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IGNOU
spreads wings in Africa via tele-education
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London:
Indian maths graduates are being trained to give tuition to
British children via telephone and internet round the clock, a
report said Friday.
A tutoring agency has hired 100 maths tutors in Punjab and coached
them in British school syllabus so that they can teach children of
all ages, The Guardian reported.
London-based BrightSpark Education says the tutors will be
available 24 hours a day and seven days a week. They will be paid
7 pounds an hour. The minimum wage in Punjab is 2.52 pounds.
The agency says parents can cut costs by hiring an Indian-based
home tutor, rather than one who lives in Britain. It is charging
12 pounds per lesson, less than half the amount parents would
normally pay for one-to-one private tuition.
The firm is encouraging state schools to get on board, too.
Ashmount primary school in Islington, London, has been taking
services of the Indian tutors for an hour a week to supplement
maths classes for 30 of its pupils, the paper said.
Last month, it was revealed that nine Primary Care Trusts were
outsourcing part of their patient record services to India.
Maths teachers are in chronic short supply in Britain. Maths
graduates are offered a golden handshake of 5,000 pounds when they
enrol on postgraduate teacher training courses.
In 2009, some 5,980 students graduated in maths in Britain. While
in India, 690,000 students graduate with degrees in science and
maths each year.
The tutors use an interactive whiteboard to conduct lessons. They
communicate with pupils through a headset. Students can see their
tutor's face on the screen.
The agency takes bookings from parents and teachers, and
timetables when the tuition will take place. Each session is
recorded so that students, parents and teachers can replay it.
Tom Hooper, managing director of BrightSpark Education, said he
turned to India because it was difficult to find maths graduates
in Britain who wanted to be fulltime tutors. While the Indian
tutors would be available at all hours, he expected the majority
of lessons to take place in the early evening.
Ashmount's headteacher, Pana McGee, said the school used the
tutors as though they were "another assistant in the classroom".
"We would have paid an assistant at least 30,000 pounds, so that's
how much can be saved in a year," she said. "The teaching
resources that are used and the quality of teaching are
excellent."
Hooper said: "It's true that there isn't the emotional bond you
might get with a teacher who is there in the room with you, but
you also get an unintimidating environment if you are learning
online."
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