The Ultimate Sports Quiz is for school teams across India with nine preliminary rounds and three semifinal rounds. The form of this quiz is inspired by the Olympic motto of ‘Citius, Altius, Fortius’. Therefore, the quiz is designed to test the depth and breadth of the participants’ knowledge, as well as the speed with which they recall the information. Tailormade for the Gen Z audience, snippets of the show being aired on Sony Sports Network, and other digital OTT platforms have made for engaging social media content.

Twenty-seven schools from 22 cities across the country competed for the Ultimate Sports Quiz 2022 Champions Trophy. Students from prestigious schools like Sunbeam School, Dhirubhai Ambani International School, Birla High School, Ira International School St. Xavier’s School, and many more, shared the platform. The USQ 2022 hosted its semifinals on July 9, July 10, and the last today, July 17.

Giving tough competition to the top schools of India, students from Sunbeam School Lahartara, Varanasi were declared the champions of The Ultimate Sports Quiz. Shashwat and Ayushman beamed with joy getting papped with cricketer and host, Harsha Bhogle.

The other winning teams were the students from Dhirubhai Ambani International School, Mumbai, and Neerja Modi School, Jaipur. The three winning teams received cash prizes of ₹35 lakhs, ₹20 lakhs, and ₹10 lakhs to be utilized towards sports infrastructure development in the schools. The National Finalists also win an all-expenses-paid trip to a sporting event of their choice anywhere in the world. The participants get a chance to claim Apple MacBooks & other prizes, besides medals and certificates, not to mention bragging rights within the student community.

ScooNews congratulates the winners and celebrates their achievement!

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My dear countrymen,

Our education, education system, education tradition have a great role in preparing the youth, who are possessed with skill and ability, and who have the spirit to do something for the country.  Today the country also has a new National Education Policy to meet the needs of the 21st century. Now our children will neither stop due to lack of skills nor will they be bound by language barriers. Unfortunately, there is a massive divide in our country regarding language. We have tied a huge talent of the country to the cage of language.  One can find promising people in their mother tongue. If people from the vernacular medium come forward, their self-confidence will grow. Justice will be done to the potential of the poor children when they will become professionals by studying in their mother tongue.

I believe that language is the instrument of the fight against poverty in the new National Education Policy.  This new National Education Policy is also going to be a great tool to fight against poverty in a way. The basis of winning the war against poverty is also the education, prestige, and importance of the vernacular language.  The country has seen this in the playground… and we are experiencing that language has not become a barrier and as a result, we have seen that the youth are playing and blossoming. Now the same thing will happen in other fields of life as well.

Another special feature of the new National Education Policy is that sports have been made a part of mainstream education instead of extra-curricular. Sports is also one of the most effective means of pursuing life. It is very important to have sports in life for perfection in life. There was a time when sports were not considered mainstream. Parents also considered indulging in sports as a wastage of life. Now, there is a new awareness about fitness and sports. We have seen and felt this in the Olympics. This change is a big turning point for us. That is why, we need to speed up and expand the campaign that is going on in the country for infusing talent, technology, and professionalism in sports.

It is a matter of pride for the country that our daughters are performing in an unprecedented manner in the fields of education, sports, Boards' results, or Olympics. Today daughters are raring to occupy their place. We must ensure that women have equal partnership in every career and workspace. We must ensure that they feel safe from roads to the workplace and everywhere. There should be a feeling of respect for them and in this, the government, administration, police, and justice system will have to perform their duty cent percent. We must make this resolution, the resolution of the 75 years of Independence.

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Today I am sharing the good news with the countrymen. I used to get lakhs of messages from our daughters that they want to study in the Sainik Schools. The Doors of the schools should be opened for them. We did a pilot project in the Sainik School of Mizoram two and a half years ago by giving admission to our daughters. Now the Government has decided that all the Sainik Schools will be open for the girls. Daughters too will study in all the Sainik Schools of the Country.

In the 21st century, no obstacle can stop us from fulfilling the dreams and aspirations of India. Our strength is our vitality, our strength is our solidarity, our vitality is the spirit of the Nation First – Always First. This is the time for shared dreams, this is the time for shared resolve, this is the time for shared efforts… and this is the time to move towards victory.

Source: Press Information Bureau, Government of India

Rapid Survey conducted by Early Childhood Association- Association for Primary Education and Research and Podar Institute of Education on- How much do I know about my nation?

It’s the month to be proud to be an Indian. It is also the month to ask ourselves, what have I done for India? And it is the month to teach our children,- India is our country and let’s be proud to carry the tri colour. As we become 75 years old, everyone should know about their country…or do we?

“Independence is no doubt a matter of joy. But let us not forget this independence has thrown on us great responsibilities. By independence, we have lost the excuse of blaming the British for anything that goes wrong. If hereafter things go wrong, we will have nobody to blame but ourselves”. – B. R. Ambedkar

These lines inspired us to find out how much does each generation knows about India?  Because if we do not know about India and its Independence then how will we be able to cherish it or work for its progress? Well,  this was the basis of our Independence day survey. We interviewed 1200 grandparents, 1200 children (age group 3 years to 8 years), and 1200 teenagers (age group 13 to 18 years).  We conducted these virtually, from June to August 2021 and we took people from almost all major states and union territories (we would not like to give those results as we do not want to create a state and political bias!).

The results were a mixed bag, the grandparents excelled in all questions, the younger children were also able to fare quite well but the teenager results were disappointing. They all had access to mobile phones, google and yet the knowledge about their own country was very limited.  Is it that nobody has taught them? Or are such things no longer part of films, television, and newspapers?

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It's time to ensure that we use days like Independence Day and Republic Day to talk to our ‘future’ about our ‘past’, the ‘past’ because of whom they are enjoying this freedom today. Our Nation, our heroes, our independence should be talked about for generations to come and not lost to the young generation. If that happens then how will we have patriotic citizens? We need to instill a sense of belonging in our citizens of today and it is our responsibility, the responsibility of each one of us and not just left to schools and colleges.

Independence day is when every  citizen should  feel goosebumps when they read or hear the lines- “At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom.”

As we enter our 75th year, it's time for all age groups to know India. Happy Independence day.

You can download the high-resolution tables (as used above) from here.

About the author:

Dr. Swati Popat Vats is the President, Podar Education Network, Early Childhood Association India and Association for Primary Education & Research. She is a widely read author and expert on parenting, early childhood, and learning methodologies.
 

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We are deeply grieved to learn that Dr. GK Swamy, founder of Purkal Youth Development Society, 84, passed away on June 11, 2021. He had surgery recently and could not survive it. Even though he has been taken away from this world, his loving heart has left behind a beacon of light for all in the community.

A man who chose not to retire after working as an economist and started his journey post-retirement as an educator by selling his only asset i.e., his flat in Mumbai, and moving permanently to a village called Purkal near Dehradun with the mission of being a positive influence and support to children from an underprivileged background.

With the motto ‘Life is for Giving’, the PYDS started off as an informal free home tutoring facility in 1998. G K Swamy sir with his unwavering faith and generosity built this school into the PYDS Learning Academy, a full-fledged CBSE affiliated school for over 435 rural children, with infrastructure at par with the best.

Video Courtesy: Rajiv Gandhi Foundation

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“Our vision for the disadvantaged children is to create leaders for change: individual, society, and global,” he would say.

He will be reverently remembered by family, friends, and the children he touched the lives of and made them walk in the right path, the path of wisdom.

We will always miss his presence.

PC: TEDxEicherSchool

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired an important meeting to discuss and deliberate on steps that can be taken to support children who have lost their parents due to Covid-19. PM announced a number of benefits to children impacted by the current COVID Pandemic. While announcing these measures the Prime Minister emphasized that children represent the future of the country and the country will do everything possible to support and protect the children so that they develop as strong citizens and have a bright future. The PM said that in such trying times it is our duty, as a society, to care for our children and instill hope for a bright future. All children who have lost both parents or surviving parents or legal guardian/adoptive parents due to Covid 19 will be supported under the ‘PM-CARES for Children’ scheme. He also added that the measures being announced have only been possible due to the generous contributions to the PM CARES Fund which will support India’s fight against COVID-19.

• Fixed Deposit in the name of the child:

PM CARES will contribute through a specially designed scheme to create a corpus of Rs 10 lakh for each child when he or she reaches 18 years of age. This corpus:

• Will be used to provide a monthly financial support/ stipend from 18 years of age, for the next five years to take care of his or her personal requirements during the period of higher education and
• On reaching the age of 23 years, he or she will get the corpus amount as one lump sum for personal and professional use.
   
• School Education: For children under 10 years
• The child will be given admission to the nearest Kendriya Vidyalaya or in a private school as a day scholar.
• If the child is admitted to a private school, the fees as per the RTE norms will be given from the PM CARES.
• PM-CARES will also pay for expenditure on uniforms, textbooks, and notebooks.
   
• School Education: for children between 11-18 years:
• The child will be given admission to any Central Government residential school such as Sainik School, Navodaya Vidyalaya, etc.
• In case the child is to be continued under the care of Guardian/ grandparents/ extended family, then he or she will be given admission in the nearest Kendriya Vidyalaya or in a private school as a day scholar.
• If the child is admitted to a private school, the fees as per the RTE norms will be given from the PM CARES.
• PM CARES will also pay for expenditure on uniforms, textbooks, and notebooks.
   
• Support for Higher Education:
• The child will be assisted in obtaining an education loan for Professional courses / Higher Education in India as per the existing Education Loan norms. The interest on this loan will be paid by the PM CARES.
• As an alternative, scholarships equivalent to the tuition fees/course fees for undergraduate/ vocational courses as per Government norms will be provided to such children under Central or State Government Schemes. For children who are not eligible under the existing scholarship schemes, PM CARES will provide an equivalent scholarship.

• Health Insurance

• All children will be enrolled as a beneficiary under Ayushman Bharat Scheme (PM-JAY) with a health insurance cover of Rs. 5 lakhs.
• The premium amount for these children till the age of 18 years will be paid by PM CARES.

Image used for representational purpose only.
This article is based on a press release that has been published as is and Team ScooNews has not edited any of the content provided.

On October 1, 2020, Dr. Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank' took to Twitter to speak to Indian students, teachers and guardians one-to-one and help clear their doubts regarding the new National Education Policy. A couple of days before the online event, he had specifically invited students to ask questions about NEP 2020.

Here are some of his tweets about the most sceptical issues that everyone in the education sector is wondering about.

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Dr. Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank,’ the Education Minister of India, informed about a Live session with Indian students on his official Twitter account, inviting them to ask him questions about the new National Education Policy 2020. He will be responding to their curious queries via his Twitter handle on 1^st October 2020, all day long. The live session will also be held on the minister’s official Facebook page.

Students, I am glad to see you all so curious about #NEPE2020!

I have gone through all your eager questions and will be dedicating one-complete day, 1st October 2020, to answer your queries on my Twitter account (@DrRPNishank).

Follow #NEPTransformingIndia to stay updated! pic.twitter.com/W5dDCfmLS9

— Dr. Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank (@DrRPNishank) September 29, 2020

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The students can ask questions using the hashtag #NEPTransformingIndia on Twitter along with tagging the minister's handle, @DrRPNishank. We think it's a great opportunity to get answers to their burning questions from the savant himself.

Dr. Pokhriyal has done similar sessions earlier as well, as he believes in relieving the learning generation of any kind of burden however he can.

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Under the central government's Kishori Shakti Yojna, adolescent girls received sanitary pads free of cost at government schools and Anganwadi centres. However, since the Coronavirus pandemic has hit the country, the distribution has stopped due to the nationwide lockdown. This has left several girls studying in government schools from class 6 to 12 in a helpless situation. 

12-year-old Shweta Kumari, a government school student from Haryana, is one of them, who expressed her grief saying, "The entire focus has been shifted to the distribution of masks and sanitiser and nobody is talking about these basics. It is important to save ourselves from the deadly virus but periods don't stop for pandemics." 

Majority of girls studying in the government schools come from low-income families, And, the disruption in the distribution is forcing a lot of women to go back to using cloth as buying sanitary pads don’t come in their essential list. "We are short of money because my husband used to run a small kiosk for street food, which is now out of business due to the lockdown. It is getting difficult to survive with other essentials, sanitary napkins, of course, do not figure in that list for us,” said Rani Devi, a domestic help in Uttar Pradesh's Bareily.

Devi had made a switch from cloth to sanitary pads about two years ago on the advice of a teacher from her daughter’s school. But with the onset of pandemic and disruption of sanitary pads distribution, she and her daughter are forced to go back in time to use a cloth. "My daughter would get it in school and both of us would use it. But now after the lockdown, things are different," Devi shared. 

The problem has been escalated from government teachers and state officials to the higher authorities. Union Minister Smriti Irani, during a video conference, addressed the problem of lack of access to sanitary pads in the remote areas of India and directed state authorities to ensure accessibility of sanitary pads at the grassroots level. She also tweeted, "Taking note of growing concern regarding the availability of sanitary napkins, Home Secretary to Government of India has issued a clarification to chief secretaries of all the states regarding sanitary pads being an essential commodity."  

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Source: Rediff New

Image source: Pixabay

NITI Aayog’s Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) and Adobe today signed a Statement of Intent (SOI) to collectively drive the charter of developing creative skills and spreading digital literacy across all Atal Tinkering Labs in India.

The SoI was signed in the presence of  Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog, by Ramanathan Ramanan, Mission Director, Atal Innovation Mission, Bryan Lamkin, EVP and GM, Digital Media, Adobe and Kulmeet Bawa, Managing Director, Adobe South Asia.

Adobe shall be adopting 100 schools under Atal Tinkering Labs (ATL) initiative. Further, Adobe shall be implementing its Digital Disha Program in ATLs , under which free licenses of Adobe Spark premium shall be offered to ATLs. Launched in 2018, the Adobe Digital Disha Programme is aimed at driving synergies in creative thinking and technology-based learning. Under this collaboration with AIM, children and teachers across these schools and communities shall benefit from creative learning resources, thereby empowering them with new age skills to thrive in the current digital era and preparing them for long term success.

By inducting creative tools and skills as part of the ATL content, the collaboration is oriented towards fostering essential digital skill sets across school children in India, to help kindle the spirit of creativity among young minds of a New India.

AIM is the Government of India’s flagship initiative to promote a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship in the country. As a part of AIM, ATLs are being established in more than 5,000 schools in India where students of class 6th to class 12th acquire problem solving and innovation skills, developing innovative solutions leveraging Tinkering technologies like 3D printers, robotics, miniaturised electronics, IOT and programming, do it yourself kits with support from teachers.

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The Atal Tinkering Lab is based on the philosophy to identify and nurture innovation in young students across the country. Towards this endeavour, AIM has collaborated with various partners from industry and academia. Such collaborations have resulted in qualitative enhancement of future skills and digital capabilities of the ATL ecosystem.

The Atal Innovation Mission proactively seeks to promote scientific temper and the spirit of entrepreneurship in a New India of tomorrow. Through various initiatives such as the ATL Community Day, Teacher Training Sessions, ATL Marathon, Student Innovator Program, Tinkerfest etc AIM has successfully integrated students, teachers, mentors, parents and even the governments at the state and local level within a larger fabric of encouraging science skills, digital literacy and creativity.

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After a brief discussion, the Rajya Sabha passed the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (Amendment) Bill, 2019. The bill seeks to discard the "no detention" policy up to Class 8th. It aims at improving the "learning outcomes".

The Lok Sabha had already passed the Bill. However, the bill empowers the state governments to either keep the no detention policy intact or to discard it.

As part of the debate in the upper House, Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Prakash Javadekar said “Education Ministers from 25 states are in favour of scrapping the "no detention" policy while four states said they want to keep it.”

"It says there should be examination. Competition is not a killer. When children play, they also participate in a competition of sorts. So, they should take school examinations in the same spirit," the minister said; thus, "The Bill is leaving it to the states to either end the no detention policy or keep it."

He, further added, that the apprehension of increase in school dropout rate was not found. "There are no dropouts up to Class 8 as there is no examination. But there is 20 per cent dropout rate at Class 9 and another 20 per cent at Class 10. But 'you have not learnt what you have studied' is no education," Javadekar said.

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According to the minister, it’s the responsibility of the teacher to give the students remedial classes for two months, if a child fails in a class. Thus, after the remedial classes, the child will require to appear again for the examination.

Once the President gives his assent, the Bill will become a law.

He also cleared the air around the board examination debate by saying that normal examination (not board examination) will be held for classes 5 and 8 in the school.

Image used for representative purpose only.

Image Courtesy: Loksabhatv

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