Patna: A two-day residential workshop on Innovation, Design and Entrepreneurship (IDE) began on Thursday at the Chandragupt Institute of Management Patna (CIMP), bringing together education officials from across Bihar to learn new methods for improving school education. The programme is being organised by the Department of School Education and Literacy, the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and the Ministry of Education’s Innovation Cell (MIC). District Education Officers and DIET members are attending the event, held at the CIMP campus in Mithapur from 20 to 21 November.
The first day opened with the ceremonial lighting of the lamp by dignitaries including Prof (Dr) Rana Singh, Director of CIMP; Mr Kumod Kumar, CAO of CIMP; Mr Vibham Vyas from AICTE Delhi (MIC); and industry expert Ms Gauri Gopinath from the Wadhwani Foundation. More than 60 education officers participated in the inauguration. In his welcome address, Prof Singh said it was a moment of pride for CIMP to host a workshop that aims to strengthen the innovation capacity of District Education Officers, DIET faculty and SCERT officials. He added that the presence of senior officials reflected a shared commitment to preparing schools for the future.
Chief guest Sunil Kumar, Nodal Officer for PM Shri Schools in Bihar, said that nurturing innovation in schools should be a national priority. He explained that the workshop focuses on providing educators with tools to develop creativity, design thinking and entrepreneurial mindsets among students. According to him, changing the approach to teaching is essential to help young learners become problem-solvers rather than memorisers of information.
A full schedule of sessions took place throughout the day, led by Ms Gauri Gopinath. Participants took part in activities that included discussions on the importance of innovation in schools, hands-on learning on human-centred design, and case studies on collaborative problem-solving. They also learned about national innovation initiatives undertaken by the Ministry of Education. The day concluded with a visit to the CIMP Incubation Centre and Centre of Excellence, where participants were able to see how new ideas can be developed into real-world solutions.
The workshop will continue on Friday, with Dr Abhay Jere, Vice-Chairman of AICTE and Chief Innovation Officer at the Ministry of Education, scheduled to attend as the chief guest. Participants are expected to continue exploring ways to bring innovation-driven learning into classrooms across Bihar and encourage a school environment that supports creativity and entrepreneurship.
