Special Education: Does India really give it enough importance?

Special education in layman's terms is the education of students with special needs in a way that takes into consideration the child's particular needs and understands their limitations. Within this stream of education, the child is involved in individually planned teaching procedures and is monitored by a trained professional. There also maybe the use of adapted equipment and materials as well as comfortable settings to ensure the comfort of the child. Special needs institutions aim to raise...

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Universal education for girls, still a dream!

Gender disparities in education at all levels continue to hover around even after 66 years of independence. According to the District Information System for Education (DISE) (2011-12), report, girl’s enrolment at the primary level (Class I-V) stands at 48.35. Also, at the higher education level, the gross enrolment ratio for male population is 20.8 while that for female it is 17.9 respectively. According to All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) 2010-11, at higher education level, 55 percent...

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Education in India: we know the problems, what are the solutions?

Meeta Sengupta looks at some of the possible solutions to the problems plaguing Indian education.“We all know the problems, what is the solution?!!!” The old gentleman was quite agitated. It was the second afternoon of a rather typical education conference. The glittering keynote speeches with the celebrity panelists. The tinkle of networking over cups of tea in the frequent breaks, the silent shuffle of visiting cards as solution providers offered to demonstrate their services, and the dutiful...

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New wave education methodology - Montessori gains popularity in India

The Montessori method and other forms of new wave education aren't that new abroad but these forms of teaching have been rapidly increasing in India.About the Montessori MethodThe Montessori Method is the brainchild of Dr. Maria Montessori. She believed that the child possesses the ability to direct his own development and it is the duty of the adult to provide him with a a beautifully prepared environment that can help him in this process of development. The Montessori Method focuses on 4 main...

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Only education can root out extremism: Malala

London: Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani girl attacked by the Taliban for spreading the message of girls' education and who is among the forerunners for the Nobel Peace Prize this year, believes extremism can only be rooted out by educating the next generation.In an interview to BBC World News, Malala said she intended to return to her home country, despite the danger."Dialogue is the only way to achieve peace and that extremism can only be rooted out by educating the next generation," Yousafzai said."I want to go back to Pakistan but first of...

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In Swat, Battle for Girls’ Education Continues

In the year since Pakistani schoolgirl Malala Yousafzai was shot in the head by the Taliban for her defiant stance against their ban on girls going to school, she has become an international figurehead for a global campaign for universal education. For many girls in the conservative northwestern corner of Pakistan where she is from, the struggle to go to school continues.The Pakistani Taliban took over the Swat valley in 2007. During the nearly three years that they ruled the picturesque valley they maintained control over the local population...

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Introducing India’s Rae Bareli Education Hub

Here are two questions for non-Indians who are interested in India’s higher education.First, who/what/where is Rae Bareli?Second, what does Rae Bareli have to do with higher education?It is rather unlikely that you will know anything about Rae Bareli even if your interest lies in India’s higher education. However, if you know two bits about Indian politics, you will most surely have heard of it.Rae Bareli is a district (and town) in the eastern state of Uttar Pradesh, one of India’s poorest regions....

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Most Indian urban youth believe in education, but undone by jobs

MUMBAI: Most youngsters in urban India place a high premium on education and believe that it opens windows of opportunity in life, but end up with low-paid jobs in the informal sector. This yawning skill gap is one of the biggest problems plaguing the country's youth, says a new report.The State of the Urban Youth-India 2013 report released by UN-Habitat and IRIS Knowledge Foundation in Mumbai on Sunday includes a three-city survey of 15- to 32-year-olds. Nearly half the youngsters surveyed, the report says, thought quality education was the single...

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Pranab hails India-Belgium pacts in higher education

 Having concluded his Belgium visit on Friday Mr. Mukherjee said he was satisfied that five agreements were inked between leading Universities of India and Belgium and “this will give an impetus to research and innovation in both the countries”.Speaking to the media on board the special aircraft carrying the President’s delegation to Belgium and Turkey, Mr. Mukherjee said he had always placed special emphasis on improving the quality of higher education in the country by “promoting collaborations to strengthen research infrastructure in order...

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To educate a girl

Education has unrivalled power to reduce extreme poverty and boost wider development goals, according to highlights pre-released from Unesco's next Education for All Global Monitoring Report. The highlights provide fresh proof that investing in education, especially for girls, alleviates extreme poverty through securing substantial benefits for health and productivity, as well as democratic participation and women's empowerment.Pauline Rose, director of the EFA Global Monitoring Report, Unesco, said: "It is a crime that there are over a million...

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States to get Rs.70,000 cr to boost higher education

New Delhi: The central government on Friday said it will give about Rs.70,000 crore to state governments over a period of time to boost state-funded universities and colleges.“Traditionally, the focus has always been on a modest number of central institutions but the reality is 96% of the students are from states,” Shashi Tharoor, minister of state for human resource development, told reporters in New Delhi. “(We have been) devoting more resources to a small number of elite institutes while state...

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Major push to change face of higher education

 NEW DELHI: The Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) — cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Thursday — is not only the first major intervention by the Centre to reform the state higher education system but also a substantial step to partially clip the wings of the University Grants Commission (UGC).Ministry sources said the 2004-05 proposal to amend the UGC Act — complete with renaming the organisation as Higher Education Commission and taking away a major chunk of its grant-giving power — has been revived....

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Five Indian universities in top 400 of Times Higher Education rankings

New Delhi: Five Indian institutions found a place in the top 400 of the world’s best universities in 2013, improving their tally from the previous year, according to the UK-based Times Higher Education World University Rankings report published on Wednesday.India added three institutions to the top 400 list, according to the report. Panjab University emerged as the top-ranked Indian institution and was placed between 226 and 250 in the global rankings. The report didn’t give a specific ranking.The...

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Panjab University beats IITs in global rankings

NEW DELHI: Although no Indian institution of higher learning is yet to make it to the top 200 in the Times Higher Education's (THE) World University Rankings list 2013-14, one new entrant — Panjab University— is closer to that elite group. Panjab University is the highest ranked Indian institution clubbed in the group of universities ranked between 226-250 ranks.According to THE, this is India's best performance so far with five institutions making it to the top 400. The other Indian institutions featuring in the list are four Indian Institutes...

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Vivek Sawant selected for award in computer education

The managing director of an educational organization, Vivek Sawant, will on October 5 be conferred the Dr Vasant Pawar Smruti Puraskar this year for his contribution to learning.Vivek Sawant is the managing director of the Maharashtra Knowledge Corporation Ltd (MKCL) that has emerged as a high-tech initiative of the state government and ten universities.The award is conferred each year on people for outstanding work in the fields of education, medicine and social work. The former vice-chancellor of the Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University...

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Transforming education in India is very complex: Azim Premji

BANGALORE: Industry captain and philanthropist Azim Premji has called upon the government and other stakeholders to invest more resources to improve the state of education in the country."These 12 years (of Azim Premji Foundation) have taught us that transforming education is very complex."And given the diversity of our country, compounded by issues of socio-economic deprivation and on-the-ground realities, it is inevitably going to be a slow and arduous process," Premji said while addressing the Azim Premji University's first convocation last...

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SAP Techniversity: A technical education conference for Indian students

The second edition of SAP Techniversity, the technology event hosted by SAP India Labs, saw an enthusiastic participation by about 5,500 students from approximately 300 colleges and unversities of India here on Saturday. The day-long event saw speakers from SAP Labs India and the company's Germany headquarters speaking on opportunities for students not only in the company but also the support they can expect for their entreprenurial forays. The managing director of SAP Labs India, Anirban Dey...

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