Onus on principals to bring back drop-outs

Alarmed over the staggering number of childrenwho are not attending schools, the Rajasthan government has directed that each government principal be given a target to bring back students who have dropped out.

According to a child tracking system (CTS) survey conducted by the state's education department, 1.2 million students are out of schools in Rajasthan. And the state's Directorate of Primary Education in Bikaner moved last week to rectify the situation.

"District education officers (DEO) have been asked to provide the list of drop-out children to government schoolprincipals in each district," a senior education departmentofficer told the sources.

"Based on the ratio of drop-out children and thegovernment teachers in each school, the teachers will be given targets. They will have to bring these children to schools," he explained. 

It will be the responsibility of the principals to ensure that children who get admission in their schools stay till they complete the education, he added.

"The orders regarding this were issued on Saturday," he said.

The directorate also plans to run special drives to bring drop-out children to school from May 1 to May 16 and July 1 to July 15 this year.

"We have sought permission regarding this from the state government and the programme details will be announced as soon as we get the nod," said the officer. 

According to the CTS survey, at least 30,996 children between the age group 6-14 are not going to school in the state capital Jaipur alone. 

Child rights activists in the state say the orders will have to be implemented strictly for positive results.

"It is still not clear what action will be taken against the teachers who fail to meet the given targets," said Vikram Sharma, an activist.

source:http://www.indiaedunews.net/Rajasthan/Onus_on_principals_to_bring_back_drop-outs_13691/

AMU holds programme on aspects of female education

The Centre of Adult and ContinuingEducation, Aligarh Muslim University with the collaboration of renowned Hindi literary magazine "Vartaman Sahitya", organized a programme on "Various Aspects of Female Education" at the university. 

On this occasion, the book "Muslim Female Education: From Veils to Moon" by AMU Public Relations Officer, Dr. Rahat Abrar was released. 

Commenting on the book, eminent Hindi critic and former Head of the Department of Hindi, Prof. Pradeep Saxena said that the book written on a serious subject in easy language does not only seek to make an entry in the elite class but it also satisfies the quest for knowledge on the issue among common people. 

Prof. Saxena said that the colonial mentality and ideology is the biggest hindrance in socialdevelopment, which does not allow history to be analyzed rationally. 

The movement initiated by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan sought to free education from the colonial dogmas along with the promotion of modern education, he observed. 

Prof. Saxena said that Dr. Rahat Abrar has written a very informative book on the Muslim female education citing the history of Aligarh Movement that witnessed the contributions of numerous Muslim women of high order. 

While presiding over the programme, former Principal of AMU Women's College and former Director of Women's Study Centre, Prof. Zakia A. Siddiqui said that the killing of female child before or after death is still prevalent in our society. 

The dowry devil is rampant causing destruction of a number of families and female education in India is still a toddler. There is an urgent need of another Sheikh Abdullah who could revive female education movement in order to bring complete awakening in the society, she observed. 

The editor, Vartaman Sahitya, Dr. Namita Singh said that women need to be self dependent economically in order to be empowered and get rid of the chauvinistic clutches of male dominant social order. 

The Director, Adult and Continuing Education, Dr. Mah Seema Masood highlighted the features of informal mode of education and urged the people to adopt a positive outlook to be optimistic in their efforts. 

The Chief Guest and MLC, Mr. Vivek Bansal observed that discrimination against women is an international phenomenon, yet India presents the brightest side of thepicture that the President of Indian republic and Lok Sabha speaker are women and it has had a woman prime minister too. Mr. Bansal said that women have to be educated for all round development of the country. 

Eminent social worker and educationist, Mr. Harnarayan Singh said that a national survey should be made to find out how women's social status is largely determined by their economic condition. 

Conducting the programme, Mr. Ajay Bisaria said that different social organizationscould lead a national movement for female education. He also recited the famouscouplet of great poet Majaz. On this occasion, Salma Kanwal recited a poem dedicated to women.

source:http://www.indiaedunews.net/Uttar_Pradesh/AMU_holds_programme_on_aspects_of_female_education_13692/

Bangalore most preferred job city for engineering students

NEW DELHI: Seven out of every 10 engineering students in India prefer Bangalore as their 'first job' city, ahead of the capital Delhi, reveals a survey.

According to employability measurement and recruitment firm Aspiring Minds Research Cell, about 72 per cent of the engineering students surveyed voted for Bangalore as the most preferred destination to work in.

"In India, Bangalore is the engineers' Mecca. It offers growth, options and a community of like-minded people. Bangalore has undoubtedly the largest base in terms of IT companies, opportunities and an existing engineering population," Aspiring Minds Founder and Director Himanshu Aggarwal said.

Bangalore was followed by Delhi, which was preferred by 32 per cent of the respondents, while Hyderabad was the favourite among 30 per cent of the students surveyed.

At fourth place is Pune, with 30 per cent of the respondents voting for the city, followed by Chennai, which was favoured by 23 per cent of students.

Mumbai was sixth in the list of preferred cities for engineers.

Regional preferences emerge strongly, as students from the South, West and North of the country voted for Bangalore, Pune and Delhi, respectively, as their favourite city. For easterners, Bangalore was the favourable option. Chandigarh and Mysore also emerged as preferred destinations for engineering students in the survey.

The survey took into account the views of 19,000 engineering students across India. It was undertaken to determine the city preferences of students and allowed the respondents to specify up to three cities. 

Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/careers/job-trends/Bangalore-most-preferred-job-city-for-engineering-students/articleshow/7610463.cms 

India No. 4 in World's Best Education Destination list

It is an ill-kept secret that Indian education standards are among the best in the world. But now, it's official. India stands at number 4 in the list of most desired education destinations.

The Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC), the body which conducts GMAT recently conducted a survey, which pegged the United States and the United Kingdom at No. 1 and 2, but what has come as a real surprise is India's rank. The third most powerful Asian nation has been placed at the 4th most desired place to study management courses.

GMAT is one amongst the top B-school entrance test which is conducted at global level. Canada has secured the third position in the lot. Even Spain and Israel have appeared in the list among the top preferred destinations for B-schools.

 

Source: http://education.in.msn.com/news/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4611231

Rebuilding Indian students' faith post Oz attacks - Varghese

New Delhi: The Australian government is trying its best to rebuild the faith of Indian students after the 2009 "racist attacks" on students studying in the country, the Australian High Commissioner to India Peter Varghese said here on Wednesday.

"We know the attacks have left a deep scar on the minds of the students, but we are trying our best to rebuild the faith," Varghese told the sources. 

"We have come up with inter-cultural engagements to make all the international students feel better while they study in Australia," he added.

The spate of "racially-motivated attacks" on Indian students in 2009 drew flak from all across the globe after several students were injured and some even lost their lives.

"We don't dismiss that the students were not affected by all that had happened, but we are doing every possible thing to assure safety and quality education at the same time," Varghese said at the 'Australian Education Excellence Showcase 2011' here. 

"Parents are less apprehensive about sending theirchildren to Australia now," he added. 

Nearly 25 Australian universities participated in the fair that saw interested students from all quarters -- business management, technology, engineering, science and hospitality.

"In the recently-conducted International Student Survey in Australia, Indian students turned out to be the most satisfied with our services," Varghese said.

source:http://indiaedunews.net/International/Rebuilding_Indian_students'_faith_post_Oz_attacks_-_Varghese_13531/