News and views about the Education in India

Weekly news updates on trends and happenings in the Indian Education scene

This week saw the inclusion of premier Indian institutes of higher learning amongst the world’s top universities. On the other hand there exists a study in contrast as the neglect of elementary education strides along with a boost in space research. Noteworthy is the fact that various state governments have become an active participant in furthering the cause of education.

-Chillibreeze Business Research Team

IIRM opens International School for Actuarial Education

The Institute of Insurance and Risk Management (IIRM), a joint initiative by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) and the Andhra Pradesh government, opened its International School of Actuarial Sciences (ISAS) in Hyderabad today. This is an initiative to increase the number of actuaries in the country.

A first-of-its-kind in the country, the school offers a two-year postgraduate diploma in actuarial sciences to students who aspire to become actuarial professionals and actuaries. The course is open to fresh graduates and also to students who are already appearing for the actuarial professional examinations conducted by the Actuarial Society of India (ASI), Mumbai, and the Institute of Actuaries, London.

An IIRM press release today said that the two-year diploma course offered by ISAS had adopted the same curriculum of the ASI and the Institute of Actuaries, and guides and trains its students in the same subjects of the professional bodies and prepares them through classroom pedagogy, apart from intensive tutorial work and case studies.

The school is headed by DV Sastry, who has been teaching at the Hardford University till recently. The school derives erudite advice from a committee of eminent actuaries on its academic council, which met recently and endorsed the plans.

August 6, 2007
Source: Business Standard

IITs, IIMs, JNU figure in top world education rankings

Four Indian education institutions figure in the latest world university rankings, which continue to be topped by the universities of Harvard, Cambridge and Oxford, for their strengths in teaching and research.

The four Indian institutions are the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and Delhi University (DU).

The IITs ranked 57th in the world's top 200 universities list and the IIMs ranked 68th. The JNU came 183rd in the list. The Times Higher Education Supplement, an authoritative journal in academia, announced the third edition of the rankings. In the list of the world's top 100 science universities, IITs ranked 33rd, while in the list for top technology universities, the rank of IITs jumps to the third place after the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the University of California, Berkeley.

The IIMs rank 68th in the list of top technology universities.

In the ranking for the world's top universities in arts and humanities, Delhi University figures at rank 75. In the list for social sciences it figures at rank 86. In this list, Delhi University is upstaged by IIMs at 26 and JNU at rank 57.

Both IITs and JNU figure in the list for the world's top universities for biomedicine, at ranks 70 and 99 respectively.

In the world ranking for top 50 universities outside the US and Britain, the list features the IITs (15th rank), IIMs (19th rank) and JNU (47th rank).

In the overall rankings, Harvard University remains at the top and Imperial College London is the only newcomer in the top 10. Cambridge and Oxford moved up to second and third place after displacing MIT, which is now ranked fourth.

There are 29 British universities in the top 200 - six more than last year.

The university rankings are based on a survey of 3,703 academics worldwide. They were asked to nominate up to 30 institutions they regarded as the best at research in their own fields. On that measure, Cambridge came top, followed by Oxford then Harvard. Employers were also surveyed.

August 6, 2007
Source: Kalinga Times

Madhya Pradesh to get first private university

Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh's first ever private university will soon be established in the state's Dewas district.

The state government on Sunday signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Hyderabad-based Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts of India (ICFAI) for the setting up of the university.

ICFAI will be investing about Rs.1.5 billion during the next five years for the establishment of the university.

Describing it as a first step towards making Madhya Pradesh an education hub, Minister for Higher Education Tukojirao Puar said the private sector is being encouraged to provide quality higher education to students.

"The university would be of great help in checking migration of students from Madhya Pradesh to other states for higher studies. Deliberations are being made to grant permission to various academic institutions of national repute to run institutions in the state," Puar said.

Private universities can now be started in the state after the passage of the Madhya Pradesh Private University Act in the last budget session.

August 6, 2007
Source: Indiaedunews.net

Gandhi postgraduate course at Rajasthan varsity

Buoyed by the success of a certificate course on Mahatma Gandhi's philosophy started last year, the Vardhman Mahaveer Open University (VMOU) in Kota in Rajasthan now plans to start an online post graduate course on his teachings.

"We got very good response for the course in the first year, so we have decided that by the year 2008, a post graduate course would be started online," VMOU vice chancellor Naresh Dadhich told IANS.

He said as many as 107 students opted for the 6 month certificate course on "Gandhian Non Violent Conflict Resolution". It is based on Gandhi's philosophy and attempts to help people solve problems through Gandhian principles.

For the postgraduate diploma course, the name will be "Gandhiwadi Ahinsak Sangarsh Niwaran Course". He said that stress management would be an important part of the course.

August 6, 2007
Source: Indiaedunews.net

UP Govt. to link degree with professional courses

In an effort to overcome the growing unemployment problem in the state, the Uttar Pradesh government has proposed to link the three-year degree course with professional courses.

Speaking at a meeting of the degree teachers at Sant Ravidas Nagar district on saturday evening, state's Higher Education Minister, Rakesh Dhar Tripathi, emphasized on professional education in the state. He said that students would be offered professional training along with their graduation courses so that they could get employment after the completion of their course.

As per the plan, the students would undergo training programmes in computer, tailoring, fashion designing and other similar courses along with their regular course. The minister said that the government would soon reorganize the State Higher Education Commission and recruit teachers for degree colleges in the state.

August 6, 2007
Source: Indiaedunews.net

Local bodies’ indifference to school education comes to light

Information obtained from local bodies across the state of Tamil Nadu has revealed their indifference to elementary education, despite abundant funds available for the purpose.

A random sampling of how corporations and municipalities spent their education tax, conducted by members of The Catalyst Trust, an NGO campaigning for education rights, has shown how the local bodies are not using the funds collected for the purpose. Unutilized funds were piling up over the years.

The NGO used the Right to Information Act to petition local bodies to disclose the utilisation pattern of the education tax, collected as a percentage of the property tax under the Tamil Nadu Elementary Education Act, for the past five years.

In the Chennai, out of the elementary education tax corpus of Rs. 46 crore available with the Chennai Corporation in 2005-06, only Rs. 27.3 crore was utilised. The local body’s revised budget estimate for educational tax in 2006-07 was Rs. 59.8 crore. It had an unutilised corpus of Rs. 6.4 crore.

For 2007-08, the budget estimate is around Rs. 62 crore in educational taxes, of which the estimated surplus will be about Rs. 15 crore. The pattern is repeated all over the State.

In Kancheepuram, while Rs. 66.5 lakh collected as educational tax was used up in 2005-06, Rs. 61.8 lakh is still unutilised. While Namakkal collected Rs. 36.3 lakh as education tax in 2005-06, only Rs. 4 lakh was used. In Pudukkottai, out of the total property tax of Rs. 95 lakh collected in three years, only Rs. 25.6 lakh was spent on education. While the Athur municipality collected Rs. 18.3 lakh as education tax during 2005-06, only Rs. 8.8 lakh was spent. In Erode, out of the Rs. 162.82 lakh collected during the same period, only Rs. 9.66 lakh was utilised. The Periyakulam municipality collected Rs. 5.5 lakh as education tax but has not used a single rupee to improve schools. The same was the case with the Karur municipality, which collected Rs. 38.16 lakh towards elementary education tax and utilised virtually nothing. In Coimbatore, while Rs. 28 lakh was collected as education tax in 2005-06, only around Rs. 10 lakh was spent. The Mannargudi municipality collected Rs. 15.7 lakh but spent only Rs. 4.3 lakh.

“The same pattern persists over nearly three decades as local bodies have seldom bothered about properly utilising the education tax. If one cumulatively compounded all the money unspent over the years, it will be a mind-boggling amount,” says former bureaucrat A.K. Venkata Subramanian, Trustee, Catalyst Trust.

“The School Education Department has no say in the collection or utilisation of education tax and they will not be released into the department funds and can only be used by the local bodies,” S. Kannan, Director of School Education, said.

August 7, 2007
Source: The Hindu

A launch pad for space scientists

The Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IISST), a prestigious academic project of the Indian Space Research Organisation, is all set for take-off in Thiruvananthapruam.

The temporary campus of the institute is all but ready on the premises of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre in Thiruvananthapuram. The syllabus has been put in place, the specialisations finalised and the faculty members lined up. The institute will eventually come up at Ponmudi, near Thiruvananthapuram.

The curriculum at the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology is modelled along the lines of what is being offered by the Indian Institutes of Technology and at other top-notch institutes conducting programmes in electronics and communication, mechanical engineering and aerospace engineering.

The IISST will offer a bachelor’s programme in technology. In this four-year programme students will be able to specialise in avionics and aerospace engineering. The five-year integrated Master’s programme in Applied Sciences will lead to an M.Sc. degree with special emphasis on space-related subjects.

While there will be 50 seats for the B.Tech. programme in Space Technology (Avionics), there will be 40 seats for the specialisation in aerospace engineering. For the integrated programme in applied science, the IISST will have only 30 seats.

At the IISST there will be the technology stream and the applied science stream. In the technology stream, students opting for avionics will put through their paces in such areas as RF and microwave, embedded systems and communication systems. For one opting to focus on aerospace engineering the areas of specialisation include thermal sciences, machine design, aeronautics, propulsion and manufacturing.

In the applied science stream, the students will be exposed to the latest in astronomy, astrophysics, atmospheric sciences, material science, remote sensing and GIS. According to ISRO sources, the new institute will have departments of Aerospace, Avionics and Applied Science.

Dr. Suresh said the education at the IISST would be subsidised. Though Dr. Suresh said it would not be correct to term education at the Institute as ‘free,’ he pointed out that everything from fee to boarding would be “taken care of” by ISRO.

“We are holding out the promise of absorbing all these students into ISRO provided they meet and maintain certain minimum standards. Such persons will have to work for the ISRO for a minimum period of five years,” he explained.

Currently the IISST will do talent hunt based on the rank list of the Joint Entrance Examinations of the IITs. All those placed in the extended list of the IIT JEE-2007 were eligible to apply this year. This is for the first phase. In the second phase, only those who get a JEE rank will be able to apply (after the completion of counselling for IIT seats, provided the students do not opt for a seat). Final admission to the IISST will be on the basis of a combined merit list.

According to information posted on the website www.IISST.ac.in, strong emphasis would be placed on publishing the fruits of research carried out at the Institute in journals of national and international repute.

The proposed campus of the IISST will have an academic area, research laboratories, a library and information area, computer centre, an administrative block, a convocation centre, a residential centre for staff, hostel for students and studio-type apartments for research fellows, among other things.

August 7, 2007 
Source: The Hindu

Computer education on wheels in Rajasthan

In a bid to increase computer literacy levels across Rajasthan, the state government is planning to launch a computer education on wheels programme, officials said Wednesday.

'The state government, with the support of global and local partners, has taken effective steps towards bringing information and communication technology (ICT) in education to empower students and enhance quality of education in the state,' Rajasthan Education Minister Vasudev Devnani told IANS.

The government intends to provide computer education using mobile vans through public and private partnership. A plan is being put in place to provide 32 buses, one in each district, fitted with IT infrastructure and other teaching aids.

'We have already invited expression of interest (EoI) from interested parties', Devnani said.

The minister added that the government would extend subsidies to the extent of 75 percent of the capital cost of the buses and equipment if private partners agree to extend basic computer education to the students of elementary classes in rural areas.

As per the 2001 census, Rajasthan, has one of the lowest female literacy rates in the country at 44.34 percent. The state with a population of about 56.5 million has a total of 17.94 million illiterate people. However, during 1991-2001, the highest growth in literacy levels was also observed in the state at 22.48 percent.

August 8, 2007
Source: India e news

UP to have unified fee structure

The Uttar Pradesh government is planning to have a unified fee structure for institutes of higher learning across the state. The government will also be checking the amounts charged from students by self financed colleges.

Mr. Rakesh Dhar Tripathi, state minister for higher education said, "The difference in fees charged by various institutes is the cause of worry. The government in this need has decided to form an experts committee which would work out modalities for achieving this end."

The government would also be starting up vocational courses which students pursuing their graduation or post graduation will be required to take part in along with their main subjects. These courses will be computer proficiency and agricultural science and students will not have to enrol separately for these courses.

August 9, 2007 
Source: India edunews.net

UNESCO launches ICT-in-Education online community

In July 2007, as part of the new “Knowledge Communities” project, UNESCO Bangkok launched an online ICT-in-Education community: an interactive forum which welcomes educators, teachers, administrators and policy makers and others to share their ideas and opinions on topics relating to the use of ICT in education.

The purpose of the online community is to foster discussion of topics relating to the integration of ICT in teaching and learning. Topics will cover areas such as ICT for Policy Makers, ICT in Teaching and Learning, ICT in Teacher Training, and Free and Open Source Software in education.

Members of the online community will have the opportunity to share their knowledge about the use of ICT in education, to discuss recent developments, and announce events and conferences. They will also be able to review and exchange teaching materials, such as lesson plans, training guidelines, and toolkits with other participants.

Participants will also benefit from the possibilities of expanding their networks, meeting interesting people and building partnerships through the forum.

Everybody interested in the field of ICT in Education is welcome to join the online community. Registration and participation in the forum is free. To become a member, simply register on the forum website.

August 10, 2007 
Source: Digital Opportunity Channel

UT plans free education for disabled students

Giving a boost to disabled students in the city of Chandigarh, the UT Education Department is going to provide free education to all disabled students up to Class XII in all government schools in the city. The proposal is going to be finalised within a week’s time.

The education department initiated this proposal following the episode in which Abhimanyu Partap, a disabled student, was denied admission to Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 16, and his parents then moved the High Court.

Talking to Newsline, a senior official from the education department said the High Court had suggested the department regarding making education free for all disabled students. The official also confirmed that the proposal is in its final stages and is lying pending with senior UT Administration officials.

Besides doing away with fees for disabled students, the current scholarships available to them will also be revised, sources said.

At present disabled students from Class I to V get Rs 25 per month as scholarship and students from Class VI to VIII get Rs 35 per month. This amount, as per sources, would be revised.

Besides, meritorious students belonging to the Scheduled Caste (SC) /Scheduled Tribe (ST) category with 55 per cent marks get scholarship of Rs 20 per month for Class VIII, IX and X, while students in Class XII get a scholarship of Rs 25 per month.

Sources said all the scholarships, whether for the disabled or students belonging to SC/ST category, would be increased to Rs 250 per month.

August 10, 2007 
Source: Chandigarh Newsline, India 

More foreign students taking admission in schools

The increasing trend of foreign students in Delhi University is now seen in Delhi schools also. It is observed that many foreigners are interested in sending their kids to schools in Delhi.

The American and British schools have branches in Delhi, for foreigners to send their wards. The foreigners tend to send their kids to other schools in Delhi because of good quality of education available at affordable price.

According to some of the schools in Delhi like Tagore International, GD Goenka, DPS International, Springdales and others, the foreign nationals want that their kids learn Indian culture. The schools give credit to the India Shinning campaign of the country among diplomats and Indian Diasporas.

The school principles said that the rising trend of foreign children in Delhi schools is seen as foreigners are fond of Indian culture and they want their kids to get familiarize with it.

Delhi Public School (DPS) R K Puram is having 150 foreign students; Springdales School is having 33 foreign students. While Bluebells International School is having foreign students from various countries like China, Africa, Japan, Korea Hungary, Romania and many other countries.

August 11, 2007 
Source: www.indiaedunews.net