EducationWorld October 05

Reading to young children is the best thing a parent can do for them. On the other hand, free licence to watch television could well destroy their creativity, present and future. Looking back upon my own child rearing days, I may have taken numerous wrong turns, but I read my son stories every night even before he quite understood them. It developed his imagination and served him well as a film and cinema student in the US, enabling him to bag several awards. I remember I used to hunt down unusual books in every nook and corner of the world (those were pre-google days). Today, my brothers are amazed by my collection, now handed down to their sons. This search and purchase practice continues. Recently I presented my dear nephews, who at ages seven and eight have become voracious readers, a title named The Story of Dandi March by Sandhya Rao (Tulika Publishers). Little did I know that I would have to borrow it back from them to glean some details of which I was unaware, of this historic trek. What I learned from re-reading the book was that on January 31, 1930, Gandhiji wrote to the British Viceroy of India setting 11 demands on behalf of the Indian people. He warned that if the demands were not conceded, he would break the government’s Salt Law and encourage all Indians to do the same. The demands were not met and the Mahatma began a 384 km march from his home at Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad to the small coastal town of Dandi, where the Arabian Sea left large deposits of salt crystals on the shore. The occupation government had assumed monopoly control of the salt factories and salt pans of India’s vast coastline. Indians were not allowed to pan their own salt and were also charged a tax on purchased salt. So Gandhiji and 78 others set out on a protest march to Dandi on March 12 with the avowed purpose of breaking the inequitous salt law. Even at age 61, other marchers struggled to keep pace with him. Besides other hardships, they crossed the Mahi river through knee-deep water and reached Dandi on April 5. Early next morning Gandhiji waded into the waters of the Arabian Sea, and picking up a lump of salt, symbolically broke the salt law. This was a signal to people across the country to follow suit. C. Rajagopalachari (Rajaji) led a group from Trichy to Vedaranyam on the east coast, off the Bay of Bengal. K. Kelappan walked from Calicut to Pavannur on the west coast. Satyagrahis walked all the way from Sylhet in Assam to Noakhali on the shores of the Bay of Bengal. A year later, following numerous grievous injuries to the satyagrahis and jail term for the Mahatma, a pact was signed. The British India government was forced to concede the right of Indians to pan their own salt. However, almost 75 years on we are encountering a different type of salt-related breach of our freedom. Not…

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Somewhat belatedly, educationists especially in urban schools across the subcontinent, have become acutely aware that teaching life/ soft skills for professional and personal success is as important as developing academic capability. Summiya Yasmeen reports  It’s the new buzzword in Indian education. Everybody — school and college managements, principals, teachers, educationists, parents, students, and even corporates — is suddenly talking about the critical importance of life skills education. Somewhat belatedly educationists especially in urban schools across the subcontinent, have become acutely aware of the rising popularity of life skills education- that teaching life/ soft skills to students is as important as developing academic capability for professional and personal success.  Celebration by the print and electronic media of corporate heroes such as Reliance Industries founder the late Dhirubhai Ambani, Virgin Atlantic boss Richard Branson, steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal, who were academic drifters but well equipped in life skills, and the liberalisation of the Indian economy has thrown open unprecedented opportunities and high-paying jobs which require more than mere academic capability. Hence the rising demand for life skills education. Defined by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as “abilities for positive and adaptive behaviour that enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands and changes of everyday life”, life skills such as problem solving, decision making, good manners, communication and interpersonal skills, are highly valued in the job marketplace of India’s rapidly globalising economy. Consequently surging demand for these taken-for-granted but conspicuously lacking soft skills has led to a sudden spurt in the promotion of a spate of life skills education firms which offer customised programmes to schools, colleges and corporates promising the vital X factor to round off the education of students and indeed, of corporate executives. “In the past five years in particular following the opening up of the Indian economy and technological sea-change, there’s been growing awareness among school and college managements that examination success does not necessarily translate into workplace success. It requires something more than mugging up textbooks to be a successful doctor, engineer, architect, teacher, manager or entrepreneur. And that vital missing link in the education process is the acquisition of life skills — capabilities which prepare children to cope with life’s diverse challenges. These skills which need to be nurtured help children tackle failure, relationships, sexuality, exam fears, rejection, peer pressure, and stress — problems which can severely affect their lives,” says Syed Sultan Ahmed, founder managing director of The Activity, a Bangalore-based division of S.S. Edutainment Pvt Ltd, with offices in six cities and among the first firms to formally deliver life skills education to school students. According to Ahmed, a chemical engineer of Bangalore University, who started The Activity in 1997, the World Health Organisation (WHO) accepted the need for life skills education in 1998. WHO recommended a module comprising ten life skills — stress management, problem solving, communication skills, emotions management, creative thinking, self awareness, interpersonal skills, empathy, decision making, and critical thinking — to every school worldwide to incorporate into the mainstream academic curriculum. The…

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Letter from London Widening participation debate There is a specially positive feeling at the beginning of the academic year when university corridors and canteens are full of apprehensive first year students, and there is the whiff of fresh polish and enthusiasm. Meanwhile news-papers are busy analysing a barrage of statistics — how many students are from state (non fee-paying) schools, the numbers from European countries, how many from ethnic backgrounds and how many applied this year to avoid the higher top-up fees payable from next year. The picture that emerges is that admissions are up on last year, which is good news for prime minister Tony Blair as he strives to achieve his goal of persuading 50 percent of young school leavers to press on for higher education. Not so encouraging is data which indicates that the proportion of students from state schools entering university has fallen for the first time in five years, a finding which will undoubtedly disappoint the prime minister who is trying to widen access to higher education. Widening participation is crucial to universities, to meet government targets and increase student numbers. This makes the maintenance of high academic standards difficult as universities have to take on students who may not have traditional A level qualifications. They know that if they take the risk of admitting ‘non traditional students’ i.e from working class backgrounds with no family history of higher education, ethnic minorities with English as a second language, and more mature students, intake percentages from state schools and university dropout rates are likely to increase. Quite obviously it’s not just a matter of enrolling higher numbers of students, it’s also important to retain them until they complete their degree programmes. Recently published statistics indicate that dropout rates among first year university students are rising. The number of students quitting after the first year rose from 7.3 percent of intake in 2001 to 7.8 percent in 2002, an increase of nearly 1,800. A further 1,000 mature students also quit during the same period and some universities had shocking dropout rates of more than 15 percent. What the statistics reveal are broad differences between institutions, some still managing to reduce dropout rates while recruiting a high proportion of working class and mature students. Graduation percentages vary depending on the subject, and confirm the close link between A-level grades and the successful completion of degree courses. As one might expect, the higher the grades the more likely that students will stay the course in university. Statistics indicate that medical schools, which demand very high grades, experience an average dropout of only 1.8 percent while architecture, building and planning, engineering and technology institutes lose more than 10 percent of enrolled students. This data is grist for the mill in debates about widening participation, the aspirations of students, their families, schools and universities.    (Jacqueline Thomas is a London-based journalist/ academic)   United States Evolution teaching row President George Bush has added new fuel to the debate over teaching evolution in schools by suggesting…

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Your counsellor repliesI‚m an above average Plus Two (science) student interested in studying medicine in the UK or US. Please advise.Lakshmi Iyer, ChennaiMedical training in theUK starts with acquisition of an under-graduate medical degree, also known as the pre-med. This five year study programme culminates in the award of a bachelor of medicine and surgery degree (MBBS) which is the primary medical qualification. Medical schools require applicants to have studied chemistry and physics, biology or mathematics in Plus Two. The British government restricts the number of seats offered to foreign students in med schools, with preference given to students from countries which lack medical training facilities. All students, including overseas applicants, are required to apply through the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service. Information about courses and eligibility criteria is available on the UCAS website, http://www.ucas.ac.uk/ucc/index.html or from the British Council offices. For overseas students the cost of medical education in Britain is about ‚£16,500 (Rs.13.85 lakh) per year excluding residential expenses. After graduation, overseas students can remain in the UK to complete their postgraduate, general, clinical, and other specialist training.In the US, four years of medical training starts after four years of undergraduate study. Subsequently there is five years of residency, depending upon the speciality you choose. Foreign applicants may discover that capacity reserved for non-US citizens is very limited.US medical schools require applicants to submit MCAT scores and possess a strong background in the sciences (biology, chemistry, physics and mathematics), good communication skills, knowledge of computers and strong credentials in the humanities and social sciences. Tuition fees are approximately between US$10,000-30,000 (Rs.4.5-13.5 lakh). I‚m in second year B.Sc and am interested in a career in the Indian Police Service. Please advise.Anil Kulkarni, PuneTo be eligible for the Indian Police Service (IPS), you have to be over 21 years of age, a graduate and you have to write the Civil Services Examination. After you succeed in CSE you can opt for IPS, IAS, Indian Foreign Service and several other all India government services, depending upon your position in the merit list. You can familiarise yourself with the pattern of the Civil Services Examination by logging on to www.upsc.gov.in. I‚ll be writing my class XII exam next year and wish to study engineering. Which branch of engineering offers the best job prospects?Deepak Rao, BangaloreAt entry level, marine engineers get the best remuneration, but working conditions are demanding. Within conventional streams, the IT industry offers better pay packages. However, it is only after two or three years‚ experience that an IT/ computer/ software engineer begins to earn big pay money. It is advisable to enroll for a branch of engineering which interests you. Ultimately, success attaches itself to the individual, so if you are good at your job, your prospects are bound to be good in any engineering stream.I‚m doing my B.Com in accounts and finance. Should I read for an MBA in finance or chartered accountancy?Neeta Puri, New DelhiThe knowledge acquired in B.Com will give you a good academic background for…

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Individuals with an eye for talent, commercial acumen and risk-taking ability have emerged within the fashion industry which has high potential for growth in the new quotas free textiles market With Indian textiles and designs beginning to make an impact in the fashion capitals of the world and a steady stream of fashion designers pouring out of vocational institutes such as NID (National Institute of Design) and NIFT (National Institute of Fashion Technology), a new genre of business-minded professionals “fashion entrepreneurs” with a keen eye for talent, commercial acumen and risk-taking ability have emerged within the fashion industry which has high potential for growth in the new global quotas free textiles market.  Fashion entrepreneurship is essentially about starting new fashion and textile ventures- boutiques, labels, production houses or even multi-brand retail outlets. Fashion entrepreneurs don’t necessarily design garments. They could stock other designers’ labels. But their distinguishing characteristic is their flair for design and fashion and considerable experience of its ancillary industries. To start off as an entrepreneur in the fashion industry, design- brand creation or retailing- a degree or diploma in fashion technology while not mandatory is helpful, as it equips aspiring entrepreneurs with appreciation of style, cutting and manufacturing technology, fashion co-ordination, merchandising, fabrics, forecasting and marketing. The premier institute for professional training in the fast-track fashion and related industries is the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), Delhi. An autonomous organisation promoted by the Union ministry of textiles, with affiliated institutes in the major metros, NIFT offers a three-year full-time diploma course in fashion technology. Other reputable institutes offering similar study programmes are SNDT Women’s University, Nirmala Niketan and Sophia College Polytechnic, all in Mumbai, and the International Polytechnic and South Polytechnic for Women in New Delhi. Minimum eligibility for the study programmes of these institutes is Plus Two or equivalent. After completing a general diploma course in fashion technology, students have the option of enrolling for a fourth year of training in a specialised area, which is followed by internship with a local fashion house. Depending on the specialisation, a student could intern in designing, merchandising, co-ordination, workshop, sampling, manufacturing etc. Armed with an enabling diploma, the best option is to seek employment in a small firm where one can acquire multi-department experience. A few years down, a switch to a larger organisation offering a higher designation and remuneration would fully equip you to start your own venture, for which a minimum workplace experience of five years is advisable. Several entrepreneurial firms like Ensemble, Ritu’s, BE, Melange, Satya Paul et al have established a strong countrywide presence. In addition a number of international fashion firms are also streaming into India. Among them, Aftershock, a UK-based women’s smart wear brand started in London in 1992 by the husband-wife team of Hiro and Radhika Harjani, originally from Bombay. Currently Aftershock owns 42 stores worldwide with an annual sales turnover of $50 million (Rs.225 crore). In November 2004 Aftershock inaugurated its first retail store in Bombay. Last month (September) it…

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Professional education freedom verdict sparks constitutional crisis as a commonsense judgement of the Supreme Court has ruled that the Central and state governments have no right to appropriate admission quotas at arbitrary tuition fees in private professional colleges it hasn’t funded or financed, arousing the indignation of the nation’s powerful political class. Dilip Thakore reports A unanimous judgement of a heavyweight seven-judge bench of the Supreme Court of India freeing privately promo-ted, financially independent professional education (medicine, engineering, business management, pharmacy, nursing etc) colleges from the pernicious licence-permit-quota regime which surreptitiously migrated into education following the liberalisation and deregulation of Indian industry in 1991, has outraged political parties across the board and set Parliament on a collision course with the nation’s independent judiciary.   The historic import of the apex court’s judgement which has halted incremental Central and state government interference and micro-management of institutions of professional higher education resulting in plunging standards and severe capacity shortages, was reflected in newspaper headlines on August 13 following the verdict in P.A Inamdar vs. State of Maharashtra (Appeal (Civil) 5041 of 2005) the previous day. States Can’t have Quotas or Say in Private Institutions screamed a 40 point front page lead headline in The Times of India. SC Gives a Free hand to Pvt Colleges trumpeted the Bangalore-based Deccan Herald and SC Scraps Quota in Unaided Pvt Colleges headlined The Economic Times. The sensationalism, perhaps euphoria, of these among the more sedate of the mainstream dailies, is understandable. Because following more than two decades of litigation, the Supreme Court’s unanimous judgement in Inamdar’s Case has upheld and reaffirmed a previous 11-judge bench judgement of the apex court in TMA Pai Foundation & Ors vs. State of Karnataka & Ors (2002 8 SCC 481) which had struck down the prevalent practice of state governments appropriating more than 60-85 percent of capacity in privately promoted, unaided (i.e financially independent) 327 medical and 1,346 engineering colleges across the country for students topping the CETs (Common Entrance Tests) conducted by state governments. Under a 1993 judgement of the Supreme Court in Unnikrishnan’s Case (overruled by the TMA Pai judgement), the managements of private unaided colleges were legally obliged to provide heavily subsidised professional education to students qualifying under the CETs. “We find great force in the submission made on behalf of the petitioners that the states have no power to insist on seat-sharing in unaided professional education institutions by fixing a quota of seats between the management and the State. The State cannot insist on private educational institutions which receive no aid from the state to implement the State’s policy of reservation for granting admission on lesser percentage of marks, i.e on any criterion except merit… As per our understanding neither in the judgement of the Pai Foundation Case nor of the constitution bench in the Kerala Education Bill which was approved by Pai Foundation, there is anything which would allow the state to regulate or control admissions in unaided professional education institutions so as to compel them to give up a share of the available seats to candidates chosen by the State… This would amount to nationalisation of…

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The recent shenanigans in a high profile Delhi college provided the capital city with some much needed comic relief. The principal of the college suddenly resigned, accusing the ex-officio chairman of his board, who happens to be the CNI (Church of North India) Bishop of Delhi, of applying excessive pressure for an admission. In his resignation letter he questioned what he termed the “divine right” of bishops to chair institutional boards. Within a few days the resignation was withdrawn after a prayerful rapprochement, but not before many unsavoury accusations and counter accusations had been traded in full view of a sniggering public. Such hubris must inevitably arouse speculation, primarily about the role of the church in education. And perhaps a fair perspective of its role is needed. And here attempted. From the 17th century until not very long ago, western Christians felt that the dark worlds and barbaric civilisations of Africa, India and the orient needed help. Disease was rampant, healthcare primitive and without adequate reach, superstition and a parochial understanding of the world and the universe prevented intellectual and even spiritual progress, while international trade and commerce were exploitative in the extreme. The global missionary movement was well intentioned. Its major aim was to provide organised education, medical expertise and the chance of spiritual salvation. And the pioneer missionaries themselves were not necessarily of the established Roman Catholic or Anglican churches. Many individuals came of their own volition and served God and the people in their individual capacities. Some of our more illustrious schools such as Welham Girls in Dehra Dun, were established by individuals of great courage, vision and unflagging commitment. Others, like Leslie Goddard and David Gibbs of St. Paul’s and Arthur Foote of Doon School, served the cause of education not because they belonged to the church but because it was their calling. Of the thousands who “went out to serve” were many who wrought almost miraculous results out of sheer devotion and dedication. To belittle this is to deny the human race its most dignified bits of history. And so too for the church. Bishop George Edward Lynch Cotton, Bishop Packenham-Walsh, Bishop Foss Westcott, Bishop Wilson and numerous others of the Anglican or Church of England (now the Churches of south and north India), parallelly with the Jesuits of St. Xavier’s and the Irish Christian nuns and priests of Loreto and St. Columba’s; St. Joseph’s, Darjeeling; St. Edmund’s, Shillong; St. Edward’s, Shimla; St. John’s, Chandigarh, plus the Belgian order of the Convents of Jesus and Mary and the Italian priests and brothers of Don Bosco, to name a few, established institutions that continue to provide first class education to thousands of the country’s students. Unquestionably these institutions are formally Christian, in that they are vested in the custody of the bishop or archbishop as the case may be. The church exercises its authority in a variety of ways, ranging from supervising worship to active day-to-day management, depending on the applicable institutional constitution. It does this with…

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Saatvik Agarwal (18) the student astronaut who made waves last February after spending a week at NASA‘s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the centre for robotic solar exploration based in Pasadena, California, is maintaining contact with his colleagues of 11 other nations and the US-based Planetary Society through a newsgroup. Saatvik, also a Mars mission ambassador, who aspires to a career in space technology or related sciences, is busy preparing for it. “Study at one of the IITs will be a good platform,” says the laconic youngster. Life has definitely changed for Saatvik after he was selected by NASA for its Red Rover Goes to Mars Project, the first educational experiment for a planetary mission. Meeting Colin Powell, the then US secretary of state, was also a high point of his transformed status. Saatvik’s elevation into the big league of aspiring student astronauts began when he responded to a small ad in a Delhi newspaper supplement. He submitted an essay as required and was called for a personal interview following which he was flown to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in NASA for a meeting with scientists of its Planetary Society, who had chosen 16 student astronauts including Saatvik to work with the Mars Exploration Rover team. “NASA’s objective in inviting student astronauts from around the world was to transform us into a network communicating over the internet and through other media about planet Mars. That’s why we have formed an active newsgroup,” says Saatvik. The son of an internet consultant, Saatvik uses the world wide web to learn about NASA’s proposed mission to Mars. “Schools and classrooms don’t offer much information on the planets and galaxies. Therefore one has to rely on supplementary sources of information, newspapers and the internet in particular,” says Saatvik, a gifted class XII student at Delhi’s Amity International School. Gifted is an apt description for this precocious youth who is patently aiming for the stars. In 2002 he was conferred the Infosys sponsored Innovation in Science award for building a space exploration website by India Vision Foundation, a charity promoted by supercop Kiran Bedi. Inspired and influenced by President Abdul Kalam who had blessed him before his NASA trip earlier this year, Saatvik’s other motivational force has been the late scientist-physicist Albert Einstein, whose life and work he has studied extensively. Autar Nehru (New Delhi) Kishan S.S Though he is only nine years of age, a complete recitation of Bangalore-based child prodigy S.S. Kishan’s achievements would require more space than the editor of this magazine would be able to afford. Young Kishan is already an actor-singer-director-film script writer-computer whiz and a wannabe Guinness Record holder all rolled into one. By any yardstick this whizkid’s achievements are impressive. Already he has acted in 24 full-length feature films, four mega television serials, modelled for several ad films and print advertisements, released his own music album (which has sold over 15,000 copies), scored the title tune for a hit Kannada movie and is presently set to direct a full-length movie titled C/o footpath. “As…

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Parliament’s recent approval of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act is an overdue progressive step taken by India to address the vulnerabilities of the country’s poor majority. Nothing can be more humiliating for adults than chronic unemployment and not being able to put food on the table for family and children. While workers in the organised sector have been able to wrest some benefits for 10 percent of the national labour force, the fear of persistent unemployment and hunger haunts hundreds of millions in the huge unorganised sector of the Indian economy. By introducing the Employment Guarantee Scheme (EGS), the government has committed itself to purposeful employment creation, providing at least a minimal degree of financial support to them. For one adult member per family to receive the minimum wage for a maximum of 100 days per year may not add up to much money. But more than the income, the support offers poor families minimal paid employment and saves them the humiliation and suffering associated with prolonged joblessness. From a human rights perspective, coverage provided by EGS must be based on need. And such protection against unemployment which the Act provides must be available to all those who seek it. Given widespread confusion about the nature and intent of NREGA, a few clarifications are in order. First, government should plan for progressive winding down of EGS over a ten-year period, not for its expansion. This can happen only if intensive efforts are made to generate more jobs and employment within the economy. And the good news is that new job creation initiatives are being promoted by the Union government. For instance, the “new deal” for farmers announced by the UPA government promises a substantial increase in the flow of agricultural credit, creation of new investment opportunities, and introduction of research and training facilities in the rural hinterland. The Centre’s Bharat Nirman programme intends boosting employment through development of basic infrastructure facilities, irrigating 10 million hectares of unirrigated land, providing road connectivity to all villages with a population of 1,000-plus, universalising access to safe drinking water, and ensuring that every village has electricity and at least one telephone connection. Second, EGS must be complemented by a package of pro-poor interventions which address the issue of unequal opportunities. The government has accorded top priority to improve access to elementary education and provision of healthcare, safe drinking water and sanitation. Third, prospects for successful implementation of EGS are bright. Contemporary India enjoys a strong and committed political leadership backed by impressive economic competency. Economic conditions have never been more favourable and prospects of generating additional resources remain high as improvements in the tax-to-GDP ratio go hand-in-hand with greater tax compliance and higher economic growth. Fourth, the indications are that public accountability and the capacity to implement EGS can get only better. The power and administrative competence of village panchayats is improving, and opportunities for people’s participation in local governance are expanding. Infusion of improved technology and better use of e-governance are being harnessed to improve…

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Established in 1967 with a current enrollment of 29,000 students including 7,000 from 94 countries worldwide, this sydney-based varsity has acquired an excellent reputation for teaching and research Set in a verdant campus amidst spacious Sydney parklands, Macquarie University is widely recognised as Australia’s most innovative varsity with an outstanding reputation for excellence in teaching and research. It has been awarded more best practice rankings for technology-aided teaching than any other institution in Australia. The 38-year-old varsity boasts some of the most experienced and qualified educators in the world as 65 percent hold doctoral qualifications — way above the national average. During the past six years, MU has won 11 awards for its competitive centres of excellence in new science-based high-technology areas. Moreover the Macquarie University Research Park is Australia’s only privately funded research campus, which houses nine national research centres. “Teaching and research at Macquarie continue to set benchmarks nationally and internationally for quality, flexibility and relevance. The latest edition of the Good Universities Guide gave us ten 5-star scores across a wide range of criteria including student demand, research grants and research intensity, cultural diversity, entry standards, all categories of student services and — for a record eighth consecutive year — graduate starting salaries,” says Prof. Di Yerbury, vice chancellor of Macquarie University, which also enjoys the distinction of publishing the Macquarie Dictionary, the official arbiter of Australian English. Established in 1967, Macquarie has an enrollment of 29,000 students, of whom 7,000 are from 94 countries around the world. It offers a wide range of undergrad programmes across nine areas of study (see box) and an enviable list of postgrad and doctoral options in cutting edge technologies and disciplines. The Macquarie Graduate School of Management offers a full-time MBA programme which is ranked the No. 1 business studies programme in Australia and Asia and No. 50 in the world by the Economist Intelligence Unit (2004). Moreover Macquarie is the first university in the world to introduce an actuarial studies degree programme and a Masters in Coptic studies. Sydney. Situated on Australia’s eastern seaboard in the state of New South Wales, Sydney sprawls across 1,120 sq. km, an area almost as large as Beijing and six times the size of Rome. With the spectacular Sydney harbour and Opera House at its centre, the city is home to 4 million people from more than 180 countries, speaking 140 different languages. Voted three years in a row by Travel and Leisure magazine as the ‘World’s best city’, Sydney is a financial and cultural hub and boasts an amazing range of theatres, art galleries, shopping centres, night clubs, restaurants and sports facilities. A mild climate means Sydneysiders soak up the sun all year round. Temperatures rarely fall below 10oC and, while summer temperatures can reach 40oC, average temperatures are usually very pleasant. Campus facilities. Macquarie is set within scenic and spacious 135 acres of parkland in leafy North Ryde on Sydney’s famous north shore. The verdant campus, with lakes and creeks alive with waterbirds and parrots, is a 30-minute drive from Sydney’s central business…

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Within a short span this self-financing college (estb.1992) has succeeded in impacting the educational establishment in Chennai in a big way through its teaching-learning innovations Sited in Nungambakkam in the heart of the port city of Chennai on a modest 1.3 acre campus, the six-storey M.O.P Vaishnav College for Women has transformed into an epicentre of women’s empowerment in the yet conservative southern state of Tamil Nadu (pop. 62.1 million). The main building, which is built around a verdant circular courtyard, and presided over by a Ganesha deity is well insulated from the bustle and noise of its commercial surroundings.   Established in 1992, with the objective of providing complete education for holistic development of women, M.O.P was born out of a collaboration of two philanthropic trusts- M.O.P Charities constituted by the late Dewan Bahadur M.O. Parthasarathy Aiyengar, a leading city barrister and advocate of women’s education, and the Sri Vallabhacharya Vidya Sabha, the governing body of D.G Vaishnav College (estb. 1964). Today, eminent industrialists and administrators from both these promoter organisations constitute the board of governors and managing committee of this self-financing college which has an aggregate enrollment of 2,745 students. The mission and goals of M.O.P, as articulated by its founders, venture beyond conventional college education and aim at promoting academic excellence, developing self-reliant individuals, providing career opportunities and creating socially responsible citizens. In pursuit of these goals, the college has adopted several innovative strategies to empower its women students. The recently concluded academic year 2004-2005 was especially significant for this all women college. On September 7, M.O.P was conferred autonomy by the University Grants Commission and attained the distinction of being the youngest self-financing college in the country to be granted this coveted status. “The conferment of autonomy has given us the freedom to venture beyond traditional education, introduce job-oriented courses, modify the curriculum and include non-credit programmes like projects, internships, skill-oriented professional courses and student development programmes into the credit system,” says Nirmala Prasad, the energetic principal of M.O.P Vaishnav College who has been actively implementing progressive pedagogies from the time she took charge of the institution in 1997. An alumna of Andhra and Utkal (Orissa) universities, Prasad also earned a doctorate in commerce from Madras University, served as professor and founder of the postgraduate department of commerce in Chennai’s Ethiraj College for Women before joining M.O.P eight years ago. Under her leadership, M.O.P was adjudged the best managed collegiate institution in Tamil Nadu and awarded the “Managerial Excellence Award” in 2003 by the Madras Management Association (MMA). Undoubtedly, within a short span of 13 years, M.O.P has succeeded in impacting the education establishment in Chennai in a big way through its teaching-learning innovations and brand development initiatives. The distinguishing feature of the college is the value additions it has introduced in its study programmes. These include publication of a journal by every department, introduction of personality development courses, communication workshops, soft skills training, and special professional courses dovetailed with market requirements. For instance to nurture young entrepreneurs,…

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The Kolkata-based JIL Information Technology Ltd, an affiliate of the Jaypee Group made a presentation of Bhartiyavidya (described as India’s first digital classroom teaching aid) on August 24 at the city’s Hotel Hindustan International. Directors, principals and teachers of several schools including Loreto House, St. James, Julien Day, Pailan World School, DPS Mega City, DPS Ruby Park, Pratt Memorial, Garden High, St. Lawrence, Adamas International, South Point and D. Chakraborty principal secretary school education, West Bengal were among the 120 invitees. “Bhartiyavidya is a comprehensive software solution, comprising a set of multimedia capsules prepared topic-wise, using a variety of globally researched resource material. The content of each capsule is created to boost understanding, retention and recall of a variety of subjects with ease,” Alok Gaur director of JIL Information Technology informed the distinguished assembly. “However Bhartiyavidya is designed on the assumption that technology cannot and should not replace teachers and should only supplement the teacher and conventional teaching tools,” he added. According to Gaur, over 6,000 teachers and 100,000 students in 300 schools spread across 60 cities in 18 states and Union territories in India and six other countries, benefit from JIL’s Bhartiyavidya multi-media teaching capsules. CRY corporate quiz The Delhi-based Child Relief and You (CRY) has scheduled a FACT (Free a Child Today) corporate quiz in seven cities. Anchored by well known quizmaster Derek O’ Brien, the regional rounds of FACT will begin on September 27 in Kolkata, in Delhi on September 30, Chennai on October 1, Bangalore on October 2, Hyderabad on October 3, Mumbai on October 14 and culminate in Delhi on October 28. Participation confirmations have been received from SIFY, Infosys, HP, Siemens, Wipro, TCS, ING Vysya, McAfee, IBM, Daksh, Adobe and Moser Baer among other first-rank corporates. “CRY believes that every child is entitled to the basic rights of survival, protection, development and participation; in a word- to childhood. Over the past 27 years we have learned that ensuring this in a sustainable manner is only possible when grassroots action is combined with community empowerment, active citizenship and advocacy,” says CRY spokesperson Lily Ahluwalia. Promoted in 1979 and now in its 25th year, CRY partners close to 200 child development projects across India. IGCSE 20th birthday celebrations The Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) a comprehensive secondary school syllabus developed by the Cambridge (UK)- based Cambridge International Examinations, celebrated its 20th birthday on September 21. “Cambridge IGCSE has been developing successful students worldwide for 20 years,” says Tom Eason CIE’s director of international education. “This was an opportunity to celebrate the difference Cambridge IGCSE has made in the lives of thousands of students over the past two decades.” According to Eason, the Cambridge IGCSE is an assessment system suitable for schools and colleges around the world. “It develops successful students by giving them an excellent foundation for further study, such as A Levels, and develops a variety of skills,” he adds. Worldwide an estimated 100,000 students from 2,000 schools wrote the Cambridge IGCSE school…

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They said it”The National Rural Employment Guarantee Bill is the Left‚s biggest success to date. We worked hard to change the original draft which was flawed.”Prakash Karat, CPI-M general secretary in India Today (September 5)”In Gujarat, Hitler‚s life and works have been glorified in school textbooks. This is very serious.”Union HRD minister Arjun Singh (September 11)”Human progress is based on the progress of science. But science without conscience is something worse than no science.”Jacques Diouf, director general of the Food and Agriculture Organisation in The Hindu (September 12)”Our belief is that Pakistan still controls the flow of terror and they must stop it for any realistic progress.”Prime minister Manmohan Singh in his meeting with US President George Bush in New York (September 15)”Hurricane Katrina has turned a superpower into a victim again. Only this time, few rally to the President. Rotting bodies lie like rubbish sacks in the streets of New Orleans, 42 percent of Americans think Mr. Bush has done a “bad” job, and the world looks at his catastrophe management in horror and derision.”Mary Riddell in The Guardian (September 16)”If it goes on being silent, then its culture and religion will be hijacked by the extremists.”Author Salman Rushdie urging liberal Muslims to speak up (September 22)”I do not feel responsible for everything that humanity does. I suppose I feel a responsibility when people take on the web expecting one thing and get something else.”Tim Berners Lee on his invention the World Wide Web (September 25)”You shouldn‚t see those people as an ocean of unskilled labour. You should see them as a pool of potentially skilled individuals. Think how many brilliant inventors there could be in sub-Saharan Africa or in the slums of Latin America.”Heather Stewart in The Guardian (September 26)

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Uttar Pradesh Children’s wilderness When cases of Japanese Encephalitis (JE) — a mosquito borne disease that mostly targets children (adults develop immunity due to mild, symptom-less earlier infections) — were first reported in the Hindi heartland state of Uttar Pradesh (pop. 166 million) in late June, government health officials were typically nonchalant. After all in the rice growing areas of eastern UP, JE is an annual visitor. Blame it on the region’s bowl-shaped topography that traps water, providing ideal breeding grounds for mosquitoes (in this case the culex tritaeniorhynchus, a species that feeds outdoors beginning at dusk and throughout the night until dawn) which transport this disease from pigs to humans. But this year excessive pre-monsoon rains worsened matters. By end September, more than 900 children aged between three-15 were fatally infected in 14 districts (including Gorakhpur, Lucknow, Allahabad, Faizabad, Kushinagar, and Maharaj-ganj) of the state, while lesser scale devastation was reported from neighbo-uring Bihar. Now the state government’s health officials concede it’s the worst ever JE outbreak in living memory. Although this unprecedented epidemic prompted consolation visits to the state by prime minister Manmohan Singh, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, UP chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav’s response was typically laid back. On September 7, the state government hosted former US president Bill Clinton for an evening at a cost to the exchequer of Rs.1 crore. Politics also grounded a helicopter sent by Rahul Gandhi, MP from Amethi for aerial medicinal fogging (spraying) of the afflicted areas. The chopper is still grounded while the state government and the Congress argue the merits and demerits of fogging. The state’s urban development minister Mohd Azam Khan says that fogging exacerbates the situation. This, despite a World Health Organisation green signal for fogging as a preventive measure. Besides catching and banishing pigs, the state government’s declared focus has been on treating children with JE vaccine — 7.5 million vaccine doses are needed to immunise children in the region, against which India produces only 400,000 doses annually. Importing the vaccine would cost the state government Rs.130 per child, which given that the health budget of India’s most populous state is only Rs.6 per child, it is unwilling to bear. A Chinese vaccine priced 30 percent cheaper is an alternative. But since it is unapproved by WHO its status is nebulous. Even so the state government intends to vaccinate children only next year while an estimated 60 children are struggling for life in ill staffed and ill-equipped hospitals. Meanwhile press reports in Lucknow have unearthed that UP’s Samajwadi Party led government has neglected to utilise Rs.48 crore allotted by the Central government to control vector borne diseases for the year 2005-06. In particular only Rs.16 lakh of the fund which was to be used for fogging, strengthening field units and mobilising employees, has been utilised thus far. Where funds should be spent is also politically determined. Thus when Sonia Gandhi came visiting, she gifted Rae Bareli, her constituency, with expensive gadgetry including…

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The by-all-accounts amicable four hour parleys between Pakistan’s president Musharraff and prime minister Manmohan Singh in New York in mid-September, the conclave of all Kashmiri political parties in Srinagar to which for the first time the prime minister of Pakistan-occupied Azad Kashmir was invited, and the acceptance of the Hurriyat Conference that the status of Kashmir cannot be resolved by force of arms, offers renewed hope that the Kashmir imbroglio which has bedeviled Indo-Pak relations since 1948, is about to be untangled. During the six decades past, following the end of the Second World War, cataclysmic changes of history and geography have prompted the redrawing of national boundaries around the world. Most notably the Soviet Union has imploded and over half a dozen satrapies which were integral to the heavily nuclearised Soviet state today happily co-exist with Mother Russia. And in the Middle East implacable foes such as Egypt and Israel have negotiated new boundaries and exchanged territory to buy peace. Only in the Indian subcontinent do negotiations between India and Pakistan over the status of Kashmir, and the Tamil Tigers and Colombo over autonomy in north-east Sri Lanka drone on interminably. Essentially the 57-year-old Kashmir dispute offers three conflict resolution options: acceptance in India, Pakistan and Kashmir of the LoC (line of control) dividing Kashmir as an international border; a United Nations supervised referendum in the Kashmir Valley and Pakistan occupied Kashmir to determine whether their people wish to accede to India, Pakistan, or become an independent nation. Despite the traditional portrayal of Pakistan as scheming and villainous in official Indian propaganda and in the regrettably uncritical Indian media, it is high time the reality dawned that the Pakistan establishment has exhibited greater flexibility in the matter of negotiating the status of Kashmir than New Delhi. For instance Pakistan is amenable to the idea of a referendum in both halves of Kashmir; to refer the dispute to third party adjudication, as also to accept the possibility of an independent united Kashmir. New Delhi on the other hand insists that Indian Kashmir is an integral part of India and it is opposed to a referendum and/or third party mediation. Such obduracy is unwarranted because even in the worst case scenario- the accession of united Kashmir to Pakistan- given Kashmir’s geographical position on the northern periphery of India, there is little likelihood of damage to the unity and integrity of India. Moreover there is a strong likelihood of Kashmiris voting for independence, in which case given its industrial backwardness it will become a buffer state heavily dependent upon tourism revenue from Indian visitors- a consummately favourable development.  Against the backdrop of people-driven momentum of the Indo-Pak détente and a favourable climate on both sides of the border in Kashmir, this is a good time to give a decisive push forward to the Indo-Pak dialogue on the status of Kashmir. The major stumbling block to the agonisingly prolonged parleys are the machinations of the two nations’ armaments merchants. They need to be timed out…

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As contemporary India’s depressing socio-economic development indices testify, a lot went wrong with post-independence India’s economic development effort. But conversely there are some things the establishment did right. One of them is the separation of powers and the creation of an independent judiciary governed by the Supreme Court of India. Mind you, all is far from well with the country’s inconveniently independent judicial system. It’s slow, old-fashioned and the law’s delay is legendary. But India is perhaps the only developing nation with a genuinely independent judiciary which can — and does — stand up to government and protect the rights of citizens fearlessly. This is the subtext of this month’s cover feature. Although the Constitution unequivocally confers a fundamental right to promote and administer institutions of education upon all citizens, during the past 40 years spent in the ideological wilderness of Soviet-inspired socialism, this important fundamental right was whittled away by the executive, i.e Central and state governments. Consequently well-meaning and committed social entrepreneurs and philanthropists who promoted much-needed education institutions for societal benefit were subjected to incremental interference and harassment. This is particularly true of higher professional (medicine, engineering , business management, pharmacopoeia etc) education much favoured by the country’s expanding middle class. With the passage of time student admissions, faculty recruitment, tuition fees even in privately promoted, financially independent institutions of professional education were dictated by government. But to their credit promoters of capital-intensive private, unaided institutions of professional education didn’t surrender their fundamental right to promote and manage their education institutions as approved by the Constitution, and repeatedly petitioned the courts to win back this right. In 2002 their persistence paid off when in the landmark TMA Pai Foundation vs. State of Karnataka & Ors, the Supreme Court not only upheld the fundamental right of linguistic and religious minorities to “establish and administer educational institutions of their choice” but also expanded it to all citizens. Socialism and state control of private professional colleges made a brief comeback after the apex court’s ‘clarification’ judgement in the Islamic Academy Case (2003). But following the unanimous August 12 verdict of a seven judge bench of the Supreme Court in P.A Inamdar vs State of Maharashtra, the status quo ante has been restored. Unfortunately instead of gracefully accepting the apex court’s verdict which balances social equity with citizens’ rights in a just and fair manner, politicians cutting across all party lines in Parliament have opted to enact a law nullifying the Supreme Court’s verdict. The implications of the proposed legislation and a possible via media to avert the imminent clash between Parliament and judiciary is the subject matter of our cover story. And in our second lead feature assistant editor Summiya Yasmeen investigates the sudden popularity of life skills education in schools, education institutions and corporates.

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Congratulations for your first all-colour issue of EducationWorld. Quite frankly when the first issues of EW were published I had privately predicted its early demise. But I am pleased to note that you are going from strength to strength. Who knows, you might even attain some of your seemingly grandiose targets! Aptly your first colour issue covers the vital implications of the Kapil Sibal Committee’s recommendations. This important report has received negligible coverage in the mainstream press which seems unconcerned about the radical changes being recommended in the vital elementary and secondary school education systems. Although Sibal, who as you have repeatedly stressed in your cover feature, is a legal heavyweight in his own right, is of the opinion that the Supreme Court’s judgement in Inamdar’s Case which upheld the right of unaided professional college managements to regulate the admission and fee structures of their institutions, is not applicable to schools and colleges, I beg to differ. The SC judgement is applicable to all education institutions. Mr. Sibal is living in a dream world if he believes that the highest court will permit state and municipal governments to appropriate a 25 percent quota in privately promoted schools. Instead he should advise the state and local governments to informally negotiate with private schools at the local level. As you have rightly argued the prime duty of government is to upgrade its own 900,000 plus primary and secondary schools, not to grab quotas in private schools promoted with standards and objectives which are personal to their promoters. Rakesh Shukla  Delhi Also read: Kapil Sibal’s ambitious education reforms agenda All colour surprise I was pleasantly surprised when I saw the latest issue of EducationWorld. The magazine looks fantastic. I’d like to congratulate you on going full colour; the magazine is now comparable with any other mainstream publication. Upto now though your content was well researched and presented, the magazine lacked allure because the printing was in two colour and had only black and white photographs. Now with your full colour printing format, quality content, readable layout, it is only a matter of time before EW gives mainstream magazines like India Today, Outlook, etc a run for their money. Keep up the good work and all the best. Sudarshan Shetty Mangalore Rustom Irani Foundation awards I would like to introduce myself as the history teacher from St. Joseph’s Boys School Bangalore who was a finalist in your TCS-EducationWorld annual awards earlier this year (EW June). The purpose of this letter is to share with you my experiences of another teacher awards competition which concluded in early September. The Rustom Irani Foundation, Mumbai conducted a nationwide contest titled “Unsung Heroes… No Longer” to honour teachers across the country. There were regional contests in six cities. The first two winners from each city were invited to Mumbai for the final round of interviews. Having won the Bangalore round, I participated in the finals and made it to the top five. But it was not so much the contest itself, but the commendably philanthropic attitude of the Rustom…

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