Education Briefs

The seventh annual Rural IT Quiz conducted by the information technology (IT) department of the government of Karnataka in partnership with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has received overwhelming response. Over 955,000 students participated in the preliminary rounds conducted statewide on September 15, making it the biggest IT quiz programme in India. The objective of the Rural IT Quiz is to enhance IT awareness among rural students across all 27 districts of Karnataka.

To mark the commencement of the seventh Rural IT Quiz, N.G. Subramaniam, vice president and head of TCS’ Bangalore operations and Dr. Anup K. Pujari, principal secretary of the department of IT, biotechnology and science and technology, government of Karnataka, released a quiz book Think About IT, a compilation published in Kannada and English by TCS.

"Think About IT is an endeavour by TCS to encourage young minds to understand IT. It provides a wealth of information that students will find useful and informative," said Subramaniam speaking on the occasion.

According to company sources, the district level round of the quiz will be completed on October 5 when 50 top teams representing rural schools (classes VIII-XII) per district will be selected. This will be followed by regional rounds scheduled to be held in Dharwad (October 16), Davangere (17/ 10), Tumkur (18/ 10), Hassan (19/ 10), Udipi (21/ 10) and Gulbarga (25/ 10). The grand finale will be held in Bangalore on October 29 to coincide with BangaloreIT.in 2006.

Priceless Pearl Scholars’ Academy, a co-educational residential school in Igatpuri, district Nasik (Maharashtra) commemorated World Peace Day on September 15 with an inter-school quiz competition in which 24 students from six schools across the state participated. P.S. Deshmukh School, Shahpur and the South Indian Educational Society School, Ambernath were adjudged winners and runners-up respectively. They were presented trophies by Knowledge Hours, a fortnightly magazine and principals of participating schools were also presented World Peace Day mementoes. On the occasion, the school also announced a rolling trophy in memory of the late Zobi Motiwala, founder trustee of the Motiwala Trust for Human Resource Development. The trophy was presented to the winning team of P.S. Deshmukh School.

A seminar on ‘Innovations in education in the 21st century’, presided by the director of Priceless Pearl Scholars’ Academy, was also convened. It was attended by 50 teachers, five principals, the chairman of Lok Foundation, the director of Arya Gurukul and representatives of EducationWorld and Knowledge Hours.

Kidzee, the pre-school division of the Mumbai-based Zee Interactive Learning Systems (ZILS) which has licensed 456 nursery schools across India and abroad, has diversified into the related domain of educational games and stationery. Children’s education materials including oil pastels, crayons, sharpeners, erasers, highlighters, clips, pens, glue sticks, stationery kits etc of international quality are now available in franchised schools and Kidzee centres.

"Kidzee’s foray into educational merchandising has been driven by feedback from business partners indicating lack of quality educational stationery in many of the small towns where Kidzee has established a presence," says A.K. Khetan, chief executive of ZILS.

ZILS is an ISO 9001 certified education provider and the education arm of Zee Network.

In partnership with the Maharashtra Economic Development Council (MEDC), the Canadian Consulate, Mumbai facilitated an education mission to Canada from September 17-30. This is the largest Indian education delegation ever to Canada.

According to Annie Dube, Canada’s vice consul in Mumbai, the objective of the mission is to encourage cooperation in higher education between Indian and Canadian institutions. "The delegation will examine joint programmes in aviation, animation, fine arts, business management, life sciences, healthcare, engineering, food and agriculture. The delegation will also explore opportunities for joint research and faculty exchanges," Dube informed EducationWorld on the eve of the 29-member delegation’s departure.

Dr. G.G. Mewani, an MEDC spokesperson believes that the Canadian excursion will prove an instructive experience for the delegation’s members. "Canada is a frontrunner in the field of science and technology. Indian institutions are always on the lookout for strategic alliances and tie-ups to upgrade their S&T syllabuses. I’m confident this education mission will reinforce India’s strong ties with Canada," says Mewani.