Education Briefs

Himali Boarding School, Kurseong (Darjeeling district) was formally inaugurated as the first Cambridge International Examinations (CIE) centre in north-east India by Mark Bartholomew, regional manager, South Asia of CIE on May 16. Moreover from the year 2006, HBS students will have the option of writing the A and AS level examinations of CIE.

"On May 16, 2005 we have entered the chronicles of educational history. By becoming a component of an internationally accepted and esteemed university, Himali Boarding School will offer the eastern Himalayas and whole of eastern India something no other institution in this region has done in the past — a global playing field where the children not only of our region, but of seven neighbouring states and three neighbouring countries will have an opportunity to compete and be accredited by a university that is without an iota of doubt, one of the finest in the world. The A level and AS level examinations are internationally recognised, allowing children who graduate from Indian schools easy access into universities worldwide," says Robindra Subba, director of HBS.

Himali Boarding School was promoted by Major T.B. Subba and Mrs. Subba in 1978 with 39 boarders and 15 dayscholars. It was affiliated to the Delhi-based CISCE (Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations) in 1998 and currently has 957 students in classes K-XII on its rolls.

The Mumbai-based Podar International School has been declared the first Indian School to offer the new primary programme of the Cambridge International Examinations board.

"By offering the primary programme of CIE, Podar International will be bringing best practices in international early education to students in Mumbai. As India is advancing towards globalisation it has become imperative that our children learn the true spirit of internationalism — ‘glocalisation’ — to ‘think global act local’," says Vandana Lulla director of Podar International School.

Podar International School has been managed by the Anandilal & Ganesh Podar Society since 1927 and recently completed its platinum jubilee. A public charitable trust, it has a long history of meritorious service to the citizens of India.

The Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore and Cardiff University, Wales (UK) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on May 3, under which the two institutes will cooperate in the fields of science and technology, with particular emphasis on the engineering sector.

"Cardiff University has established itself as one of the leading education and research institutions in the UK, with links with other global institutions, an international student base, meaningful exchange programmes and relationships with commercial organisations around the world. This partnership with IISc is a strategic decision which we are sure will be mutually beneficial to both institutions. The recent announcement by the Indian ministry of finance on the allocation of funds for investment in IISc to develop it along the lines of leading global institutions of higher education and research and development organisations, has further reinforced the fact that IISc has the potential to become one of India’s and the world’s most recognised organisations. We are extremely happy to partner with them and envisage tremendous benefits to both institutions through this MoU," says Prof. Hywel Thomas, dean of the Cardiff School of Engineering.

The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) was promoted in 1909 by industry leader and philanthropist the late J.N.Tata. Since then, it has grown into a premier institution of research and advanced instruction, with more than 2,000 active researchers working in frontier areas of science and technology.

Cardiff University is recognised in independent government assessments as one of Britain’s leading teaching and research universities. Established by a Royal Charter in 1883, the university’s research and research-led teaching emcompasses the humanities; natural, physical, health, life and social sciences; engineering and technology, and a commitment to lifelong learning.

A two day national convention organised by the consortium of Educational Communication (CEC), an inter-university centre of UGC with the support of IIMC New Delhi, FTII, Pune, Commonwealth of Learning, Canada, UNESCO and other educational multimedia research centres of UGC, concluded its deliberations on May 18.

The two day conference in Delhi discussed various issues related to information communication technology (ICT) in education including the impact of development of hardware and software technology on educational communication, challenges of authentic e-learning and social message resources, modes of delivery of e-learning, ways of networking among educational and social message communication experts and organisations.

Inaugurating the convention, Union HRD minister Arjun Singh said that communication technology which is already playing a crucial role in providing high quality education and spreading social messages across the country, should also be used to spread literacy in rural areas. Appreciating the role of UGC in the field of educational communication, he said UGC’s educational channels are harnessing large numbers of people and making India, a knowledge based society.

Prof. H.Y. Siddiqui, vice-chancellor of Jamia Millia Islamia also underlined the importance of educational communication. "Educational technologies are not only helping to spread education but also fulfilling our two most crucial social objectives of propagating peace and harmony in society," he said.

John Daniel, president and CEO of Commonwealth of Learning expressed confidence that new ways of using connectivity in education will lead to the free open source software movement and its application in e-learning.

The convention was attended by heads of media departments and UGC’s media centres, academicians and media researchers from across the country.

Dr. Damodar Acharya, vice-chancellor of Biju Patnaik University of Technology, Rourkela has been appointed chairman of the Delhi-based All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE).

The three-year appointment cleared by the Union government’s cabinet committee for appointments (CCA) on May 9, will commence from the date of Prof. Acharya’s joining office. The CCA notification says the appointment is for a term of three years or until he attains the age of 65 years.

Acharya was selected to head AICTE following the expiry of the term of Dr. R. Natarajan last November, by a five-member search committee headed by Dr. C.N.R. Rao, N.R. Narayana Murthy of Infosys, Dr. P.V. Indiresan, Dr. P.N. Srivastava and Prof S.K. Khanna, a former AICTE chairman.

After the expiry of the term of Dr. Natarajan last November, Prof. H.P. Dikshit, vice-chancellor of IGNOU had been officiating as AICTE chairman for the past six months. An alumnus of REC, Rourkela and IIT-Kharagpur, Acharya has been associated with AICTE as a member of the All India Board of Undergraduate Studies in Engineering and Technology since September 2003.

Aptech Computer Education has launched its 18-month Aptech Internship Program (AIP) in select cities including Mumbai, Chennai and Bangalore from June 6. Aimed at graduates or students in the final semester of graduation, the course includes training in technical and soft skills. The programme comprises six months of classroom training and 12 months of internship in selected organisations across the country.

To enroll for AIP, students should not be more than 22 years of age, must clear aptitude and English language tests and a personal interview. All students admitted into the programme will receive an AIP certificate from Aptech and an experience certificate from the organisation in which they complete their 12-month internship.

"Aptech Computer Education has launched AIP after thorough research of the Indian market, which brought to the fore that corporates require trained MIS (management information systems) professionals to achieve competitive advantage in the market by providing continuous and improved customer services in industries such as banking, insurance, advertising, market research, pharmaceuticals, software development, training institutes, trading and others," says Atul Vohra head of Aptech Computer Education.

According to Vohra, though there is a great demand for MIS professionals who can efficiently handle databases and other MIS related functions, there is no dedicated course mapped to meet their training requirements. "AIP will fulfill this requirement in various roles such as junior processing associate, junior production executive, MIS executive, customer care executive, help desk executive, marketing support executive, sales support executive etc," he adds.