HT Bureau
GUWAHATI, April 30: A two-day-long ‘Exposure Visit Program’ for CBSE school principals concluded at the University of Science and Technology Meghalaya (USTM) on Tuesday.
34 school principals from various renowned CBSE schools from across the country participated in the programme. The visit has been organized by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) in collaboration with USTM. The programme has been supported by the Department of Skill Education, CBSE under the skill education sector.
Addressing the school principals in an interactive session on Tuesday, Mahbubul Hoque, chancellor of USTM said that the role of a school principal is multifaceted and essential for creating an environment where students can thrive academically, socially, and emotionally. He welcomed all the participants and said that USTM is always open to extending all kinds of support to uplift school education.
In the inaugural session on Monday, GD Sharma, vice-chancellor of USTM welcomed allthe school principals and said that the National Education Policy 2020 has emphasized on skill education being integral to school and higher education. Accordingly, CBSE has envisioned promoting skill education from Class VI onwards in all its affiliated schools. He said that an added benefit of such an exposure visit is that it gives the principals a chance to meet other like-minded school leaders, share stories, and gain a lot in the process.
Speaking on this occasion, Jagadish Barman, joint secretary of CBSE Centre of Excellence Guwahati said, “This exposure visit is expected to leverage the synergies between schools and higher educational institutions and create a positive platform for cohesive interaction in the future learning ecosystem.”
These principals may, in turn, mentor the teachers of schools in their neighborhood and thus, unfold unlimited opportunities for educator empowerment, he added.
In this context, Amit Choudhury, dean of the School of Technology and Management at USTM said that this year CBSE has selected the university for principals’ exposure visit apart from six other institutions including TERI School Of Advanced Studies New Delhi, Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar, Asian Academy of Film Television Noida, Indian Institute of Technology Tirupati, Whistling Woods International Mumbai, and Indian Institute of Management–Raipur.
The resource persons from USTM were E Karim, Azmol H Barbhuiya, Monalisa Bora Deka, Alika Borgohain, Baharul Islam, K Aye, S Gazi, Nitu Borgohain, Deboja Sharma, Moutushi Das, Mehjabin Rahman, Papiya Dutta and Palme Borthakur.
Nirmaljit Singh Kalsi, chairman of the National Council for Vocational Education and Training took an online session on ‘Up-scaling of Skill Education in line with NEP 2020’. Several sessions took place on both days.
The participating schools in the program were Christ International School Bangalore, Mahavir Senior Model School Delhi, RS Jhunjhunwala International School Gujarat, Poddar International School Maharashtra, Manipal School, Brahmani Public School Odisha, DPS Ahomgaon Guwahati, Faculty HS School North Guwahati, Sharada Vidyaniketan Public School Mangalore, Kendriya Vidyalaya Kunjaban, KV NFR Maligaon, Ideal English Senior Secondary School Manipur, Livingstone Foundation International, PM Shri KV Khanapara, Holy Brook Sr. Sec. School, North East Public School Udalguri, Army Public School PRTC Bangalore, SBOA Public School Guwahati, The Priceton School, Sree Swami Vivekananda Higher Primary School, Kendriya Vidyalaya NEHU Shillong, Army Public School Shillong, SJ Patel Eng School Gujarat, Delhi World Public School Haryana, Jnana Ganga Central School, Dr. M Ramanna Shetty Memorial English Medium High School, Kendriya Vidyalaya ONGC Agartala, Kendriya Vidyalaya Assam University, Kendriya Vidyalaya Aizawl, Buhai School Sikkim and Kingcup Public School Itanagar.