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 Previous Week Topic |
| May 09 |
 Three education fairs coming your way. More... |
04-05-2009 |
This week Bangalore is set to be abuzz with ‘Education Fairs’. The fairs have been organised for students to meet institutional representatives from India and across the global to get information about application procedures, courses, fees, aid and so on.
First on the list are two fairs, Edufair 2009 and Edufair Plus, organised by Daaksha Events. Edufair 2009 starts today and will continue till May 3, while Edufair Plus 2009 starts on May 16 and goes on for three days. The events have been organised at Palace Grounds, in fully air-conditioned environs.
The two fairs will showcase colleges and educational training institutes from verticals as varied as engineering, medical, nursing, law, animation and graphics, aviation, film making, fashion designing and banking among many others. Distance learning universities, open universities and various international universities will also be participating.
Edufair Plus 2009 is timed during the COMEDK examinations, and hence transport facilities has been provided for students to reach the venue. These special buses would be stationed near every COMEDK centre.
World Education Fair
World Education Fair is to be held at TAJ Residency, M G Road, Bangalore, on May 4. The fair starts at 10am and ends at 5.30pm. Informative seminars will be held every half an hour about studying abroad.
Queries related to universities, courses, visa procedures education loans and insurance will be answered by the delegates. At this fair, institutions may offer scholarships and waive the application fee to the tune of Rs 12,000 for completed applications. Pre-registration with Edwise is mandatory if you want to attend personal interviews with university delegates.
For registration call Edwise Overseas Education Consultant on: 43503333 or SMS “ED WB” to 56677. Register on-Line at www.worldeducationfair.com
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| Seven wonders of India More... |
11-05-2009 |
| The campaign to uncover the seven best natural and man-made marvels in the country kickstarted a race to list some of the most amazing sites. But there was space only for seven to make it to the wonders list. |
 In 2005 when Time magazine published its 100 best English novels to be read, it explained that the list had two purposes. One is to instruct and the other is to enrage. What it probably meant by “enrage” was the debate and discussion it may lead to. The list of seven wonders of India recently published by NDTV along with the Union Ministry of Tourism’s Incredible India Campaign too, like the other lists that preceded it — spotlights, enlightens and certainly provokes debates on ranking, representation and definition of heritage. The campaign to “uncover the seven best natural and man-made marvels in the country” was launched in 2008. More than 150 sites clubbed into 16 State clusters were promoted through media, signature campaign and other events. The participants were asked to vote and choose the best among equals. Twenty of them were short listed and posted for the last round of voting. In March, the final seven wonders along with three other special awardees were announced. Indian marvels The Seven Wonders of India are the Red Fort, Jaisalmer Fort, Nalanda University, Sun Temple at Konark, Meenakshi Temple, Dholavira site and Khajuraho. In addition, Taj Mahal was declared as the Wonder of India, The Golden Temple at Amritsar was designated as the Wonder of India: Peace and Harmony, and the Tawang Monastery in Arunachal Pradesh as the Spritual Wonder of India.
Khajuraho : Named after the Khajur tree. If Red Fort is a representative of the Mughal architecture, Dholavira is an archaeological site dating back to the third millennium B.C. The Sun temple at Konark is more a monument, while Meenakshi Temple is a place of worship for more than 1000 years. To find a common basis to compare the architectural merits of these ‘wonders’ would be impossible and that may not be the point. The Greeks first introduced the idea of seven wonders about 2,000 years ago. But the list as we now know as the ancient seven wonders took a final shape during the Renaissance period. In 2007, when a private foundation decided to publish the new Seven Wonders of the World, the ancient list appeared unfair in terms of representation. Photo : Ashoke Chakrabarty
The Sun Temple : Also known as the Golden Pagoda. The new list had its share of problems. When important structures like the Angkor temple were not recognised, questions were asked if such an important exercise can be decided only by people who could access the computer or mobile phone to vote. The number of slots — seven — is unfairly too small. The list of seven wonders of India has its omissions. Important monuments such as Hampi do not figure. Hampi, a World Heritage site did not even qualify to the State level short list. Photo: G. Moorthy
Meenakshi temple : The thousand pillar hall. The list, it seems has served its purpose. It has created a debate. On the other hand, it instructs on the impressive variety and the vast time line the Indian architectural heritage encompasses. It also reminds us that there are many more that wait to be discovered, studied and cared for. Red Fort: The Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan built the Red Fort or the Lal Qila in 1638 AD. The fascinating fort, as the name suggests, is built of red sandstone on the banks of river Yamuna. Jaisalmer Fort: The Jaisalmer Fort is the second oldest fort in Rajasthan the first being Chittorgarh. Jaisalmer Fort, made of yellow stones, is also called the “Sonar Quila” or the Golden Fort. Konark Sun Temple: Located 35km north of Puri on the sands of Bay of Bengal, this temple of sandstone was built by king Narashimhadeva in the 13th Century. Konark Sun Temple is also known as “Golden Pagoda.” Meenakshi Temple: This famous landmark is situated in the 2,500-year-old city of Madurai. The temple was built during the Nayak rule. Dholavira Site: Located in Kutch district, Gujarat, this was an Indus Valley settlement known for its sophisticated urban planning and architecture. Dating back to 2900 BC, all the buildings are almost exclusively using brick. Khajuraho: The temples here were constructed between 950 and 1050 AD during the reign of Chandel Empire. Khajuraho derives its name from the Khajur tree (date palm) which can be found in abundance in the area. Nalanda University: The Hindu astronomer Aryabhatta studied in Nalanda University near Kusumaputra, now Patna. Hiuen Tsang, the great Chinese traveller and scholar, visited the university in 632 AD and stayed there for 12 years, both as student and teacher. |
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| TEST TRACKER More... |
18-05-2009 |
ON A FIRM FOOTING: At the Central Leather Research Institute in Chennai. CLRI has invited applications for various PG diploma and diploma programmes. Courses in leather processing The Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI) has invited applications for an entrance examination for admission to various courses offered at its different centres. Courses • PG Diploma in Leather Processing The course is offered at the Chennai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Kanpur and Jalandhar centres. B.Sc. holders who have studied chemistry as one of the subjects are eligible to apply for the course. Course fee is Rs.20,000. • Diploma in Leather Processing Offered at the Chennai, Kolkata, Jalandhar and Kanpur centres. • Diploma in Leather Goods Offered at the Chennai, Kolkata, Jalandhar and Kanpur centres. • Diploma in Leather Garments Offered at the Chennai, Kolkata, Jalandhar and Kanpur centres. • Diploma in footwear Offered at the Chennai centre. Plus-Two holders with at least 50 per cent marks are eligible to apply for the diploma courses. Course fee is Rs.20,000. Application form can be downloaded from the CLRI web site www.clri.nic.in. Duly filled-in applications along with a demand draft for Rs.100 drawn in favour of CLRI Chennai should be sent to the Head, CHORD, Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI), Chennai - 600 020. The last date for the receipt of completed applications is June 12. The entrance examination and interview will be held on June 13. For details, visit http://clri.nic.in. |
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| CBSE results coming on Friday/ ICSE results declared More... |
20-05-2009 |
NEW DELHI: The results of the Class XII examinations conducted by the Central Board of Secondary Education for the Delhi region will be announced this Friday. For the Ajmer, Chennai and Panchkula regions, the results are being declared today (Wednesday) at 10 a.m. Delhi’s schools can get their entire results by giving their school code and e-mail address while registering themselves on the following websites: www.results.nic.in, www.cbseresults.nic.in and www.cbse.nic.in Students can also get their results on their e-mail addresses by registering themselves on these websites. Individual results can also be accessed from these websites: http://mtnldelhi.in, http://bol.net.in and http://delhi.mtnl.in The CBSE will also be disseminating the results through the interactive voice response system. MTNL subscribers in Delhi can ring up 28127030 to get the Class XII results. For Idea subscribers, the telephone number is 55456068, while BSNL users can dial 1255536. Vodafone subscribers can get the results from 56735, and those using the Aircel service need to dial 5550099. Tata Indicom and Reliance subscribers can obtain the information on 12971 and 505242411 / 53030815, respectively. Meanwhile, the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations is declaring the results of the ISC Class XII and the ICSE Class X examinations on Wednesday. You may also click the following link to see the results of ICSE results: http://www.cisce.org/ |
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| Imbalances caused by professional courses More... |
25-05-2009 |
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We have more doctors and engineers than nurses and technicians, says Vatsala Vedantam |
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With more than 1.2 lakh students aiming for professional studies in Karnataka alone, the number of aspiring doctors and engineers in the country is on the rise. While there is nothing wrong with students opting for courses that promise lucrative careers, there is something terribly wrong with our manpower planning vis-à-vis higher education.
We are already faced with gross imbalances in medicine and engineering. Unless we re-structure the system properly, our universities will produce more doctors than nurses; or, more engineers than technicians. We may even end up with high-level professionals doing the work of middle-level personnel.
The indiscriminate expansion of professional colleges in the country will aggravate the situation further by totally upsetting the doctor-nurse or engineer-technician ratio. Besides, professions like those of doctors and engineers cannot exist in limbo. Doctors cannot function in isolation without pathologists, radiologists, physiotherapists and other supporting para medical staff. They need them as much as engineers need qualified technicians without whom they cannot deliver the goods. It is therefore essential that higher education go hand in hand with manpower planning to maintain the right balance in such professions. The symbiotic relationship between education and work cannot be ignored.
Change in attitude
Public perception of these issues also needs a sea change. PUC toppers in Biology dream of coveted disciplines like orthopaedics or cardiology. If they fail to get into a medical college, they turn to courses like anaesthesiology/ physiotherapy or, as a last resort, to nursing. Little do they realise that the most eminent surgeon cannot function without an anaesthetist or a trained nurse. Similarly, others have dreams of becoming a software engineer – but not a hardware technician who can set an instrument right in minutes.
Not surprising when there is such grotesque discrepancy in salaries for jobs that require skills of the same calibre. That, added to a desire for white collar jobs, has caused a grotesque imbalance in higher education where students are aimlessly admitted into professional courses, with or without aptitude. Of course, no amount of manpower planning can achieve results unless the other anomalies are corrected. Education planning involves strategies to attract students to a variety of courses and disciplines. Strategies which enthuse high school leavers to join undergraduate courses in the arts and sciences, instead of blindly vying for a professional degree.
They should be educated on the advantages of getting a basic degree that may eventually lead on to teaching careers and research programmes in science. The present devaluation of a basic degree in science and humanities has robbed educational institutions of competent teachers and scientific institutions of capable scientists.
After all, many streams of educational preparation are needed for different manpower requirements which are all equally important and should be equally rewarded. We need manpower in varied fields like agriculture, banking, industry and administration. Don’t we need bankers, lawyers, teachers, designers and a whole lot of other qualified personnel to run the country in addition to doctors and engineers? They range from clerks to administrative managers. From technicians to high-level experts in all these areas. If the educational system has to train such professionals, we also need teachers in every one of these disciplines. Not much inspiration
One of the chief reasons for the low calibre of students emerging from schools everywhere is the scarcity of inspiring teachers. This year’s dismal PUC results in Karnataka, where a mere 43 percent passed out of over six lakh students who took the examination, reflect, not on the calibre of the students, but on the competence and teaching skills of their mentors. Unless this anomaly is corrected, mere expansion in higher education becomes meaningless. Lakhs of students may pass out of Indian schools and colleges every year. But, a fraction succeed in getting even meaningful employment, let alone a satisfying career. This exposes the shallowness of our higher education system which churns out ineffective graduates and substandard professionals who may have excelled in other fields, if only they were given proper educational opportunities. We may have lost an efficient banker or brilliant lawyer only to gain an incompetent doctor or unskilled engineer. SOPs as benchmarks
The best American universities – a favourite destination for Indian undergrads who plan for higher studies – insist on a statement of purpose from aspiring students which must explain why he or she has chosen that particular course of study, what are their academic goals and what special skills do they possess to fulfil those goals.
What a marvellous method of identifying talents and aptitudes. If our Indian universities want to become meaningful institutions, they should set such benchmarks for students at the time of admission and graduation, in addition to providing various courses of study keeping in mind the manpower requirements of the country. Only then can they become places which nurture excellence in different areas of work and employment. |
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