Winners of the second edition of Best Chemistry Teachers Awards organised by Tata Chemicals Ltd in association with the Association of Chemistry Teachers and Confederation of Indian Industry were felicitated in Delhi on November 15 by Dr. Shashi Tharoor, Union minister of state for higher education and Bharat Wakhlu, resident director, Tata Sons.

Instituted last year to commemorate the United Nations’ International Year of Chemistry 2011, the second year awards received overwhelming response from chemistry teachers countrywide whose contributions to the science were  adjudged by an eminent jury comprising renowned scientists, professionals, technologists and academics.

The winners in the four award categories were: Dr. Umesh Chandra Jain, Simpkins School, Agra (class XI/XII and equivalent); Prof. Anshu Dandia, University of Rajasthan, Jaipur (bachelor’s degree and equivalent); Prof. Chitta Ranjan Sinha, Jadavpur (Masters degree and above) and Dr. Keshav Annappa Bulbule, KLE Society’s Nijalingappa College, Rajajinagar, Bangalore, (promotion of chemistry as a subject).
Speaking on the occasion, R. Mukundan, managing director of Tata Chemicals said: “We are delighted with the overwhelming response to the Best Chemistry Teacher Awards this year. These teachers are responsible for moulding young minds and shaping their future in the field of chemistry. We’re very pleased these awards have been well received by the education fraternity.’’

EduSports health & fitness survey

The 3rd edition of the Edusports School Health and Fitness Survey conducted by EduSports — India’s largest school sports and physical education company — covering 49,046 children in the age group seven-17 years in 104 schools in 54 cities across 18 states, indicates that measured on the parameters of endurance, anaerobic capacity/explosive power, flexibility, body strength (upper, lower, abdominal) and BMI (body mass index), fitness levels are plunging and obesity is on the rise.

Children in the age group 10-13 years had higher incidence of overweight/obese BMI compared to other children in the sample (22.84 percent overweight/obese vs. 18.6 percent among other children). Moreover, children in non-metros (17,775 children in 46 non-metro cities and towns) performed better across a range of fitness parameters compared with their counterparts in the metros (9,688 children in eight cities — Delhi/NCR, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Kolkata, Pune and Ahmedabad).

EduSports spokespersons attribute poor physical fitness and rising obesity to lack of basic sporting skills, unhealthy eating habits (junk and processed foods) and sedentary entertainment options available to children (television, internet and video games) which puts an entire generation of children at risk of growing into unhealthy and inactive adults.

“It has been proved that with just two-three hours of a focused physical education programme per week, it is possible to effect small but significant change. It’s time the focus of sports in schools moved from competition among the best, to include all children especially those in primary schools who are most neglected. PE sessions will then become enjoyable for children and skills and fitness will follow,” says Saumil Majmudar, chief executive and co-founder of EduSports Pvt. Ltd.

Pearson launches MX Touch

The London-based Pearson Plc, arguably the world’s largest education company, announced the launch of a new tablet-based education solution for schools in India. The MX Touch platform unveiled in Bangalore on November 5, promises a larger number of school children access to more effective, personalised and collaborative digital learning with rich digital content, 3D animations, quizzes and videos, according to a Pearson Plc spokesperson.

“MX Touch is a flexible combination of graded content and exciting new digital resources. Its assessment module personalises learning and analyses progress. It lightens the schoolbag as the textbooks are now digital. With MX Touch, we bring to India the best of our global capabilities, as well as our own capabilities in content development, thereby living up to the Pearson ideal of efficacy,” said Naveen Rajlani, senior vice president and head of the schools division of Pearson Education India.

Also speaking at the launch of MX Touch, chief information officer and director, digital strategy of Pearson Plc, Genevieve Shore, commented: “The MX Touch is a great example of how Pearson is harnessing technology to improve the learning opportunities and outcomes of school children in India. We believe that if our products and services can help learning flourish, so will people.”

Khushwant Singh litfest

The picturesque hill station of Kasauli in Himachal Pradesh came alive for its first literary festival, a tribute to celebrity historian, editor and columnist Khushwant Singh (97). The Khushwant Singh Literary Festival was held from October 12-14. The event was orchestrated by former Oberoi Hotels & Times of India marketing manager Niloufer Bilimoria to celebrate Khushwant’s Singh’s literary contribution to society, and to raise awareness about the preservation of Kasauli where he has maintained his summer home Raj Villa, for over half a century.

The three-day festival was attended by an elite gathering of over 200 movers and shakers from Delhi, Mumbai and Chandigarh including politician Mani Shankar Aiyar, author Shobha De, actors Rahul Bose and Deepti Naval, journalists Bhaichand Patel, Malavika Sanghvi and Bachi Karkaria, author Ruskin Bond and songstress Sonam Kalra of the Sufi Gospel Project. Khushwant Singh’s latest book The Freethinkers Prayer Book was formally released at the fest.

Among the events staged was an essay competition for local schools sponsored by EducationWorld. Forty students submitted essays on the subject, ‘What I can do to preserve and enhance the environment of Kasauli’ with Tarun Nair of Pinegrove School winning the top cash prize of Rs.5,000. Runners-up Priyanka Rinihan of the Saraswati Niketan School and Sonali Verma (Pinegrove) were awarded generous cash prizes. Consolation prizes were also awarded to students of Kendriya Vidyalaya (Air Force Station), St. Mary’s Convent and Kasauli International Public School.