the areas in which your department has been focusing on, with specific reference to international partnership in the field of higher education? In the field of international partnership, we are looking at the mobility of faculty as well as students in both directions. When people largely talk about the entry of foreign educational institutions in India, what is not being talked about is that we have our own efforts in spreading education abroad. Some of our private universities have already opened campuses abroad. We are also receiving requests from some countries for opening our Institutions like IITs in their country. In Africa, another initiative has been announced by the Honorable Prime Minister covering two institutions; one is the African Institute for Education Planning and second would be the African Institute of Information Technology. Given our strength in IT, a project has also been approved by the government for an IndoEast Africa Virtual University, which will be anchored by IGNOU. So, while it is true that more than scores of Indian students go to the U.S., Australia, UK and other places for education, we can also affirm that more than 40 thousand students come to India. We are looking at both these developments. We are trying to internationalise our universities and institutions so that the students could get international experience. At the same time these exchanges are very crucial for research collaborations and for faculty
development. Some of the important collaborations, which we already have are the UK-India Education Research Initiative (UKIERI), Obama-Singh Knowledge Initiative with USA. Also we have collaborations with Australia and New Zealand in terms of higher education and vocational education. In addition, we have 33 bilateral and multi-lateral agreements with different countries. While we want to benefit from the experiences of other countries, at the same time, we want to share our tremendous expertise particularly in ICT with rest of the world. In terms of different collaborations like UKIERI and ObamaSingh Knowledge Initiative, what are the implications of these for universities, students and teachers in India and abroad? The collaborations include different components. Setting up of foreign university campuses will be one of the components. Other elements, for example, include that of student mobility and recognition of international degrees. Similarly, quality assurance is another component which is to be considered so that the standard of education is benchmarked and it can match up to international standards. Innovative projects and joint degree programs have also been covered in different phases and it all depends from country to country. Some countries are more focused on higher education while some other countries are looking for collaboration in the area of school education.
Leaders Speak
How significant has international collaborations been in school education? Some of the countries are actually quite keen to develop their curriculum in the area of science and mathematics based on the India curriculum framework. There may be several differences in Social Science subjects between countries but as far as Science and Mathematics are concerned, the fundamentals are common all over the world and particularly the Indian expertise and the quality of textbooks of NCERT are well appreciated. These countries are looking forward to curriculum development, textbook development and also training of their teachers as master trainers in India. If foreign universities are allowed to set campuses in India, how can we ensure that the quality in education is maintained? A Foreign Education Institutions Bill has sufficient safeguards so that the detrimental variety of institutions is not allowed to enter. Secondly, all institutions will have to be accredited, which will put a big break and it will be a stopper to ensure that the Institutions which are not of requisite quality are not able to enter India. AICTE, UGC, and NAAC have a major role to play in order to ensure due quality processed and accreditation is maintained. We want quality not only of the foreign institutions in India but also Indian institutions in India.
“The changing technologies and changing markets have created a situation where a person may have to relearn or retrain himself as a ‘mid-course or mid-career’ option” Recently we had controversies regarding IITs and IIMs not coming up to the standards. What are your views in regard to that? I cannot make any political comment but the very fact that three countries have requested us formally through their education ministers to have an IIT like institution set up in their country. This itself is a proof that our institutions are regarded world over otherwise I don’t think these countries would have requested us to open such institutions in their countries. In terms of enrollment, India has among the largest number of students in the higher education institutions but the Gross Enrollment Ration is much less as compared to global standards. Do you think that international universities coming in are going to increase the percentage? It may not increase the Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) to a large extent because the numbers would be very small. Their major contribution will be more on the quality side and new type
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Shri Amit Khare got selected for the IAS in 1985 Batch (Jharkhand Cadre). He has over 24 years of experience in Government including HRD, Revenue, Finance and General Administration, some of them being Principal Secretary to Governor, Jharkhand, Secretary HRD, Government of Jharkhand, Addl. Finance Commissioner,Government of Jharkhand.
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At present, he is holding the charge of Joint Secretary, Bureau of BP & CR Education Policy UNESCO, INC & ICC in the Development of Higher Education in the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India since 28th August, 2009 and has also been taking part in bilateral as also multi-lateral dialogues and negotiations and interacting with UNESCO and WIPO.
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He obtained his B. Sc (Hons) degree in Physics from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University and has a post graduate degree in Management from IIM Ahmedabad.
of questions they will bring in to India. Secondly, many students who are going to other countries and rough estimate shows that approximately US $5-6 billion are spent by Indian students abroad. Entry of foreign educational institutes will help us retain our talent and wealth in India. What are your views on open and distance learning education in the field of higher education and international collaborations? Open and distance learning education will be an important tool for improving the gross enrolment ratio in India. Now different countries are in different stages of development. Perhaps the western countries may not require distance learning to that extent because they have well developed infrastructure in the conventional system but countries like ours where expansion in conventional system will be very costly, distance education will provide not only access in remote areas but also access to quality education. The quality which is available in the IITs and central universities, the same content can be transmitted to the rural areas. So, that’s why distance education offers a lot of scope and secondly after few years although is not very predominant in India but in some years time there will be a trend of ‘relearning at the middle level’. The changing technologies and changing markets have created a situation where a person may have to relearn or retrain himself as a ‘mid-course or mid-career’ option. So, there again it will be distance education which will provide these free learning opportunity. Therefore, distance learning is bound to play a very important role in India. \\
digitalLEARNING / JULY 2011
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K-12 Speak
“Digital Medium needs to be in Sync with Tech Age� Anita Bir, Principal, RN Podar School, in conversation with Rachita Jha on her perspective of technology in school education
What will be the new avatar of schools in the digital age? Children today are digital natives and we have to keep pace with them; we have to bridge the digital divide – it is a necessity today for schools to be equipped and not be intimidated by technology. Moreover, the country today needs to address the availability of quality education to a large number of children distributed across urban and rural areas-and this can only be possible using technology as one of the solutions. The availability of teachers, especially good teachers is a major problem in schools, and to resolve this difficulty, distance education will be the way forward for school education in India, and technologies such as Skype and video-conferencing can be viable solutions for them. Our approach towards brining technology to schools is also gaining much recognition amongst students and parent. This shows that the school is making an effort to keep pace with the latest teaching and learning aids, in addition to creating a collaborative learning environment. Also, a disconnect and barrier that the child faces when he or she compares school to the home is broken, when he uses similar social networking or technology applications for connecting with classmates and teachers in the school itself. Technology, Internet and digital medium
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K-12 Speak
How can Facebook and other social networking sites be used for schools and support teaching and learning? We have created an appetite for brining in latest technologies in schools in the minds of teachers and students alike. We don’t content ourselves with a single technology platform that we adopted few years ago. We have tried to constantly adapt and keep pace with the new technological advancements that are taking place. Keeping this in mind, lately we have started with our Facebook initiative, which has proved to be a huge success. It was more a social platform for interaction. We
Real world is coming to schools and technology has helped us prepare students for the future work environment are the only way forward for schools to be in sync with the technology age. How do you ensure the effective use of interactive boards in your school? We were the first schools to introduce interactive boards in all our classrooms way back in 2006. And initially when we brought-in this technology, it got the students excited but the teachers were apprehensive on being equipped to teach using a tech tool. We then created a group of seniors students, who provided hand-holding for the teachers and this created a new wave of collaborative learning between the teachers and the taught. This introduced the teachers to the world of technology and created interest even among subject teachers in languages such as Hindi and Sanskrit to use the software. So, the introduction of the interactive boards also taught us of the various ways that the teachers and students can integrate technology in schools effectively. Not every teacher is aware of the interactive boards and, therefore, when we induct new teachers, we ensure that they undergo an in-depth orientation programme on the software and how it is used in the classrooms.
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thing new in life. I think the real world is coming to schools and technology has helped us prepare students for the future work environment. Tell us your views on the steps taken by CBSE to create a progressive school environment? As a step forward in this regard, CBSE has now introduced a number of vocational courses to orient the students on the various opportunities that lie ahead of them. Another initiative is introduction of technology tools to get school education related data for all CBSE and other remote schools in India. We now do a Continuous Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) in which the Board evaluates the child over a period of time, this data is then sent to the Board electronically and the Board prints the report card for each student based on continuous performance and not just one final examination.
then planned to extend the experience into the classroom and experimented with Google docs and cloud computing. Each classroom created Google accounts for the students and parents and a sharing platform was created for all parentteacher and teacher-student interaction and information sharing. Today, we have 3000 parents with email accounts and are part of the school cloud ecosystem. So it’s not just the school but also the parents who are using the platform to interact with other teachers. The connectivity with students and parents has become much closer and faster using the Google groups and docs applications.
What are your recommendations for the planning commission with respect to school education? We are talking about a young India; this young India should be educated. And if we have to educate such large number of children in the scenario of paucity of teachers, school infrastructure, and books, we have to harness technology to make education for all a reality. And distance education will play a critical role in this. The government should therefore have more planning and investments laid out for distance education to reach to larger sections of society that are yet to avail the benefits of quality education.
How can a school nurture employability skills in students to help in career development? We realised early that it is not enough to give school students academic skills; they need to have life skills. They should develop the ability to think and have an opinion and express their views. Planting the seeds of thought is very important. They have to learn the adaptive skills. The jobs that are coming up today are not what the schools could have prepared the students for, so we as a school aim to build the adaptability skills so they are ready to take on any-
Tell us how do you plan to leverage technology in your school in the future? Open source applications such as Google apps and Google docs have proved as a major boon to us. As a school, we have always believed in transparency in sharing information; and Google application is just an extension of that. It helps us to connect with our teachers, students and parents on one platform. As knowledge expands only by sharing, this platform has set in a new culture of collaborative learning using Google doc ecosystem for teachers, students and parents to benefit. \\
K-12 Speak
Jeanie N Aibara Principal, Hillgrove Public School
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K-12 Speak
“Join Hands to Give Every Child an Equal Opportunity” Jeanie N Aibara, Principal, Hillgrove Public School has an experience of twenty seven years as a teacher and administrator. The passion for excellence in the field of education is imbibed in her, since she belongs to the family of educationists. Her vision is to nurture students to become global citizens, who follow their dreams through the highest standards of education and ethics. In a tete-a-tete with Pragya Gupta, she highlights her perspective on education in India
How do you see school education evolving in India with respect to the global scenario? Many Indian schools offer world class education and our school and college graduates are sought around the globe as their rigorous and disciplined education prepares them to compete and succeed in the global arena. Whether it is IT companies or manufacturing industries, entertainment and the arts, our graduates excel due to the solid educational foundations established through our K-12 school system. While we have made great leaps into bringing some students into the 21st century, as a democratic country offering equal opportunities to every student, we have a lot to do. There are schools that do not have an adequate building, little resources, ill-equipped classrooms, and teachers who are qualified but do not have the much-needed professional development to keep pace with the digital times. Hence many of our children remain underserved. What is the role of ICT in universalising school education? Shed some light on ICT adoption in your school? In the digital world, multimedia has revolutionised how we communicate,
work, play, shop, research; indeed, how we teach and learn. We live in digital times and that is the direction to go. All schools, teachers, and students must be e-Literate to succeed in today’s world. As administrators we must take advantage of the radical ways multimedia can be used in the classroom. The role of eLearning is limitless as it provides a universal tool for teaching and learning so that we can actually envision a global curriculum rather than a local, state, or national curriculum. The school is focusing on enhancing ICT. A lot needs to be done before we are ready to say that we have brought about a change. How do you rate the policy initiatives taken up by governments in the last ten years? What do you suggest for the 12th Plan? The state and central government have taken very good initiatives. The education sector has seen a steady change for the better. The mindset of the educationaist and the general public has undergone a sea change. I have two suggestions for the 12th Five Year Plan. One is, that every child in every school in India has access to quality education which means qualified e-trained teachers, adequate school
resources for equal educational opportunity, and a 21st century computer on every desk. There is a requirement for more on-line and digital classes for students who are unable to attend school for various reasons. What are the key challenges in front of school education? Some of the key challenges in front are bringing all schools at a world class level so that every child in India has the best education. There is an inescapable need for on-going professional development for all teachers every year so that we are aware of the latest development and innovation in teaching and learning. One of the important challenges is how to have a competitive global curriculum where learning is an ongoing process rather than focusing on standardised tests as the marker of school success. What is your message to the community? The digital world has revolutionalised education. It is time to join hands as educators to give every child in India equal opportunity for academic success. As educators, we owe it to our children, our profession and ourselves. \\
digitalLEARNING / JULY 2011
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advertorial
excellence in open schooling NIOS with international recognition provides access to sustainable and learner-centric quality school education, skill upgradation and training through Open and Distance Education (ODE)
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IOS is the pivotal organisation for Open and Distance learning from the year 2010-11. NIOS has introduced 100 percent online admissions to facilitate learners to register; and 4,80,513 learners have been enrolled, bringing the valid cumulative enrolments to 17,56,319. Following its basic philosophy, to reach the unreached and unreachable ,i.e. vulnerable sections of the society and those living in difficult contexts; 5911 accreditation Institution, AVIs, AAs and study centres are functional. Keeping in view the target groups and their diversified needs pre-degree courses vary from basic education to senior secondary level, alongwith vocational education and life-enrichment programmes. NIOS with international recognition provides access to sustainable and learner-centric quality school education, skill upgradation and training through Open and Distance Education (ODE) and ensures convergence of Open Schooling. National Consortium for
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Open Schooling (NCOS), NIOS provides professional support to states to set up and develop State Open Schools particularly with regional medium. COMOSA is a non-profit, democratic collaborative and futuristic organisation with commitment to support efforts of Open Schooling Institutions with an aim to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) of United Nations, the association through ODL provides innovative, high quality equitable, gender sensitive and cost effective programmes of school education for sustainable development in Common Wealth Countries. Both NCOS and COMOSA have their secretariats at NIOS HQs in NOIDA.
Vocationalization of Secondary Education At NIOS vocational courses are offered at basic education, secondary and sr. secondary and post SS level. It provides an opportunity to continue education without disturbing one’s work with no upper age
limit and facility to complete a course in five years, credit accumulation, Self Learning Material (SLM) and Personal Contact Programmes (PCP) and ‘On Demand Examination System’ (ODES) where students can take exams as per their convenience makes it a unique system of education. In 201011, 13,438 students were enrolled, rising the cumulative valid enrolments to 16,6,641. Vocational courses are offered through 1313 AVIs spread throughout the country.
Special Achievements (1) HUNAR The ‘HUNAR’ is a unique, innovative project of NIOS for empowerment of Muslim girls through vocational training and skill development. Over 505 new centres under 27 nodal agencies have been inspected and accredited apart from 298 accredited Institutions of Hunar. Tripartite MoUs have been signed with these nodal agencies for collaboration with NIOS for running project Hunar.
(2) SPQEM Scheme for Providing Quality Education in Madrasas (SPQEM) launched by MHRD has been adopted by NIOS. Where in Madarasas/Maktabs have been accredited for, primary to Senior Secondary level and financial assistance is provided to Maktabs, Madarasas and Darul-ulooms. The Minority cell at NIOS has developed Multimedia programmes in Urdu vocational courses and books have been translated to Urdu Medium along with the facility to take exams in Urdu Medium. (3) International collaborations Under public private partnership (PPP). NIOS has signed an MoU with CISCO, a reputed international organization in field of information technology. An online certificate course titled ‘IT essentials: PC Hardware and Software’ of six months has started on pilot basis. NIOS has enterered into MoU with Bangalore-based NGO, Functional Vocational Training and Research Soci-
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ety (FVTRS) with the aim to impart training skills with market value/demand. MoU have been signed with various international bodies including UNESCO. NIOS is working in collaboration with Commonwealth of Learning (COL) and Common Wealth Open Schooling Association (COMOSA). Which is a futuristic organisation based on mutual respect, to support the efforts of Open Schooling. Commonwealth Educational Media Centre (CEMCA) for Asia is the regional media service of COL. NIOS is working in unison with CEMCA to expand the scope, scale and
quality of learning by using new approaches and technologies especially these under the general term of Open and Distance Learning (ODL). (4) 100 per cent online Admission 100 per cent online Admission, 24x7 are being offered from year 2010-11 for both academic and vocational courses. More regional centres are being set up in Bangalore, Gandhi Nagar, Imphal, Dehradun, Bhubneshwar and proposals are to set up Regional centres in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Hary-
ana, Chattisgarh, Tamil Nadu, Jharkhand in coming years. Libraries have been set up in regional centres to facilitate the staff and resource persons. Keeping in view the need and demand of market seven new vocational courses have been developed.
Alongwith research activities the cell coordinates NCOS (National Consortium of Open Schooling). Bring out News Bulletin and half yearly Open learning magazine for Open School learners are some of the related activities taken up.
(5) ICT NIOS has a computer training and data centre especially for capacity building on IT of the personnel involved in Open Schooling. NIOS in collaboration with Intel organised an IT tech programme to enhance the IT skills of NIOS officials. NIOS had revamped its website to make it user friendly; there is provision for regular updates, facility for feedback and academic support.
(8) Adolescence Education Programme (AEP) AEP aims at empowerment of adolescents through education and life skills development. The project is supported by UNFPA. NIOS website and Interactive Voice Response System (IVRS) provide information on life skills development among learners of NIOS. An Adolscent friendly Centre (AFC) has been set up in Bhubaneswar to addresses the psycho-social emotional, adolescence and vocation related concerns of learners in a great way.
(6) Media Support NIOS has set up a media centre i.e. audio and video studio facilities for in-house productions and a community radio station at the headquarter. Broadcast/Telecast of these programmes is for NIOS learners on national channel of Doordarshan (DDI) and on Educational channel Gyan Darshan everyday and audio programmes on Gyan Vani (FM channel) are being broadcast. (7) Research and Development Cell Constituted explicitly for the purpose of research activities in field of Open Schooling; the R&D cell is instrumental in promotion of research, planning and monitoring and evaluation work in Open Learning. NIOS is involved in advocacy, consultancy and resource support to states for upscalling Open Schools and setting up of State Open School (SOS) in remaining states and capacity building of their functionaries.
(9) Course Revision The NIOS programmes pay special attention towards requirements of first generation learners, physically, mentally and visually challenged learners from disadvantaged sections of the society. The learning through self instructional material alongwith audio and visual programmes, personal contact programme (PCP) and Tutor Marked Assignment (TMA). The Secondary level courses have been revised being in view our clientele.
Future Perspective In India Open Schooling is at a take off stage and NIOS is playing a pivotal role in a giving directions to research development , training, networking in this field. NIOS shall work mainly as resource organization in Open Schooling at National and International level.\\ digitalLEARNING / July 2011
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Academia Speak
faculty Deficit in higher education There is an urgent need to focus on shortage of teaching faculty in higher learning, which can be done by attracting top rank holders in universities and institutions of higher education By Prof V S Ramamurthy
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e are on the threshold of a new era in the history of human civilisation. An era dominated and often driven by knowledge. Access to knowledge and an ability to use it for one’s own advantage have become more important than access to natural resources and capital. The emerging knowledge economy depends critically on the ready availability of adequate human resource with the right knowledge and intellectual skills. India with a billion plus population and a varied demography has an excellent window of opportunity in this new economy. However, our educational system needs to be substantially upgraded to impart globally competitive training if
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we have to make use of this opportunity. India has seen major investments and promises of new investments in higher education in the recent times both by the government and by the private sector. The biggest challenge for India is however, the non-availability of competent faculty to teach in these institutions. This challenge defies simple and quick-fix solutions since, it takes several years of hard training to groom a competent teacher in any branch of higher learning. It is a well known fact that a career in teaching begins late with the average age of person being close to 30. The increasing number of career options, attractive salaries in some other streams of employment that are high in
Academia Speak
demand, globalisation of the market place for trained people, all dissuade potential students to take up teaching careers. The salary scales and the career options in a teaching position offer little to offset the disadvantages of late entry. Consequently, the best of students today have little motivation to take up higher education and research leading to teaching as a career. This will only lead to further shortages of good quality teachers in the coming years. Any corrective measure will require several years to show results. Clearly, there is an urgent need to attract the best students to teaching careers with reasonable opportunities and a nurturing career option. While it would be difficult to match corporate compensation packages, the teaching profession at the highest level has always had an aura to attract committed students and it is this attraction that one should make use of while removing some of the well known disincentives. A good measure could be targeting the top rank holders in universities and other institutions of higher learning such as the IIT’s, IISER’s, IIM’s etc. having a first class masters degree in basic sciences, social sciences and humanities, first class bachelors degree in engineering, medical sciences and other equivalent degrees. Within one month after declaration of results, by a process of interviews or personal discussions, admit about 200 candidates (crème de la crème) as Junior Faculty Interns for a period of two years and depute them to pursue M.Phil. or M.Tech. in selected Institutions of Higher learning. During this period, they are attached to a guide/mentor and 20 percent of their time is to be devoted to teaching assignments (tutorials, lectures, assignments, student guidance, etc.). The Junior Faculty Interns are to be paid a stipend equivalent to the total emoluments of a lecturer in a central university. On successful completion of Stage I as a Junior Faculty Intern for two years, and after an evaluation of the candidates for a teaching career, they should be admitted for Ph.D. in selected Institutions as a Senior Faculty Intern. Again, working under a guide or men-
Prof. V. S. Ramamurthy is a well known Indian nuclear scientist with a broad range of contributions from basic research to science administration He started his career in Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai in the year 1963 and has made important research contributions, both experimental and theoretical, in many areas of nuclear fission and heavy ion reaction mechanisms, statistical and thermodynamic properties of nuclei, physics of atomic and molecular clusters and low energy accelerator applications. During the period 1995-2006, Prof. Ramamurthy was fully involved in science promotion in India as Secretary to the Government of India, Department of Science & Technology (DST), New Delhi. He was also the Chairman of the IAEA Standing Advisory Group on Nuclear Applications for nearly a decade. After retirement from government service, Prof. Ramamurthy, in addition to continuing research in Nuclear Physics in the Inter-University Accelerator Centre, New Delhi has also been actively involved in human resource development in all aspects of nuclear research and applications. He is presently the Director, National Institute of Advanced Studies in Bangalore. He is also currently the Chairman, Board of Governors, Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, Chairman, Recruitment & Assessment Board, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research and Member, National Security Advisory Board. In recognition of his services to the growth of Science and Technology in the country, Prof. Ramamurthy was awarded one of the top civilian awards of the country, the Padma Bhushan, by the Government of India in 2005.
There is an urgent need to attract the best of students to teaching careers with reasonable opportunities, nurturing and a career option tor, they will devote nearly 20 percent of their time in teaching-related activities. A Senior Faculty Intern would be entitled to a stipend equivalent to the total emoluments of a senior lecturer in a central university. On successful completion of Stage II as a Senior Faculty Intern and after an Evaluation of the candidates for a teaching career, they should be deputed to leading Institutions in India and abroad for two years for Post-Doctoral studies. On successful completion of Stage III and after an evaluation of the candidates for a teaching career, they should
be offered Assistant Professor positions in any of our Institutions of higher learning. In addition, the candidates should also be provided a start-up research grant. A limited horizontal induction at Stages II – IV may be resorted to in the beginning. The scheme will thus build a pipeline to supply quality faculty to our Institutions of higher learning in all branches of knowledge at a very affordable cost without any major new investments in infrastructure. The present strategy of poaching teachers from elsewhere is unlikely to take us far.\\ digitalLEARNING / july 2011
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academia Speak
“Techonlogy can and will always supplement, a teacher” Dr K Ramnarayan took charge as the fifth Vice-Chancellor of Manipal University last year. He has been with the Manipal Group for over three decades in different academic and leadership positions.In conversation with Pragya Gupta, he shares his views on higher education scenario in India
How do you see higher education evolving in India with respect to the global scenario? The evolution of higher education occurs in three stages: informative learning (to prepare experts), formative learning (socialising the learners) and transformative learning (to provide professionals and change agents). The Indian education sector should be able to generate more avenues for transformative learning. There is an increased awareness about the globalisation of education and world class universities. The need to adopt the right systems, policies, ideals and methods to attract international faculty and students has led Indian universities to introspect about incorporating newer initiatives in higher education. According to you, what role does ICT play in universalising education? At present, the gulf between technology and basic educational system is really large. Given the limited resources available in the educational systems in the developing world, newer technology options could offer a paradigm shift in educational efficiencies. It is essential that better teacher training is offered on the use of ICT in the classroom. Universities and research institutions, providing dedicated high speed networks that enable
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access to online resources for students and teachers is usually available now. We need to build on this foundation. Kindly mark your initiatives in education and for the university? Teachers are the primary agents of good formal education, providing motivation through inspiration, encouragement and challenge. We plan to pay more attention to the process of encouraging, training, and mentoring teachers. To achieve this, Manipal University has set up the Manipal Centre for Professional & Personal Development (MCPD).This centre has a vision and commitment to empower the academic faculty, students and non-academic faculty of all institutions of MU. It conducts programs designed for enhancing academic skills, nurturing professional growth and imparting team building and leadership skills. Manipal University provides each student with a laptop and has wi-fi enabled campuses. What are the key challenges in front of higher education? Higher Education enrolments in India have been growing steadily and there are expected to be 40 million students by 2020. India has a demographic dividend (70 percent below the age of 35 years), which means we have a very large number of youngsters actively seeking higher
education in the coming years. Capacity utilisation is a key concern, the shortage of faculty (we need about 45,000 PhDs
Dr K Ramnarayan
Vice-Chancellor, Manipal University • Prior to his appointment as Vice Chancellor, he had a brief stint as the Pro Vice Chancellor before which he was the Dean of the Melaka Manipal Medical College (Manipal Campus). • Dr K Ramnarayan joined Kasturba Medical College, Manipal in 1977
academia Speak
and an equal number of M. Phils.) and poor infrastructure are also challenges that need to be tackled. As more and more universities make fully online degree programs available, the way students access higher education has changed significantly. We need to address issues about the manner in which online education has impacted and changed student learning. Please add your suggestions? Technology can be created fast, cheaply and constantly, but it cannot be a remedy for all the ills of the education system. The difficulty of creating a good teacher especially in developing countries has relation to various social problems. We need to invest both in teachers, and technology to take higher education forward. Having been a teacher for almost four decades, I passionately believe that teaching is caring, being creative and ultimately about nurturing students. ICT can help by making things easier for them. Techology can and will always supplement, not supplant, a teacher. A great teacher inspires first, influences next and third and only third, informs. Technology can help teachers teach more, reach more, touch more but can never totally replace the living, loving teacher. \\
after completing his MBBS from Stanley Medical College, Chennai. After acquiring an MD in Pathology, he continued in the service of KMC, Manipal in different faculty designations from Lecturer to Professor of Pathology. Additionally, he was Dean of Student Affairs and Associate Dean (Curriculum) in Kasturba Medical College, Manipal. In 1994, he moved to the International Centre for Health Sciences, Manipal, as Associate Dean, to provide academic leadership for the MBBS Twinning Program with the University of the West Indies. Meanwhile, he became the first Dean of the unique Melaka Manipal MBBS twin campus program with Malaysia. As the first Dean of Melaka Manipal Medical College (Manipal Campus), he spearheaded the curricular reforms and under his leadership in the Manipal Campus, this program went through three successful accreditations, culminating in the most recent, creditable five year accreditation. • Dr Ramnarayan was one of the early recipients of the ECFMG Foreign Faculty Fellowship in Basic Sciences, which initiated him into medical education in the US. He was subsequently awarded the Short Term Exchange Fellowship in academic leadership by the Foundation for the Advancement of International Medical Education and Research (FAIMER), USA. • He has conducted over 300 faculty development workshops, nationally and internationally, for health professionals, over the past 25 years. He also has a Post Graduate Diploma in Higher Education from the IGNOU.
digitalLEARNING / JULY 2011
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Industry Speak
Technology plays a major role in universalising education Eduard Metzger, CEO, Director-Technology (EMEA), CYBERNETYX Intreraktiv UG in an interview with Pragya Gupta, talks about development of education in India
What are your views on technology adoption in India with respect to the west? In our view, the Indian education sector is developing very well due to investments into new technologies. The whole world today is looking very optimistically at the expansion of the Indian education sector based on strong fundamentals of ICT. Due to the sheer size and volume of the Indian education sector, we believe technology can and will play a very vital role in the access to widespread education in the country.
Eduard Metzger CEO, DirectorTechnology (EMEA) , CYBERNETYX Intreraktiv UG
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What is the market size for digital classrooms according to you andwhat is growth forecast? Globally, the market for digital classrooms is growing, especially in India, this market is growing very fast. But till now, the penetration of digital classrooms is rather limited in India than in certain other countries in the EU, perhaps even less than five percent vis-Ă vis a 95 percent plus penetration in the UK and some other countries in the EU. On the market analysis arena, though there are certain reports available on the public domain, there is a dearth of any validated data on the exact size of the market in India. Due to the advent of a good number of education content providers working on the build-operate-transfer (BOT) project financing model in India and thus the increasing affordability and awareness about the revolutionary benefits of interactive technologies in classrooms, we believe that an install-base of 100,000
Industry Speak
IWB units can be accomplished in the next 1-2 years in the Indian subcontinent with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) exceeding 25 percent year on year and the global annual market size can reach 1,000,000 units as soon with a CAGR of around 15 percent. Overall, it’s a great time to be in the ICT industry in the global education sector. Please share your strategies to emerge as the preferred brand. What are your plans to enhance your presence in Indian schools? Our strategy is to deliver advanced and next-generation technological solutions at a low price. We believe that technology for education shouldn’t be expensive and every student should have a chance to access these assets. Our focus is on developing next-generation intuitive products for the classrooms, which make the process of teaching and learning more fun. We are very aggressive in our presence in the Indian schools. Today, we are already working with several partners in India, including some of the world’s largest education companies to increase the penetration of our natural-user technologies in the schools. India’s supplemental education represents a US $15 billion market opportunity over the next decade. What are your plans to utilise the opportunity? Our plans are to develop more products like touch-interactive devices for the educational sector and other sectors and to promote EyeRIS, our flagship stereoscopic interactive whiteboard solution along with continuous improvements. Our products will help the students in form of hardware and software to make the best of their learning. Additionally, we develop special features on demand by our clients, so that they get the sense of ownership and provide them the best support we can give. Further, we are developing several technological tools beyond IWBs, like Optical trackers, Fiducial-touch engines, Augmented Reality setups and so on, which will act as tools to aid the technology-based expansion of education in India.
able and next generation interactive whiteboard solution for schools. We have always believed that devices like IWBs can do much more than their current state in the industry and have developed all our interactive solutions based on the same notion. Our approach has always been to work very closely with our clients and develop a product, which perfectly fits their needs. This way our products could grow in a very healthy way. We have developed a good understanding for the right needs of our clients. We believe that every customer is an asset to us and a source of new ideas. Today, the widespread global recognition that we have received and accolades for our EyeRIS and other interactive products are a bright testimony to that.
“Our strategy is to deliver advanced and next-generation technological solutions at a low price” What is your view on Foreign Education Provider bill? We welcome this decision as very positive step which will create opportunities for world-class universities to set foot in the country and also enable Indian universities to collaborate with them. Overall, we believe that this move will increase the standard of education and promote state-of-the-art infrastructure and technology in education. There is need for quality education and the existing institutes need to tighten their belts and improve the quality of education to be able to compete with the universities who come here. It is good for students, as they do not have to go abroad and they can admissions at a lower cost. As a technology-solution provider for the education sector, it’s good for us as the awareness about world-class interactive solutions will increase manifold. Tell us more about the genesis of your organisation in the e-learning domain? It all began with the idea of an afford-
Please shed some light on new product development? Cybernetyx has strong continuing development on EyeRIS to add functionalities like touch-less interactivity, augmented reality and pattern-recognition to the product line, making it even more diverse and advanced than the existing breed of interactive whiteboard solutions. EyeRIS has been raised ground-up to serve as a tool to access the educational content and other digital data in a hyper-interactive way using touch-less gestures, and iPad-like multitouch capabilities, and we are constantly striving to make that experience better for our clients. Additionally, our newer touch-enabled devices, Interactive-Walls and Touch-Tables, are getting ready for a global launch in the latter half of this quarter, with amazing capabilities and utility across various verticals. As discussed before, we are keen on partnering with organisations having similar focus on the educational industry to augment the widespread access to our interactive solutions. \\
digitalLEARNING / JULY 2011
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Industry Speak
“Our Private Institutions are Setting Examples for Global peers�
Rajeev Singh, Country Head and General Manager of BenQ India has been in the industry from nearly two decades of extensive industry. In conversation with Pragya Gupta discusses on tremendous potential in multimedia facilitated education and BenQ’s technological innovation.
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How do you see school education evolving in India with respect to the global scenario? The evolution of school education has seen tremendous leap in the recent past with classrooms being turned from just carrying a blackboard to a complete multimedia unit carrying audio video equipment, which not only empowers the teachers but at the same time increases the interest level of students thus increasing their learning capability and efficiency in the classroom to a greater extent. In developed nations the automation of classrooms has been completed in last five years, so India is not far behind, but there are examples where our private institutions are setting examples for their peers outside India for technology adoption. Tell us more about the genesis of your organisation in the e-learning domain? e-learning or electronic learning in India is gaining prominence slowly, but indeed steadily. This is due to the fact that more than half the population of India today is below 25 years of age. It has become one of the major growth drivers for the education sector. e-Learning in the education sector has been one of the key drivers for BenQ in the recent times. There has been a sharp rise in demand for smart classrooms, which has led to a sharp rise in demand for projectors. We have tied up with companies providing smart classrooms solutions giving us the opportunity to bring some of the most advanced projection technologies in India.
BenQ is world number one DLP projector brand and education projector brand. We have consistently brought path breaking technology at global level for education. We have already sold more than 10 thousand projectors in a single quarter in current year and have captured about 16 percent of the market share in India in the second quarter. About 40 percent of revenues generated from our projector business in India, comes from the education sector. We plan to increase our market share to leadership position by year end. What drives the educational technology market share that impelled you to foray into the Indian schools? The market size of digital classroom is likely to touch almost 100 thousand classrooms with a phenomenal growth rate of 100 percent in the recent past. This trend is expected to continue for the next five years. The way education is delivered and the importance it has in lives of modern India is forcing the changes in the educational set up. Also the globalisation is effective in bringing the latest teaching methodologies and tools to Indian market. The latest teaching delivery mechanism now has a student carrying a networked computer at his disposal, fully networked class rooms, multimedia method of delivery and study content in soft form. This has generated new age companies that are specialising in providing customised and targeted solution to the industry. BenQ being at the forefront of education based opportunities is providing
Industry Speak
education projector for specific needs of the customers. We have been part of Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan and have provided projectors close to 10,000 Government schools till now this has been achieved in last 3 years with government schools of South India, which are mostly in remote area. Hence, we are confident that we are well poised to cater to the requirements of the education sector.
reader, LAN and wireless display and 20W speakers gives the learning experience a whole new dimension. BenQ has launched a wide range of Short throw and Ultra Short throw projectors like MX660, MS614, MS510, MX511, MX613ST, MS612ST, MP780ST and the MX880UST, especially designed for the education sector. The education sector would grow at a faster rate and we plan to tap this opportunity completely.
What are your views on the time taken by India education sector to match the tech savvy aptitude as the west? The Indian education sector is growing rapidly; there has been a tremendous growth in the technological advancements in this sector. Schools in the Tier one cities have been quickly adapting to the newer ways of educating the students with more and more interactive classrooms being installed. The government can also see a lot of potential in this sector and is willing to invest so as to be at par with the rest of the world. India is a developing country, but has a lot of potential for growth. Till a few years back, the education sector was not a priority for the government, however, in the recent past, there has been a shift in focus of the government towards this sector. Also there have been a lot of investments made to bring up the education sector at par with the developed countries. With the kind of potential this sector has, it has attracted many multinational companies to come and invest in this sector. The sector is gaining prominence slowly, but indeed steadily and given the vastness of the country. It opens newer prospects for a lot of technology players in the coming years too.
Please share your future plans for the Indian market? The projector market is at a boom in India. The education sector plays a very vital role for us as the delivery mechanism of education is changing. The Government of India has big plans of investing in education sector. There are about 15 lakh government schools in India in with a plan to have at least one classroom in
Please shed some light on your market positioning and products for education vertical? The projector market in India has grown at about 100 percent the last three years. In fiscal 2009, the market size was at about 90 thousand units, in fiscal 2010 it rose to 180 thousand units and is likely to reach 300 thousand units in 2011. BenQ India’s business was earlier mainly driven by the LCD monitor segment, generating
“The B and C class cities are mushrooming with professional educational institutes and this forms the largest source of the demand of projectors” almost equal revenue from the projector business. Fourty percent of the total revenue for BenQ India comes from its projector business. In the last quarter, BenQ is among the top two projector brands in India with a market share of 16 percent in the overall projector market of India. Education, with more than 50 percent of the market, forms the biggest segment for the projector market. BenQ provides more than 20 education projectors in its extensive portfolio of durable and user-friendly projectors designed to meet today’s demanding classrooms. BenQ is drawing on its extensive research and development resources to continually push the limits of what projectors can do, introducing models incorporating the newest technologies like interactive capabilities, 3-D ready, ultra short throw technologies etc. Our interactive projector model MP780 ST with the PointDraw Interactive technology, WXGA resolution, USB
each school, which is multimedia capable, hence it is a big opportunity for us. For the government schools the opportunity is right up to the village level. The private schools focus on infrastructure and use of latest teaching aids in classroom since beginning, are the early adopters of multimedia classroom and smart classrooms. In Metro and A class cities these schools form the major demand source. The B and C class cities are mushrooming with professional educational institutes and this forms the largest source of the demand of projectors. In first half of 2011, we launched a whole new range of short-throw and ultra-short throw projectors especially to cater to the needs and wants of this sector. In second half of the year, we are looking to widen this range even further having more products for this segment. This would be a big opportunity for us to attain the number one place in the Indian market. \\ digitalLEARNING / JULY 2011
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update
English Learning is now Portable and Mobile EnglishEdge is set to change the dynamics of e-learning in India through portable language labs and range of mobile services
E
nglishEdge, the leader in technology aided learning, has brought, for the first time in India, Portable Language Labs and range of mobile services. EnglishEdge uses technology to create scalable solutions that can help take English learning to the masses at a cost that is affordable. The launch of EnglishEdge software on devices like tablets and mobiles is an extension of this mission. EnglishEdge has now set the way for digital learning to become more interactive, user friendly and personalized. Elaborates Vivek Agarwal, CEO, EnglishEdge, “In a vast country like India, the only way to take learning to the masses is to establish easily scalable models that can be conveniently replicated across the educational spectrum. EnglishEdge scores on both these aspects. Reduced dependence on trainers and standardization of processes through use of technology helps EnglishEdge deliver high quality English learning experience.” Situational learning through easily relatable Indian scenarios, a non grammar, communicative approach and a rich multi-media content feel make EnglishEdge programme, the most effective language learning program. The blended learning model, a unique co bination of instructor led and computer based training, that forms the core of EnglishEdge finds a clear echo in the two new platforms that the company has introduced – Portable Language Labs and Mobiles. Added to that are activities that make learning more experiential and interesting. The Portable Language Lab is an innovative model, where the entire solu-
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tion is bundled in a single trolley. Centralized charging, wireless network for all the tablets, 7 hours battery back-up take away the institutes’ worry about inconsistent supply of electricity and provides uninterrupted sessions. The wireless network allows teachers to conduct interesting video and internet based activities outside or inside the classroom, thereby encouraging deeper student engagement. With tablets, students get 10 times more speaking time than they would in traditional classroom teaching. Available in a bundle of 21 tablets, 5 tablets or self tablet for each learner, the EnglishEdge Portable Language Lab is a perfect solution for schools, vocational institutes, management and engineering colleges. EnglishEdge is also offering variety of mobile services for English learning including Mobile Applications, IVRS and SMS services. Plans are underway to offer video lessons & live tutoring. The
concept of anytime-anywhere learning comes alive with EnglishEdge on Mobile. It is personalized learning on fingertips. It is hesitation, not lack of reading or writing skills, which holds people back from speaking English. EnglishEdge mobile services are engineered to address this gap. EnglishEdge mobile application covers aspects of basic English, soft skills, vocabulary, pronunciation and personality development. There is a strong emphasis on speaking practice, which helps in enhancing conversational skills. Highly interactive with rich multimedia content, EnglishEdge mobile application offers innovative and user friendly features like ‘record-compare’ that allow users to record their voice and compare it against a master voice. Applications for CAT and other competitive exams are also a part of mobile services portfolio. With hi-frequency word list with meanings, vocabulary
update
practice questions including synonyms, antonyms, odd man out and analogies, sentence correction and completion questions and even paragraph jumbles, the practice never stops. Almost 2000 practice words and questions are available on fingertips. All the questions are timed, so, the user can work on speed as well. The EnglishEdge vocabulary application is an innovative addition to the mobile services portfolio. Its strength lies in its presentation. A single word entered into the application gives you a set of related words. The user gets the meaning of the word, its pronunciation and also its connection to other words. The application also allows the user to build vocabulary cards for easy access and practice. The Word Power application uses a unique concept of learning words by knowing and understanding Greek and Latin roots, common prefixes, suffixes etc. Explaining the foray into the mobile segment, Vivek Agarwal, CEO, EnglishEdge remarked, “700+ million users of mobile phones in India, a ‘Goddess of English’ temple in Lakhimpur in India, English to Indians is a passport to opportunity and a chance to climb the social ladder.” The EnglishEdge software brings these two aspects together to create mobile services that make English learning interactive and personalized. It also helps build up scale and allows an enhanced and personalized reach. The IVRS services use situational learning to cover areas like conversational skills, pronunciation, role play, vocabulary and grammar. Commonly used phrases, words and typical Indian errors are covered under the IVRS services. SMS service is another value addition to EnglishEdge mobile services range. It leverages easy-to-comprehend concepts based on daily scenarios to enable the user to understand, respond and express. Common grammatical errors, use of idioms and phrases are all covered through SMS. MBA preparation service through SMS is also available. It is with these innovations based on a scalable model, that EnglishEdge is reaching out to larger audience segments and helping them to speak English confidently and fluently. \\ digitalLEARNING / July 2011
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Industry Speak
“Supplemental Education will be US $15 Billion Market Opportunity” A technology enthusiast Sanjaya Sharma, CEO, Tata Interactive Systems after gaining accolades for using multimedia tools from across the world, marked its entry into the school education sector with their latest product ‘CLASSEDGE’. Mr Sharma shares his views and strategies to foray into the Indian educational technology market with Rachita Jha, digitalLEARNING Bureau
Tell us more about the genesis of your organisation in the e-learning domain? Our faith in technology-based learning model goes back by 21 years , when we set our vision to promote computerbased training and multimedia for education and training - and there was no web at that time. We had an undefined agenda – and our business developed and grew with corporate training initially and this was followed by our partnerships with higher education as well as school segments abroad. This included some of the leading institutions and publishers involved in creating content for schools. We have created K-12 content in Maths and Science in countries such as the UK, US, Japan, Germany and other parts of Europe. Therefore our exposure in the last two decades has been through creating content for schools across subjects and geographies and classes.
Sanjaya Sharma CEO, Tata Interactive Systems
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What is the market size for Digital Classrooms according to you and growth forecast? The Digital Classrooms market has recorded consistent growth for the past 2-3 years and we feel it might continue growing at very high rates maybe at 50-60 percent or slightly faster in times ahead. This is primarily because of the 80,000 schools in which only 10 percent have gone in for
Industry Speak
adoption that too for 10 percent of their classrooms only. So, although there maybe players in the market, it is a market that is very big and I don’t see the growth stopping in the next decade. In addition to the private sector from where everyone is beginning, eventually the huge opportunity will definitely be in government schools and total market is really huge. What is changing in India that is driving the educational technology market share that prompted you to foray into Indian schools? The market for technology-enabled learning solutions in the Indian school education sector has experienced a double-digit annual growth over the last five years. However, India market was about 3 per cent of revenue about 4-5 years ago-this is the e-learning market alone. India is growing primarily due to its growing ITreadiness and computerisation. Also, its cost-effective advantage has made it more widespread with larger target audience across varied learning environments. We believe that technology-enabled learning will be critical in revamping India’s education system, which has over 15 lakh schools in both private and public domains. We therefore took forward to leverage our core competency and expertise in instructional design, in which we are considered as world leaders and take the opportunity of the India growth market. Do you consider yourself as a late entrant in the educational technology market as a strong presence across schools? I would disagree. This is because if one is to consider the school segment, there are well over a million government schools in India the biggest market of all. In addition, there are 80,000 private schools and partially aided schools. Even if we talk about the 80,000 private schools alone, less than 10,000 have so far gone for IT adoption. So, 90 percent of the schools have not adopted IT into their infrastructure, and 90 percent of classrooms in every school have not been computerised. So it’s a huge opportunity that is yet to be tapped. So I would still say it is an early entry into the market. Our three major differences
from the existing e-learning products in the market are-content that is built on lesson plan based on innovative instructional design, followed by our hardware offer with the new technology projector and Internet connectivity that lies at the heart of our offering. So in all it is a cloud computing offer wherein we put all our content on a central host and server, which can be easily accessed by the schools using the Internet connectivity offered in the package.
in this year. And from the delivery side we have a national delivery structure for each zone and region for hardware, software, feedback issues. This coverage is already in place for 40-50 cities and it will be double in another 2-3 months. Our approach has been pan-India from the beginning as our research showed that this demand is from all over the country and not alone from the big cities but also tier-1 tier-2 cities. We have teamed up with Tata Solutions in our
“Ninety percent of the schools have not adopted IT into their infrastructure” What is your approach towards content creation for the schools and ensure it is regularly updated? Internet and connectivity has not yet reached our schools and updating of content is a bottleneck in upgradation of teaching content. Moreover, CDs are not a viable option for such a large number of schools. So we decided to have two teams , one was on the task of content creation with weekly updates and they can be pushed anytime using Internet connection that is provided along with ‘CLASSEDGE’ and as a byproduct the schools get the Internet connection - so it is a winwin situation for the schools. Tell us more about your ‘CLASSEDGE’ solution and outreach strategy for it? It is a solution at the heart of which lies our interactive instructional designed for teachers to make an effective lesson plan. In addition, we have provided access to additional multi-media assets that would help them in teaching enhance the quality of the lessons that they deliver in classrooms. The solution is based on the ‘Multiple Learning Experiences Model’ and aims to enhance students’ social and analytical skills along with ensuring a thorough understanding of the curriculum. India’s supplemental education represents a US $15 billion market opportunity over the next decade and we plan to target schools in over 100 cities
current offering on the telecom side and if TV content integration takes place in future we could consider partnering with Tata Sky for the same. What are your views on the time taken by India education sector to match the tech savvy aptitude as the west? It will take 4-5 years for private schools to catch up pace with the use of IT as it in the western countries. It will take a decade overall – but the rate of adoption is very fast. So from an instructional approach the design you will do for a classroom in the west is different from one that would make for India. In the developed world the content design can have the possibility of interactivity elements and here the design is more for group learning–therefore in our lesson approach the main multimedia and supplement it with individual exercises. There is some prerequisite for market adoption such as schools should have computers for some of the classrooms. So we will see the first phase of digital adoption in schools by using first PC and projection system in schools. The second aspect is that vendors like us don’t have sufficient IPR content, and today if we have the form factors and design factors ready, it can be easily tweaked to run on desktop, tablet or any other new devices. Today we are already working on iPads and creating iPad-based training programmes. \\
digitalLEARNING / JULY 2011
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academia speak
The Relevance of Internationalisation of Indian Higher Education Internationalisation is the crucial need of higher education with systematic approach to maximise the relevance of education
By Dr Rahul Choudaha
I
nterest in foreign education gained a big boost in March 2010 with the Cabinet approval of a bill to allow entry of foreign education providers in India. Although the bill is still awaiting approval by the Parliament, it has already created a sense of excitement not only among students but also among many institutions in India and abroad. However, there are some who are skeptical about the need and relevance of internationalisation in the Indian context. I argue that a national policy on internationalisation of higher education is needed to maximise the relevance and benefits at three primary
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levels: infusing excellence, encouraging diversity and capacity building. Jane Knight defined internationalisation as ‘the process of integrating an international, intercultural or global dimension into the purpose, functions or delivery of post-secondary education.’ This definition clarifies that internationalisation is much broader, comprehensive and flexible concept. It recognises and encourages diverse approaches and accepts that there is no prescriptive formula of internationalisation for all institutions. Context of India is different and hence the concept of internationalisation should be adapted
to the unique challenges and needs of the country and institutions.
Infusing Excellence There is no denying the fact that Indian higher education is struggling to infuse quality at the systemic level and it has limited itself to a few islands of excellence of IIMs and IITs. Consider the recent case of the 100 percent cut-off requirement by Sri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi for admission to undergraduate program. Instances like this, question the whole rhetoric that Indian higher education is reforming and expanding access. Indian institutions are facing a crisis of confidence
K-12 SPEAK
Accreditation
of Schools by EQFI W
hile literacy has always been the key word in the educational scenario of post independent India, the time has now come to look at another dimension of education and that is Quality Standards and the process of Quality Assurance and Accreditation. It is a well known fact that providing quality education to our students has always been at top of the agenda for Indian schools. Accreditation by definition is an affirmation of `Quality’. It is the means of demonstrating confidence in the schools’ purposes, performances, and human, financial, and other resources. The goals are effectiveness, improvement and quality assurance. However, this will not involve ranking schools, but rather, will establish a level of acceptable quality for all accredited schools. Accreditation of schools will indicate that the school has conducted a self-evaluation of all of its programmes and provided the desired feedback to evaluate the school in terms of its own stated educational goals and the Standards for Accreditation. It will ensure that the school has met prescribed qualitative standards which have been pre-set. Sustainability and credibility of schools and eventually the school education system
would depend on good quality assurance mechanisms, which are responsive to the needs of society and the national economy. Keeping in mind the concern for quality, the Educational Quality Foundation of India (EQFI) has taken the initiative to devise standards for school accreditation under the nomenclature “Accreditation Standards for Quality Assurance in School Education.’ The new initiatives announced under the first 100 days programme by Kapil Sibal, Minister, Human Resources Development, immediately after joining the Ministry paved the path to explore possibilities of setting up an independent, accreditation body in India in the area of school education. At present, accreditation and assessment are done in colleges and universities. The government has
decided to make accreditation and assessment mandatory requirements for making them eligible for getting grants. So far the primary and secondary education institutes in India have strived to stick to their own standards. Private schools and government-aided schools have set forth their own standards regarding school governance and therefore have remained away from a universal accreditation system. The country’s premier school examination board, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has recently decided to set benchmarks for schools on the basis of quality of education, the first by any board in the country, during the current academic session. The board is extending all assistance to frame guidelines for assessment and accreditation, the basic focus of which is to
find out the quality of education, teacher-pupil ratio, mode of teaching, students’ participation in the teaching-learning process, infrastructure facilities and library among other things. The board also suggests detailed modalities for the purpose of accreditation, following which process the accredited schools will be provided a status that will indicate their standing with respect to quality. Education Quality Foundation of India (EQFI), established in 2007, is a not-forprofit organisation working to develop quality benchmarks in schools both in the government and private domains. It was set up with the belief that improving quality standards in education can significantly improve learning experiences and enhance lives. EQFI has developed a frame work to enhance quality in education by creating parameters for quality assessment and accreditation of schools. These parameters help provide assurance to the public, in particular to prospective learners, that an institution has been found to meet the expected level of requirements as per criteria prescribed. The framework also helps the institution for critical self-analysis and review leading to qualitative improvement in its operation and services. \\ digitalLEARNING / July 2011
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where many students are aspiring for the same set of select few quality institutions. A systematic approach to internationalisation may help in bringing global good practices and more institutions with higher quality. For example, within a decade ISB, Hyderabad has emerged as an inspiration (sometimes envy) for many other Indian institutions. It is a hallmark of adopting global practices ranging from admissions to teaching, research and governance. In a country where absolute scores are still considered the only benchmark for admissions, ISB adopted a holistic admissions process along the lines of best B-schools by integrating personal interviews and essays. This expanded choice for many talented students who would have gone abroad for
New York
Dr Rahul Choudaha is Director of Development and Innovation at World Education Services, New York He is responsible for strategic development, product innovation, research and thought leadership. Dr Choudaha is a higher education specialist with focus on institution building and strategic development, international collaborations and market development. He earlier worked in international recruitment and marketing at the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad. Dr Choudaha earned Ph.D in Higher Education from the University of Denver, MBA (Marketing) from NITIE, Mumbai and BE (Electronics & Telecom) from Jabalpur Engineering College.
A national policy on internationalisation should encourage diversity of location, programmes and institutional types studying MBA programs and not coming back. The unfortunate part is that existing regulatory structure had tried to restrict the ISB model and growth.
Encouraging Diversity Indian post-secondary education is facing acute quantitative and qualitative challenges at two extremes. On the one extreme is skill-based vocational education and on the other is research-based doctoral education. Of course, lack of funding and policy focus remains a concern, but another major reason is the lack of quality in these programs, which restricts labor market rewards. This in turn leads to a sociocultural environment of only respecting and encouraging professional fields like engineering and management. Thus, internationalisation had been concentrated to a handful of institutions in bigger cities having business or engineering programs. A national policy on internationalisation should encourage diversity of location, programs and institutional types. Policy directions should create incentives for institutions interested in engaging with fields like agriculture, energy or urban planning or types of institutions like
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vocational institutions or location of institution in non-metro cities. For example, Montgomery College is leading an initiative of advancing community college model in India with the help of a grant funded by US-India Education Foundation (USIEF). Thus, internationalisation policy should facilitate opportunities beyond traditional models, level of programs, types of institutions and fields of studies.
Capacity Building There are several approaches to internationalisation depending on mission and resources of an institution and one of the approach internationalisation policy may pursue is capacity building. Here capacity building refers to the creation of an enabling environment of resources (financial, technical and human) and regulatory framework which is line with the national needs. Consider the case of some of the country-level partnerships have been focusing on enhancing educational and research engagement with India. For example, a delegation of university presidents from Canadian universities committed $4million for India specific engagements and the
UK has renewed The UK India Education and Research Initiative (UKIERI). These engagements will bring together critical resources for Indian institutions to learn and develop their practices. Similarly, technology has transformed the communication and content delivery mechanism and it could be a major source of engaging open courseware through www.ocwconsortium.org with limited resources.
The Way Forward Indian higher education needs a comprehensive internationalisation strategy both at the national level and at institutional level. Like any new initiative, there will be some risks of misuses. For example, there may be institutions, which misrepresent, over-commercialise and perhaps make higher education unaffordable in the name of internationalisation. However, the test of a good policy framework is to have an ability to distinguish wheat from the chaff. In other words, internationalisation of higher education is relevant to the needs of the country and a mature policy environment, which encourages innovation and experimentation but restricts misrepresentation is much needed. It is high time for Indian higher education at policy and institutional level to reflect on how best to leverage the concept of internationalisation and engage it to achieve the goals of excellence, diversity and capacity building. \\
Industry Speak
“Technology has Made Teaching Easy” A mechanical engineer with specialisation in operations management from Yamaha Motor Company, Amit Gupta, CEO, S Chand Group realises that e-learning is a way of life. In an interaction with Dr Rajeshree Dutta Kumar and Pragya Gupta, he shares insights about e-Learning and school education in India.
Share your views on the current education scenario. What is the role of e-learning in our school education? I personally feel, e-learning is something that is already a part of life. Today, computer based learning, the internet, mobile and technology in general, across multiple domains has made information accessible to everyone. It has a major role in our school education. In school education your subject knowledge is not very important, but social skills are. The technology has made teaching very easy. Policy makers should provide teachers and educators with flexible technologyaided educational solutions tailored to the unique needs of students. I feel that e-learning is a way of life. How can the private players facilitate e-learning? Let the private players interact at large with the education system. Giving an ‘actual shape to PPP models’, allowing more private participation and benefit to maximum number of schools. Students today are exposed to technology in every aspect of their life. Therefore, it is key that our schools provide them similar 21st-
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century learning environment in their classrooms too. Healthy competition stimulates growth and ensures striving for excellence, avoids complacency. elearning is an exciting, growing field; but a large number of challenges are there. I am hopeful that the strengths of S. Chand will ensure our leadership in this new arena as in the field of publishing.
tion of video and other media to support instruction links students with outside resources and enables teachers to address many learning styles at once. Never before have we had so much information as to how children learn, and we must seize this opportunity to bring about the much needed change in the way curriculum transaction takes place in our classrooms.
What is the role of technology in creating a better teaching-learning environment for students and teachers? We should train our teachers and empower them to be able to use tools and technology effectively in their teaching practices. We should provide the basic infrastructure for sustained change in the form of technology – enabled learning environments. We need to provide spirally organised multimedia content based on sound pedagogical approach. This will ensure that the students can grow from one level of learning to the next, constructing new ideas based on their existing knowledge. Project-based learning allows students to acquire 21stcentury skills in the context of real-world scenarios. The integra-
What specific issues within the e-education sector can your product or services address? We have our own standing in the field of academic textbooks. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt brings with them the complete understanding of emerging needs; they bring experience, content, products and investments. This is complemented by us to help meet local needs and carry out joint development. We launched a programme called Destination Success. This programme is a technology-enabled education solution using world-leading K-12 content. It is an interactive learning proposition that meets all the elements of CBSE’s directives. We have implemented this programme quite successfully in huge private schools in India and abroad and
Industry Speak
Amit Gupta CEO, S Chand Group
digitalLEARNING / JULY 2011
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teachers, students, parents, and the business community. It is imperative that all stakeholders be involved in putting together a roadmap to bring about the requisite changes in the educational system, to prepare students for the workforce. The moot question here is - how prepared are we really to address this urgent need? The answer, unfortunately, is no.
“Project-based learning allows students to acquire 21st century skills in the context of real-world scenarios� it has benefitted students and teachers. Today, worldwide the role of publishing companies has changed. In S.Chand, we have to recover knowledge partner. We have to re-structure as a learning and knowledge company. We need change to bring overall awareness in terms of the mindsets of people, in order to accept holistic learning and adopt e-learning. We are complementing K-12 education and bringing the latest instructional design and pedagogical inputs to the classroom. These issues are presently not being handled in teacher training. We
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will be bringing services in the knowledge sector, not only for academic purposes but for using assessment as a tool for identifying areas which need special attention or enrichment supplements. We have also partnered with global leaders to bring to India products for learning literacy and language skills in English and for learning mathematical concepts and computational skills. The first prerequisite for developing a 21stcentury learning community is the involvement of all the stakeholders including district leaders, principals,
Do you feel that reforms are needed in upgrading the curriculum? Education reforms are a must and there must be involvement of educationists. We are not using technology in a proper way in our school education and it is not a one-way process. Right to Education (RTE) is something which I welcome. There must be some public private partnership model in it. Ministry of Human Resource Development has no plans for PPP in school education. But there is tremendous disconnect from plan to implementation in Government approach and there is no clarity. We have taken professional development as a separate vertical. First, we are working with CBSE. Also, we have a lot of training workshops for the use of technology. When the CBSE urged schools to follow the guidelines as stated in the National Policy of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in school education, we decided to throw in our lot. The CBSE schools were asked to set up at least one classroom for each class in the schools equipped with technology that would enable usage of digital instruction materials. That was when we decided to branch out into this emerging sector. What other challenges you find in our education? There is a disconnect between what is being taught in classrooms across the country today and the expected skills a student needs to be ready for the 21st century workspace, is stating the obvious. In a world fast shrinking to a global village, skills like global literacy, computer literacy, creativity, critical thinking, problem solving, effective communication and collaboration skills are essential for any child to grow up to be an effective and productive part of the society. \\
Department of Telecommunications Ministry of Communications & IT Government of India
Unique Identification Authority of India Government of India
Academia Academia Speak Speak
“Higher Education Drives and is Driven by Globalisation� Prof K S Rangappa, the Vice Chancellor of Karnataka State Open University has three decades of research and teaching experience as Junior and Senior Research Fellow, Lecturer, Reader, Professor and Director at Post Graduate Department of Chemistry, University of Mysore. Prof. K S Rangappa highlights evolving higher education in India and role of ICT in an interview with Pragya Gupta, digitalLEARNING bureau
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CHANGE YOUR WORLD
Academia Speak
How do you see higher education evolving in India with respect to global scenario? Globalisation is changing the structure of higher education radically by moving the services across boundaries, instead of the movement of people across the borders as witnessed earlier. Such migration of education from its location to new locations in search of clients is necessitating institutions of higher education in India to reorganise themselves to withstand the competition from the developed countries. Globalisation helps realise the benefits of free trade, and thus comparative advantage and the division of labour. It is also supposed to enhance efficiency and productivity. In this context there is a need for a common table to discuss the issues and challenges faced in higher education, the World Education Summit 2011 event is an answer to this. One response to the danger of losing one’s job due to the erosion of professional qualifications or to the loss of markets, causing the breakdown of enterprises, is to increase the average level of active population qualifications. This could be accomplished through both enhanced initial education and training and through expansion of continuing •
Prof. Rangappa received his PhD from the University of Mysore (1982) and has been awarded the DSc degree by the University of Mysore for his independent research contribution (1998). He is the Fellow of The Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC; UK) and Fellow of National Academy of Sciences (FNASc) India.
•
Apart from the research activities of his own group, he has developed several National and International (Indo – Japan, Indo – French, Indo – Germany, Indo-NUS) collaborative research programmes. Prof Rangappa has published more than 300 research papers in national and international peer reviewed journals and presented more than 100 research papers in national and international conferences.
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education. The latter will involve upgrading, extending or reconverting professional knowledge and skills, in order to keep abreast of market needs, either as an employee or a self-employed person. Higher education should be able to produce, in the long run, enough graduates to assure that they reach roughly one-half of the active population. Con-
lenge. Being an academician I cannot imagine education without ICT. What are the initiatives you have been taking in education and for the University? The main challenge, however is quality improvement and how it can be addressed through modernisation, re-
“The technology revolution is an opportunity to derive the most beneficial outcomes from these extraordinary new tools that are now available to us” tinuing education and training should take the shape of genuinely learning, touching not only the whole occupationally active population but also all remaining members of the civil society. How do you see the role of ICT in universalising education? As we can see, the growth and penetration of digital technologies in recent years have greatly influenced education and the educational practices in India. The 11th five year plan suggests the allocation of more than `600 crore specifically for integrating ICT in school education. The Indian Government also has plans to spend abundant resources on information and communications technologies (ICT) aimed at enhancing access and at improving educational quality in India through both the regular and the distance mode. As the Government increases its investments in ICTs for education, continued efforts, must be made to ensure that investments in technology positively impact all aspects of education, including intangible aspects such as community development, inculcating values, psychological and cognitive developments, development of social skills, and development of critical and creative faculty. The technology revolution, an opportunity to derive the most beneficial outcomes from these extraordinary new tools are now available to us. Surely that’s even more of an opportunity than a chal-
search, and networking of the universities and other educational departments in this region. Networking through local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), Information and Library Network (INFLIBNET) would also lead to increased academic activities and research. The burden of responsibility towards social needs of community development stands as a distinct marker of the ODL system thus enjoining upon its practitioners to maintain practices reinforcing ideas of ‘openness’ with reference to the teacher-student relationship. It does well for us to outline the logistical dimensions of ODL whose cost-effectiveness has supplied the need for ‘open’ systems of learning. In pragmatic terms ‘openness’ translates into diverging practices of transmitting not merely knowledge but also philosophical values. It is barring the learners to learn things best-suited for their self-development. I feel that there is still an occidentalism at work. The initiatives include easy access from any internet connection, quick and easily available information, involvement of parents and peers in the educational processes, monitoring of self-progress, simple interface for easy data input, improvised communications between policy makers and other stakeholders. Such initiatives have greatly influenced the exploration of new pathways in higher education system in general and to our University in particular. My University has taken initiatives in spreading higher edu-
Academia Speak
research. Basic research remains at our core. If it’s not done in the universities it won’t be done anywhere. At the same time, the public and legislators look to us more and more to do applied research that will provide useful knowledge to solve today’s problems.
cation in Science and Law by launching programmes like M.Sc in Food Science and Nutrition, Information Technology, Geography, Mathematics and Computer Science, M.Sc Tech in Environmental Science and Technology and LLM from the academic year 2011-12. In coming years there are plans to launch masters programme in Chemistry, Bio-Chemistry, Physics and Statistics. Further all these programmes will be online also. What are the key challenges in front of higher education? Growing flows of knowledge, people and financing across national borders feed both worldwide collaboration and competition. These effects of globalisation increasingly impact higher education. How then might the future higher education scene look at the global level? What are the challenges and opportunities brought by globalisation? How can countries and institutions best cope with and benefit from future changes? As proposed by Prof Albert Carnesale, the university, particularly the research university, is an old and a complex organisation. It’s a center of scholarly life and it’s dedicated to finding new knowledge, disseminating knowledge, preserving knowledge and preserving our culture, so it has many missions that are performed. Going to identify four challenges brought about by changes in our environment — rapid changes that we’re all feeling — some technological, some demographic, some economic. Meeting these challenges is going to determine with certainty, which universities will survive through and may determine whether universities as we know them will survive through. Secondly it is the technology revolution, by which I mean primarily the information technology revolution. The rise of democracy has made higher education a priority for the mass of people. It’s no longer something which is available simply to the political and economic elite. There are very different public expectations regarding the academic enterprise. We’ve got some classical challenges that are getting harder for us to meet. One of those classical challenges is determining whom to
Please share your vision for higher education? Higher education drives and is driven by globalisation. It trains the highly skilled workers and contributes to the research based and capacity for innovation that determine competitiveness in the knowledge-based global economy. It facilitates international collaboration and crosscultural exchange. Cross-border flows of ideas, students, faculty and financing, coupled with developments in informa-
“Mass education at all levels will be a permanent requirement to meet the challenges of the Knowledge Society” teach? Who is it that should come to the university? On the one hand, as a public university we feel an obligation to serve all of the constituencies by protecting access to the university. At the same time, we just can’t handle that many people. In my view, young people today, and their parents, focus too strongly on that first job and how to prepare for that. Industries need knowledge workers who know something about this technology revolution. At the same time we all hear about how every young person today can expect to have multiple careers. Well, should we be training them for the first job or should we be training them how to adapt to multiple careers? We have to prepare leaders for a global economy. That means some breadth in your education. It goes against specialisation. This trade-offs of what to teach are tougher and tougher for us. Determining how to teach? I’ll have more to say about that when I talk about the information technology revolution because that’s where we’re picking up that pressure. Finally, it’s determining how to balance this process of discovery and
tion and communication technology, are changing the environment where higher education institutions function. Co-operation and competition are intensifying simultaneously under the growing influence of market forces and the emergence of new players. Increased global competition in higher education, simultaneous to cross-border collaboration is illustrated not only on a global scale, but also at a regional level through developments. There is a need to appreciate the shift in demand for applied education particularly towards IT, Bioinformatics, Nanotechnology, etc. Mass education at all levels will be a permanent requirement to meet the challenges of the Knowledge Society. Existing dedicated single-mode ODL institutions will probably continue to grow and new ones will be created. On the other hand, the creation of associations, consortia and networks among all these kinds of organisations is a reasonable way to create economies of scale and to share resources and development costs with the possible added value of increasing the global quality of the system. \\ digitalLEARNING / JULY 2011
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Academia Speak
“Management Education Can’t Rely Upon Outdated Nostrums” Professor Philip Taylor, Academic Director of Programmes, Strathcylde SKIL Business School shared his thoughts and views on the Indian education scenario and their roadmap for the Indian market with Pragya Gupta. Excerpts:
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Academia Speak
What pedagogical innovations are you planning to bring in India? Strathclyde SKIL Business School (SBSS) is adopting a unique and coherent approach to delivering education in India through our state-of-the-art campus in Greater Noida. This is not an off-shored facility but a fully integrated campus within the University of Strathclyde that has a unique partnership with SKIL. A key element in our pedagogy is the importance of delivering high quality education that applies theoretical knowledge emanating from cutting edge research to concrete practical setting. Strathclyde’s philosophy is best encapsulated in the fulfilment of its mission as ‘The Place of Useful Learning’. This underlying principle will inform the first programme to be delivered by SBSS, the Master in Management which commences in September 2011, and the Bachelor in Business Studies which follows in September 2012 and then the MBA in September 2013.
How do you see India as a market for higher education? All informed commentators, including the Government of India, acknowledge that the demand for higher education is set to grow significantly in the short to medium term. For the next few decades, India’s population will remain young, and higher education will be needed to equip them to play their rightful roles in the knowledge economy. Due to the economic growth in the Indian economy, and as more and more families join the relatively better off sections of society, the demand for higher education is likely to grow at an accelerated pace. Expansion will grow apace particularly in the area of business and management studies at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels.
What are the challenges enduring in the Indian market? What are the key issues that need to be addressed to produce more skilled and quality workforce? The main challenge in the Indian market is to ensure that the demand for business and management undergraduate and postgraduate education can be fulfilled by premium provision which ensures that students are able to access the highest quality learning experience. Managers in the contemporary Indian context face the enormous challenge of leading their organisations in conditions of rapid change. Indeed it could be argued that the only constant is change. It follows that the emerging generation of business and management graduates and postgraduates are equipped with ability to apply their knowledge in complex and contradictory situations. How can management education in India be reinvented in a way that can project it to the forefront of leadership and management training worldwide? Management education in India cannot consist of rote learning or rely
upon outdated nostrums. Successful managers must be able to draw upon the knowledge derived from the very cutting edge of critical management research and be steeped in an approach which understands the vital need for creative application of problem solving based upon that knowledge. In this sense advanced theoretical understanding based upon contemporary research is of great necessity for informed managerial and business practice. What are your expectations from the Indian government? We believe that the Indian Government is very focussed on the importance of making education available to the Indian population across all geographies and at all levels. In order to do this, we are seeing the Government moving away from what was largely a prescriptive regime towards a more participative environment where the learners and educators are able to interactively decide what the content of education needs to be, and how this should be designed and delivered so that it can be harnessed for the betterment of both society and the individual. We expect this trend to continue and indeed accelerate both in scope and pace. Please share you plans and roadmap for the Indian market? India is a focus area for us, and we see the Indian market to be one of the core areas for us. We have started with management education in Greater Noida, and over the span of the next three years, we will be rapidly expanding the scope to cover undergraduate students and persons with experience with the BBS and the MBA programmes. Our plans are to set up other centres across India in the years ahead, and also to expand the disciplines to cover Science and Engineering, other subjects in which the University of Strathclyde is a recognised leader. Kindly shed light on the reason for the collaboration between SKIL and Strathclyde? SKIL Infrastructure is one of the leading infrastructure developers in India.
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“we see the Indian market to be one of the core areas for us. We have started with management education in Greater Noida, and over the span of the next three years, we will be rapidly expanding” In our early discussions, it became evident that SKIL was bringing the practical perspective from India to the equation. This is critical in any such venture – the educational institution brings the academic and research inputs to the table, but given each country’s own social, cultural and economic characteristics, someone like SKIL is needed to pin the academic inputs to a practical situation. SKIL and Strathclyde share similar views on the approach to education, and we are both convinced that this was a very good fit. Students joining our Strathclyde SKIL Business School programmes will
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• Philip Taylor is Professor of Work and Employment Studies in the Department of Human Resource Management at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow. He is also Associate Dean International at Strathclyde Business School and is the Academic Director of programmes for the Strathclyde SKIL Business School (SSBS) in India. • Professor Taylor has researched and published extensively on many subjects including work organisation and employment relations in call centres, the offshoring of business services (especially to India), lean working, HRM and occupational health and safety. He was editor of the Work, Employment and Society (2008-2011) and has extensive editorial and refereeing experience. • Professor Taylor has disseminated research findings to government organisations (e.g. European Commission, European Parliament, the UK Parliament, Scottish Government), to employer bodies (e.g. Nasscom, Customer Contact Association, Comptia), individual companies, NGOs (e.g. International Labour Organisation) and trade unions (e.g. Union Network International, Unite the Union, Communication Workers Union). • Specialist teaching subjects include, Employment Relations, Performance Management, Participation and Involvement, Globalisation and Value Chains. He has extensive experience in supervising in-company student internships. He has also been Visiting Professor at the Indian Institute of Management and at Curtin Business School (Perth, Western Australia). receive an internationalised experience in key respects. For example, Strathclyde faculty will deliver 50 percent of teaching on the Indian campus. In addition, students will visit the Strathclyde campus in Glasgow for a semester where they will join our international community of students existing courses. The first programme to be offered will be a distinctive two-year Masters in Management (MiM), aimed at recent graduates from diverse disciplines, which will provide them with a solid foundation for the world of business and management. During the first year, students will do a foundation year in India and in the second year will spend a semester at Strathclyde doing three specialist electives. The programme culminates with an in-company placement during which the students conduct relevant research and complete a research project. As the Greater Noida campus ramps up and the Indian faculty grows in numbers the opportunities for research collaboration will similarly grow between the two geographies. In addition programmes and modules will benefit from the cross fertilisation of ideas by staff across the two campuses. Visits of Indian faculty to Strathclyde will not be encouraged but have been budgeted for.
Please comment on Strathclyde’s triple accredited status? What also makes Strathclyde Business School exceptional is the fact that it is one of only less than one percent of business schools to have been accredited by the three main bodies that evaluate their quality; the Association of MBAs (based in the United Kingdom), the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (based in the USA) and EQUIS (the quality assurance scheme run by the European Foundation for Management Development based in Brussels. It is additionally important to recognise that the MiM has already received recognition by AMBA. What are your strategies to position yourself as a research-led institution? As indicated above, Strathclyde Business School places considerable emphasis on the central importance of high quality research. This is reflected in many different ways; that its staff is at the forefront of globally significant research networks, that it houses some of the leading journals in the business and management fields and that the outcomes of research activity are profoundly significant for business and public policy. \\
Industry Speak
Vivek Agarwal, CEO, EnglishEdge in an interaction with Pragya Gupta, emphasises on quality education and importance of English learning in India. Excerpts:
Digital Content is the Way to High Quality Education How do you see the education system evolving in India? The whole industry is now moving from quantity-based to quality-based education. Lately, it has been noticed that filling seats for schools and colleges has become difficult. Therefore, the problem that needs to be addressed is quality, not the quantity at large scale. This is where technology comes in. This cannot be done without use of technology as there are not enough
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quality teachers. The only way to support or supplement the teacher is by using technology like we are doing with our English products. That is the only way to reach out to fix the quality problem. Do you think multimedia content hampers the creativity and imagination of students? To some extent, I agree with you. But we have to meet some important chal-
lenges that cannot be achieved with rote methods. A research says that the total amount of information available on this planet doubles after every one and a half year to two years. By the time a student passes out, the information he or she has learnt get relinquished. Today, it is very important to learn soft skills and creativity, which needs to be chased efficiently.
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Industry Speak
Kindly shed some light on your solutions for mobile platform? Our English solutions are now available for all kind of phones. There are three types of learning solutions available for mobile phone. First is SMS-based learning, which is being offered through SMS alerts on desired content. Second, we have IVRS (Interactive Voice Response System), where learner can call and listen to the conversation and the third is downloading of multimedia content on phone and learn through that. We are planning to supply our solutions through mobile carriers also and are on the verge of tying knot with all the major service providers. In addition to this,
“English has been taught in rote way that is why spoken English is a challenge for youth” How do your English products help in enhancing English skills? Our solutions are cautiously chosen. There is a method of English teaching, which is grammar translation method that works towards providing information to the student and then having the students remember that. What we use in our solution is a communicative approach that involves the student in a learning process. First there is a context and then there is an explanation; so students should know why they are learning and what they are learning. As a result, they learn better and we supplement with multimedia to make the student’s experience good and they can earn much better than they would have otherwise. In terms of solutions, we have specifically customised solution for every class, adults and children separately. For school students, we have class wise and for adults we have proficiency wise solutions like elementary, basic, intermediate and advanced. Our products are available both through retail and channel partners. We also offer solution based on geographies like in rural area, we offer vernacular interface for English learning, which help them to shed their inhibition and fears. We have English for specific verticals like finance, IT, and Hospitality.
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we are also planning to form a partnership with mobile manufacturers starting with Lava, Micromax and Spice. What are the challenges upfront? I think the first challenge is infrastructure. We have lack of computers, which is a challenge. In last two- three years we have grown pretty well but the market has been very slow. Third challenge is an increased realisation of quality of educational solutions and I think there are not enough people in the market, which can differentiate a good education solution from the bad one. Customer education and market education are the key requirements. As far as infrastructural challenge is concerned, I think we are creating a solution, which is suited to infrastructure challenged environment. For example, our solutions do not need high bandwidth broadband or continuous connectivity. We also keep tracking our customers to ensure that a child has to learn English to do well socially. Please share your latest innovations for future? We are a language learning company and we leverage cutting edge technology in the form of our solutions. We have
launched mobile-based solution and we have also launched our products on tablets. Right now they are available on Samsung Galaxy Tab. Also we are providing mobile language lab and communication tablets for schools and vocational training institutes. By far, we are the first language learning company to have done this. It is in line with our cutting-edge solutions, which are available at affordable price. What are the bottlenecks in spoken English culture in India? The major bottleneck is that English is taught in a rote way. They know some grammar and basic vocabulary but in our education system there is no provision for spoken English. There is a huge gap as these students can write and read, but cannot speak. Sometimes our teachers end up teaching English in their own mother tongue. Student never gets to hear good English so they cannot speak English. The biggest challenge that youngsters face is spoken English, which leads to lack of confidence and performance. There is about 10 percent of the population, which can speak English and 3-5 percent can speak good English, but the number is not enough. What role does digital content play in imparting education efficiently? Digital content is the way of ensuring high quality education in a scalable way. The aim is to reach out to millions of people and not just the cream of the country. Since, there are not enough good teachers, so the teachers have to be supported by good quality digital content, delivery channel and the delivery infrastructure. What are the upcoming trends in Education? In next five years, every decent education solution has technology as a key component. Technology has two-three dimensions—one is the content and the other is delivery in terms of what technology we are using within the classroom, which is very important. The third is centralised tracking of what learners and teachers are doing. \\
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the case for an oPen digitaL camPus: Part one Working smarter. Working faster. Working more efficiently. That’s always been the promise of technology. But it hasn’t always been the reality. Today, technology on higher education campuses is pervasive, supporting academic and administrative functions well beyond student information or learning management. And while virtually every college and university now has a central IT organization to manage that web of supporting technologies, it seems a new piece is added to the puzzle board daily—challenging even the best IT organization with how to manage resources as effectively as possible. As a technology partner serving 1,800 institutions across the globe, we hear from our higher education customers every day about what they need to manage their campus communities more effectively. Our customers tell us that even while the technologies available to them have proliferated at a dizzying pace, there remain key shortcomings that hinder their ability to sustain and support their missions. Large, monoLithic erP systems. Increasingly our customers want to be more selective about the software they adopt—using only those systems or features or functions that help them pursue their institutional mission more effectively. They want that functionality when they need it—not six months or a year later. They want us to think harder about how we can make our systems more open, flexible, and standards-based. They want delivery options that don’t require an across-the-board purchase
of systems that don’t meet immediate institutional needs. In short, they want more choice. And that means radically rethinking how enterprise class systems are designed, developed, and deployed. costLy, time-consuming, and PainfuL imPLementations and uPgrades. Even the most well-orchestrated implementation comes hand-in-glove with opportunity costs, as your staff scrambles to fulfill its daily obligations while assessing needs, building policy, and mapping, transforming, and loading data into new systems or modules. While expert project planning and management can reduce implementation risk by allocating and using resources effectively, we know our customers need more: implementations that don’t drain critical resources or disrupt important priorities as well as upgrade processes that are simple, straightforward, and reliable, yet still accommodate the functionality you need to maintain your institutional distinctiveness. high costs to buiLd and maintain modifications. Over the years, higher education IT departments have tried to embrace a “one-size-fits-all” management philosophy about their ERP systems and other technology assets as a way to keep control of IT costs, manage upgrades more effectively, and provide a level of fiscal discipline to an everincreasing IT budget.
Today, the pace of change means those evolutionary shifts are happening more quickly than ever before. To date, the alternative has been a slew of costly and ultimately unmanageable modifications to your enterprise systems: small, and sometimes not so small, “tweaks” that address evolving needs, but that add up to higher ownership costs over the long term. Many of our customers tell us that it is time for a change. They want systems that evolve as their needs evolve. They want to know that they will be able to change or adapt business processes quickly. They want the ability to innovate, but they want to do it more easily, efficiently, and cost effectively. Long deLays before new features become avaiLabLe. Time to benefit. In a climate where resources are limited and time is money, waiting months, or even years, for a vendor to release the software innovation you need today makes no sense. But, for the most part, your enterprise systems still depend on a release methodology where new features and functionality are designed, developed, and then bundled into a major release and subsequent point releases. There are many ways to meet technology needs in a more timely fashion. One is to change the way that solutions are developed. In higher education, collaboration is essential to creating new knowledge. That kind of collaboration should be a key element in how we deliver solutions to you. And a more iterative and agile development process—where just the features that you need today are available to you more immediately—should be a part of any vendor’s technology portfolio. Limited abiLity to aLter or extend camPus systems. Today, your IT managers grapple with how to integrate disparate systems into your digital campus. But tomorrow
they will no longer be asking “how big can my IT grow?” but “how can my IT strategy support innovation?” And even more radically, “where will my IT live?” Our customers want a more open infrastructure, designed to scale easily and support new and emerging web services. And they want innovative ways to grapple with capacity—as the imprint of their data centers grow. inabiLity to deLiver the kind of exPeriences your education communities exPect. Really, that’s the bottom line—delivering a better experience to the community you serve. Your IT infrastructure is there to support that goal, not hinder it. Having a greater ability to extend services and support at levels expected by your “digital natives” is key. Our customers are looking for ways to flexibly and efficiently adopt modern technologies, mobile platforms, and more collaborative environments for teaching and learning. We’ve been listening and we think we have a few ideas. what’s next? At SunGard Higher Education, we have responded to these key drivers by introducing a vision and technology strategy that gives colleges, universities, and foundations unprecedented flexibility to shape how technology meets their evolving needs in a dynamic future. We call this vision the Open Digital Campus. Please watch this space for more information on our Open Digital Campus strategy and vision. And visit us at www.sungardhe.com/opendigitalcampus.
Prepared by SunGard Higher Education © 2011 SunGard. All rights reserved.
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Autodesk and AICTE Announce Partnership
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utodesk,a world leader in 3D design, engineering and entertainment software, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE). The MOU will see the collaboration of Autodesk and the AICTE in providing post-secondary students and faculty with widespread access to 2D and 3D design software. The MOU was signed by Dr. Joe Astroth, Chief Education Officer, Autodesk, and Dr. S. S. Mantha, Chairman (actg.), AICTE. AICTE is the statutory body for technical education under the Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), India. Autodesk software is available for download via the AICTE e-Governance Portal (http://www.aicte-india.org/bfreedownloadsadesk.html), which is a highspeed Internet portal that makes it much faster to download free, legal software, even in rural areas. The discipline-specific education software suites will include flagship products AutoCAD, Autodesk Inventor, Autodesk Revit Architecture, Autodesk Alias, Autodesk 3ds Max and Autodesk Maya, as well as many other Autodesk software products. Dr. S. S Mantha, (actg.), Chairman, AICTE, said, “By partnering with Autodesk to provide free software downloads via the AICTE e-Governance Portal, our goal is to raise the level of technical learning and education in India. Post-secondary institutions, students and faculty across the entire nation, in both urban and rural areas, will be able to quickly and easily access world-class software. This will take tech-
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With closely aligned goals, the MOU between Autodesk and the AICTE aims to equip institutions, students and faculty with leading technology nical learning and development to a higher level.” Dr. Joe Astroth, Chief Education Officer, Autodesk, said, “This joint effort
between Autodesk and the MHRD will focus on putting industry leading design software into the hands of students and faculty across India’s 4,738 technical educational institutions. They will be equipped with the same tools used by professionals around the world. We believe the results of this collaboration will inspire future generations of design leaders to drive design innovation in India and around the world.” With closely aligned goals, the MOU between Autodesk and the AICTE aims to equip institutions, students and faculty with leading technology, decrease the cost of software, encourage immersive learning, and improve the quality of technical education. \\
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