Comments on: Chalo Dilli

By: Shyamala

Shyamala — Fri, 09 Sep 2005 06:43:33 +0000

Hi,
I think its a great idea. I am currently working towards a Masters in Distance Education (doing it completely online). If I can be of any use to your ideas on education of the rural population through ICTs, please let me know.
Meanwhile good luck with HUDCO.
There is also going to be an ICDE in New Delhi in November. See http://www.ignou.ac.in/icde2005/ignou.htm

By: Suhail Kazi

Suhail Kazi — Fri, 09 Sep 2005 02:51:23 +0000

Hi Atanu,
Have a nice trip. Wish you the best on your talks and presentations. However I am not too sure of technology totally replacing labour(if that is what your paper proposes). Will go read it before commenting on it further.

By: Pankaj

Pankaj — Thu, 08 Sep 2005 17:13:33 +0000

Hi Atanu,

One cannot disagree with your idea of ICT. I hope it becomes a reality. I went through some of your posts on education and I think {although not very sure} that you give a great deal of stress on mathematical and analytical abilities.

My own belief is that to create an educated and enlightened India, the primary and the most important stress should be on the Humanities. Reading ability is directly connected to the creation of intelligence and an attitude of learning. With ICT, one can develop tools that enables the reading ability in a child over a sustained period of six to eight years.

One starts with basic reading and once endowed with reading abilities, the child can be introduced to texts containing complex ideas. After a sustained training period through ICT tools, the individual would come to a state of natural growth and become capable of finding his own way in life.

I had this idea and wanted to share it with you because it reflects the common experience of 0.001% of Indians, i.e., those Indians who have been lucky enough to be born in conducive circumstances and get a good education.

Good education has endowed a small % of Indians with reading ability and this is how we can slowly, gradually, through the process of years, come to certain amount of maturity and understanding about ourselves and the world and become discerning individuals.

By: Jyoti Iyer

Jyoti Iyer — Wed, 07 Sep 2005 13:49:19 +0000

Hi Atanu,

I have been ruminating on your idea of education since you published it a few months ago and I think it could have very far reaching consequences – the public-private partnership. It would definitely be a leg up to the current pathetic system that has been in use for the past 50 years.

Cheers

By: Prasanna

Prasanna — Wed, 07 Sep 2005 12:01:53 +0000

Yep, good teachers are expensive – and very, very scarce.
Most people think Indian higher-education is very high-class and all that but its the pits, especially in sunrise areas.

Its great to see work being done on ICT as a medium to cut some of the shortage.

Some universities like the Anna of TN, and Visveswaraya(VTU) of Karnataka are more focussed at getting students off their jeans and cellphones than in critical issues.

By: Sahil

Sahil — Tue, 06 Sep 2005 21:12:20 +0000

Thanks for the refresher on resource allocation! Have a safe — and hopefully fruitful — journey to the capital.

By: rubbersoul

rubbersoul — Tue, 06 Sep 2005 20:15:12 +0000

hey, it was really interesting to read your post, because the use of ICT in education is something I’ve been working on too, I’d made a brief presentation on it at a UN-Habitat seminar a few months ago.

I had been working on a networked online testing system (like the computer based GRE tests) as part of my internship, which really showed me the potential for technology in education…

I’d like to hear more about your conference, so do keep this updated. thanks