Khan Academy (India, estb. 2016), the Delhi-based subsidiary of the globally acclaimed Khan Academy, USA, has aligned the maths library containing thousands of videos, exercises and commentaries of its parent not-for-profit company to the classes V-XII syllabus of the Delhi-based Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) — India’s largest national school-leaving examinations board with 18,635 affiliated primary-secondary schools. 

“With this alignment with the CBSE syllabus, students who have missed a class or are confused about a concept can go to the relevant chapter directly and learn from a Khan Academy video. Students consistently say that the simple, to the point and friendly style of these videos makes even the most confusing concepts easy to grasp and an enjoyable experience,” says Sandeep Bapna, the Delhi-based CEO of Khan Academy (India).

According to Bapna, the vast majority of Indians access the Internet through low-cost smartphones and to help them learn anywhere anytime, Khan Academy has made all its content including videos and exercises available on its Android app. “The app has over 250,000 Indian students already using it and this number is growing rapidly as the awareness about this great free resource spreads,” adds Bapna. 

 

NPSC’s 44th convention

The theme of the 44th National Progressive Schools Conference (NPSC, estb. 1973) 2017, convened in Delhi’s India International Centre on February 16-17, was ‘Schools of Tomorrow… the Tomorrow of Schools’. Over 300 promoters, principals and senior teachers of 160 CBSE-affiliated schools in Delhi NCR (national capital region) and 11 states, attended the two-day conference. 

Dr. Anant Agarwal, professor of electrical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston and CEO of edX — the world’s largest online higher education learning platform promoted by MIT and Harvard University — was the chief guest, Prof. C. Rajkumar of Jindal University, Sonepat, Delhi NCR was the keynote speaker and Dr. Yajulu Medury, vice chancellor of Bennett University, Greater Noida, the guest of honour.

“Our 44th national conference was a great success and provided our principals and delegates valuable insights on the shape of things to come in education and Indian society. The excellent keynote addresses inspired our member-delegates to prepare students of our schools for the challenges of promoting peace and environmental sustainability in the increasingly complex inter-connected world of the 21st century,” says Ashok Pandey, principal of Delhi’s Ahlcon International School and chairman of NPSC.

 

KPIT Sparkle 2017 winners

The Pune-based KPIT Technologies Ltd, a global technology company specialising in IT consulting and product engineering, announced the winners of its KPIT Sparkle 2017 national design and innovation contest for engineering and science students on February 20. The theme of the competition in this edition was Smart Cities, and required participating students to ideate solutions for civic transportation and infrastructure using technology. The 35 shortlisted teams exhibited their solutions through working prototypes at a grand finale held on February 18-19, at the Deccan College, Pune. 

The winners of KPIT Sparkle 2017 are: Team AlphaGears of the Mangalore Institute of Technology and Engineering, awarded the Platinum prize of Rs.10 lakh for a frictionless gear transmission system for vehicles using polymagnets; and Team Robo-X-Prime from the R.C. Patel Institute of Technology, Shirpur, Maharashtra won the Gold prize for developing an inspection robot for power transmission lines. 

In addition, silver prizes were awarded to Team Robo-Climb from the College of Engineering, Pune (COEP); Team Traffic Eye from BITS, Pilani, with a special prize for KIIT, Bhubaneswar. 

“Our heartiest congratulations to the winners and all participating students for their passion and enthusiasm in coming up with ideas that have the potential to radically change the way our cities function,” said Ravi Pandit, co-founder, chairman & group CEO of KPIT. 

 

Education New Zealand scholarships

The New Zealand government announced a fresh round of Commonwealth Scholarships for Indian students aspiring to study at academic institutions in New Zealand in 2018. The scholarships were announced in Mumbai on February 14. 

Scholarships are available for Masters (one-two years) and Ph D (three-four years) degrees in New Zealand’s eight world-class universities, ranked among the Top 3 percent globally by QS World University Rankings 2017-18. Scholarships are available for a range of subjects including renewable energy, agriculture development, disaster risk management, education and public/private sector management. The application deadline is March 30. 

“Scholarship recipients will get to experience New Zealand’s world-class education system which encourages independent and analytical thinking. The academic and practical skills they gain will equip them to compete in any marketplace worldwide, and contribute to the development of their home countries,” said John Laxon, Education New Zealand’s regional director for south and South-east Asia and the Middle East, speaking on the occasion.