February 10 2016, 18.21 PM IST || Pocket News Alert
Bangalore: The ‘QUEST to Learn’ Annual Summit started today on 10th Feb 2016 at IIM Bangalore. The Summit has participation from 9 states in India with a total of 240 participants.
“With the help of tele education we are now teaching more than 1000 schools across Karnataka. Now government has asked us to add another 1000 schools under this umbrella. As well as Andhra Pradesh government has come forward and asked us to do the same in Andhra Schools. In Karnataka, we are concentrating on 73 colleges to make them competent in English communication. In future we have plans to add up more numbers. IIM Bangalore, is therefore, happy to host the QUEST toLearn Summit and we look forward to see the outcome of these 2 days”, said Mr.Gopal Naik, Chairman Urban Development at IIM Bangalore.
Aakash Sethi, Executive Director, QUEST Alliance added, “Our quest is to get more young people to make meaning of their lives, find purpose and start with the self. The idea of learning to learn drives us everyday. We are now going deeper in our work with industrial training institutes and vocational colleges in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Bihar. This conference has brought together 240 important stakeholders in education technology and bridging India’s skill – gap divide and is a step towards building more collaborations.”
Rajaram Sharma, Head - Professor of Educational Technology; Joint Director - Central Institute of Educational Technology, NCERT who was on the ‘QUEST to Learn Summit Panel added, “In two years, we will digitize all books related to education from all languages. All State DSERT’s will be taken as partners an digitize all school books. It will also ensure its up gradation from time to time. National Repository of Open Educational Resources has study material from 29 languages. In that 16 thousand teachers and educationalist are contributing. We will also add more learning source to this. Also, NCERT will be more focused on self-learning materials contributed with the help of digitization”.
Mr. Martin Macwan, Dalit Activist and Founder of Navsarjan believed solutions for young people must be looked at the larger social context, “In the context of India we have a long history of education. We all know that except for the Brahmin man, no one had access to education in India. It is people like Mahatma Phuley, who opened the first school for the women, 150 years back. When, the women were brought in gunny bags and removed from the bags at the school, out of fear of being attacked. Where the mind is not free, learning cannot happen.”
Richard Rowe, CEO of Open Learning Exchange said, “ as an outsider I see 1.3 Billion people, 25% of the country under 15 and 50% under the age of 25. Never look for a job. Only create one. Make sure you take a job that you would be willing to pay to do. Learning becoming key to India’s economic future, as well as one’s personal well being. Current education systems are not aligned with our futures. Net neutrality and open education is revolutionary. ‘The real goal of education is for everyone to have a sense of power, meaning and connection. You are not driving them, but they as students are driving you”.
