Project
Number: 2005-004-1-050
Title: Flying chemists program - 2005 visit to India
Task Group
Chairman: K.V. Sane
Members: Jawaharlal
Dhar, Seema Jerath,
Rakesh Khullar, and
N.K. Uberoi
Remark: The Flying Chemists Program (FCP) is a new activity
of the CCE Subcommittee on Chemistry Education for Development (CED).
The aim is to provide emerging countries means to improve the teaching
and learning of chemistry at primary, secondary, and tertiary levels.
more
Completion Date: 2005 - project completed
Objective:
The one week program for the two visitors will include seminars and
discussions with academics, industrial houses and government agencies
to identify viable strategies for
- professional development of in-service and pre-service teachers
through the design of an internet-linked strategy which will equip
a chemistry teacher with some specific skills needed today to become
an effective teacher
- promoting student interest through a discovery- based approach catalyzed
by the skills acquired by teachers participating in the professional
development program.
Description:
For this first project under the FCP, Prof. Peter Atkins and Prof. Ram
Lamba will make a visit to India in 2005.
Discussions with Prof. Peter Atkins and Prof. Ram Lamba during their
visit to Delhi in early 2004 surveyed several areas of chemical education.
The proposed visit in 2005 will focus on
- curriculum development
- development of new assessment tools
- design and implementation of hands-on experiences at all levels
of chemistry education
- promote partnerships among universities, universities and industries,
and universities, industries and governments
- develop self-learning and self- assessment approaches based on state-of-art
technological tools
- create international and intra-national networks for real and virtual
partnerships for sharing and monitoring innovative practices
- Procurement of seed funds from national, regional and international
sources for pilot-testing of the sustainability aspect of a few key
innovations.
A particularly encouraging aspect of the visit last year was the contact
with Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam - the President of the Republic of India.
Dr. Kalam is not only a technologist of international repute but he
is also an ardent supporter of the role of education in development
as shown by the following excerpt of his book India 2020: A vision
for the new millennium: A developed India, by 2020 or even
earlier, is not a dream. It need not be even a mere aspiration in the
minds of many Indians. It is a mission we can all take up and accomplish.
Igniting young minds, we feel, are a powerful resource. The resource
is mightier than any other resource on the earth, in the sky and under
the sea. We must work together to transform our 'developing India' into
a 'developed India' and the revolution required for the effort must
start in our minds....
Since there is a need for enhancing the creative and inspirational
component in the teaching-learning process all over the world, the Presidential
remark implies that India is likely to provide a fertile territory to
CCE for pilot scale experimentation with innovative approaches.
Progress:
Sep 2005 - A visit for Profs. Atkins and Lamba was organized
mid July 2005. The academic program comprised of lectures, Workshops
and interactive sessions held at two different venues during the week
of July 18. The audience included teachers, Principals, and School management.
Organization of the program was handled by the DAV College Management
Society and the Gujarat Education Society. (The two societies have a
network of over 600 schools/colleges all over India.) .
The Task Group Chairman met the visitors on July 23 to formulate the
FCP follow-up. The title Capacity Building Project (CBP) was chosen
as it seems well suited to express the objective of the follow-up project.
It was decided that CBP should not only include the key parts of this
FCP but also relevant portions of the e-quiz and the micro-scale proposals.
The CBP is an attempt to revitalize the teaching-learning process through
an e-cooperative formed by teachers for teachers. The feedback form
the stake holders suggested that such consolidation would be useful
for operational convenience. Plans for the implementation of such CBP
were discussed.
project completed
Last update: 23 September 2005
<project description published in
Chem.
Int Jan-Feb
2006, p. 24>
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