GUWAHATI, June 14 � The State Government on Wednesday signed an MoU with Microsoft Corporation India (Pvt) Ltd to accelerate Information and Communication Technology (ICT) adoption in schools. The one-year alliance will support the Assam school education system to use ICT towards improving the quality of learning in schools.
The agreement was signed and exchanged by LS Changsan, Mission Director, Assam Sarba Siksha Abhijan Mission, and Ranbir Singh, country head, Government Engagements, Microsoft Corporation India (Pvt) Limited, in the presence of Education Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
The agreement will focus on professional development for 5,760 schoolteachers in Assam and will equip them with skills required for integrating IT in classroom teaching to drive better learning outcomes for the students under Microsoft�s Partners in Learning (PiL) programme through training sessions held at six State-run District Institutes for Education and Training (DIETs).
PiL, introduced in 2008, is a global Microsoft programme that helps in providing teachers with tools aimed at enhancing their IT skills and the integration of ICT into teaching and learning in a meaningful way. In India, 708,017 Government schoolteachers have been successfully trained under this in 17 States.
After signing the MoU, Ranbir Singh said, �Education is key to nurturing our youth and helping realize India's potential. We believe technology can bridge the opportunity divide to deliver that much-needed world class education. Through this collaboration with the Government of Assam, we hope to provide ICT enabled education and aid the progressive transformation of education in Assam at large. �
The MoU is a joint effort by the Government of Assam and Microsoft to use the power of ICT for improving the skill sets of teachers using ICT to improve teaching through creating more engaging and interactive classroom experiences.
