Teaching | SilverScorpio.Com

European company develops mobile robots that are autonomous and multi-tasking

September 19, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Madrid (Spain), September 19 (ANI): An European company has developed innovative robots which are mobile, multifunctional, collaborative, autonomous and polyvalent, suitable for a wide range of work from street cleaning and rubbish collection to accompanying elderly people.

According to a report carried out in www.basqueresearch.com, this new generation of robots have been developed by TECNALIA Technological Corporation, and are a part of the European DUSTBOT research project under the remit of the VI European Framework Programme and in which TECNALIA is participating.

These latest generation robots are suitable for the monitoring of large spaces (open and closed), as guides for persons in large shopping areas (indicating to them where a particular shop or product is within a shopping centre), for accompanying elderly people or those with certain disabilities (both at home and outside), thanks to their functions of orientation, navigation, communications with others or tele-assistance centres.

They can also be used as guides in teaching spaces (museums, visitor centres), and for transport, storage and transport and goods deliveries, besides the cleaning of both open and closed surfaces, which have either difficult or easy access.

DUSTBOT has collaborative, multifunctional and autonomous robots that are capable of operating in partially destructured environments/situations based on information provided by a map.

The robots can also facilitate working in large areas, stations, airports and other types of public buildings, without being any obstacle for the activity of these places, given its reduced size, and without being a danger for members of the public, thanks to the novel system for the detection and avoidance of obstacles.

The rail station of the Euskotren company in the Bilbao neighbourhood of Atxuri in Spain was chosen for the public presentation of these devices.

The demonstration of two robot models was undertaken: the DustCart and the DustClean.

The DustCart robot, measuring 1.45 metres high and 70 Kg in weight, has a humanoid form and is designed to interact with the user and for the collection of low demand waste.

The DustClean robot, in the form of a small vehicle and measuring 96 cm high and 250 Kg in weight, cleans streets of dirt and dust. Moreover, both control the quality of air in real time.

“These robots are the solution for cleaning areas of difficult access and for the collection of rubbish at the very front door of, above all, persons who have mobility problems when moving the rubbish to the communal waste containers,” said Inaki Inzunza, Director of the Business Unit at the Tecnalia Technological Corporation. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: access, activity, air, ANI, Atxuri, Autonomous Robots, avoidance, basqueresearch, bilbao, business, centre, cleaning, collection, com, company, control, corporation, danger, demand, demonstration, detection, director, dirt, door, dust, DUSTBOT, DustCart, DustClean, European Framework, Euskotren, form, framework, generation, home, humanoid, Inaki, information, interact, Inzunza, Madrid, madrid spain, map, mobile robots, mobility, monitoring, Multi Tasking, multifunctional, navigation, neighbourhood, novel, Novel System, obstacle, orientation, part, polyvalent, presentation, product, programme, project, Public, public buildings, Public Presentation, Public Thanks, quality, rail, range, remit, report, Research, robot, robot models, rubbish, Rubbish Collection, September, shop, shopping, shopping areas, Shopping Centre, size, solution, Spain, station, storage, street, system, teaching, Teaching Spaces, technological, Technological Corporation, TECNALIA, Tele Assistance, time, transport, unit, user, vehicle, VI European, visitor, waste, weight, work, www

Gandhians in Ahmedabad laud government’s austerity drive

September 19, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Ahmedabad, Sep 18(ANI): In contrast to leaders of some political parties, who are criticising the austerity measures mooted by the government as mere ‘tokenism’, Gandhians associated with the Sabarmati Ashram at Ahmedabad have lauded the initiative.

The Gandhains, who themselves live a life of extreme simplicity, following the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi, said that if politicians lead a simple life, people would certainly follow in tune with the adage: Follow the leader.

Amrut Modi, the managing trustee Sabarmati Gandhi Ashram, a staunch Gandhian himself, is a firm believer in Gandhi’s teaching of ‘doing one’s work by oneself’, and professes it religiously.

Appreciating the austerity drive of the government, he said that politicians through such measures inspire people towards leading a simple life, as the Mahatma did.

“If simplicity is acquired, it can lead to change. Gandhiji himself had brought about change in the country. He prepared the people for independence and self-rule. The principle of simplicity is included in his teachings. He inspired the common man, through his simple life. Even today if our politicians adopt simplicity, then people will take inspiration from them,” Modi said.

Several other believers of Gandhi’s teaching also said that simplicity could help the nation develop, and also set an example in front of the whole world.

“The ministers should adopt Gandhiji’s principles and teachings pertaining to simplicity. This will help in the development of the country financially and otherwise and they can also send the message to the world, that how beneficial it can be to walk on Gandhiji’s principles,” said Dhimant Badiya, another Gandhian. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: adage, Ahmedabad, Amrut, ANI, Appreciating, ashram, austerity, austerity drive, Badiya, believer, change, common man, contrast, country, Development, Dhimant, drive, example, Extreme Simplicity, firm, firm believer, front, Gandhains, gandhi, gandhi ashram, Gandhian, Gandhians, gandhiji, Government, independence, initiative, inspiration, laud, leader, life, mahatma, Mahatma Gandhi, man, message, message to the world, Modi, nation, political parties, politicians, principle, Sabarmati, sabarmati ashram, self rule, Sep, simple life, simplicity, teaching, today, tokenism, Trustee, tune, work, world

The pen may be mightier than the keyboard for schoolkids

September 17, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, September 17 (ANI): It may not be wrong to say that the pen is mightier than the keyboard, for a new study on schoolchildren so suggests.

Virginia Berninger, a University of Washington professor of Educational Psychology, looked at the ability of second, fourth, and sixth grade children to write the alphabet, sentences, and essays using a pen and a keyboard.

“Children consistently did better writing with a pen when they wrote essays. They wrote more and they wrote faster,” said Berninger.

The researcher further said that only for writing the alphabet was the keyboard better than the pen.

Results were mixed for sentences.

However, when using a pen, the children in the three grade levels produced longer essays and composed them at a faster pace.

The study also showed that fourth and sixth graders wrote more complete sentences when they used a pen, and that this ability was not affected by the children’s spelling skills.

The research also showed that many children don’t have a reliable idea of what a sentence is until the third or fourth grade.

“Children first have to understand what a sentence or a complete thought is before they can write one. Talking is very different from writing. We don’t talk in complete sentence. In conversation we produce units smaller and larger than sentences,” Berninger said.

She, however, added: “We need to learn more about the process of writing with a computer, and even though schools have computers they haven’t integrated them in teaching at the early grades. We need to help children become bilingual writers so they can write by both the pen and the computer. So don’t throw away your pen or your keyboard. We need them both.”

She further said: “We need more research to figure out how forming letters by a pen and selecting them by pressing a key may engage our thinking brains differently.” (ANI)

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: ability, alphabet, ANI, Berninger, Bilingual Writers, brains, children, Complete Sentence, Computer, conversation, educational, educational psychology, essays, grade, idea, key, keyboard, mightier, pace, pen, process, professor, psychology, Research, researcher, schoolchildren, Schoolkids, sentence, sentences, September, September 17, Sixth Grade Children, Spelling Skills, study, teaching, thought, University, University of Washington, Virginia, Virginia Berninger, Washington, washington professor, Writing Pen, Writing With A Computer

Climate change will lead to less ultraviolet radiation over northern high latitudes

September 17, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Imphal, Sep.16 (ANI): “Move onward with the Lord within your heart and with the footprints of your ancestors in your eyes’ is the greatest moral teaching from Heigru Hidongba ceremony held every year in Manipur.

Heigru Hidongba, a socio-religious ceremony, to exhibit the firm devotion of the descendants of the Great Grand Mantri Anandashai of Lord Bejoy Govindajee was recently held in Imphal.

Devotees brought offerings of Heigru (Amla) fruit to the almighty on the 11th day of Langban Manipuri month which coincides with September to bring prosperity to the community.

During this festival a special boat race ‘Hiyang Tanaba’ is held in the sacred Thangapat Moat of Sagolband, Bejoy Govinda in Imphal amidst singing of devotional songs and a lot of clamour.

It attracted a huge number of spectators on this occasion. “We have organized the ceremony so that we can come and pray together so that the ills of the society will be removed and also for peace to be restored in our land that is filled with violence. In other places, it is celebrated anytime as a festival but we celebrate it as it is our custom,” said Boshana, organiser of the Heigru Hidongba festival.

“This is the 231st Heigru Hidongba Festival. The main theme of the festival is about preserving the age old traditional beliefs and customs of our culture,” said Magochandra, a local resident.

Devotees converged at the Bijoygobinda Moat at Sagoband to witness the ceremony symbolising the unity, which was once deeply rooted amongst the Manipuris’ ancestors and for their struggle for peace and freedom.

Devotees, today, believe that the ceremony brings prosperity to the State and overcomes ills of the society. (ANI)

Filed Under: Science News Tagged With: age, almighty, amidst, amla, Amla Fruit, Anandashai, ancestors, ANI, Bejoy, Bijoygobinda, boat, Boat Race, Boshana, ceremony, change, clamour, climate, climate change, community, culture, custom, customs, day, descendants, devotees, devotion, devotional songs, festival, footprints, Freedom, fruit, Govinda, Govindajee, grand, Great, heart, Heigru, Hidongba, High Latitudes, Hiyang, ills, imphal, land, Langban, lord, lot, Magochandra, Manipur, Manipuri, Manipuris, Mantri, Moat, month, number, occasion, onward, organiser, peace, pray, prosperity, Race, radiation, religious ceremony, resident, Sagoband, Sagolband, Sep, September, singing, society, spectators, state, struggle, Tanaba, teaching, Thangapat, theme, today, traditional beliefs, ultraviolet, Ultraviolet Radiation, unity, Violence, witness, year

Stay-at-home parents ‘most stressed workers’

September 12, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, September 12 (ANI): Parents who stay at home and look after the household are the most stressed out, a new UK study claims.

According to a research conducted by Mindlab Organisation, mothers or fathers who do household chores are more frazzled than those with traditionally high-pressure jobs, like city trading, teaching or nursing.

Stress levels were investigated in British adults as per their “work” roles – stay-at-home parents, taxi drivers, teachers, nurses and city dealers.

The conclusion was reached by measuring levels of the stress hormone cortisol throughout an average working day.

It was found that stay-at-home parents proved to be the most under pressure. Nurses ranked second in the list, followed by the traders, then teachers and finally, taxi drivers.

A bio-monitoring equipment was used to measure and record the heart rate and skin conductance.

The participants were connected to the equipment and tested over a seven-hour period.

Also, samples of saliva were taken at crucial junctures during the day to measure cortisol, which is a direct indicator of stress.

“The key here is the degree of control each of these professionals feel able to exercise over their lives,” the Daily Express quoted Dr David Lewis, who was part of the research, as saying.

“Stay-at-home parents receive little or no specific training and are furthermore typically isolated from other adults for much of the day,” he added.

Psychologist Jenni Trent Hughes said: “The answer is simply to be selfish and take some time out. After 21 years of running around after the family, pets, supermarket and the house, women have earned it.

“If you’re not taking care of your- self then how can you properly take care of anyone else?

“If you’re ratty or short-tempered, tired or at your wits’ end how can you possibly be the best you can be for your partner, children, family and last but definitely not least yourself?” (ANI)

Filed Under: Health News Tagged With: ANI, answer, anyone, british adults, care, city, conclusion, conductance, control, cortisol, daily, daily express, day, degree, dr david lewis, end, equipment, Express, family, Family Pets, heart, heart rate, home, hormone, house, household, household chores, indicator, Jenni Trent Hughes, Junctures, key, list, London, Mindlab, Monitoring Equipment, Nurses, nursing, organisation, part, partner, period, pressure, Psychologist, rate, ratty, Research, saliva, self, September, skin, skin conductance, Specific Training, Stay At Home, Stay At Home Parents, stress, Stress Hormone Cortisol, stress levels, study, supermarket, taxi, Taxi Drivers, teaching, time, time-out, trading, training, U.K, Wits End, work, working, your

Absence of teachers keeps literacy rate low in Bihar

September 8, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Patna, Sep 8 (ANI): Even as the world’s observing ‘International Literacy Day’ on Tuesday, Bihar continues to suffer from rampant illiteracy.

Despite the government’s repeated efforts to improve standards of teaching, schools are grappling with a lack of teaching staff and creaking infrastructure.

“We want to increase the number of students in our school, but this is only possible if there are more teachers. We want accommodate 2000 students in the school but we are not able to give admission to the students who come here as there are no teachers and no place to sit,” said Kamlesh Kumar, a teacher.

He added that their school has appealed to the authorities to take a notice of their condition.

The parents prefer keeping their kids at home. They feel that their kids are better at home playing.

“We don’t send our kids to the school because there are no teachers and if there are no teachers what will our kids study in school. That is why the children go to school, play for sometime and come back as there is no one to look after them in the school. Hence, my kids don’t go to the school and play on the streets,” said Mohammad Sarfuddin, a slum dweller.

The eradication of illiteracy has been one of the major programmes of successive Indian governments since independence.

The National Literacy Mission, launched in 1988 by former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s government, has greatly helped in increasing the rate of literacy in the country. Besides the universalisation of primary education, steps were taken to promote adult literacy. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: absence, admission, adult, Adult Literacy, ANI, authorities, Bihar, condition, country, day, dweller, Education, eradication, Eradication Of Illiteracy, former prime minister, Government, home, illiteracy, independence, indian governments, Infrastructure, international, international literacy day, kamlesh, kumar, lack, literacy, literacy rate, mission, mohammad, Mohammad Sarfuddin, national, National Literacy, notice, number, parents, Patna, place, playing, primary education, Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, rate, school, Sep, slum, staff, teacher, teaching, Teaching Schools, teaching staff, Tuesday, Universalisation, world

Popular sculpting statue in Sikkim

September 3, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Gangtok, Sep 3 (ANI): An art school is preserving the oldest form of traditional and religious art of statue making, influenced by Buddhist teaching in Sikkim.

The Traditional Arts School for Thangka Painting at 5th mile, a half an hour drive from state capital Gangtok, is under the supervision of Ecclesiastical Affairs Department, Government of Sikkim. The school is exclusively for the monks (boys).

Monks from different monasteries located throughout the state come to the institute and learn the art free of cost.

The school was started as a separate branch of Enchey School, which was a monk school then in 1909 for teaching the art of statue making to monks at the time of Chogyal (King).

However during 1950s, the school came under the Ecclesiastic Affairs Department.

Ndar Lama, an instructor at the Vocational Arts School, Gangtok, revealed that the art of making the statues came from Bhutan.

However, to popularise the art among local monks, the state government felt the need to set up one institute in Sikkim, Lama said.

“The art of making this mud statue came from Bhutan. Earlier, Chogyal (King) used to call the instructors from Bhutan and they used to make the statues. In fact, most of the statue in big monasteries here was made by the Bhutanese. Even I learnt the art from one Bhutanese person. But now the government of Sikkim felt the need to open one such vocational training institute even in Sikkim,” Lama added.

Students at the school said that they hope to teach the art to the future generation so as to keep the Buddhist culture alive.

“After learning the art of statue making, I will go to the monastery and teach the art to our future generation so as to keep our Buddhist culture and art of statue making alive,” said Dawa, a student.

Besides teaching the art, the school also helps the monks in becoming self-reliant. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: 1950s, affairs, affairs department, ANI, art, Art School, arts, Bhutan, bhutanese, branch, buddhist, Buddhist Culture, capital, Chogyal, cost, culture, dawa, department, drive, Ecclesiastic, Ecclesiastical, Ecclesiastical Affairs, Enchey, fact, form, Future Generation, Gangtok, generation, Government, government of sikkim, hour, institute, instructor, king, lama, learnt, making, Mile, monasteries, monastery, monk, monks, mud, Ndar, need, painting, person, popular, popularise, Religious Art, school, Sep, Sikkim, state, state government, statue, statues, student, supervision, teaching, Thangka, time, traditional, training, vocational, vocational training

1 in 3 teenage girls in UK has suffered sexual abuse by their boyfriends

September 1, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Sep 1 (ANI): One in three girls in their teens has been a victim of sexual abuse at the hands of a boyfriend, while one in four has suffered violence in a relationship, according to an in-depth study.

Conducted by the NSPCC and Bristol University, the survey of 1,353 teenage girls and boys questioned across the UK, found that 90 percent of girls in the age group of 13-17 had been in an intimate relationship.

A similar number of boys had also been in relationships.

The research found that 25 percent of girls had suffered physical violence in some form or the other, including being slapped, punched or beaten by their boyfriends.

For the study, the investigators questioned 91 young people at length.

Among the girls, one in six said that they had been pressured into having sex, and one in 16 claimed that they had been raped.

Other participants said that they had been pressured or forced to kiss or intimately touch their boyfriends.

A small minority of the boys – one in 17 – reported being pressured or forced into sexual activity, and almost one in five suffered physical violence in a relationship.

A large number of girls said that they felt they had to put up with the abuse because they felt scared or guilty, or feared they would lose their boyfriend.

According to the NSPCC, having an older boyfriend placed young girls at a higher risk of abuse, with three-quarters of them saying they had been victims.

Even young women from a family where an adult had been violent towards them were also at greater risk.

For boys, having a violent group of friends actually made it more likely that they would become a victim, or be a perpetrator of violence, in a relationship.

“The high rate and harmful impact of violence in teenagers’ intimate relationships, especially for girls, is appalling,” the Guardian quoted Professor David Berridge, of Bristol University, one of the authors of the report, as saying.

“It was shocking to find that exploitation and violence in relationships starts so young. This is a serious issue that must be given higher priority by policymakers and professionals,” he added.

The report reminds schools of the need to raise awareness of relationships where there is harmful, controlling and abusive behaviour.It has also recommended that anti-bullying groups at school should tackle violent relationships and that child protection professionals should consider teenagers who are in intimate relationships, especially girls with older boyfriends.

Diane Sutton, head of policy and public affairs at the NSPCC suggested that parents and schools could perform a vital role in teaching children about loving and safe relationships and what to do if they are suffering from violence or abuse. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: abuse, activity, adult, age, ANI, awareness, behaviour, boyfriend, boyfriends, bristol, Bristol University, child, conducted, David Berridge, Diane Sutton, exploitation, family, form, girls and boys, group, guardian, harmful impact, having sex, head, impact, intimate relationship, Intimate Relationships, issue, length, London, minority, need, NSPCC, number, percent, perpetrator, physical violence, policy, priority, professor david, Professor David Berridge, protection, rate, relationship, report, Research, risk, role, school, Sep, Sex, sexual activity, Small Minority, study, survey, teaching, teenage girls, three girls, three quarters, U.K, University, victim, Violence, Violence In Teenagers, Violent Group, young girls

Students gift house to teacher as mark of respect

September 1, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Namakkal (Tamil Nadu), Aug 31 (ANI): In a unique and loving gesture, students presented a house to their former teacher at Gurusamypalayam village in Tamil Nadu.

Eighty-three-year-old Soballapuram V Venkataraman, who has been living in a rented run-down house at the village in Namakkal district even after 25 years of retirement with his aged wife and a widowed daughter, will now have a new place to live.

Venkataraman will soon shift into the new house, which is spacious and much larger than his present accommodation.

The house, built in an area of 1,200 square feet, is nearly ready and will be formally gifted to the guru on the ‘Teachers’ Day’ on September 5.

Venkataraman says even though his students have been successful in life he never ever expected anything like this from them. He recalls he never complained about his financial problem to them. However, he said he was overwhelmed by this gesture.

“I have been teaching from 1954 to 1985 for 32 years. And during the course of my teaching profession, I have taught about nearly 1,500 students. Many of them are now working as industrialists, doctors, engineers, senior administrative officers,” said Venkataraman.

Venkataraman taught Tamil language at the Sengunthar Mahajana Higher Secondary School at Gurusamypalayam village and inspired many of his students with his knowledge of poetry and oratory.

Two years ago when his former students came to meet him, they were sad to know about his living conditions, and the financial debt he incurred for the marriage of his two daughters.

Even though he receives a monthly pension of Rs.9,000, it’s inadequate to meet the daily expenses of his family, let alone living a better life.

The students who had achieved success and made it in their professional life decided to alleviate their loving teacher’s suffering in their own unique way.

“We took up a list of our old students, we collected their addresses, and we printed a small notice and sent it to them. The old students responded and we were able to collect nearly 10 lakh. We constructed this house. We are very much pleased to hand over this house as ‘Guru Niwas’ to our teacher as a ‘gurudakshina’,” said Dr Mohan Raj, a physician and former student of Venkataraman.

Money was sent by students who are now settled in various parts of the country. It took two years to build a two-storey house at the cost of Rs 10 lakh. By Jai Kumar (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: accommodation, administrative officers, ANI, anything, area, Aug, cost, country, course, daughter, day, debt, district, doctors, Dr Mohan Raj, Eighty-three-year-old, family, Financial Debt, Former Students, gesture, gift, guru, gurudakshina, Gurusamypalayam, higher secondary school, house, industrialists, Jai Kumar, knowledge, lakh, language, life, list, Living A Better Life, Loving Teacher, Mahajana, mark, marriage, MONEY, nadu, Namakkal, Niwas, notice, oratory, pension, physician, place, poetry, problem, profession, professional life, respect, retirement, school, Sengunthar, September, Soballapuram, square feet, student, success, tamil, Tamil Nadu, teacher, Teachers Day, teaching, Teaching Profession, the, two daughters, V Venkataraman, venkataraman, village, way, wife

Sam Pitroda calls for ICT’s application for development

August 26, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

New Delhi, Aug. 26 (ANI): Knowledge Commission Chairman Sam Pitroda has called for the application of information and communication technology (ICT) in the field of education, health, environment and agriculture in order to bring in a generational change among the Indian masses.

“The key in terms of what next is to focus on five to six key areas. My preference would be health, education, energy and environment. Pretty broad four to five big areas,” Pitroda said, delivering a keynote address at a function to mark the silver jubilee of Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT).

He also noted that information technology (IT) should be used as a tool to enhance the education sector in the country.

On this score, he called for IT and ICT to supplement and complement each other for positive results.

“They key is we need to use IT in a very different way to build productivity and efficiency in education. Learning models have to change. We need to take advantage of available IT infrastructure to really enhance our teaching as well adds to our teachers resource,” Pitroda, added.

C-DOT is the premier organisation engaged in research and development (R andD) of IT in India and it was set up on August 25, 1984. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: address, advantage, Agriculture, ANI, application, Aug, August, C-DOT, centre, chairman, change, commission, commission chairman, communication, country, Development, Education, education health, Education sector, efficiency, energy, Energy And Environment, environment, field, function, generational, Generational Change, Health, health education, Health Environment, ict, India, information, information and communication technology, information technology, Infrastructure, Jubilee, key, key areas, keynote, keynote address, knowledge, learning, New Delhi, order, organisation, Pitroda, preference, Premier, pretty, productivity, R andD, Research, research and development, resource, sam, sam pitroda, score, sector, silver, silver jubilee, Teachers Resource, teaching, Technology, Telematics, tool, way

Kolkata holds special prayers on Mother Teresa’s 99th birth anniversary

August 26, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Kolkata, Aug.26 (ANI): Special prayers were held at the headquarters of the Missionaries of Charity on Wednesday on the occasion of Mother Teresa’s 99th birth anniversary.

A mass was organised at Mother’s House where visitors joined nuns of the missionary.

Sister M Prema, Superior General of the Missionaries of Charity said everyone prayed and remembered Mother Teresa for her teaching everyone “how to look at the poor and give them the dignity of a child of God.”

“The birth of Mother Teresa to the world has become a great event and a great message for every person. And, her birthday is just giving us another chance to remember what she wanted us to know… She wanted everyone to know that God has created us to love and to be loved,” said M Prema.

Albanian born Mother Teresa made Kolkata her home and dedicated her life to the service of the poor and the destitute.

Mother Teresa was beatified by the Pope in October 2003, paving the way for her canonization, or being declared a saint.

She qualified for beatification after Vatican officials acknowledged that she was responsible for a miracle in which an Indian woman was cured of stomach cancer through her intervention.

Mother Teresa died at the age of 87 on September 5, 1997. She was popularly known as the “Saint of the Gutter” due to her extraordinary love and dedication for poor, homeless and diseased people.

Teresa came to India in 1929 at the age of 18 and took up teaching and became an Indian citizen in 1948.

The nun started working in slums and later set up her Missionaries of Charity, which was approved by the Vatican in 1950.

The organisation now runs more than 500 charity homes in over 100 countries.

Mother Teresa received several national and international awards for the social service that she did during her lifetime. They include the Magsaysay Award in 1962, the Pope John XXIII Peace Prize in 1971, the John F. Kennedy International Award in 1971 and the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979. By Shanka Ghosh (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: age, Albanian, ANI, anniversary, Aug, award, Beatification, birth, birth anniversary, birthday, Born Mother, cancer, canonization, chance, charity, child, Child Of God, citizen, dedication, dignity, event, everyone, general, ghosh, god, Gutter, headquarters, home, house, India, indian citizen, indian woman, international, International Awards, intervention, John XXIII, John F Kennedy, Kennedy International, Kolkata, life, lifetime, love, M Prema, Magsaysay, Magsaysay Award, mass, message, miracle, Missionaries, missionaries of charity, mother, mother teresa, Nobel, nun, nuns, occasion, October, organisation, paving the way, peace, Peace Prize, person, pope, Pope John Xxiii, prize, saint, September, service, Shanka, Sister M Prema, slums, stomach, stomach cancer, Superior, teaching, teresa, Vatican, Vatican Officials, way, Wednesday, woman, world

Top Canadian universities to tour India

August 25, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

New Delhi, Aug.24 (ANI): Thirteen of Canada’s elite universities will be in India from August 23 to September 4 to hold information sessions on Canada as a destination for higher education.

The delegation is led by Ginette Sanfaçon of HEC Montréal (Business school affiliated with the Université de Montréal) and Michelle Beaton of Ryerson University in Toronto.

The tour is organized by the Canadian Higher Education Committee under the aegis of the Council of International Schools (CIS).

The Council’s fifth annual tour to India will begin in Mumbai and continue in Pune, Delhi and Bangalore.

According to a Canadian High Commission press release, the tour is of special interest to Standard XI and Standard XII students who exhibit strong academic standing, their school guidance counselors as well as to their parents. The schedule includes school visits, information fairs, and an indepth Canadian university admission workshop for guidance counselors.

“India is a key undergraduate student market for Canadian universities,” said Ginette Sanfaçon of HEC-Montréal and Tour Director. “Indian students are sought for their academic strength and their rich contribution to student life on Canadian university campuses. In turn, increasing numbers of Indian students are making Canada their first choice for study – as evidenced on this tour.

Indian students are drawn to our universities’ common attributes of international reputation for academic excellence, state of the art resources, and safe campuses in welcoming locations,” Sanfaçon said.

Each year, tour organizers strengthen existing relationships with secondary schools in cities they visit and also expand outreach to new regions. For example, guidance counselors from schools in Dehra Dun, Hyderabad, Chennai and Chandigarh as well as Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are receiving invitations to attend the Tour’s counselor workshop in Delhi.

List of participating universities:

The University of British Columbia; Carleton University; Dalhousie University; HEC MONTRÉAL (Business School affiliated with Université de Montréal); Memorial University of Newfoundland; University of Manitoba; University of New Brunswick; Ryerson University; University of Saskatchewan; University of Toronto; Vancouver Island University; University of Waterloo; York University.

Canadian universities are engaged internationally as leaders in education through teaching, research and partnerships. Undergraduate education in Canada is a hybrid of US and UK styles offering breadth of program options, flexibility in choice and a degree that is ultimately recognized world-wide.

Indian students choose Canada because a strong education and a positive international experience is the foundation for their exciting and successful futures. The quality, affordability and renowned research opportunities are key factors in this decision. University campuses across Canada offer multicultural environments, beautiful spaces and friendly people. As a leader in business, political diplomacy, arts and culture and technology – Canada’s education system is at the core of its success and its graduates are players on the world stage. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Academic Strength, admission, aegis, affordability, ANI, art, Aug, August, Bangalore, Bangladesh, breadth, British, Brunswick, business, Canada, Canadian, canadian high commission, Canadian Higher Education, Carleton, Chandigarh, Chennai, choice, cis, Columbia, commission, committee, contribution, core, Council, Council Of International Schools, counselor, Counselor Workshop, culture, Dalhousie, decision, degree, dehra, Dehra Dun, delegation, Delhi, destination, diplomacy, director, Dun, Education, elite, Elite Universities, example, excellence, exhibit, experience, flexibility, Foundation, Ginette, guidance, hec, HEC-Montréal, High, Higher Education Committee, hybrid, Hyderabad, indepth, India, indian students, information, Information Fairs, Information Sessions, interest, international, international reputation, island, leader, life, list, Manitoba, market, memorial, Michelle Beaton, montreal, multicultural, Mumbai, Nepal., New Delhi, Newfoundland, offer, offering, outreach, Pakistan, press, program, Pune, quality, release, reputation, Research, Ryerson, ryerson university, Sanfaçon, Saskatchewan, schedule, school, School Guidance Counselors, schools, September, Sri Lanka, stage, standard, standing, state, strength, student, study, success, system, teaching, Technology, Top Canadian Universities, toronto, tour, Tour Director, Tour Organizers, turn, U.K, undergraduate, universite, University, University Admission, University Campuses, US, vancouver, Waterloo, workshop, world, xii, year, york

Indian NGOs want Malay Govt. to save Indian Studies Dept at University of Malaya

August 18, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), Aug 18(ANI): A group of India-based Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) have expressed their wish for the Malaysian Government to intervene in the controversy surrounding the Indian Studies Department (ISD) at the University of Malaya, to solve the issues immediately.

According to reports, a meeting was also organised by the Tamil Foundation in Kuala Lumpur to talk about means to save the department.

Spokesperson for the group, S. Arumugam said that their goal is to ensure that the department remained intact, and not be absorbed into another newly formed department, The Star online reports.

The ISD has been tangled in a leadership crisis of late, and in a recent scandal misconduct was found in the marking of PhD thesis papers where several undeserving students were awarded with first class honours degrees.

Earlier, a heated argument was also reported among the teaching staff, citing appointment of a non-Indian head of the department. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: ANI, appointment, argument, Aug, class, Class Honours, controversy, crisis, department, Dept, first-class, Foundation, Goal, Government, Governmental, govt, group, head, India, india based, Indian, ISD, Kuala Lumpur, kuala lumpur malaysia, leadership, Leadership Crisis, Malay, Malaya, Malaysia, malaysian government, meeting, misconduct, ngos, non, non governmental organisations, Online, organisations, PhD, Phd Thesis, S. Arumugam, scandal, spokesperson, staff, star, tamil, teaching, teaching staff, thesis, Thesis Papers, University, university malaya, University Of Malaya, University Of Malaya Kuala Lumpur

USINPAC calls Shahrukh Khan incident a teaching moment

August 18, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, Aug.18 (ANI): The US India Political Action Committee (USINPAC) has termed the questioning and checking of Bollywood superstar Shahrukh Khan at the Newark International Airport in New Jersey as a teaching moment, and while lauding immigration officials for their professionalism, has demanded fair treatment to all tourists and visitors.

USINPAC chairman Sanjay Puri said: “We commend the Department of Homeland Security for protecting our homeland. United States has not suffered a single terror attack after 9/11, and that is a testament to their efforts. But fair treatment for tourists and visitors based on their race, religion or national origin and protecting our homeland are not mutually exclusive and in fact are part of the ethos of what makes the United States a magnet for people seeking freedom and opportunity. President Obama in Cairo talked about a new beginning with Muslims around the world. One of the quickest paths towards that goal is fair treatment for visitors to the United States of different religious faiths.”

USINPAC National Security Coordinator, Manish Thakur added: “These kinds of incidents heighten the need for racial sensitivity. The reaction in India should be seen in the same light as the outcry in this country after the arrest of prominent African American Harvard scholar, Henry Louis Gates at his home.

President Obama called that a teaching moment for the country on race relations and maybe this can turn into a teaching moment as it relates to fair treatment of visitors to the United States.”

USINPAC is the political voice of 2.7 million Indian-Americans and provides bipartisan support to candidates for federal, state and local office who support the issues that are important to the Indian-American community. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: action, african, airport, American, ANI, arrest, attack, Aug, beginning, Bipartisan Support, bollywood, Cairo, chairman, committee, community, coordinator, country, department, department of homeland security, ethos, fact, Freedom, Goal, harvard, Harvard Scholar, henry louis gates, home, Home President, homeland, immigration, Immigration Officials, incident, India, Indian, international, khan, light, Local Office, magnet, manish, Manish Thakur, moment, national, need, New Jersey, Newark, newark international airport, Obama, office, opportunity, origin, outcry, part, political, political action committee, Political Voice, President Obama, professionalism, Race, race relations, Racial Sensitivity, reaction, religion, religious faiths, sanjay puri, scholar, security, Security Coordinator, sensitivity, shahrukh, Shahrukh Khan, state, superstar, support, teaching, terror, terror attack, Testament, thakur, treatment, United States, USINPAC, voice, Washington, world

UK primary school creates extra classroom in decommissioned aircraft

July 16, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, July 16 (ANI): An England-based primary school, which asked its pupils to come up with ideas for a new outdoor classroom, now has one in the form of a decommissioned commercial aeroplane.

The winged classroom, a refurbished Short S-360, is believed to be the first of its kind in the world, and students at Kingsland Primary School in Bucknall, Stoke-on-Trent, checked in for class in the aircraft for the first time on July 15.

Since its arrival at the school in March, the airliner has been transformed into a flexible teaching space, fitted with interactive whiteboards and laptops and complete with pull-down numbered seats and desks.

Headteacher David Lawrence said that staff at the school had invited pupils to offer ideas for a new outdoor classroom, and an aircraft was one of many quirky suggestions, with a tree house and a castle amongst other structures mooted.

Pupils were also involved in the interior design of the aircraft, in a project dubbed “The King’s Wings” by the school.

“When we realised we needed an extra classroom we asked the children what they wanted and one little boy said an aeroplane so we went and found one and have effectively recycled it to create the world’s first flying classroom,” the Telegraph quoted Lawrence a saying.

The 72ft (22m) long aircraft was lowered into position in the school grounds by a crane.

“What you’re seeing today is the end of 15 months worth of work,” Lawrence said.

“It would have been scrapped so we’ve rescued the aeroplane, which is also what the children thought was important because of the agenda for conservation and things like that.

“The children were talking about powering some of the inside of it with solar panels, and that could be something we develop later,” he revealed.

The headteacher said he was not worried that pupils might be distracted by the novelty of sitting down to lessons in an aeroplane.

“The day it came were really really excited and today they’re really excited because they’ve seen it for the first time and they really want to do lessons in there,” he said.

He said it was “such a buzz” for the children, and much more interesting than lessons in a portable cabin.

“In a couple of weeks it will just be part and parcel of what we do in school. So it’ll be, instead of having a lesson in the hall or the ICT room, it will be lessons in the aeroplane,” he said.

“The children’s imagination has been fired up by the idea and they are enthused and motivated, we are sure that this will lead to improved attendance, give us better and more opportunities for our creative curriculum and raise attainment,” he added. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: 15 months, aeroplane, agenda, aircraft, airliner, ANI, arrival, attainment, attendance, boy, Bucknall, buzz, cabin, castle, class, classroom, conservation, couple, crane, curriculum, David Lawrence, day, design, desks, end, England, England-based, Extra Aircraft, form, hall, Headteacher, house, ict, idea, imagination, Interactive Whiteboards, Interior Design, July, kind, king, Kingsland, Laptops, lawrence, lesson, London, March, novelty, Outdoor Classroom, parcel, part, position, project, pupils, Refurbished, room, school, short, solar panels, something, space, staff, Stoke-on, stoke-on-trent, teaching, Telegraph, time, today, tree, Tree House, U.K, Uk Primary School, wings, work, world, worth

Malay Tamil, Chinese educationists keen to teach science, math in mother tongue

July 10, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Petaling Jaya (Malaysia), July 9 (ANI): Both Tamil and Chinese educationists have welcomed the Cabinet’s decision to revert the teaching of science and mathematics to one’s mother tongue in vernacular schools.

Dong Zong (United Chinese School Committees Association of Malaysia) president Dr Yap Sin Tian said the use of English had brought about negative effects on students.

Dr Yap said Dong Zong welcomed the decision to increase the number of hours for the teaching of English but it also hoped that more time would be allocated for Chinese classes.

Jiao Zong (the United Chinese School Teachers Association of Malaysia) chairman Ong Chiow Chuen said Chinese schools were ready to use Chinese for both subjects as early as next year as it had been going bilingual in its teaching thus far.

Malaysian Indian Congress education bureau chairman, Dr. T. Marimuthu, said the decision was good as it reflected the sentiments at roundtable discussions.

“The majority of Tamil school headmasters supported the teaching of mathematics and science in English in 2002 because many scientific terms and reports are in English.

The Star quoted National Tamil Headmasters’ Association general-secretary Muthiah Sithambaram, as saying that the decision would not bring things to a standstill. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: ANI, association, bureau, cabinet, chairman, Chinese, Chinese Classes, chinese school, Chinese Schools, Chiow, Chuen, Congress, decision, dong, Dr Yap, Dr. T. Marimuthu, Education, education bureau, english, general secretary, Headmasters, Indian, jaya, Jiao, July, majority, Malay, Malaysia, malaysian indian congress, math, mathematics, mother, mother tongue, Muthiah, national, number, Ong, Petaling, president, president dr, revert, Roundtable Discussions, school, School Committees, school teachers, Science, Science In English, Science Math, sentiments, sin, Sithambaram, standstill, star, tamil, Teachers Association, teaching, teaching of english, Tian, time, tongue, united, use, vernacular, Yap, year, Zong

What makes good teachers even better

July 8, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 8 (ANI): The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) in the UK has made some findings as to what makes good teachers even better.

Professor Christopher Day, Professor Pam Sammons and Dr Alison Kington at the School of Education University of Nottingham carried out the two-year Effective Classroom Practice (ECP) at the School of Education University of Nottingham from 2006-2008.

Lead researcher Prof. Day believes that the research provides a unique picture of the more effective teacher.

“More effective teachers create a positive climate for learning by challenging pupils’ ideas, inspiring them, being more innovative in their practice and differentiating amongst pupils according to their abilities and interests where appropriate,” says Prof. Day.

That, according to the researcher, means: “Pupils have more control over and engagement in their learning and more opportunities for success.”

Based on their findings, the researchers have come to the conclusion that the best teachers are not necessarily those with the most experience.

They say that the best teachers are the ones with enthusiasm for their work, high aspirations for the success of every pupil, positive relations, high motivation, commitment and resilience.

They further say that combining good knowledge of their subject and teaching practice and providing support tailored to the individual needs of each child, these teachers focus on building self esteem, engendering trust and maintaining respect.

The two-year study involved 81 teachers (45 primary and 36 secondary), 38 head teachers and 3,000 pupils and included a series of teacher and pupil questionnaires, observations of classroom practice and post-observation tools to allow in-depth probing of issues relating to data strands, such as teacher effectiveness, leadership issues, teacher identity, professional life phase and teacher efficacy.

“By including the collection and analysis of different kinds of observational data it was possible to get below the surface to reveal the interactions between classroom practice, teacher characteristics, professional life phase, school contexts and effectiveness as defined by pupils’ context value added scores which take account of prior learning and a range of socio economic factors, together with teacher and pupil perceptions of effectiveness,” Prof. Day explained.

The main impact relating to teaching practice has been for training and development purposes. The research points to the importance of providing teachers in service with structured, regular opportunities to reflect on their roles and classroom practices and learn from examples of best practice in a variety of school and classroom settings.

It points to the value of classroom observation and feedback as part of this process. (ANI)

Filed Under: Entertainment News Tagged With: account, Analysis, ANI, building, child, classroom, climate, collection, commitment, conclusion, context, control, Council, Development, Dr Alison Kington, economic, ecp, Education, effective, effectiveness, efficacy, engagement, enthusiasm, Esrc, esteem, experience, feedback, head, identity, impact, importance, July, knowledge, leadership, life, motivation, nottingham, observation, Observational, part, phase, picture, practice, process, Prof. Day, Professor Christopher Day, Professor Pam Sammons, pupil, pupils, range, Research, researcher, resilience, respect, school, self, series, service, social, socio, study, success, support, surface, teacher, teaching, training, trust, U.K, University, value, variety, Washington, work

Bikaner STC Education Results ~ STC Results Study ~ Bikaner Seva Purva Shikshak STC Results and Marks

July 6, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Bikaner STC Education Results ~ STC Results Study ~ Bikaner Seva Purva Shikshak STC Results and Marks

Bikaner District Institute of Education and Training (Seva Purva Shikshak Prashishan) has declared 2nd year Senior Teaching Certificate (STC) results 2008.

These results are available on following Link -

http://www.rajasthanpatrika.com/result-2009/pdf/stc%20results.pdf

Best of Luck !!!

Filed Under: Educational News Tagged With: 20results, 2nd, available, best, Best Of Luck, bikaner, Bikaner Results, Bikaner Seva Purva Shikshak, Bikaner Seva Purva Shikshak STC Results, Bikaner STC Results, certificate, com, declared, district, District Institute Of Education And Training, Education, Education And Training, Education Results, education training, following, institute, institute of education, marks, PDF, Prashishan, Purva, Rajasthanpatrika, Rajasthanpatrika Com, Result 2009, results, Senior, Senior Teaching Certificate, Seva, Shikshak, STC, STC Results, study, teaching, Teaching Certificate, training

Dalai Lama’s special teaching session on Buddhism

June 27, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Dharamshala, June 24 (ANI): Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama on Wednesday started a two-day special teaching session for Buddhist students in Dharamsala.

Thousands of Buddhist students from across the world gathered at the Tibetan Children Villa School for the teachings on the text of thirty-seven practices of Bodhisattvas.

“We are very happy to gather here. All the Tibetan youngsters are here so we could learn something on Buddhist (Buddhism),” said Tenzin Namgyal, a Tibetan student.

Many Buddhist monks and nuns and other local people also gathered to attend teachings of the spiritual leader.

Tibetans believe that Dalai Lama follows a different approach to teaching and explains basics of everything.

“This is very important particularly the approach his holiness takes is very different. And this is very much in tune with audience here. He is putting everything in perspective, not just going about the traditional way of explaining things. But rather really touching on the very basics of it and then making sense of everything that he teaches. And thereby making them get the essence of Buddha teaching which is to bring about a positive transformation in their mentality,” said Damdul Namgyal, a monk.

Dharamsala, which is also called ‘Little Tibet’, is home to thousands of Tibetans who found a new haven to preserve their unique faith, culture and identity.

Tibetan exiles are protesting around the world by reviving the spirit of the Tibetan national uprising of 1959, engaging in non-violent direct action, to end China’s occupation of Tibet.

An estimated 134,000 Tibetans live in exile, a majority of them in India and Nepal. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: action, ANI, approach, audience, Bodhisattvas, buddha, buddhism, buddhist, buddhist monks and nuns, Buddhist Students, children, China, culture, Dalai, dalai lama, Damdul, Dharamsala, dharamshala, essence, everything, exile, faith, haven, holiness, home, identity, India, June, lama, leader, Little, Little Tibet, majority, mentality, monk, monks and nuns, Namgyal, National Uprising, Nepal., New Haven, occupation, perspective, Reviving The Spirit, school, sense, session, something, spirit, spiritual, student, teaching, Tenzin, text, tibet, Tibetan, Tibetan Children, tibetan exiles, tibetan spiritual leader, Tibetans, transformation, tune, uprising, villa, way, Wednesday, world, youngsters

Rural girls in Ludhiana drawn to professional education

June 20, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Ludhiana, June 19 (ANI): Several girls belonging to rural parts of Ludhiana are eager to gain self-reliance and lead a professional’s life.

A college here has given them a hope that they can realise such a dream and for this it has opened many new courses which can be joined just after matriculation.

Home science, a holistic field of study, aims at improving the quality of life of families. In Ludhiana, it is empowering girls and enabling them to be professionals and self-employed entrepreneurs.

Established in 1966, the College of Home Science at the Punjab Agricultural University in Ludhiana has been empowering girls. With 305 students enrolled, it offers a number of study programmes with different levels and streams of education.

Girls from rural areas are eligible to join it after secondary education for one-year Diploma Course in Fashion designing, Interior Decoration, Management of Creche and Nursery Schools.

After completing their matriculation, they can take certificate courses in’Souvenirs and Handicarfts’ and Child Care.

“I believe that it is very necessary for women to be independent. Nowadays there are no government jobs. If we can learn and use fashion technology, we can stand on our feet. After getting a fashion designing certificate you can start your own unit and can earn handsomely,” said Baljinder Kaur, a student.

Keeping in view that many rural areas do not have adequate infrastructure and facilities to offer quality programmes of study at their level, the College has recently changed its admission criteria for B.SC (Hons.) Home Science six-year-programme.

Candidates can now enrol themselves after matriculation and this presents better opportunities for rural candidates.

The College has modified its curriculum and added new courses like convenience and health foods and apparel industry management.

It has certainly helped the rural girls by increasing their competence to work in the private sector.

“Being a girl also it has lots of benefit because tomorrow we are going to be the homemakers. So it is going to be really beneficial otherwise also since girls are striding forward in their career this is a very good option it is related to there household work also and gives them a good option to work,” said Jas Keerth, a student.

“Along with agriculture, development of rural families is very important and its main mandate is to improve the quality of the life of women. Be it in the form of giving residents instructions through teaching of various courses or taking up community directed research programmes, then extending the knowledge of teaching as well as research to farm families,” said Dr. Neelam Grewal, Dean of the College of Home Science, Panjab Agricultural University.

Ludhiana-based Anita is one of the many successful women who have graduated from the College of Home Science. After completion of one year Diploma Course in Fashion Designing in 2002, Anita launched her own fashion brand ‘Venenzians’. By Karan Kapoor (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: adequate infrastructure, admission, Admission Criteria, agricultural, Agriculture, ANI, Anita, apparel, Apparel Industry, B.Sc, Baljinder, Being A Girl, benefit, brand, candidates, care, career, certificate, Certificate Courses, child, college, community, competence, completion, convenience, course, crèche, curriculum, dean, decoration, Designing, Development, diploma, Diploma Course, Dr. Neelam Grewal, dream, Education, Empowering Girls, enrol, fashion, Fashion Technology, field, form, Girl, girls, Government, government jobs, Handicarfts, Health, Health Foods, Holistic Field, home, Home Science, Hons, hope, household, industry, Industry Management, Infrastructure, interior, interior decoration, Jas Keerth, June, kapoor, karan, kaur, knowledge, level, life, ludhiana, Ludhiana-based, management, mandate, matriculation, nowadays, number, nursery, Nursery Schools, option, Panjab, professional, Professional Education, Punjab, Punjab Agricultural University, quality, realise, Research, rural, schools, Science, sector, self reliance, souvenirs, student, study, teaching, Technology, tomorrow, unit, University, Venenzians, view, work, year