The Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) recently declared the December 2011 Term-End Examination (TEE) results.

A record 4,17,047 students appeared for 2,045 courses at 803 examination centres.

The last exam for December 2011 session concluded on December 29, 2011. As per the ordinance, the exam results are meant to be declared within the stipulated time period of 45 days.

Evaluators were drawn from prestigious institutions across the country and IGNOU faculty members were involved in the evaluation work.

The university had decentralised the evaluation work to seven evaluation centres established in different parts of the country. Different measures were taken up in order to gear up the system. Keeping this in view, the university extended the Scheme of Spot Evaluation to evaluation centres across India. The evaluation of answer scripts was monitored by the senior faculty members, directors and examination committee/standing committee in order to meet the deadline.

The evaluation centres tied-up with local reputed educational institutions/ universities for evaluation of the answer scripts in their premises. Continuous flow of result data was possible with the help of computer personnel who were involved in the data processing in the Student Evaluation Division (SED) at the headquarters.

IGNOU will open study center in Zambia soon

Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) has announced that it will soon be opening its study center in collaboration with the Zambian Open University (ZOU) in Zambia for three MBA programmes.

Collaboration in MBA programme, Master in Education Management and Educational Economics are the fields in which ZOU desires to open an IGNOU study center.

Prof. M. Aslam, Vice Chancellor, stated that though no Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed as yet but a mutual agreement has been arrived at with Prof. Dickson Mwansa, Vice Chancellor of ZOU and Mr. Bwalya Lyapa Nondo, First Secretary, Republic of Zambia.

Both the delegates visited the university headquarters in the capital to explore possibility of future collaboration with the university.

Aslam briefed them about the university through a presentation.

He apprised them with the fact that IGNOU already is functioning abroad with 82 partner institutions across 43 countries including Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

According to him, quality and sustainability is the most important criteria of collaboration with the partner institutions to spread global education in the world.

ZOU was established 14 years back with 369 students.

It is the only Open University in Zambia which now has 6000 students on its rolls. It has ten schools and to name a few, Agriculture, Performing and Visual Arts, Social Science, Law, Mathematics, Education, Continuing Education are some of them.

Create knowledge systems not learning systems: UGC Chairman

The Indira Gandhi National Open University's (IGNOU's), New Delhi Staff Training and Research Institute of Distance Education (STRIDE) concluded its 21 days Refresher Programme in Distance Education at the University headquarters in the capital. Prof. Ved Prakash, Chairman of the University Grants Commission (UGC) delivered the valedictory address.

Prof. Prakash in his address expressed that most of the institutions fall in the category of learning systems and not knowledge systems. Harping upon the need to create new knowledge he felt that research and teaching are two distinct activities today and are rarely used together.

Feeling the need to redefine the educational needs he said that it is only the mechanism which separates distance and conventional education. However, if we want to transit from developing to developed nations then the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) must be increased.

He brought forward the present educational scenario in the country wherein 20 million learners are pursuing education through conventional system and 4.6 million through distance mode. According to him, IGNOU shares 90 percent of the figure. "We would like to increase the enrolment from 20 to 30 million in conventional system and 4.6 million to 6.6 million in distance mode of education. It is only then we can say that we have arrived at 30 percent GER," he emphatically added.

Realising that GER is just one of the parameters he said that we have to induct these 36.6 million students to their streams by creating opportunities in cognizance with the accelerated change.

Prof. M. Aslam, Vice Chancellor, IGNOU, in his presidential address brought forward the need to overcome the barriers that have been created between the conventional and distance education system which are in fact complementary to each other. He also announced that the University shall soon be establishing its study centre in Zambian Open University for three MBA programmes.

Dr. Leena Singh, one of the participants felt that such kind of training programmes should be made mandatory for all distance educators. "It was not a refreshing exercise but an experience. Whole gamut of topics like mobile learning, online learning multimedia applications etc. were covered with a good interactive session. We learn how to make audio and video programmes for distance learners. Now we can develop our own DVDs with educational content," she eagerly shared her experience.

Prof. C. R. K. Murthy, programme coordinator, IGNOU presented a brief history and report of the programme. Prof. Basanti Pradhan, Director, STRIDE, IGNOU, Prof. Santosh Panda, Professor of Distance Education, STRIDE, IGNOU and Dr. R. Satyanarayana, Programme Coordinator were also present during the valedictory session.

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