“Design is about creating emotional impact”
“Ten per cent of the U.K. is involved in the creative industry, making it a multi-billion pound export industry.”
“A good communication designer is one who connects things already designed and makes sense of them” says Ed D'Souza, a practising designer, photographer and a multi-faceted artist who has worked extensively across all areas of visual communication, visual art, cultural study and social science.
Mr. Ed D'Souza heads the department of Graphic Arts at Winchester School of Art, University of Southampton, and has been instrumental in developing a postgraduate programme in Graphic Arts and Communication Design.
The Winchester School of Art, founded more than 140 years ago, apart from being one of the longest established art schools in the U.K., remains one of the most popular places to study art and design.
Over the last 17 years via field work in India, Mr. Ed D'Souza has been documenting economic, political and social change, and questioning the mythologising of Indian identity by considering wider ideas of the interchange and tensions between identity, location and context.
Talking about his love for collecting old Indian film posters he says, “They represent an important cultural artefact that carries a visual imagery of changing history. They open art to academics, but sadly with time, the history is getting lost.”
He says India has always interested him as a student and the present India with its ongoing conflicts between tradition and modernity, a rising middle class consumerism and an extensive economic growth makes for an even more engaging creative pursuit.
Talking about the importance of psychoanalysis and psychology while training students of design, he points out, “Ten per cent of the U.K. is involved in the creative industry, making it a multi-billion pound export industry. What is required now is the presence of a researcher in every designer who uses technology to enhance living and makes a qualitative difference to the way society thinks.”
Mr Ed D'Souza‘s work spans across the areas of creative consultancy, advertising, publishing, corporate identity and editorial design.
Talking about the need to create a wider perspective to design that is impressive and creates an emotional impact, he says, “Communication design is not simply designing artefact that carry images. It's about understanding the society on a broader level to analyse every innovation so as to produce persuasive and effective work that stays with the people.”
The rapid developments in information and media technology have revamped visual communication design, raising significant challenges and opportunities for those prepared to play a creative role. As the plethora of career opportunities lies open for this breed of analytical brains that represent the veneer between information and design, all that makes the difference is the dormant yet impacting sensitivity in every creation.
As Mr. D'Souza puts it, “Every designer needs to be a ‘citizen designer' whose every work should reflect a responsible understanding of the society, its habits, the environment and the ways in which technology can affect lives.”
Source Link: http://www.hindu.com/edu/2010/06/14/stories/2010061450030200.htm
Monday, June 14, 2010
A New Kind of Global University
A New Kind of Global University
A private Indian institution branches out in the developing world
The modern campus of Manipal U. sets it apart from underfinanced public universities in India, where the private sector in higher education has grown rapidly.
In this sleepy town on the outskirts of the city of Mangalore sits a university campus that looks unlike most others in India.
The modern central administration building is made of red brick and glass. Buildings are air-conditioned. And the ground floor of the health-sciences library houses an Indian version of Starbucks.
Upon arrival, most of the 23,000 students are handed laptops through which they can get access to the Internet almost anywhere on the campus.
Manipal U. began in 1953 as a small teaching hospital and has continued to focus on medical education. Here, students learn about the human brain.
This is Manipal University, which has made a name for itself as one of the most successful private universities in a country where the private sector is more typically associated with shoestring operations of dubious quality.
Soon, Manipal may become well known across the developing world.
Its parent company, the Manipal Group, has over the past 16 years developed a network of campuses abroad, in Nepal, Dubai, and Malaysia.
In 2008 it added the American University of Antigua to its roster. And in January of this year, the Manipal Group bought a controlling interest in U21Global, an online graduate business school started by Universitas 21, a global university network.
Today the Manipal Group's international education operations bring in more than 50 percent of the company's revenue.
"We want to become a leading provider of English-language higher education in the developing world," says Anand Sudarshan, chief executive of Manipal's education division.
What is particularly striking about Manipal is that it is a company born in a developing country and focusing on students in other developing nations. As such, its evolution reflects a broader trend in higher education, where universities in India, the Persian Gulf, and even Iran are branching out to other parts of the developing world.
"Globalization has been unipolar, mainly by the U.S. and U.K., and if Manipal does this, it creates a much broader base for globalization," says Philip G. Altbach, director of the Center for International Higher Education, at Boston College. "It's good to have an array of choices, and it's good to know that developing and middle-income countries have the capacity and ideas to be players in the global education marketplace."
Manipal is spending heavily on global expansion. It is investing about $30-million to build a new campus in Dubai, where it has had a presence since 2000, and $10-million to enhance its Malaysia campus, which opened in 1997.
Last October, Manipal began developing a new campus at the American University of Antigua, which it bought from the New York-based Greater Caribbean Learning Resources, with an investment of $35-million.
A Modest Beginning
Manipal began in 1953 as a small teaching hospital with 100 students, one of the first private higher-education providers in post-independence India.
It was established by T.M.A. Pai, who was recognized by Ripley's Believe It or Not, the university says, for establishing the greatest number of educational institutions in his lifetime.
The late Dr. Pai was also a reformer, who believed that the private sector should step in where the government could not. In 2002 he won a landmark case against the state of Karnataka, where Manipal is located, which curtailed the scope of government regulation over privately financed educational institutions.
Over the years, Manipal benefited from the perpetually weak and underfinanced public higher-education system in India. Students who could not get into a public institution turned to the mushrooming private sector; Manipal's leaders were savvy enough to know what students wanted.
From medicine, the university expanded into engineering, management, and life sciences. It now runs 20 professional schools on its main campus in Manipal. Another campus, in the northeastern state of Sikkim, offers seven programs, including online education.
Yet Manipal's domestic expansion plans were limited by tight rules governing the private higher-education sector.
"We almost went international by default. We were growing and expanding in India, and then it became impossible to expand further in India," says Mr. Sudarshan. "When we got invited by Nepal and Malaysia to set up medical colleges, we thought that was an interesting and sustainable way to expand."
Manipal studies potential markets carefully. Places with a large South Asian population get close consideration since families are likely to have heard of the university. The company also wants to enter markets with a growing, aspirational middle class. Mr. Sudarshan says he is focusing now on emerging markets in Southeast Asia, South Asia, and Africa.
Finally, Manipal's officials look for places where there is a demand for Manipal's core expertise: medicine and engineering.
"It is not risky for us; it is taking advantage of our capability," says Mr. Sudarshan of the company's expansionist strategy.
Mr. Sudarshan, who became head of Manipal in 2006, has a business background. He was a co-founder of the Microland Group, which started one of India's first software-services companies. In business circles he's described as a "turnaround specialist."
Building new campuses requires money, of course. So Manipal has designed its programs to ensure that tuition brings profit to the company, yet stays within accepted market rates.
"That is a challenge," Mr. Sudarshan acknowledges, adding that he has no cookie-cutter formula.
If a campus can't bring in a profit, he says, "we will kill institutions."
The company typically gives its foreign campuses two or three years to bring in a surplus over operating expenses. It expects them to bring in a return on their capital investments within eight years.
A Mixed Reputation
In India, Manipal has historically had something of a mixed reputation, but one that is steadily improving.
Twenty or so years ago, it was considered to be on the lower tier of private institutions. These days, higher-education analysts give the institution more respect, although sometimes grudgingly.
"Over time it has become an established brand and created a place for itself," says Premchand Palety, founder of the Centre for Forecasting and Research, which ranks universities in India.
Mr. Palety says that when he was a university student, in the mid- 1980s, Manipal "wasn't thought of as a good place" to study. It was known as a haven for wealthy students who couldn't get into the top schools, he says.
Still, students did go there, he says, because they didn't have many options. Public higher education was so limited that at the institution where he studied—the highly regarded Punjab Engineering College—100,000 students competed each year for just 100 seats.
"So if you didn't get in anywhere good, private was the option, and private meant only Manipal. They charged huge fees and benefited because there was no competition in that space," Mr. Palety says.
The private sector has since expanded rapidly: There are almost 2,500 engineering schools, most of them private, in India. Manipal has responded by improving in quality.
"Now Manipal's character has changed and it has systems in place, like good infrastructure and a decent number of faculty," Mr. Palety says.
Many Manipal students chose to go there after they failed to get into the public institution of their choice. Public universities remain the most sought after, because of both quality and price.
At Manipal students shell out about $4,100 a year, and medical students pay $9,100 a year in tuition. By comparison, students at the prestigious public Indian Institutes of Technology pay $1,600 to $2,000, including housing. Students at India's premier teaching hospital, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, pay $80 a year.
"I had no other good choice left," said Archana (she uses only that name), a civil-engineering student who is graduating this year from the Manipal Institute of Technology, one of the university's two flagship schools. "I applied in several colleges, didn't get into many, and was on the wait list on one."
Manipal administrators freely acknowledge that their students aren't among the academically elite but argue that it makes their institutions stronger.
"Our undergraduate students have to work much harder than an IIT student," says Somnath Mishra, director of the Manipal Institute of Technology. Student quality "in IIT is higher than here, so here we also have to be very strong in teaching abilities. In IIT a teacher doesn't have to make so much effort."
Mr. Sudarshan, the chief executive, says he wants to improve the quality of Manipal's academic programs and the credentials of its faculty members. The university is placing more emphasis, for example, on research and publishing.
Only about 25 percent of its faculty members hold doctorates, which is typical of an institution of its academic caliber in India.
But professors in Manipal's engineering and medical programs without Ph.D.'s must now work toward earning advanced degrees at Manipal while they continue teaching at the institution, says H.S. Ballal, pro chancellor of the university.
Mr. Sudarshan says he wants the university to become an "elite applied-research institution," in part by trying to get more corporate- and government-sponsored research projects.
The Manipal Life Sciences Centre has been recognized by India's former president as a center of excellence in pharmacogenomics.
"We want to put Manipal on global research map," says the center's dean, K. Satyamoorthy, who until 10 years ago was a senior scientist doing research at the Wistar Institute, in Philadelphia. He joined Manipal University, he says, because he wanted the challenge of building a research institution.
Fifty percent of his faculty members have had experience abroad. "We look for people coming back from the U.S. and Europe where there is more research exposure," he says.
Still, for the Manipal Group, the ultimate measure of quality is the employability of its graduates. At its engineering school, 89 percent of students who will graduate this year already have jobs, many with top companies such as Microsoft India, Nokia, and Cisco Systems.
As its quality and visibility have increased, so have student applications. In 2009, according to G.K. Prabhu, Manipal University's registrar, the university received nearly 100,000 applications for 7,000 seats.
Ties With the U.S.
Manipal also has expansion plans in India. Thanks to a new, reformist education minister who is encouraging investment, the company sees tremendous growth opportunities here.
The Manipal Group is planning to invest more than $100-million over the next two years on additional campuses in India.
Mr. Sudarshan says that because Manipal pays well, he is not worried about recruiting in a country with a faculty shortage. Campus infrastructure and amenities are also a draw.
"Here the infrastructure you need is much easier to get because red-tapism is not there. Getting things in public institutions takes longer." says Mr. Mishra, director of the engineering school.
A retired army official with a Ph.D. from the Indian Institute of Technology in Delhi, Mr. Mishra says he chose a job at Manipal over an offer to work at one of the IIT's because he liked the idea of heading a school that wants to move ahead in research.
Mr. Sudarshan also wants to build partnerships between Manipal University in India and universities abroad, through programs in which students divide their study between India and the United States, and through research collaborations.
Already the university has 40 such relationships with foreign universities, including 15 "twinning" arrangements with institutions in the United States, Britain, and Australia.
In the United States, for instance, Manipal University's International Center for Applied Sciences runs twinning programs with the Illinois Institute of Technology and the University of Miami, among others. Students in these programs spend two years on each campus and earn degrees from the U.S. partner.
Source Link: http://chronicle.com/article/A-Private-University-in-India/65907/
A private Indian institution branches out in the developing world
The modern campus of Manipal U. sets it apart from underfinanced public universities in India, where the private sector in higher education has grown rapidly.
In this sleepy town on the outskirts of the city of Mangalore sits a university campus that looks unlike most others in India.
The modern central administration building is made of red brick and glass. Buildings are air-conditioned. And the ground floor of the health-sciences library houses an Indian version of Starbucks.
Upon arrival, most of the 23,000 students are handed laptops through which they can get access to the Internet almost anywhere on the campus.
Manipal U. began in 1953 as a small teaching hospital and has continued to focus on medical education. Here, students learn about the human brain.
This is Manipal University, which has made a name for itself as one of the most successful private universities in a country where the private sector is more typically associated with shoestring operations of dubious quality.
Soon, Manipal may become well known across the developing world.
Its parent company, the Manipal Group, has over the past 16 years developed a network of campuses abroad, in Nepal, Dubai, and Malaysia.
In 2008 it added the American University of Antigua to its roster. And in January of this year, the Manipal Group bought a controlling interest in U21Global, an online graduate business school started by Universitas 21, a global university network.
Today the Manipal Group's international education operations bring in more than 50 percent of the company's revenue.
"We want to become a leading provider of English-language higher education in the developing world," says Anand Sudarshan, chief executive of Manipal's education division.
What is particularly striking about Manipal is that it is a company born in a developing country and focusing on students in other developing nations. As such, its evolution reflects a broader trend in higher education, where universities in India, the Persian Gulf, and even Iran are branching out to other parts of the developing world.
"Globalization has been unipolar, mainly by the U.S. and U.K., and if Manipal does this, it creates a much broader base for globalization," says Philip G. Altbach, director of the Center for International Higher Education, at Boston College. "It's good to have an array of choices, and it's good to know that developing and middle-income countries have the capacity and ideas to be players in the global education marketplace."
Manipal is spending heavily on global expansion. It is investing about $30-million to build a new campus in Dubai, where it has had a presence since 2000, and $10-million to enhance its Malaysia campus, which opened in 1997.
Last October, Manipal began developing a new campus at the American University of Antigua, which it bought from the New York-based Greater Caribbean Learning Resources, with an investment of $35-million.
A Modest Beginning
Manipal began in 1953 as a small teaching hospital with 100 students, one of the first private higher-education providers in post-independence India.
It was established by T.M.A. Pai, who was recognized by Ripley's Believe It or Not, the university says, for establishing the greatest number of educational institutions in his lifetime.
The late Dr. Pai was also a reformer, who believed that the private sector should step in where the government could not. In 2002 he won a landmark case against the state of Karnataka, where Manipal is located, which curtailed the scope of government regulation over privately financed educational institutions.
Over the years, Manipal benefited from the perpetually weak and underfinanced public higher-education system in India. Students who could not get into a public institution turned to the mushrooming private sector; Manipal's leaders were savvy enough to know what students wanted.
From medicine, the university expanded into engineering, management, and life sciences. It now runs 20 professional schools on its main campus in Manipal. Another campus, in the northeastern state of Sikkim, offers seven programs, including online education.
Yet Manipal's domestic expansion plans were limited by tight rules governing the private higher-education sector.
"We almost went international by default. We were growing and expanding in India, and then it became impossible to expand further in India," says Mr. Sudarshan. "When we got invited by Nepal and Malaysia to set up medical colleges, we thought that was an interesting and sustainable way to expand."
Manipal studies potential markets carefully. Places with a large South Asian population get close consideration since families are likely to have heard of the university. The company also wants to enter markets with a growing, aspirational middle class. Mr. Sudarshan says he is focusing now on emerging markets in Southeast Asia, South Asia, and Africa.
Finally, Manipal's officials look for places where there is a demand for Manipal's core expertise: medicine and engineering.
"It is not risky for us; it is taking advantage of our capability," says Mr. Sudarshan of the company's expansionist strategy.
Mr. Sudarshan, who became head of Manipal in 2006, has a business background. He was a co-founder of the Microland Group, which started one of India's first software-services companies. In business circles he's described as a "turnaround specialist."
Building new campuses requires money, of course. So Manipal has designed its programs to ensure that tuition brings profit to the company, yet stays within accepted market rates.
"That is a challenge," Mr. Sudarshan acknowledges, adding that he has no cookie-cutter formula.
If a campus can't bring in a profit, he says, "we will kill institutions."
The company typically gives its foreign campuses two or three years to bring in a surplus over operating expenses. It expects them to bring in a return on their capital investments within eight years.
A Mixed Reputation
In India, Manipal has historically had something of a mixed reputation, but one that is steadily improving.
Twenty or so years ago, it was considered to be on the lower tier of private institutions. These days, higher-education analysts give the institution more respect, although sometimes grudgingly.
"Over time it has become an established brand and created a place for itself," says Premchand Palety, founder of the Centre for Forecasting and Research, which ranks universities in India.
Mr. Palety says that when he was a university student, in the mid- 1980s, Manipal "wasn't thought of as a good place" to study. It was known as a haven for wealthy students who couldn't get into the top schools, he says.
Still, students did go there, he says, because they didn't have many options. Public higher education was so limited that at the institution where he studied—the highly regarded Punjab Engineering College—100,000 students competed each year for just 100 seats.
"So if you didn't get in anywhere good, private was the option, and private meant only Manipal. They charged huge fees and benefited because there was no competition in that space," Mr. Palety says.
The private sector has since expanded rapidly: There are almost 2,500 engineering schools, most of them private, in India. Manipal has responded by improving in quality.
"Now Manipal's character has changed and it has systems in place, like good infrastructure and a decent number of faculty," Mr. Palety says.
Many Manipal students chose to go there after they failed to get into the public institution of their choice. Public universities remain the most sought after, because of both quality and price.
At Manipal students shell out about $4,100 a year, and medical students pay $9,100 a year in tuition. By comparison, students at the prestigious public Indian Institutes of Technology pay $1,600 to $2,000, including housing. Students at India's premier teaching hospital, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, pay $80 a year.
"I had no other good choice left," said Archana (she uses only that name), a civil-engineering student who is graduating this year from the Manipal Institute of Technology, one of the university's two flagship schools. "I applied in several colleges, didn't get into many, and was on the wait list on one."
Manipal administrators freely acknowledge that their students aren't among the academically elite but argue that it makes their institutions stronger.
"Our undergraduate students have to work much harder than an IIT student," says Somnath Mishra, director of the Manipal Institute of Technology. Student quality "in IIT is higher than here, so here we also have to be very strong in teaching abilities. In IIT a teacher doesn't have to make so much effort."
Mr. Sudarshan, the chief executive, says he wants to improve the quality of Manipal's academic programs and the credentials of its faculty members. The university is placing more emphasis, for example, on research and publishing.
Only about 25 percent of its faculty members hold doctorates, which is typical of an institution of its academic caliber in India.
But professors in Manipal's engineering and medical programs without Ph.D.'s must now work toward earning advanced degrees at Manipal while they continue teaching at the institution, says H.S. Ballal, pro chancellor of the university.
Mr. Sudarshan says he wants the university to become an "elite applied-research institution," in part by trying to get more corporate- and government-sponsored research projects.
The Manipal Life Sciences Centre has been recognized by India's former president as a center of excellence in pharmacogenomics.
"We want to put Manipal on global research map," says the center's dean, K. Satyamoorthy, who until 10 years ago was a senior scientist doing research at the Wistar Institute, in Philadelphia. He joined Manipal University, he says, because he wanted the challenge of building a research institution.
Fifty percent of his faculty members have had experience abroad. "We look for people coming back from the U.S. and Europe where there is more research exposure," he says.
Still, for the Manipal Group, the ultimate measure of quality is the employability of its graduates. At its engineering school, 89 percent of students who will graduate this year already have jobs, many with top companies such as Microsoft India, Nokia, and Cisco Systems.
As its quality and visibility have increased, so have student applications. In 2009, according to G.K. Prabhu, Manipal University's registrar, the university received nearly 100,000 applications for 7,000 seats.
Ties With the U.S.
Manipal also has expansion plans in India. Thanks to a new, reformist education minister who is encouraging investment, the company sees tremendous growth opportunities here.
The Manipal Group is planning to invest more than $100-million over the next two years on additional campuses in India.
Mr. Sudarshan says that because Manipal pays well, he is not worried about recruiting in a country with a faculty shortage. Campus infrastructure and amenities are also a draw.
"Here the infrastructure you need is much easier to get because red-tapism is not there. Getting things in public institutions takes longer." says Mr. Mishra, director of the engineering school.
A retired army official with a Ph.D. from the Indian Institute of Technology in Delhi, Mr. Mishra says he chose a job at Manipal over an offer to work at one of the IIT's because he liked the idea of heading a school that wants to move ahead in research.
Mr. Sudarshan also wants to build partnerships between Manipal University in India and universities abroad, through programs in which students divide their study between India and the United States, and through research collaborations.
Already the university has 40 such relationships with foreign universities, including 15 "twinning" arrangements with institutions in the United States, Britain, and Australia.
In the United States, for instance, Manipal University's International Center for Applied Sciences runs twinning programs with the Illinois Institute of Technology and the University of Miami, among others. Students in these programs spend two years on each campus and earn degrees from the U.S. partner.
Source Link: http://chronicle.com/article/A-Private-University-in-India/65907/
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
US varsities show interest in coming to India
US varsities show interest in coming to India
NEW DELHI: As India is set to pass a legislation for setting up foreign campuses in the country, major American universities in their meeting with HRD Minister Kapil Sibal on Wednesday expressed their interest in venturing into higher education here.
According to an official statement from the human resource development (HRD) ministry, American universities "appeared enthused" by the recent introduction of the legislation on foreign universities in parliament.
Representatives from many premier American universities met Sibal, who is currently on a US visit, expressing interest to set up institutions in India.
"Apart from starting their own institutions in India, they (universities) would also like to have collaboration with Indian institutions in other fields, including medical education," the statement said.
Sibal met representatives from Virginia Tech, Georgetown University, American University, and School of International Studies (SIS).
The statement said Virginia Tech has expressed desire to set up a facility near Chennai for research in bio-informatics, nanosciences and transportation studies.
Similarly, Georgetown University expressed interest in venturing in social sciences research and suggested research in emerging areas of climate change and sustainability.
The minister asked them to forward a concept note to decide on the areas of mutual interest.
Sibal also addressed the Council for Foreign Relation, an American think-tank, stressing upon higher education to be one of the key areas for strategic partnership between India and the US.
Source Link: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/services/education/US-varsities-show-interest-in-coming-to-India/articleshow/6004963.cms
NEW DELHI: As India is set to pass a legislation for setting up foreign campuses in the country, major American universities in their meeting with HRD Minister Kapil Sibal on Wednesday expressed their interest in venturing into higher education here.
According to an official statement from the human resource development (HRD) ministry, American universities "appeared enthused" by the recent introduction of the legislation on foreign universities in parliament.
Representatives from many premier American universities met Sibal, who is currently on a US visit, expressing interest to set up institutions in India.
"Apart from starting their own institutions in India, they (universities) would also like to have collaboration with Indian institutions in other fields, including medical education," the statement said.
Sibal met representatives from Virginia Tech, Georgetown University, American University, and School of International Studies (SIS).
The statement said Virginia Tech has expressed desire to set up a facility near Chennai for research in bio-informatics, nanosciences and transportation studies.
Similarly, Georgetown University expressed interest in venturing in social sciences research and suggested research in emerging areas of climate change and sustainability.
The minister asked them to forward a concept note to decide on the areas of mutual interest.
Sibal also addressed the Council for Foreign Relation, an American think-tank, stressing upon higher education to be one of the key areas for strategic partnership between India and the US.
Source Link: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/services/education/US-varsities-show-interest-in-coming-to-India/articleshow/6004963.cms
Online education to play a big role in the teaching process
Online education to play a big role in the teaching process
If your child is bitten by the online bug, it could be the starting point for a modern approach to learning. With the fatigue factor rising due to lengthy commutes and multiple subjects, students are gradually discarding traditional ‘brick and mortar’ tutorials.
Online learning is popular abroad because it allows students to explore and tap into different options. While portals like Gurukul Online Learning Solutions introduced the concept of online
education in India with eLearning; there is a new kind of virtual classroom that is gaining interest across age groups in India. It is called Teacherni.com and is a ‘live online tutorial’ which tutors students across ICSE, CBSE, IGCSE and IB boards.
In addition to coaching students between 4th to 12th grade, Teacherni.com also gears those appearing for overseas entrance exams, including SAT and GMAT. Currently, Teacherni.com is based in Mumbai and caters to students across India and the UAE.
However, Teacherni.com is not like e-learning. “It provides live personalised help online, giving your child access to the most qualified teachers and even lets him/her choose their own. The tutors guide students in planning their studies better, completing their homework in the best possible manner, carrying out projects and exceling in exams. Online tutors constantly go over concepts using application and in-room testing, until the student has fully grasped them,” says Dhaval Mehta, managing partner.
Every session can be recorded and saved for future reference, a feature that comes in very handy for revision. In addition, students save time on travelling to coaching classes where teachers are unable to reach out in the most effective way. The technology has been successfully implemented in US, UK, Australia and the Middle East.
While online education holds considerable potential, keeping it interactive and interesting will definitely hold the key to acceptance and future growth. Several institutions in India are even planning to take their post graduation courses online, with an interactive user interface, using games and contests to sustain interest levels.
With access to computers and the Internet increasing rapidly, more parents and students are beginning to realise the benefits of this new medium. It’s just a matter of time before demand and supply find their own equilibrium.
Source Link: http://www.dnaindia.com/academy/report_online-education-to-play-a-big-role-in-the-teaching-process_1393226
If your child is bitten by the online bug, it could be the starting point for a modern approach to learning. With the fatigue factor rising due to lengthy commutes and multiple subjects, students are gradually discarding traditional ‘brick and mortar’ tutorials.
Online learning is popular abroad because it allows students to explore and tap into different options. While portals like Gurukul Online Learning Solutions introduced the concept of online
education in India with eLearning; there is a new kind of virtual classroom that is gaining interest across age groups in India. It is called Teacherni.com and is a ‘live online tutorial’ which tutors students across ICSE, CBSE, IGCSE and IB boards.
In addition to coaching students between 4th to 12th grade, Teacherni.com also gears those appearing for overseas entrance exams, including SAT and GMAT. Currently, Teacherni.com is based in Mumbai and caters to students across India and the UAE.
However, Teacherni.com is not like e-learning. “It provides live personalised help online, giving your child access to the most qualified teachers and even lets him/her choose their own. The tutors guide students in planning their studies better, completing their homework in the best possible manner, carrying out projects and exceling in exams. Online tutors constantly go over concepts using application and in-room testing, until the student has fully grasped them,” says Dhaval Mehta, managing partner.
Every session can be recorded and saved for future reference, a feature that comes in very handy for revision. In addition, students save time on travelling to coaching classes where teachers are unable to reach out in the most effective way. The technology has been successfully implemented in US, UK, Australia and the Middle East.
While online education holds considerable potential, keeping it interactive and interesting will definitely hold the key to acceptance and future growth. Several institutions in India are even planning to take their post graduation courses online, with an interactive user interface, using games and contests to sustain interest levels.
With access to computers and the Internet increasing rapidly, more parents and students are beginning to realise the benefits of this new medium. It’s just a matter of time before demand and supply find their own equilibrium.
Source Link: http://www.dnaindia.com/academy/report_online-education-to-play-a-big-role-in-the-teaching-process_1393226
Stop distance learning in physiotherapy: UGC to universities
Stop distance learning in physiotherapy: UGC to universities
Following a Delhi High Court order banning distance learning courses in physiotherapy, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has started sending notices to universities asking them to stop such courses.
"We are notifying the universities conducting distance courses in physiotherapy as per the high court's orders," a UGC official said today.
The UGC is a state body that provides funds and overlooks maintenance of standards in institutions of higher education in India.
"The courses were being run without proper training facilities. The High Court has instructed to stop the courses being run without approval from the corresponding council," the official told the media.
The high court has ordered a ban on all distance education courses in physiotherapy running without approval or prior consent of the approved statutory bodies.
Indian Association of Physiotherapists (IAP), which grants practising licences to physiotherapists and oversees education and training for physiotherapy, had opposed the course stating that distance education in physiotherapy was not possible since it involved a lot of practical training.
"How can you have distance learning in the subjects with a large component of practical teaching," IAP member Nilesh Bansal said.
A case was filed by IAP in 2004 against Allahabad Agricultural University, Allahabad, Janardan Rai Nagar University, Udaipur and Sikkim Manipal University, Sikkim for offering courses in physiotherapy through distance education. (IANS)
Source Link: http://headlinesindia.mapsofindia.com/education-news/university/stop-distance-learning-in-physiotherapy-ugc-to-universities-52039.html
Following a Delhi High Court order banning distance learning courses in physiotherapy, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has started sending notices to universities asking them to stop such courses.
"We are notifying the universities conducting distance courses in physiotherapy as per the high court's orders," a UGC official said today.
The UGC is a state body that provides funds and overlooks maintenance of standards in institutions of higher education in India.
"The courses were being run without proper training facilities. The High Court has instructed to stop the courses being run without approval from the corresponding council," the official told the media.
The high court has ordered a ban on all distance education courses in physiotherapy running without approval or prior consent of the approved statutory bodies.
Indian Association of Physiotherapists (IAP), which grants practising licences to physiotherapists and oversees education and training for physiotherapy, had opposed the course stating that distance education in physiotherapy was not possible since it involved a lot of practical training.
"How can you have distance learning in the subjects with a large component of practical teaching," IAP member Nilesh Bansal said.
A case was filed by IAP in 2004 against Allahabad Agricultural University, Allahabad, Janardan Rai Nagar University, Udaipur and Sikkim Manipal University, Sikkim for offering courses in physiotherapy through distance education. (IANS)
Source Link: http://headlinesindia.mapsofindia.com/education-news/university/stop-distance-learning-in-physiotherapy-ugc-to-universities-52039.html
North-south divide at Delhi University?
North-south divide at Delhi University?
The rivalry between North and South campus has been going on for years. While north campus boasts of best colleges, students and active extracurricular activities, south campus rates high on faculty and best girls colleges.
However, there are allegations of discrimination in admission process between the two campuses. The varsity’s south campus has been given almost a complete miss by DU representatives as well as student bodies who help aspirants in the admission process. As per media reports, while hundreds of stalls have been put up at the north campus to facilitate prospective students, aspirants at the south campus are finding the admission process difficult and are alleging discrimination.
Himanshu Nagpal, a DU aspirant, was shocked to see the disparity between the north and south campus. He said, “I have scored 92 per cent marks in the CBSE boards and wanted to take admission in Venkateswara College. However after looking at both sides I changed my mind about studying at south campus. When I went to the Arts Faculty at the north campus to buy and fill forms there were so many people to help me, there were help desks placed by different parties and teachers were also very cooperative. But I was shocked to see that nobody cared about students in south campus.”
He is not the only one to find disparity in treatment between north and south campus. Shruti Sahai, a DU aspirant, says, “Seeking admission in a college in south campus is a pain. Nothing is organised and there are hardly any counsellors or students volunteers to help you.”
However officials from both campuses believe the students are treated at par. They believe since there are fewer colleges in south campus than north campus, people think preference is given to north campus. Also while things are visible in colleges in north campus, it is difficult to locate in south campus.
Source Link: http://delhiuniversity.learnhub.com/news/1182-north-south-divide-at-delhi-university
The rivalry between North and South campus has been going on for years. While north campus boasts of best colleges, students and active extracurricular activities, south campus rates high on faculty and best girls colleges.
However, there are allegations of discrimination in admission process between the two campuses. The varsity’s south campus has been given almost a complete miss by DU representatives as well as student bodies who help aspirants in the admission process. As per media reports, while hundreds of stalls have been put up at the north campus to facilitate prospective students, aspirants at the south campus are finding the admission process difficult and are alleging discrimination.
Himanshu Nagpal, a DU aspirant, was shocked to see the disparity between the north and south campus. He said, “I have scored 92 per cent marks in the CBSE boards and wanted to take admission in Venkateswara College. However after looking at both sides I changed my mind about studying at south campus. When I went to the Arts Faculty at the north campus to buy and fill forms there were so many people to help me, there were help desks placed by different parties and teachers were also very cooperative. But I was shocked to see that nobody cared about students in south campus.”
He is not the only one to find disparity in treatment between north and south campus. Shruti Sahai, a DU aspirant, says, “Seeking admission in a college in south campus is a pain. Nothing is organised and there are hardly any counsellors or students volunteers to help you.”
However officials from both campuses believe the students are treated at par. They believe since there are fewer colleges in south campus than north campus, people think preference is given to north campus. Also while things are visible in colleges in north campus, it is difficult to locate in south campus.
Source Link: http://delhiuniversity.learnhub.com/news/1182-north-south-divide-at-delhi-university
Nirma University student tops in national pharmacy test
Nirma University student tops in national pharmacy test
An Ahmedabad student from the Institute of Pharmacy at Nirma University has topped the Graduate Pharmacy Aptitude Test (GPAT) this year.
Parth More, a student of Institute of Pharmacy at Nirma University scored 70.67% in the GPAT securing the first position in the country. It should be noted that the entrance test to the masters programme in pharmacy (MPharm) course was nationally centralized for the first time this year, through a common test called GPAT.
Talking about his achievement, Parth said, "The results were scheduled to be declared by around 5 pm. A friend called me at 5:10pm and told me that I topped the exam at the national level." He said that he could not believe it and so rushed to the nearest cyber café to check the result himself. "I was very happy when I found that I had topped at the national level and rushed home to share the news with my family," he said.
Parth said he had expected to make it to the top in the state but not at the national level. His father retired from the All Indian Insurance Company around 5 years ago and is at present undergoing kidney dialysis. More's mother is a housewife.
Parth's studies were supported by his two elder sisters. While his eldest sister Chaitasi More is a teacher with a government school in Dani Limbda his other sister teaches at a private school in Ahmedabad.
Talking about her son, Jashodaben More, said, "He tried his level best to cut down on unnecessary expenses so as not to burden us further.In the last four years he has been to the theatre just twice."
Talking about his plan for M.Pharm, Parth said, "Along with National Institute of Pharmacy Education and Research (NIPER) in Chandigarh, I also plan to appear for the entrance tests for other institutes including Bombay College of Pharmacy and LM College of Pharmacy."
After his M.pharm, Parth plans to do a Ph.D.
Of the around 65 students from Nirma University who appeared for the GPAT this year, 56 qualified for the test.A total of 32,598 students from across the country had appeared for the combined entrance test this year.
Earlier, the Graduate Aptitude Test for Engineering (GATE) scores were taken into consideration for admission to MPharm courses.
Source Link: http://www.dnaindia.com/academy/report_nirma-university-student-tops-in-national-pharmacy-test_1390914
An Ahmedabad student from the Institute of Pharmacy at Nirma University has topped the Graduate Pharmacy Aptitude Test (GPAT) this year.
Parth More, a student of Institute of Pharmacy at Nirma University scored 70.67% in the GPAT securing the first position in the country. It should be noted that the entrance test to the masters programme in pharmacy (MPharm) course was nationally centralized for the first time this year, through a common test called GPAT.
Talking about his achievement, Parth said, "The results were scheduled to be declared by around 5 pm. A friend called me at 5:10pm and told me that I topped the exam at the national level." He said that he could not believe it and so rushed to the nearest cyber café to check the result himself. "I was very happy when I found that I had topped at the national level and rushed home to share the news with my family," he said.
Parth said he had expected to make it to the top in the state but not at the national level. His father retired from the All Indian Insurance Company around 5 years ago and is at present undergoing kidney dialysis. More's mother is a housewife.
Parth's studies were supported by his two elder sisters. While his eldest sister Chaitasi More is a teacher with a government school in Dani Limbda his other sister teaches at a private school in Ahmedabad.
Talking about her son, Jashodaben More, said, "He tried his level best to cut down on unnecessary expenses so as not to burden us further.In the last four years he has been to the theatre just twice."
Talking about his plan for M.Pharm, Parth said, "Along with National Institute of Pharmacy Education and Research (NIPER) in Chandigarh, I also plan to appear for the entrance tests for other institutes including Bombay College of Pharmacy and LM College of Pharmacy."
After his M.pharm, Parth plans to do a Ph.D.
Of the around 65 students from Nirma University who appeared for the GPAT this year, 56 qualified for the test.A total of 32,598 students from across the country had appeared for the combined entrance test this year.
Earlier, the Graduate Aptitude Test for Engineering (GATE) scores were taken into consideration for admission to MPharm courses.
Source Link: http://www.dnaindia.com/academy/report_nirma-university-student-tops-in-national-pharmacy-test_1390914
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