India Education Round-Up | March 2024 | India's first AI teacher, Iris, launched in a Kerala school

12 March, 2024

Serving as a primer for news articles in print/digital media, this write-up aims to share recent notable events in Indian education, inspiring educators and stakeholders to adopt best practices. It is crafted to be a valuable source of information for individuals keen on staying updated about the latest trends, events, and innovations in Indian education. By keeping abreast of these developments and incorporating best practices, we can collectively contribute to the vision of providing high-quality education at an affordable cost to everyone in India and globally.

'Quality of education of Indian nurses very high': Danish Minister on recruitment of Indian health workers in Denmark

New Delhi: Terming the quality of education of Indian nurses as "very high", visiting Danish Minister of Higher Education and Science Christina Egelund said the recruitment of Indian health workers in Denmark could be a "genuine mutual benefit" from a possible agreement between the two countries.

She also noted that the "English-speaking" nature of Indians would add to the ease of recruitment in Denmark.

Describing her India visit as "fruitful", the Danish Minister said she met the Indian Minister of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday and had the opportunity to discuss in more detail "how a possible partnership between my country Denmark and India on the recruitment and education of healthcare workers could be."

Delhi Government education budget remains highest among all states: Delhi Economic Survey

Delhi: The Delhi Government allocated the highest budget for education among all state and central governments. In the fiscal year 2022-23, 21.1% of the aggregate expenditure was dedicated to education, exceeding the national average of 13.5%, according to Delhi’s Economic Survey.

The Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) and Net Enrollment Ratio (NER) for Senior Secondary classes in Delhi surpassed the national average.

Delhi’s inflation rate was 2.81%, compared to the national rate of 5.6%, and the unemployment rate decreased from 6.3% in 2020-21 to 1.9% in 2022-23. Tax collection grew by 18%, and the city recorded a revenue surplus of 14,457 crores in 2022-23.

India's first AI teacher, Iris, launched in a Kerala school

Thiruvananthapuram: In a first in India, a school in Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram has introduced an AI teacher, Iris. The robot, based on generative AI and created by Maker Labs, is ‘poised to redefine the learning landscape’. The AI robot will push the boundaries of ‘what’s possible’ in education.

According to a DNA report, the robot can move, interact, and answer students' questions. The students are so impressed with the robot that there are zero absentees in the classes taken by the AI teacher. The robot can teach subjects from nursery to Class 12. The robot currently speaks English, Hindi, and Malayalam, and the developers plan to expand this to over 20 languages. Further, Iris can also block inappropriate content like drugs and violence.

UGC grants graded academic and administrative autonomy to 8 universities

New Delhi: The University Grants Commission (UGC) has granted autonomy to eight universities, including Delhi University, giving them different degrees of freedom and flexibility in academic and administrative decision-making.

The notice has been issued on the UGC's official website. Four universities have received Category 1 autonomy, and four universities have received Category 2 autonomy. These universities are the Central University of Rajasthan (category 1), Central Sanskrit University (category 1), University of Delhi (category 1), Central University of South Bihar (category 1), University of Hyderabad (category 2), Maulana Azad National Urdu University (category 2), Central University of Punjab, Bathinda (category 2), and Central University of Himachal Pradesh (category 2).

These universities will remain within the ambit of UGC. Still, they will have the freedom to start new courses, off-campus centres, skill development courses, research parks, and any other new academic programs.

Now, final-year UG students can pursue 4th year to bag an honours degree

New Delhi: In a significant step, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has announced that all third—or final-year undergraduate (UG) students enrolled under the choice-based credit system (CBCS) can extend another year to bag an honours or research degree. However, these students will have to pick a college with a postgraduate centre to pursue the fourth year and will also have to sign up for a bridge course, which will be decided by the respective university, to streamline their transition, a UGC circular said.

M Jagadesh Kumar, UGC chairman, said, “Students currently enrolled in and actively pursuing a UG programme under CBCS are eligible for a four-year programme. The respective university may offer bridge courses, either online or offline, to facilitate their smooth transition into the extended programme.”

This provision, Kumar said, is essential to ensure existing students can fully avail the benefits of the four-year UG programme. “Over 200 universities have successfully implemented the four-year UG programme, leveraging their robust PG programme and research facilities. Consequently, these universities are encouraged to motivate enrolled students to extend their studies to the fourth year.”

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The views and opinions expressed in this blog do not necessarily represent those of QS-ERA India Private Limited and/or its employees, partners, shareholders, or other stakeholders.