Stay abreast of the fast moving economic super-power — India!
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Stay abreast of the fast moving economic super-power — India!
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Weekly news updates on trends and happenings in the Indian Education sceneBPOs are no longer hot career option for youth
Some states are upping their focus on IT and English education while a majority of the youth is looking at careers other than the IT BPO sector. Educational needs of the girl child, as well as science education are in focus. Indian MPs to be trained at Yale while the country plans on a ‘knowledge bank’ to share expertise with NRI professionals. - Chillibreeze Business Research Team 'BPOs no longer career choice for Indian youths' Careers in BPOs and call centres are no longer hot options for Indian youth and these sectors will face the toughest manpower challenge yet in the next two years, says a study. The outsourcing industry is already facing an attrition rate of 25-30 percent as youths are shifting to more promising areas such as hospitality, aviation and retail, says the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham). In two years, it will face a shortage of 30-40 percent, the industry lobby said, in a study entitled "Urban Youths' New Emerging Choices for Career Making," that was released on Sunday. "A majority of 12th standard pass-outs earlier seeking opportunities in BPOs and call centres are now curious to join other leisurely yet attractive areas," said Venugopal N. Dhoot, president of the chamber. He listed the attractive areas as animation, journalism, designing of apparel and jewellery, entertainment, aviation, hospitality and retail. He said tough working conditions and lack of job security were the reasons for the switch. Assocham also found that institutes running various call centre courses were also facing the heat and witnessing a shortfall of 15-20 percent students in their academic sessions. The chamber estimates that in the national capital territory alone more than 250 institutions were imparting training programmes and courses in areas of aviation, hotel, retail management, animation, designing and journalism. October 7, 2007 20,000 northeast youths to get into IT-BPO sector Around 20,000 youths from the eight northeastern states are to be recruited for India's booming IT enabled services and business process outsourcing (ITES-BPO) industry. According to the National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM), the initiative for the recruitment drive is being done with help from the Union Ministry of Development of North-Eastern Region (DoNER). Nasscom, the apex body of Indian IT and service companiesl, has created an assessment and certification programme called Nasscom Assessment of Competence (NAC) for a common and transparent recruitment process. 'About 100 NAC tests would be conducted across the northeast followed by job fairs early next year for the successful candidates for recruitment to the ITES-BPO industry,' said Brajamohan Sinha, director of the Tripura manpower and employment department. The tests, meant for graduates and others, are to be held in phases later this month and in November and December. According to a Nasscom statement, of the 20,000 proposed recruits, the highest number of 8,000 would be from Assam followed by 3,500 from Tripura, 2,000 in Nagaland, 1,500 each from Mizoram, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh, and 1,000 each from Manipur and Sikkim. October 7, 2007 Yale starts leadership programme for Indian MPs Yale University has launched a leadership programme for Indian MPs, opening a window to discussions on policy issues with leading thinkers away from the public eye. The inaugural session of the India-Yale Parliamentary Leadership Programme will begin on October 9 at the university campus in New Haven, Connecticut. The five-day programme with the faculty at Yale - an Ivy League institution - will be complemented by a three-day programme of meetings, discussions and interactions with the US government and business officials in Washington D.C. Members of the faculty for the programme are drawn from among experts at Yale, as well as research institutes, government offices and the private sector. Besides curricular activities, there will be lectures, discussions and private meetings with renowned practitioners in their areas. The participants are a mix of parliamentarians drawn from both the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha and from various parties. Yale has also striven to attract regional variety representing both rural and urban constituencies. The topics covered in the inaugural programme include: economic and social development in India, democracy and the secular state, India-China economic relations, affirmative action, climate change and sustainable development, foreign direct investment in India, strategy, negotiation and game theory for the politician, strategic thinking for the politician and energy security. The programme has been launched in collaboration with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and the India-US Forum of Parliamentarians. It is similar to those that Yale is doing for China, Japan, Kazakhstan and the United Arab Emirates. Each programme is however unique and customised to the group, so there is only some overlap in the content of the programmes, he said. October 7, 2007 Amity to launch 24x7 Education channel 'Youth TV' In a first foray by an Indian university in the entertainment media segment, Amity University (Noida) will launch a 24-hour education channel, 'Youth TV', targeting the vital human resource which needs the right path to scale new heights. Amity plans to launch the channel in the next six to eight months with an investment of Rs.100 crore over the next three to five years. Programmes centered on education, will be made in an on-campus studio, by students. The varsity will involve its students in filming and production and even as anchors, producers and viewers. The channel will not only air educational programmes but also help students select the right courses. The channel's web portal will provide complete information regarding education, gadgets, entertainment, cuisines, eating out etc and also serve as a platform for students to post their videos, blog and chat. Youth TV will compete with two networks of Doordarshan - Gyan Darshan and Vyas. Both are 24-hour education networks but they continue to suffer from low viewership. October 7, 2007 English made compulsory in Uttar Pradesh government schools Children in all government schools in Uttar Pradesh are now compulsorily learning English - a move aimed at increasing their employment potential. The Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati has ordered that English be taught as a language right from Class 2 at all state-run schools. The language had been almost banished by earlier governments. All other subjects in the government schools would still be taught in Hindi. "The level of English language has gone down in the state, reducing the job-hunting capacity of the students," an official of the basic education department said. The government has also directed the department to ensure that students from Class 6 upwards listen to English radio news bulletins and read English newspapers. Teachers have been told to train students to speak in English before the whole class. During English language class, students should be encouraged to speak and converse only in English, the official said. The department, through its initiatives, hopes that government school students will come up at par with children studying in English medium schools, an education department official said here. October 6, 2007 Sibal for increase in science education funding Science and Technology Minister Kapil Sibal on Thursday said political commitment is required to raise government funding for science education and research, to two percent of country's gross domestic product (GDP). Speaking at a function organised by industry lobby, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) Sibal said: 'There can be no innovative science without the commitment of the public sector in funding basic science and research.' 'The investment flows for this critical activity need to be raised to 2 percent of GDP from the current 0.5 percent by the end of the 11th Plan (2012).' The Minister launched a World Bank Publication, titled 'Innovation - Advantage India: Towards Sustainable and Inclusive Growth', at the function which was also attended by The World Bank, India director Isabel M. Guerrero and FICCI Secretary General Amit Mitra. October 5, 2007 30 percent scholarships to be reserved for girls from backward sections In a significant move, the Central Government has decided to reserve 30 percent of all school scholarships for girls belonging to the minority community, scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. Preference would be given to students from below poverty line (BPL) families, while awarding scholarships. This decision was taken in a meeting of the Expenditure Finance Committee recently. As per the scheme, a student will be eligible to receive the scholarship if his/her parent's annual income does not exceed Rs.2 lakh and he/she must have scored minimum 50 per cent marks in the last qualifying examination. However, several ministries wanted the annual income criteria of Rs.2.5 lakh. Students who are studying in government higher secondary school and colleges, including residential schools and private institutions recognized by the Government would be eligible for the scholarships. Those students, who have enrolled in conventional courses, would get an annual scholarship amount of Rs.7, 000, whereas for technical and vocational courses, it would be Rs.10, 000. Students will also get some money for buying books and other accessories. The Minority Affairs Ministry would soon bring a proposal before the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs to seek approval of the post-Matric scholarship scheme for 15 lakh students belonging to minority communities in the next five year plan. October 5, 2007 Amendment enabling reservation doesn't violate law – Govt The Central Government has continued its argument before the apex court for implementing a law that could provide 27% reservation to students from Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in central educational institutions. The Government on Wednesday contended before the Supreme Court that there is valid provision in the constitution for making a law that could provide 27 percent quota for OBCs. Senior advocate K. Parasaran from the Government side contended before the five-judge Constitution Bench headed by Chief Justice K.G. Balakrishnan that the 93rd Constitutional Amendment by which Article 15(5) was included to enable reservation for socially and educationally backward classes (SEBCs) was not unconstitutional and violative of the basic structure of the Constitution. "The amendment does not confer unbridled power. Parliament and legislatures are alone the arms of the state to make laws. An amendment of the Constitution can empower them to make particular laws by adding to the empowerment," Mr. Parasaran said. A similar argument was also made by Solicitor-General G.E. Vahanvati. He said that caste alone could be the starting point of identifying the backward classes. "This country is caste ridden and victims of caste system have to be identified for remedial action", Vahanvati added. October 4, 2007 DU's brand new community radio station - DU 90.4 FM Delhi University (DU) has started a brand new community radio station - DU 90.4 FM, at the School of Open Learning located in the North Campus of the varsity. The broadcast range will be restricted to a radius of 10 km. The radio will broadcast community-related programs as well as those dealing with students' issues. The test transmissions for the radio station had started earlier in August. After Union Science and Technology Minister Mr. Kapil Sibal inaugurated the station on Tuesday, a full-fledged operation was carried out with a recorded message from the minister. "The community radio will help in tapping the talent of the student community. There will be panel discussions and shows on phone-in counseling and classical music. Students from the University will work as radio jockeys. There will be programs related to student's issues including health, sanitation and environment," said Vijaylakshmi Sinha, former Deputy Director-General of All India Radio, who is supervising this project. October 4, 2007 Out of school children dropped from 39 million to 10 million Mrs. D. Purandeswari, Minister of State for Human Resource Development has said that the number of out-of-school children in India was estimated to be about 39 million, since then, this figure has fallen steadily, and in November 2005 it was reported to be around 10 million. The Minister said that a National Programme of Nutritional Support to primary education or the Mid-Day Meal scheme was launched on 15th August 1995 to give a boost to Universal Primary Education. The other main vehicle at present for providing universal education for all children is a comprehensive programme called Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), which was launched in 2001-02. SSA is a time bound mission with the objectives of ensuring universalisation of elementary education and bridging of gender and social gaps by 2010. The Minister added that 100 per cent success in these schemes is yet to be achieved and assured that shortcomings and deficiencies in the functioning of these schemes are continuously being monitored. She said "the emphases for us are the child centric schemes". 'The World Conference on Education for All held in Jomtien in 1990 set this process in motion by adopting that the goal of Universal Primary Education be achieved by 2000 AD. The World Education Forum in Dakar in 2000 reaffirmed and extended this commitment. Universal primary education with complete gender equity in primary and secondary education was affirmed again in the same year as Millennium Development Goal', she said. The Minister further elaborated that what is to be ensured now is that there should be a vocational bias at the end of secondary education in the absence of which, students are presently proceeding to higher education pursuing degree course in general education resulting in the creation of surplus manpower that do not fulfill the productive requirements of the country. Diversification of education at secondary level would reduce the pressure on higher education. Vocationalization and terminalization of education at the middle school level and secondary education level is essential to gear up educational development for economic growth. Australian Government initiated this Conference to promote learning about countries of Asia in Australian Primary and Secondary Schools. 250 delegates from Australia which included teachers, Principals, Education Administrators and teacher educators have attended the conference, which is scheduled for 5 days. Other speakers included Australian High Commissioner to India, His Excellency John Mc Carthy, Mr. Sai Nath, Dr. Karthikeyan and Prof. Mishural Hussain. October 4, 2007 NCERT to include 'Crafts' and 'Design' in Sr. Sec syllabus The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has received a go-ahead signal from the National Monitoring Committee (NMC) to introduce subjects such as "Indian Crafts" and "Graphic Design" in schools at the senior secondary level from the next academic year. In line with the National Curriculum Framework (NFC), the NCERT and the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) have decided to introduce these subjects in Classes 11 and 12 from the next academic session. "The 100 mark paper can be opted for by students of science, commerce and arts streams. The aim is to create a brigade which will help the revival of dying Indian handicrafts," said Jyotsna Tiwari, a lecturer in the NCERT's Department of Education in Arts and Aesthetics (DEAA). She said the National Institute of Design (NID), Ahmedabad, had given the NCERT a data sheet on dying Indian handicrafts and helping to formulate the curriculum. The subject will be mostly practical oriented. Out of 100 marks, 60 marks are for practical work and 40 marks for theory. The subject will have chapters on craft tradition, clay, stonework, metal crafts, jewellery, natural fibre weaving like grass and bamboo, jute and cane work, textile crafts, paintings and leather crafts. October 3, 2007 Himachal Pradesh to get central university, IIT Himachal Pradesh will soon have a central university, an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and a broad-gauge railway track, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram announced here on Tuesday. The proposed central university and IIT will be funded fully by the centre, the Finance Minister said. "The Bilaspur-Bhanupali broad-gauge railway track will be built in a time-bound manner with the centre pitching in 75 percent of the cost," he said. Chidambaram, who was here to launch the "Aam Aadmi Bima Yojana" (common man's insurance scheme), said he was making these announcements on behalf of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. October 2, 2007 Bengal IT finishing schools to meet industry standards The Indian IT industry is battling a severe shortage of skilled professionals that may slow its progress on the fast growth track. This is especially true in West Bengal, which has emerged as one of the fastest growing IT destinations. "Every year, about 300,000 IT professionals pass out from different universities across India. But only 10 percent of them are employable by MNCs operating in India. This is a crucial problem the industry is now facing," National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom) vice-chairman and ZenSar Technologies CEO Ganesh Natarajan told IANS. According to a Nasscom-McKinsey study conducted recently, India will face a severe shortage of 500,000 knowledge workers by 2010. The study also pointed out that there are alarming indications of a mismatch between academic performance and industry expectations. Natarajan said Nasscom is tying-up with finishing schools and encouraging centre of excellence programmes to develop manpower quality across India. October 2, 2007 Building blocks could improve kids' language skills Playing with building blocks may help toddlers improve their cognitive development, especially their language skills, say scientists. Researchers in the US studied 175 children, aged between one-and-a-half to two-and-a-half years. While 88 were sent two sets of building blocks and two newsletters with suggestions for parents about activities that could be done with the blocks, the other 87 children were not sent any blocks until the study had been completed. All parents were told to fill in a questionnaire after monitoring their child's activities during trial. "We found that distributing blocks was associated with significantly higher language scores in a sample of middle and low-income children," said Dimitri A. Christakis at University of Washington, who led the team of researchers. The children who play with blocks are likely to have better cognitive development -- a process by which the brain develops the abilities to think, learn and remember. It enables a child to solve problems and understand concepts, the study said. Playing with blocks is nowadays often being replaced with other activities like watching TV that do not encourage language development, the researchers said in the latest issue of the Archives of Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine published by American Medical Association. Christakis however said it was a pilot project and required further study to corroborate the findings. October 2, 2007 IIT-K to help make science easy for school students The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur will conduct a 45-day training programme to help make science simpler for school students through practical training. The training will be jointly conducted by a team of professors and research students with the help of an NGO, Shiksha Sopan. The programme will help promote understanding of Science and Technology among students through practical training. Octobert 2, 2007 Special Educational Needs: Therapeutic motives For those whose children are suffering from brain disorders and cannot fit into the mainstream education system, Shannon Kenitz is a ray of hope. An advocate of Hyperbaric Oxygen therapy, Kenitz claims that many children have been cured of their mental and physical disorders and that they were able to join school by overcoming their handicap. The therapy helps balance the oxygen level required by brain cells and eventually activates them. As executive director of the International Hyperbaric Association, Kenitz has become a flag-bearer for parents searching for answers to disorders and disabilities, like Autism Spectrum Disorders and Cerebral Palsy, in their children. Kenitz who is from California, was in the Capital recently to attend a conference organised by Udaan, a non-governmental organisation. "These children are fighting death, and educating them is the last thing on their parents' minds. The first step is to help them survive. And oxygen therapy has actually seen a history of cases where, after just a few years, children with cerebral palsy have recovered and even joined special schools," she said. "My goal is to work with the Indian government and help children who are suffering due to lack of awareness and could instead be educated," she added. October 1, 2007 PM announces Sunita Williams Scholarships Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told Indian American astronaut Sunita Williams that she was a "source of inspiration" for youngsters in India, as he announced special scholarships, named after her, for space studies. He said Science and Technology Minister Kapil Sibal would announce the details of the scholarships. October 1, 2007 India plans to set up 'knowledge bank' – Ravi India plans to set up a "knowledge bank" to share the expertise of NRI doctors, engineers and other professionals to provide world-class education back home, Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi said here. To this end, the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) is preparing a project to set up an NRI university, Ravi said during an interaction with the Indian American community at the Indian embassy here on Saturday. An independent trust was also being set up in collaboration with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) to help Indians abroad do what they want back home. A legislation has been introduced in the Indian parliament to encourage more collaboration with credible foreign universities to bring about the needed changes in the Indian system of education, Ravi said. The proposal he said had run into political problems with some supporting parties having certain objections to it. But he personally felt that collaboration with foreign institutions would be good. Ravi agreed that India's healthcare system needed an overhaul, but in order to provide access to basic healthcare down to the district level, government and the private sector needed to work together. There was, he said, great demand for Indian manpower abroad, particularly in the Gulf region. To facilitate and regulate this, memoranda of understanding (MOUs) have been signed with Kuwait and the UAE. Similar MOUs were in the offing with Oman, Qatar and Bahrain, Ravi said. October 1, 2007 IGNOU to launch special educational program for disabled Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) in collaboration with the Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI) is going to launch extensive training programs for the people with disabilities. The varsity signed a MoU with RCI for promotion of special education and rehabilitation among physically challenged people of the society. IGNOU will make available the study materials for the purpose in eight languages - Gujarati, Marathi, Malayalam, Kannada, Oriya, Bengali, Tamil and Telugu. The materials will be ready within six months, told a spokes person of the varsity. IGNOU and RCI will also work together to launch special education programs like B.Ed and M.Ed at certain places of the country where state open universities are not functioning, the spokesperson added. The varsity is also preparing an audio-visual tool which will list all possible sources that might prove useful for the proper rehabilitation and growth of special children. October 1, 2007
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