Envisioning CEC’s Objectives and Goals: Realigning in the Context of Higher Education Policies on ICT and E-Learning Brainstorming Workshop in New Delhi, November 16-17, 2011

Notes by K. Mangala Sunder Department of Chemistry IIT Madras, Chennai

CEC’s Role in Higher Education Using ICT Alignment with National Mission on Education Through ICT Redefine the current role as a support facility to the University Provide much-needed technology support to the parent University -- Web Studio in IIT Madras was created for supporting IT needs and introducing cultural changes in teaching and education in IITM. Provide centres of activity where new educational paradigms are created by collaboration Be a University technology centre for online and open support to colleges in and around and affiliated to the University

CEC’s Role in Higher Education Using ICT: E-learning, knowledge management and knowledge dissemination CEC may provide learning Management system facilities to the University CEC may enable student social learning network activities and be the creator of focused learning circles CEC may enable University online examination and open educational tools CEC may develop / implement simple collaborative online tools for learning CEC may encourage implementation of best e-learning models developed world-wide and encourage faculty to lead their educational portfolio with support – Open Learning Initiative of Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh is a very well-known model in educational pedagogy which uses cognitive learning models and class-room experiences to develop highly interactive educational modules. Quadrants of learning can be integrated and not left as independent elements.

CEC’s Role in Higher Education Using ICT: Infrastructure and Development CEC Will need to realign and reassert its role as the communicator—already in its name! Cloud Computing facility EMRC1 EMRC2 University IT Environment for contents enabled and managed by EMRC3 EMRC3

CEC’s Role in Higher Education Using ICT: Infrastructure and Development CEC will need IT Resource persons on project/ contract mode. May tender partnerships with designers (private companies, individuals, Open and Online Universities outside of India where such technical expertise is already available) for designing new social networking platforms One technical Consultant in each centre for evolving a master plan for IT services enablement in each University Two or three project associates and groups of postgraduate / final year graduate students in the University campus for creating web-enabled environment. Identify faculty from the campus who are IT savvy and who would volunteer for creating new pedagogical designed courseware; experts in pedagogy like Prof. A. K. Ray can be approached for faculty training.

CEC’s Role in Higher Education Using ICT: Bringing Higher Education Focus groups and Community together CEC’s decisive role in supplementing and augmenting higher education through tools and techniques can be formulated more specifically by studying the MIT model of faculty-driven, industry-sponsored-incubating agencies created in the University, for IT development centre managed by the Office of Academic Computing of MIT, Cambridge, USA, for example. CEC’s role in community engagement for higher education can be driven by a consortium of learned individuals identified by the UGC itself– Social partners and faculty from affiliating institutions have a decisive role in determining community driven research projects using IT in a local community. The EMRCs will also have a local context for their presence. Their role as IT enablers will extend to the community at large.

These are some of my thoughts I have articulated largely from my participation in NPTEL and NMEICT in the last few years. I think CEC should elevate itself to a different plane and be seen as the centre for all communications in education. Thank you.