Page 415 - Education
Nearly 40% shortage of faculty at HP agriculture university: CAG
Picking holes in the overall performance of Chaudhary Sarwan Kumar Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya in Palampur, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has said the university is having close to 40 per cent faculty shortage, which is hampering the quality of education and research.
New Cisco blueprint to skill students for New-Age technologies
Realising the need to skill students in disruptive technologies like Big Data analytics, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and cyber security, global networking giant Cisco on Thursday announced a "Blueprint for Digital Education" here.
Yoga classes in school may help kids fight stress, anxiety
Participating in yoga and mindfulness activities at school helps relieve stress and anxiety in young children, improving their wellbeing and emotional health, a study has found. Researchers from Tulane University in the US worked with a public school to add mindfulness and yoga to the school's existing empathy-based programming for students needing supplementary support. Third graders who were screened for symptoms of anxiety at the beginning of the school year were randomly assigned to two groups. A control group of 32 students received care as usual, which included counselling and other activities led by a school social worker. The intervention group of 20 students participated in small group yoga/mindfulness activities for eight weeks using a Yoga Ed curriculum. Students attended the small group activities at the beginning of the school day. The sessions included breathing exercises, guided relaxation and several traditional yoga poses appropriate for children. The study, published
Haryana minister blames Congress for controversial school admission form
After uproar erupted over Haryana school admission forms seeking to know whether the applicant's parents were engaged in an "unclean occupation, the state's education minister Ram Bilas Sharma said on Wednesday that Congress has to be blamed for such forms, as it came out during their regime.Across schools in Haryana, a question in the SC/ST section of the admission form in particular raised eyebrows as it sought to know whether the applicant's parents were engaged in an "unclean occupation"."The school admission form which is being discussed by the opposition was published during Congress regime. I will meet senior officials to discuss this matter," said Sharma yesterday.Senior Congress leader R.S. Surjewala yesterday slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led state government after schools had recently released the controversial admission forms.Surjewala also called on Haryana Chief Minister M.L. Khattar to clarify the meaning of unclean profession and also termed the 100-question
HRD constitutes team to prevent exam paper leaks
In the light of the recent incident of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) paper leak, the Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) has constituted a High Powered Committee to examine the system of conducting Class X and Class XII examination to prevent leakages.Retd. Secretary (Higher Education) of MHRD Vinay Sheel Oberoi will be the chairperson of the seven-member committee.The prime objective of this committee would be to revisit all aspects related to the security checks built into the system for ensuring that the question papers reach the examinees without any tampering.The committee would also be responsible to examine and assess all areas of potential weakness in the present system of transporting question papers from the printing presses to the examinees.After evaluating the entire process, the committee will suggest ways to make the system more secure with the use of technology and minimization of human intervention.This step has been taken after question ...
French envoy hails Ind-French agreements in education sector
French Ambassador to India Alexandre Ziegler today said the nearly 200 years old French school here should be at the forefront of the initiatives for strengthening ties between the younger generations of the two countries. He was declaring open the new premises of the elementary sectionattached to the 'Lycee Francais' school here. Referring to French President Emmanuel Macron's recent visit to India, he said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Macron celebrated the tie-up between the two countries "which is not only a strategic partnership but also a partnership of people and from the hearts." During the visit last month, France and India had inked two important agreements related to facilitating migration of students and professionals between France and India and mutual recognition of degrees facilitating the pursuit of higher education of French students in India and Indian students in France boosting their employability, he said. Through these agreements the two ...
Aliah University gets new VC
Eminent academician Mohammed Ali was appointed as the new Vice-Chancellor of Aliah University today. Ali was a professor of Chemistry in Jadavpur University for a long time. The state higher education department today declared him as the next VC of Aliah University, the premier state-aided minority autonomous institution, in a notification. The notification was issued after the office of the governor, who is the Chancellor of the university, gave its consent. Ali's name had been recommended by the search committee constituted by the state higher education department last September after the tenure of the university's VC, Prof Abu T Khan, was over, officials said. Ali graduated in mechanical engineering and completed his masters in industrial engineering from Aligarh Muslim University, they added.
Delhi launches 'Mission Buniyaad' to improve students' learning skills
The Delhi government on Wednesday launched the "Mission Buniyaad" scheme to improve learning levels of children from classes 3 to 9.
Embarrassed Haryana defends form for school students
On the backfoot after a controversial form was circulated among school students seeking their personal details, the Haryana government on Wednesday defended its decision, saying it was done for the benefit of the students.
Cultural heritage to be part of school syllabus in Punjab
The Punjab government said today hat cultural heritage would be made a part of primary and high school education to connect the youth with the state's culture. A subject on Punjab, history and culture would be taught to students and marks would be allotted for this, officials said. Cultural Affairs and Tourism Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu and Higher Education, School Education and Languages Minister Aruna Chaudhary took the decisions during a meeting here which was attended by officers of the three departments. During the meeting, it was decided that a circuit would be formed to conduct historical, heritage and cultural tours for school students. Other suggestions discussed during the meeting included encouraging Punjabi in schools and restructuring of the languages department to give a fillip to cultural activities. A five-member committee was formed to prepare a draft report based on the suggestions received during the meeting. The committee would give its report within three weeks .
Pakistan students pray for victims of airstrike in Kunduz
Students from Pakistan's religious seminaries have held a commemoration rally to pray for victims of an airstrike earlier this month in neighboring Afghanistan. About 400 students gathered for the demonstration in Islamabad today. They said they decided to hold the prayer service after seeing reports that madrassa students were among those killed in the April 2 strike. Afghan officials say they targeted a Taliban training camp in the Dashti Archi district in northern Kunduz province. At least five civilians and 30 insurgents were reported killed. The Taliban claimed the strike hit a madrassa, or a religious school, during a graduation ceremony, killing dozens of civilians. The students at the Islamabad gathering said they had no direct knowledge of the Kunduz strike and only learned about it from media reports.
India must harness its demographic profile: Vice President
Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Wednesday said the country must effectively harness its demographic profile through real education.
ABVP demands suspension of DU's Chemistry dept HOD
ABVP today staged a protest at Delhi University's North Campus demanding suspension of Chemistry department head who was allegedly involved in sexual harassment of a teacher and a student. The students' body submitted a memorandum to the Vice Chancellor Yogesh K Tyagi and also demanded the immediate suspension of other professors who were involved in similar cases. "An issue has been circulated in the varsity about Chemistry department HOD and his involvement in sexual harassment of a student and a teacher. There have been several such incidents but so far no speedy inquiry or action has been taken," said Mahamedhaa Nagar, an ABVP member and Delhi University Students Union (DUSU) Secretary in the memorandum. DUSU demands immediate suspension of the Chemistry HOD (Head Of Department) and other professors involved in such acts, Nagar said. However, the HOD had denied the allegations as "baseless" and told PTI that it was part of the efforts to ruin his professional life. "I had ...
Govt forms committee to tackle maths phobia among students
A committee has been formed to suggest measures to combat mathematics phobia among students after a national survey of state-run schools revealed "fear complex" about the subject, Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said today. He said the committee, with educationists and officers as its members, will submit its report within three months. The minister said another panel under Telangana Deputy Chief Minister Kadiam Srihari has been formed to make in-service teacher training more efficient. "One thing has come up in the National Assessment Survey 2017 that students have fear complex about maths. We have formed a committee under Gujarat Education Minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama to see how to remove that fear complex so that the students see it as a friendly subject, Javadekar told reporters here. He was apprising the media about the outcome of the annual meeting of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT). The National Achievement Survey (NAS) was conducted
Hry's school admission form creates flutters
Amid controversy over school students in Haryana being asked to fill a lengthy admission form giving details like if their parents are engaged in any "unclean occupation", Department of School Education today clarified that no new term has been introduced in the form by the present state government. The state government's reaction came after the opposition hit out at the Khattar dispensation. "No new term has been coined much less introduced in the form by the present Government of Haryana," an official spokesman of Department of School Education said here in a release. On the use of a particular adjective, "unclean occupation", with the vocation of parents, he said, "the said adjective is and has ever since been a part of a scheme of Pre-Matric Scholarship of Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India, first revised on January 21, 2009 and last on July 1, 2011." In the admission form, students above primary classes have also been asked to mention their and their .
SIT formed to look into sexual harassment charges against GNDU VC
The Punjab Police has formed a three-member special investigation team (SIT) to probe allegations of "sexual harassment" against the Guru Nanak Dev University (GNDU) vice-chancellor, police said today. Though the V-C could not be contacted for his comments despite several attempts, university officials said the allegations levelled by a woman professor were false and were made after she was removed from her post following complaints from students. Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Jagmohan Singh said the Commissioner of Police, Amritsar, has constituted the SIT to probe the complaint filed by the female professor. The SIT will be led by DCP Jagmohan. The SIT was formed recently after the complainant wrote to chief minister Amarinder Singh and Punjab governor VP Singh Badnore with her allegations about two-weeks ago, he said. In her complaint, the professor has alleged that she was being harassed by the V-C ever since he joined the office in August last year. "The reason behind this
Will attach Delhi govt bank a/cs if MCD teachers not paid: HC
The Delhi High Court today warned the Delhi government of attaching its bank accounts if it did not release funds for payment of salaries of MCD school teachers in east and north Delhi, observing it was "intolerable" not to pay the teachers who served selflessly. The court asked the Delhi Government to show some bona fide by paying salaries of teachers in municipal schools and said the state should treat all teachers -- of MCD schools and Delhi government -- at par. Anguished over non-payment of salaries of municipal school teachers, a bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar said this was "intolerable", "completely improper" and an "inefficient system". "We will attach your (Delhi government) bank accounts. We will stop you from paying salaries to your teachers. Let all the teachers be treated at par. How can you even claim you are interested in education," the bench said. It also observed that the "teachers are the only persons in this world who give ...
Tripura to introduce NCERT syllabus without 'modifications'
The BJP government in Tripura would soon consult educationists to explore the possibility of introducing the NCERT syllabus at school level in the state without the "modifications made during the previous Left rule", a minister said today. State Education Minister Ratan Lal Nath said, "The NCERT, course with a lot of modifications, was introduced during the Left rule, as a result of which students from Tripura were facing tough situation in country's competitive examinations. Despite good results they were not getting government jobs as expected." "So, we have decided to consult acclaimed educationists to introduce the syllabus at school level without change," he told PTI. The minister alleged that due to modifications in the syllabi, names of many great Indians were deleted and the names of many others were included, which were not desirable. "I do not want controversy, so I would not mention whose names were deleted and whose names were included. I think if the syllabi is introduced
Political parties using education as tool to legitimise their ideology: Kanhaiya
Former JNU Students Union President Kanhaiya Kumar today accused political parties of using the education sector as a tool to legitimise their ideology and demanded that they declare their education policy during elections. Kumar said even though education is part of politics, politicians have stopped including it in their election programmes. This, he said, has resulted in the sector "being dumped as a waste of taxpayers' money". "Education is a political question and political parties are using it as a tool for their ideological legitimacy," he said at an event titled 'People's Tribunal on Attack on Educational Institutions in India' in New Delhi. The 31-year-old demanded that political parties, following any ideology, should declare their education policy during elections "to save public institutions from getting destroyed". He also held the "elite class" responsible for the poor state of public educational institutions. "The elite class sends their children to best institutions ...
HC to aid of open school students wanting to pursue MBBS course
The Delhi High Court has asked CBSE not to reject the applications of open school candidates for the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET)-UG, a pre-qualification for pursuing MBBS course, till the challenge to the exam's eligibilty criteria is decided. A bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar told the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), which conducts the test, not to reject the applications of the 13 MBBS aspirants who have moved the court fearing they would be barred as they did their schooling from open schools. It listed the matter before another bench which is hearing a batch of pleas against the Board's notification laying down the eligibilty criteria, including the upper age limit of 25 and 30 years for general and reserved categories respectively, to apply for the test. The court also issued notice to the Centre, CBSE and the Medical Council of India (MCI) and sought their replies on the plea, filed through advocate Jose Abraham,