Government, Azim Premji Foundation sign pact

Kumar G. Naik, Secretary, Primary and SecondaryEducation, and S.V. Manjunath, State head,Karnataka State Institute, Azmi Premji Foundation,exchanging the memorandum of understandingbetween the State and the foundation in Bangaloreon Monday. Minister for Primary and SecondaryEducation Vishweshwara Hegde Kageri and CEO ofthe Azim Premji Foundation Dileep Ranjekar areseen. Photo: Bhagya Prakash K.

The government of Karnataka on Monday entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Azmi Premji Foundation to work in eight districts of northeast Karnataka in the area of teacher education, education leadership and community participation in school education.

Speaking at a press conference after signing the MoU, Kumar G. Naik, Secretary, Primary and Secondary Education, said that Rs. 27 crore has been earmarked for programmes to be organised in the period between 2013 and 2016. Mr. Kumar Naik added that 50 per cent of the amount would be sanctioned by the State government and the rest would be provided by the foundation.

According to a press release issued by the foundation, the Azmi Premji Foundation would engage with heads of schools, education functionaries, and members of the community to strengthen school education as well as reform teachers’ education.

The foundation would work in Gulbarga, Yadgir, Koppal and Bidar, and would strengthen the State Institute for School Leadership, Education Planning and Management (SISLEP) based in Dharwad in the education leadership domain. The foundation would also strengthen teacher education in the Department of State Educational Research and Training and the District Institute of Educational and Training Centres (DIET).

S.V. Manjunath, State head, Karnataka State Institute, Azmi Premji Foundation, said that teachers’ education which is being given emphasis in the 12th Five-Year Plan will also be the focus area. The Foundation will establish field-level institutes at the State and district-level to build the capacities of the government schools.

Anurag Behar, Vice-Chancellor, Azmi Premji University, said that the foundation would work with the existing government machinery to bring about a long-term change in quality of school education.

The complex social issues at the community level will also be addressed which would reflect in the change in the educational indicators in those areas.

Minister for Primary and Secondary Education Vishweshwara Hegde Kageri was present.