Source: Times of India
After facing criticism from the All India Council for Technical Education for not submitting its perspective plan, changes abound.
Maharashtra
India-Canada Conference on Distance Learning
Source: Connect – Canada in India
Representatives from Canada’s Athabasca University and the University of British Columbia and participants from across India shared perspectives on the developing field of distance learning at an India-Canada International Conference on Open and Flexible Distance Learning, from February 20-22, at the Shreemati Nathibai Damodar Thackersey (SNDT) Women’s University, Mumbai, University Grants Commission Area Studies’ Centre for Canadian Studies. Maharashtra Governor K. Sankaranarayana, and Rajesh Tope, Maharashtra’s Minister of Higher and Technical education, opened the conference which included a roundtable on Higher Education in Canada.
State to clear decks for e-university exams
Source: The Times of India via PwC EdLive
The Maharashtra government is in the final stages of putting online the process of conducting exams in all 17 state universities. The higher and technical education department will work out the final modalities of a pilot project which, if successful, could be extended across universities to prevent paper leaks.
K Sankaranarayanan, Governor, directed vice-chancellors of various varsities to build infrastructure for a full-fledged online mechanism to be put in place across universities.
The initiative is a part of recommendations made by the government’s exam reform panel. The panel suggested several reforms, including online examination and submission of thesis online. Headed by state IT Secretary Rajesh Aggarwal, the committee has also recommended a pilot project for starting technology- based examination in the universities. The objective is to bring about some transparency in the system and drastically reduce the instances of paper leaks.
BAE Systems to support education and healthcare programmes
Source: Business Standard – PwC EdLive
BAE Systems, the global defence, security, and aerospace systems firm, joined hands with Smile Foundation (an NGO) to support education and healthcare programmes in India.
The company is committed to support the educational mainstreaming of over 1,000 children aged between 6 to 16 years across seven rural and urban locations in Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Maharashtra, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, and Uttar Pradesh.
It will also help establish and operate a purpose-built mobile medical unit called ‘Smile on Wheels’ equipped with the latest equipment, trained personnel, and supplies to serve selected underserved population clusters of Bangalore.