Legacy

IGNOU’s founding principles were social inclusion and democratisation of education. It was to provide a powerful alternative to the conventional system of education

indira gandhinational openuniversity61 rEGIONAL cENTrES,2,243 LEArNEr SUPPOrT cENTrES

Then Prime Minister, the Late Shri RajivGandhi, presiding over the first IGNOU

convocation in 1989

Prof V.N. Rajasekharan PillaiVice-Chancellor

“”

A quarter century ago, IGNOU was founded on avisionary’s belief that education was the shortest roadto inclusion and empowerment in our time, but evenmore so in a young democracy eager to redeem thepromise of real equality.

Age, economic circumstance, geographical location— nothing was to come in the way of a willing citizen’squest for education.

Relevant higher education would afford millions ofdeprived Indians the opportunity to join the mainstreamand become part of a steadily growing economy — inwhat was soon to become the great India growth story.

The prospect was as daunting as it was exhilarating. For a majority of Indians, living in villages and small

towns, just reaching a centre of higher learning was a challenge.

IGNOU was an answer to the needs and aspirationsof this great majority, for whom a conventional universitywas not an option, a correspondence course not the solution.

Backed by a parliamentary mandate, IGNOU broughtthe idea of Open and Distance Learning to the nation.

The idea was simple.Higher education wouldn’t wait for learners to come

Prof G. Ram Reddy1985-89

Prof V.C. Kulandaiswamy1990-94

Prof R.G. Takwale 1995-98

Prof A.W. Khan1998-2000

Prof H.P. Dikshit 2001-06

Former Vice-Chancellors of ignou

to it; it would reach out to wherever they were, acrossthe length and breadth of the country.

Learners would be encouraged to learn without thephysical presence of teachers. To this end, IGNOUcreated innovative self-learner print material, usedmulti-media technology to bring knowledge alive andcreated study centres around the country as touchpoints for its far-flung student base.

Learners would be allowed to access the knowledgethey seek, at their own desired level and, at their ownunique pace. Thus was created the most flexibleeducational system in India, perhaps anywhere in theworld — the IGNOU system — offering a vast array ofcourses, from certificates and diplomas all the way upto doctorates, and ensuring learner conveniencethrough its unique ‘age no bar, place no bar, pace nobar’ mantra.

In building these bridges to the unreached, IGNOUhas become a pathfinder to a new generation ofIndians, eager to participate in an economicallyresurgent New India that is demanding from itsworkforce ever-higher levels of knowledge and skill.

Starting with two courses and 4,000 students in1985, IGNOU has today evolved into the world’s largest,most diverse and inclusive institution, offering over3,500 courses and catering to over 2.5 million students.

November 19, 1985: Prime Minister Shri Rajiv Gandhi layingthe foundation stone of IGNOU

Starting with 4,000 students in 1985,IGNOU has evolved into the world’slargest, most diverse and inclusiveinstitution, with 2.5 million students

machievements

IGNOU IN NUMBErSl 2.5 million students l 21 Schools of Study and 12 Divisions l 323 Academic Programmes l Over 3,500 courses l 45,000 Academic counsellors l Presence in 34 countries l 53 world-widepartner institutions l Largest number of foreign students among Indian universities l Tie-ups with universities in Asia, Europe, Africa, Australia, America

Better lifethrough education

IGNOU’s is the most flexible education system in India, perhapsthe world — offering a vast array of courses, from certificates anddiplomas, all the way up to doctoral programmes

One from the archives: Then Finance Minister and present Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh laying the foundation stone of the communication building and

studios in April 1994

m1986 First Regional Centre established in Bhopal1987 First diploma programmes — Diploma in Management &

Diploma in Distance Education — launched1987 First multilingual programme, Certificate in Food Science

and Nutrition, started1993 Staff Training and Research Institute of Distance

Education established1994 First vocational course started1999 India’s first virtual campus created2000 Gyan Darshan, IGNOU’s own TV channel, launched 2001 Gyan Vani, IGNOU’s dedicated FM radio channel, launched 2003 The 1-million student mark reached2007 PAN-African e-Network Project launched2007 11 new Schools of Study established2009 The 2-million student mark reached2009 First Community College started

MILESTONES

IGNOU ensureslearner conveniencethrough its unique‘age no bar, place nobar, pace no bar’mantra

Becoming the ‘nation’s university’

way forward

People come to IGNOU hoping for a better life through education.For some, the motivation is self-enrichment, knowledge for its ownsake; for others, the driver is the prospect of employment; for thosealready working, IGNOU holds out the promise of growth, a step upthe career ladder.

Over the last few years, the University has been working on a series of new and path-breaking ideas to meet these diverse andoften daunting expectations.

Thus many of the new programmes are being expressly alignedto the needs of industry; several new courses have been created inconsultation with iconic companies such as BHEL and Larsen & Toubro.

Vocational courses are being run in conjunction with employerslike Apollo Hospitals who are committed to absorbing students whosuccessfully complete the certificate course.

At the other end of the scale, recognising that there is a paucityof aviation industry professionals, IGNOU has recently tied up withthe Cochin International Airport Authority to conduct focused man-agement courses in aviation and airport infrastructure and technology.

The placement cell of the University is gearing up to meet employability demand through planned industry presentations andcontact drives, and by working out a system of enhancing commu-nication and personality skills, which have been identified as keyneed areas for several students.

IGNOU does not create its courses from the ivory tower of acade-mia. The most potent examples of how grassroots work translates intorelevance are the innovative courses, designed with maximum appli-cability in mind, for the agricultural sector. The range of courses, frombee-keeping through organic farming to food processing, feed directlyinto the needs of our farmers and focus on livelihood enhancement.

The awesome power of the Internet is increasingly being used tomaximise student outreach, making it possible to access courses online,have exams on demand and, through the e-gyankosh initiative, make adiverse range of study material available to all at the click of a mouse.

For IGNOU proudly believes that knowledge is every humanbeing’s birthright and universal learning every university’s aspiration.

In 2009, the University launched the first-ever graduate degree

IGNOU is committed to being accessible to ALL, to provide education without barriers, to be,in word and deed, the People's University ... the university of a billion plus Indians

j Open learning — policies and practices

that permit entry to learning with no or

minimum barriers with respect to age,

gender, or time constraints and with

recognition of prior learning.

j Distance education — the delivery of

learning or training to those who are

separated mostly by time and space from

those who are teaching.

j Flexible learning — the provision of

learning opportunities that can be accessed

at any place and time.

j Virtual education — includes aspects of

both online and e-learning but goes

somewhat further... It uses multimedia and,

besides delivering content, also enables a

high level of interaction among learners,

teachers, peers and administration.

— Excerpts from Vision Document,

Commonwealth of Learning, 2008, page 21

open and Distance Learning

programme in Applied Sign Language for the hearing-impaired.As India strives to become a knowledge society, IGNOU works to

ensure that no section gets left behind. The Army initiative is a stepalong this road, extending professional certification in higher learn-ing to our jawans and officers, seeing that after retirement they willhave the skills to be gainfully employed.

A dynamic university in a country on the move, IGNOU is committedto continually evolving to meet the requirements of 21st century India.

To be accessible to All, to provide education without barriers, tobe, in word and deed, the People’s University... the university of a billion plus Indians.

IGNOU believes that knowledge is every humanbeing’s birthright and universal learning every university’s aspiration

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