Top two English Challenger track winners of CENTA Teaching Professionals’ Olympiad (TPO) to undergo a two week classroom course at the University of Oxford, UK
Rank 3 to 16 in the English Challenger track will undergo OUP’s professional development courses for teachers in India
New Delhi, Monday, 09 April: Oxford University Press (OUP), the world’s largest university press, will sponsor the top two winners of TPO’s English Challenger track for a two week ‘Oxford English Language Teachers’ Academy Masterclass’ at the University of Oxford, UK. The winners of the English Challenger track are Ms. Nandini Shah, a teacher at the Oberoi International School, Mumbai and Mr. Manoj Pillai, a teacher from Kochi.
The 3rd to 6th rank holders in the English Challenger track win themselves a chance to undergo the Oxford Teachers’ Academy online training program delivered in partnership with the University of Oxford in India; and rank holders 7th to 16th will undergo OUP’s Online Teacher Training course, also in India.
The top two winners of the English Challenger track, Ms Nandini Shah and Mr Manoj Pillai, will have a chance to undergo real life Oxford experience by living in student accommodation at the Worcester College in Oxford, UK. The ‘Oxford English Language Teachers’ Academy Masterclass’ will be led by a team of highly-experienced international trainers and will provide winners an exhilarating and enriching study experience in one of Oxford University’s oldest college. The programme provides a first class professional development experience and aims to help the participants refresh and revitalize their teaching strategies and techniques, as also learn the integration of technology in teaching methodology and an opportunity to enhance their language skills.
Speaking about OUP’s partnership with CENTA and its focus on professional development of teachers, Sivaramakrishnan V, Managing Director, Oxford University Press India, said “OUP remains totally committed to the development of Teachers given our fundamental belief that the teacher is the principal pivot in the teaching-learning eco-system. OUP’s pedagogically advanced teacher training programmes have strong participation from teachers across the country resulting in us training nearly 100,000 teachers, year-on-year. He added “I congratulate the winners of the CENTA Teaching Professionals’ Olympiad and we are delighted to sponsor the top rankers of the English Challenger track to world-class professional development programmes for teachers, including one at the University of Oxford, UK.”
Speaking on the occasion Ms Nandini Shah, one of the winners of the English Challenger track said, “I am really honored to receive this privilege of attending the English Teachers’ Masterclass at the University of Oxford. I am really thankful to Oxford University Press for offering such a thoughtful prize for topping the middle school English challenger of Teachers’ Professional Olympiad. Recognizing
teachers and making them feel appreciated in this way is the need of the hour in a world where the teaching profession tends to be largely under-appreciated. Offering this as a prize makes teachers feel highly motivated and cherished. The two-week workshop is also very apt for my teaching practice as it promises to teach skills any innovative and active teacher would value learning, such as integrating technology into the English class, incorporating grammar and vocabulary learning in an engaging manner, and teaching 21st century skills amongst others. I hope that this award motivates many other deserving teachers to keep striving to do their best in this profession”
Ms Ramya Venkataraman, Founder & CEO of CENTA, says, “As part of its mission to identify and reward outstanding teachers, CENTA Teaching Professionals’ Olympiad has selected two English teachers – Nandini Shah from Oberoi International School, Mumbai, and Manoj Pillai from Kochi, Kerala – for the global two-week Masterclass in Oxford University. We are very grateful to Oxford University Press for making this Masterclass available to these two teachers – both of them are eagerly looking forward to it! OUP as a partner to CENTA TPO has added a lot to the excitement of participating teachers, especially English teachers.”
About CENTA: Centre for Teacher Accreditation (CENTA) is a social enterprise that aims to recognize and celebrate teaching excellence and catalyze teacher professional development. It was founded by two committed professionals, Ramya Venkataraman (IIT Delhi and IIM Calcutta alum) and Anjali Jain (PEC Chandigarh and IIM Calcutta alum). CENTA has been making inroads into the teaching community and looks at addressing the broader education landscape in India and beyond. As a part of reputed education and teaching groups, networks and committees in and outside India, CENTA aspires to engage with each one in their efforts to bring about a positive change in the sector. For instance, CENTA is part of the Global Alliance on Teachers, an informal group of 10 organizations from around the world facilitated by Varkey Foundation – other members include Harvard Graduate School of Education, National Institute of Education Singapore, University of Helsinki Finland, and transnational associations in Europe and Africa. Know more: http://www.centa.org/
About TPO: TPO 2017 is based on the Centre for Teacher Accreditation (CENTA) Standards, a set of well-defined competencies for teachers. TPO covers a subset of the CENTA Standards and candidates can go through the practical assessment post the TPO to attain the CENTA Certificates. CENTA offers Level 1, 2 and 3 Certificates for new, experienced and senior teachers, respectively. The CENTA Certificates aims to create a career path and opportunities for teachers and serve as a pointer for schools in their recruitment and professional development efforts. TPO is common for teachers across experience levels. Participants include school teachers (private and government), supplemental or tuition teachers, people working in various education organizations, teaching fellows and B.Ed. students as well as several individuals interested in teaching. Registrations are ongoing for the next TPO and will close on October 31st, ADD YEAR: http://tpo-india.org/
About Oxford University Press India
Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide. OUP is the world’s largest university press with the widest global presence. It currently publishes several education, reference and academic publications every year, has offices in around sixty countries, and employs nearly 6,000 people worldwide. OUP’s diverse publishing programme includes scholarly work in all academic disciplines, school and college textbooks, children’s books, materials for teaching English, dictionaries and reference books, and academic journals. OUP also provides digital learning solutions designed to meet learning needs of the contemporary learner. Learn more about OUP at www.oup.com