The Progressive School Vol 02 Issue 04

NEWS & EVENTS
Odisha schools to introduce robotics
The Odisha State Government has decided to introduce
robotics in the curriculum of select schools across the
state. The aim of
the project is to keep
students technologically
updated. This will help
children develop their
skills on robotics and
artificial intelligence
from an early age. In the
first phase, the course
will be introduced in 10
model schools of the state, where students will be imparted
robotic education along with training on drone technology.
Smart government schools
in Punjab on the anvil
In Punjab, as many as 1,000 primary
and 1,800 secondary schools will get
laptops, multimedia projectors and
high-speed internet via joint funding
from the state and Centre., thus turning
government-run
2,8 0 0 school s
in the state into
smart schools
i n 2 0 1 8 - 1 9 .
This will make
the teachinglearning
process
easy and more
effective.
This smart
schools project in
Punjab will cost Rs 64 crore, which is part of the Rs 900 crore
project approved by the Project Approval Board of the Union
Human Resource Development (HRD) Ministry under the new
and integrated education scheme Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan,
which focuses on improving quality of education, enhancing the
learning outcomes and using technology to empower children
and teachers.
While Rs 50,000 have been approved for converting two
classrooms in each of the 1,000 primary schools into smart
classrooms, 1,800 senior secondary schools will get Rs 3
lakh each to make teaching more interactive and improve
creative thinking in learning process through the integration
of technology in education.
Madhya Pradesh school to get a facelift
Th e Madhya
Pradesh state
government is all
set to provide tablets to
15,000-odd government
schools, as a part of state
government’s ambitious
proposal of ‘Digital
Pedagogy’, in which
government middle
schools will be given tablets for digital teaching.
Uniform and Common Minimum
Programme for Value Education
The Central Government is set to roll out a ‘Uniform and
Common Minimum Programme for Value Education’ for
implementation across India’s entire schooling system, in
the 2019-20 academic session. The uniformity of value education
imparted across schools will be ensured with a firm focus on
‘Core Constitutional values’ and these have been identified as
Justice, Equality, Fraternity and Liberty. In a bid to stay noncontroversial,
Value Education will focus on values enshrined
in the Constitution and general concerns on compassion
and respect for all
persons. Students,
teachers as well
as schools will
be assessed on
Value Education
through a nonmarks
based
approach. The
National Council
of Educational
Research & Training (NCERT) will mainly prepare these
modules which, though not mandatory for any school board to
follow, are expected to acquire a pan India effect on their own
as a number of school boards go by NCERT textbooks.
Indian students to get faster visas
to study in Canada
The Canadian immigration authority, IRCC (Immigration,
Refugees and Citizenship Canada) has introduced
major changes
in visa procedures to
reduce the processing
time, which will help
students from India get
faster visas to study
in Canada. The same
will be applicable
for three other Asian
countries as well—
China, Vietnam and
Philippines. This is a
welcome move as UK’s government has decided to exclude
Indian students from easier visa norms.
Tamil Nadu continues not to disclose ranks
and toppers of board exams
Continuing last year’s decision
of not announcing ranks and
toppers of board exams, Tamil
Nadu’s school education department
reiterated same rule this year too.
Earlier, the government would
recognise the top three ranks in the
state. But last year, the government
decided to do away with announcement
of ranks for Class X and XI board exams
and this year it applied to Class XII board exams too. The
decision had been taken to prevent unhealthy competition and
promotion among schools, leading to stress for students.
58 THE PROGRESSIVE SCHOOL JUL-AUG-SEP 2018
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