The Best Way to Learn About Indian Employment News

Employment News is a famous Indian Weekly giving A to Z news about the employment opportunities in India. The weekly is released in English, Hindi and Urdu by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India. This journal carries ample information about the various job openings all over India. It also gives useful tips to students who are preparing for various government examinations.
This journal's fame remains unshaken even in this web dominated era. A copy of this weekly can be found in all the major public libraries. Several rural students who do not have access to internet or any other modern means of communication, consider Employment News weekly as their best guide to land lucrative government jobs.
This weekly is the largest distributed career guidance journal in India. The weekly had helped aspirant Indian youth, interested in Government jobs find a bright future since 1976. Though there were some other journals similar to it like Competition Success Review, Employment News is a unique and one of its kind journals by all means. Here is a slight introduction on what you can find in this knowledge source.
1. Employment News weekly gives details about all the state and central government jobs.
2. The weekly gives news about all the public sector openings, banking jobs and the jobs in educational sector.
3. The weekly gives details about the various examinations necessary to get these jobs and the applications for them.
4. Notifications regarding all the major examinations like Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and the State Services Commission (SSC) are published in this weekly. The results of these exams are also published in the Employment News weekly.
5. Rojgar Samachar is the Hindi version of the weekly. Both versions are available online too.
6. This journal contains applications for all the professional courses in government colleges, details about the fee structure and the examination details.
7. Vacancies in all the autonomous colleges and Universities in India are advertised in this weekly.
8. The editorial section of Employment News weekly features useful articles which help people choose the career best suitable for them. The articles in this section give ample information about the new fields, upcoming opportunities in the less known areas and many more.
9. All the details necessary to write railway, bank and Civil Service exams are provided in this weekly, including the exam dates and application forms.
The target audiences of the weekly are poor rural youngsters. Most of them are first generation school goers in their families. They need a vivid description and guidance of what to do and what not to do when it comes to applying for government jobs. The Employment News weekly journal provides exactly the same.
Government jobs are still a dream for many rural students hailing from backward communities. These students have the brain and academic record to land the same. All they lack is guidance. The Employment News weekly serve as their silent companion that helps them make their dream come true.

Falling Standard Of Education In Nigeria: Who Is To Be Blame?

INTRODUCTION
The concept " falling standard of Education" is a relative term because there is no well defined instruments to measure it with utmost reliability and validity. That is why scholars' views on the concept varies. These scholars view it at different perspectives, depending on the angle each of them is looking at it.
Babalola, A (2006) sees the concept from admission of Nigerian University products in developed countries universities. That the first six Nigerian Universities (University of Ibadan, Ile Ife, Lagos, Benin, Nsukka and Zaria) had their products competing favourably with any other University in the world as their products were sought for by University of Harvard, Cambridge, Oxford and London for admission into their post-graduate courses. That these students record breaking performances and when they graduate are employed by the best multi-national companies and corporate bodies globally unlike today where no Nigerian University is among the top 6,000 Universities of the world (Adeniyi, Bello (2008) in Why no worry about rankings). He sees standard from how universities contribute to knowledge and solving problems besetting mankind.
According to Gateway to the Nation (2010), University of Ibadan is ranked 6,340th University in the world. In Africa, University of Ibadan is ranked 57th, OAU 69th and South African Universities are leading the way in Africa.
He also use written and spoken English as a yardstick for measuring standard of education which University of London conducted a research in West Africa and the result showed that teachers trained by colonial masters were better of than those trained by indigenous teachers.
He also used staffing, funding, foundation, origin and students as standard of education.
Standard of education to Dike, V. (2003) is how education contribute to the public health (or sociopolitical and economic development of a Nation).
Standard of education to either passing or failing of external examinations like WAEC, NECO, NABTEB, JAMB,(NOW UTME) among others.
Teachers without Boarders (2006) looks at educational standard from how the products of schools can be measured in terms of outcome. That is how school leavers contribute to the society in terms of cognitive affective and psychomotor. I will be using students to refer to both students and pupils, I will use head teacher to refer to both principal and headmaster.
Which ever way you may view standard of education, for you to conclude whether the standard is falling or not, you must take into consideration all the aforementioned variables including achieving educational goals.
Equally, for justice to be done while measuring these standards one has to look at reliability where all the schools to be measured must have the same infrastructure, teaching materials, quality of teachers, level and degree of learners, condition within which learning takes place, some methods of assessment and some types of contribution to the society among others.
CAUSES OF FALLING STANDARDS
Haven discussed what makes up standard in education, may I crave your indulgence to some of the established facts that constitute falling standard of education in Nigeria.
(1) Discipline: This is one of the outstanding attributes of education when it is rightly observed.
a. Repeating: school no longer observe repeating as every student is promoted to the next class whether they understand or not gives room for falling standard.
b. Attendance: The 75% of attendance universally accepted as the bases for someone to sit for examination is no longer observed.
c. Late coming: Student that come late are no longer punished, which leads to their losing morning classes.
d. Misbehaviour: Students are no longer punished for misbehavior because of their parental influences (lost of jobs or unnecessary transfer).
e. Cultism: This could refer to rituals, usually under oath binding the members to a common course. They operate covertly in fulfillment of their objectives to the detriment of other people. Thus, planning secondary needs above primary needs.
These cults exist because of over population of students in schools, wrong admissions not based on merits, hence fear of examination failures and selfish worldly gains.
(2) Quest for paper qualification: Nigerians respect paper qualification above performance in the fields. Hence, cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains are supposed to be measured on the field.
(3) Politicizing education: Merit is no longer regarded as it is now " who you know" and not "what you can deliver" Technocrats (educationists are not appointed Commissioner of education and education board).
(4) Policy problem: Sometimes the type of policies government make on education adversely affects output. For instance, in College of Education, we have National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE), competing with JAMB for admission as the two guidelines vary.
Equally, WAEC, NECO, NABTEB, JAMB ( now UTME) compete with qualifying pre-requisites and regulation of entries into tertiary institutions.
(5) Teachers not being part of the examination bodies. One wonders whether the continuous Assessment submitted by these teachers are used or not.
(6) Accessibility of Schools: The Nigerian population boom has outnumbered the existing schools as the existing schools have to over admit.
This point can be practically seen in the following areas:
(i) Teacher / Student ratio of 1:25 is no longer there as in my class, it is 1:3900.
(ii) Students / books / Journals ratio of 1:10 is no longer feasible.
(iii) Politics of admission: Schools can no longer set targets for admission to conform with their facilities as powerful notes from above will force the school authorities to either over admit or find themselves in the labour market again. Yet it is those that are giving these notes are suppose to build more schools or provide needed infrastructure etc. to accommodate those collecting these notes.
(7) Over-dependent on cognitive domain: Schools do not give regards to affective domain that will mould characters of our young ones. Little attention is given to psychomotor while no attention is given to affective domain.
(8) Shortage of qualified teachers: Some schools in the rural areas only have the headmaster as government employee while the rest that may be secondary school drop outs are PTA staff. What miracle can these staff perform? Dike, V. (2006) observed that only 23% out of the then 400,000 primary schools in Nigeria have grade II even when NCE is now the minimum qualification for teachers at primary and Junior Secondary schools.
(9) Teachers welfare: It is no longer news that
(a) Politicians do not have negotiation council to negotiate their salary increase.
(b) There is no disparity among political office holders from the federal, state and local governments.
(c) Their salaries are increased at astronomical manner.
(d) Their salaries are increased any time without recourse to whether the nation's economy can bear it or not.
(e) But for teachers, they must negotiate the 10 to 20% of an attempt to increase their salary with consideration of the economy of the nation. How can these teachers contribute and perform miracle when their family members are in the hospitals and the O.S. syndrome is written on their cards by pharmacists while they do not have money to treat.
(10) Constant Strikes: This is an impediment to smooth covering of syllabus. Oefule (2009) explained that one Nigerian guest asked a question on strike at Oxford University community but the vice chancellor could not even remember about strike, only the registrar remembered it for 17 years back. This is what governance means to the people.
(11) Long rule of the military; Education was not properly funded by the military regimes as according to Babalola, A(2006) Obasanjos administration inherited many left over problems of the military such as non- payment of pensions and gratuities of retired University staff, poor remuneration of university staff, dilapidating buildings of schools, libraries with outdated books, obsolete laboratory equipments, bad campus roads, inadequate water and power supply among others.
(12) In the secondary and primary schools levels, schools do not even have buildings talk less` of furniture's, equipments and reading materials. This is the level where the foundation of education should be laid. Any faulty foundation will lead to faulty structures. What do you expect from the tertiary level?
(13) Lack of training of teachers: Teachers are not trained to update their knowledge with latest discoveries based on research, then how can they give what they don't have?
(14) Poor state of Educational teaching facilities: Dike V. (2006) reported that research result shows that over 2015 primary schools in Nigeria do not have building but study under trees, talk less of teaching materials.
(15) Corruption: leaders of the schools and some Government officials either connive to buy equipments with loan money that cannot be of any use to the school or take such loans and do not even do anything with it.
(16) Poor budgetary allocation to education: A research work of 2001 shows that Nigeria only, allocate less than 20% to education it further reveals that Nigeria spends 0.76% to education as against Uganda 2.6%, Tanzania3.4%, Mozambique 4.1%, Angola 4.9%, Coted Ivore 5% Kenya 6.5% and South Africa 7.9% among others.
WHO IS TO BE BLAMED?
We have seen the causes of falling standards and from these causes we can deduce that the following are to be blamed:
1. Government suppose to carry the lion share of the blame because all the other variables are dependent variables to it.
2. Teachers also have their shares of the blame with regards to their diligent duties.
3. Parents: feeding has to be provided by parents. This is because parents do not leave schools to operate without interference.
4. Students: students who do not abide by school rules and regulations nor pay attention to their studies also contribute to falling standards. Students also seek for paper qualification and disregards to performance they also participate in cult activities that derail the progress of the academy.
5. The society is not left out as it is the way it sees and respects the products of these schools that recycles back again.
SOLUTION
Based on the problems or causes identified above, the following solutions are proffered: Schools should respect and restore back discipline to bring back the lost glory of our educational standards.
Performance should be regarded and respected more than just paper qualification. Equally, education should not be politicized for whatever reason.
Policy makers should be mindful of policies that affect education .eg JAMB(UTME) regulation in admissions.
Teachers should be involved in examination activities and examination bodies should always publish examination reports and distribute it to various schools for them to hold school workshop for training of subject teachers on their areas of weaknesses observed in the students' scripts with regards to following the marking scheme.
More schools should be built to increase accessibility by all. Cognitive, affective and psychomotor domain should be used for assessment of students.
Teachers' welfare should be given priority by government to avoid unnecessary strikes in our educational sector while more qualified teachers should be employed to curb the present shortage of teachers in our schools.
Our civilian government should prove to the people that they are better than military government.
Teachers should be trained so that they can meet up with any new challenges Educational facilities should be upgraded to modern standards while teaching facilities should be adequately provided.
Corruption should be eliminated to the barest minimum by all stakeholders while government should increase its budgetary allocations to education to improve the standard of education in Nigeria.

Education Law - 10 Things You Didn't Know

Just like in the commercial world, the education sector is bound by laws and regulations. Schools, Colleges, University and other educational establishments are increasing having to rely on legal assistance in order to ensure that the law is adhered to, and to settle disputes.

Education Law solicitors can advise on all legal issues that affect the education sector. Here are 10 of the common issues that Education Law covers.

1. Generating Income

Schools and other educational establishments are looking at different ways to create more income. By complying with education laws, income, and return on investment can be maximised.

2. Compliance

Educational establishments need to comply with discrimination laws and other workers' and pupils' rights. Staff and pupils shouldn't be discriminated against because of their gender, age, skin colour, race, religious beliefs, and sexuality, or for any other reason.

3. Special Eduational Needs

Schools that teach pupils with Special Educational Needs need to ensure that they are fully compliant with the relevant laws. Sometimes there are appeals and tribunals.  And experienced Education Law professional can help either side to ensure that their voice is heard.

4. Grants and Loans

Some schools are fee paying schools, and so contracts will need to created and amended as necessary. In addition, grants and scholarships will need to be distributed evenly, and fairly. If there are any complaints or discrepancies, and Education Law solicitor will be able to help.

5. Interaction with the Private Sector

The education sector is looking at more ways of working with businesses, so that students and graduates have the relevant skills that businesses need. Education Laws ensure that the pupils are not exploited or undervalued.

6. Pupil Behaviour

Pupil behaviour has been increasingly in the news recently, and not always for the right reasons. From truancy to violence in the classroom, Education Law solicitors can advise either party to help achieve a suitable outcome.

7. Intellectual Property Rights

Computer and other technical work is more prevalent in schools and colleges nowadays, and the issue of Intellectual Property is increasingly important. Education Law can help advise on the legalities of work produced at school.

8. Students and Admissions

Popular schools, colleges and universities are often oversubscribed. This often leads to unhappy parents and pupils. Education Law can help ensure that all policies and procedures are followed properly, and that those who have not been admitted haven't been discriminated against.

9. Land and Property

School, Colleges and Universities are increasingly either in need of more land and property, or trying to sell off unused land or property. Education Law makes sure that the acquisition or disposal of land and property is done properly.

10. Accidents at School

Unfortunately accidents at school do happen, and these can sometimes be serious. Pupils and staff have a right to expect that the school buildings and equipment is safe, and there could be grounds for compensation. Accidents whilst at school could include any slips or trips in the playground, or on the sports pitch, as well as incidents in the chemistry laboratory or on a geography field trip. Education Law solicitors help to ensure that cases are dealt with properly.

The Best Educational Experiences in Washington, DC

Educational travel can give teachers and administrators a boost in exciting many students about their academic lessons. Travel brings curriculum to life while teaching lessons that students will need throughout their lives. As a former middle school principal I found that educational travel goes hand-in-hand with offering a total educational program to young adolescents. This is even more important today as teachers and principals are facing increased pressure to prepare students to pass mandated academic tests.
During my years teaching in middle school, I learned that young adolescents can gain a multitude of invaluable experiences from travel, learning both the information they will be able to apply in the classroom and skills that will help them develop personally. Unfortunately, some young people will never be able to take educational tours without involvement with their school. So, middle school educators can contribute to a young adolescent's complete education when they include education travel in their program.
Once you've decided to include travel in your student's education, there are important plans and decisions that will affect the overall success of their travel experience. This article focuses on selecting the best educational venues in Washington, DC for a class or grade level trip.
The best time to consider such a trip is during seventh or eighth grade when the middle school social studies curriculum focuses on U.S. history. An educational trip to Washington, DC coinciding with this year can provide substantial benefits to both the individual and the school as a whole.
All student groups that visit Washington, DC should tour the White House and the US Capitol. Their educational links to the classroom are countless. It's important to note that the popularity of these two sites coupled with the recent increase in national security now require that an appointment must be prescheduled by a Senator or State Representative.
Next, I recommend visiting as many of the following as possible:
 Ford's Theater and the Peterson House
 Arlington National Cemetery
 Smithsonian Museums
 Washington Monument
 Lincoln Monument
 Jefferson Memorial
 Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial
 Iwo Jima Memorial
 Korean War Memorial
 Vietnam Veterans Memorial
 World War II Memorial
All of these sites have strong ties to the social studies curriculum and, best of all do not charge an admissions fee. Once you have decided to include them in a travel itinerary, the key is to make sure the students receive the strongest possible educational connections during the actual visit.
You can easily increase the educational value of the visit by using a reputable student tour provider like Travel Adventures that specializes in educational travel to plan your trip. To begin with, their experience will help prepare an itinerary that sequences the stops so that the students are not overwhelmed with information. Their experience will also present you with strategies for planning effective group visits. I strongly recommend you ask the travel provider about adding Washington, DC guides when visiting the monuments and memorials. Their historical knowledge base will only enhance the educational experience.
Another outstanding educational venue is Arlington National Cemetery. In addition to visiting the John Fitzgerald Kennedy and Challenger Astronaut Memorials, your student tour provider can schedule a wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns. This ceremony adds depth to the educational value of the visit and allows those students selected for the ceremony the rare opportunity of interacting with an Army Honor Guard member.
A visit to the U.S. Holocaust Museum can be extremely educational especially if the students have studied this era in American history and/or read The Diary of Anne Frank in English class. The museum is self-guided. The emotional impact of the tour, coupled with their collection of newsprint, historical video and news reporting provides an outstanding educational experience for all visitors.
A student trip to Washington, DC should also include a visit to Mount Vernon - the estate of George Washington. The new Donald W. Reynolds Museum and Education Center, and a tour of the beautifully restored estate, outer buildings and the grounds have strong educational value.
Finally, I recommend that student groups traveling to Washington, D.C. schedule a cultural activity. Exposing young people to the arts and culture is invaluable to the overall development of the individual. One of the most popular activities is attending a theatrical performance at one of the area dinner theaters or a performance at the Kennedy Center. The theaters schedule age appropriate productions like "Beauty and the Beast or Fiddler on the Roof" to help make this opportunity both educational and entertaining.
In summary, educational travel to Washington, DC can add an important dimension to the total learning program at your school. I strongly recommend that you consider adding travel to the curriculum and visiting as many of the aforementioned venues as possible for the best educational value.