Oz Deputy Prime Minister launches new diploma of primary education

New Delhi, Sep.1 (ANI): Australia's Deputy Prime MInister and Minister of Education, Ms Julia Gillard launched an ICT Enabled Diploma of Primary Education at the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) in New Delhi.

Developed as a result of a 12-month collaboration between IGNOU and Australia's Queensland University of Technology, the diploma program will provide an understanding of the primary school curriculum, and the skills required to implement it effectively.

"This will potentially benefit hundreds of thousands of primary school teachers in India," Ms Gillard said.

"The diploma also teaches trainees important skills in the areas of child development, individual differences in the classroom, learning and motivation processes, language acquisition, and the philosophy of teaching." She added that "these are areas of vital interest, both here in India and in Australia."

This new initiative is important in the context of the Indian Government's new Right to Education Act (which will provide free and comprehensive education for all children in the 6-14 years age group). A unique feature of the diploma is its modular approach and ICT applications implemented through the facilities at IGNOU. The diploma has been launched in a number of States in India. The State Government of Bihar, for example, has identified 250,000 teachers who require training. (ANI)