The State of Sourcing

ValueNotes recently completed a study (in association with EDGE Forum) focusing on trends in adoption of exam technology by Indian exam authorities. As part of this initiative by MeritTrac, ValueNotes interviewed 75 key decision makers, including vice chancellors, controllers of exam, registrars and exam board directors. The study also comprised a nationwide survey of another key stakeholder in the education system – the student. This was primarily because the exercise of taking exams online will yield many benefits to the student population.

Vice chancellors we spoke to mentioned that there was a certain amount of reservation expressed by students and therefore adoption was slow. To bridge the perception gap of these university officials and students, we spoke with 400 students from across Tier I, Tier II and Tier III cities, studying mostly at graduate and postgraduate levels, with a few inputs from junior college and PhD students. The aim was to capture the students’ awareness, readiness and experiences with online examinations. Even as efforts are under way to make ICT an inherent part of our education system, are the students really ready? We share some of our findings here.

Continue reading ‘Do Indian university students welcome online assessment?’ »

ValueNotes is pleased to announce the launch of its report titled ‘Examinations and the role of technology: Emerging Directions’, in collaboration with EDGE forum, supported by MeritTrac and Excelsoft. The report was released during the 3-day conference EDGE2010 in New Delhi last Thursday, and I’m extremely happy to say, it was received with much enthusiasm from the crowd. We attended the conference primarily to present the findings of our report, but also to participate in the many discussions and sessions held pertaining to the Indian higher education sector.

The event had a great turnout, from biggies such as Sam Pitroda and Kapil Sibal who inaugurated the conference, to eminent personalities from the field of higher education. Many vice chancellors, pro chancellors, directors, principals represented the academic side, as well as senior management from companies servicing the sector. There were also quite a few foreign university/exam board/accreditation agency representatives, who gave the event a truly global perspective.

Continue reading ‘Our experience at EDGE2010!’ »