CHANDIGARH, Nov 17: The National Open School system will give greater emphasis to Special Accredited Institutions for Education of the Disadvantaged (SAIEDs). These are a new type of schools geared to teach children and adults with physical and sensory disabilities, as well as those with social and geographical disadvantages, National Open School Chairman Prof Mohan B. Menon, told Chandigarh Newsline here today.Menon was in the city for the inauguration of the NOS Regional Centre. The Centre, which will be inaugurated tomorrow, will develop more study centres in Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir, and consolidate Open School programmes in over 100 study centres in the northern region.Speaking to mediapersons before the inauguration, Menon outlined new extension schemes designed to bring the NOS within the reach of every person. "We are interested in specific needs of learners with special problems and we are pinpointing NGOs and other social work institutions capable of implementing our schemes," he said.The National Open School, an autonomous organisation under the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development, was set up to enable people whose life-circumstances poverty, age, physical handicap, or social restrictions prevent them from attending formal schools.Admitting that "at present it is true that Open Schools are more likely to be found in cities and towns," Menon said that more regional and study centres were being set up to reach remote areas. NOS has also opened accredited centres in Dubai and Abu Dhabi to reach Non- resident Indians and other nationals there. "It is a first step towards globalisation," he said. Among the new programmes are: One year Certificate in Computer Applications (CCA) is the first of the NOS online courses via the internet, introduction of course materials in braille and audio cassettes for blind students. The NOS has introduced a number of vocational courses through accredited vocational institutions, in keeping with its "objectives to provide job-oriented education. It has also launched the Open Basic Education Project with the collaboration of National Literacy Mission for neo-literates". A scheme to provide free education for girls up to under-graduate level is on the anvil."We would like to see state governments concentrate on the Open School system and seek professional and technical support at the national level to meet their regional requirements. A National Consortium for Open Schooling (NCOS) has been set up to increase the interaction between NOS and state governments and among all Open Learning institutions. While National Open School provides course materials in English, Hindi and Urdu, state Open Schools can translate these texts in their respective languages and develop their own materials. The NOS also conducts secondary and senior secondary examinations at the national level.
