EducationWorld May 10

Maharashtra’s three premier universities of Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur, will be downsized to create new universities. This decision was announced by Rajesh Tope, the states minister for higher and technical education, on April 7 in the legislative assembly. Describing the present structure of the three universities as unwieldy, Tope said that bifurcation or downsizing will facilitate efficient management of these huge universities, whose degree certificates inspire minimal enthusiasm in India Inc.The modalities of the break-up of Maharashtras mega varsities, welco-med by academics as necessary, are being engineered by two government appointed committees which will prescribe their geographical/jurisdict-ional limits, and study their financial, manpower and resource requirements. Each committee will submit a report within four months of being constituted although members of the committees — and most important, their chairpersons — are yet to be appointed. According to the ministers office, formation of the committees can be expected by mid-May. This downsizing initiative follows the Delhi-based National Knowledge Commissions call for appropriately scaled universities in the interests of ensuring academic standards and providing good governance. University Grants Commission (UGC) norms indicate 250 affiliated colleges per university as ideal. Against this, Maharashtras top three varsities are severely overloaded. Nagpur University, (estb.1923 aka Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University) has over 750 affiliated colleges. The University of Pune (estb.1948) has 587 colleges and 161 affiliated institutions. Mumbai University (estb.1857) has over 600 colleges in Mumbai, Thane, Raigad, Sindhudurg and Ratnagiri, affiliated with it. Under the classic affiliation model, universities are expected to prescribe the syllabus, mentor undergrad colleges, lightly supervise their examination processes and award their prestigious degrees to students completing undergraduate education in affiliated colleges. However the prime purpose of universities is to provide high-quality postgrad education and conduct research studies. The tragedy of post-independence Indias higher education system is that because of the huge number of undergrad colleges affiliated with them, university faculty is consumed by administrative tasks, and assessment of examination papers, because universities dont trust colleges to do honest evaluation. The conse-quence is that they have little time for mentoring postgrad students and doing research, i.e creating new knowledge. This is indicated by the fact that the number of world-class scientific research papers published by Indian academics in the decade 1996-2006 aggregated 211,063, much less than of their Chinese counterparts (422,993). Two decades ago the position was reverse. The affiliation system is dumbing down Indias 450 universities, says a disgruntled university professor who preferred to remain anonymous. Another perverse outcome of the affiliation system is that all over the country, some colleges which have also begun to offer postgrad programmes, have better reputations than their parent universities. A case in point is St. Xaviers College, Mumbai, whose degree carries more weight in India Inc than Mumbai University certification. The colleges application for autonomous status, which would enable it to prescribe its own syllabus and award degrees, has been pending for several years. Therefore the proposal to break up and downsize Maharashtras mega varsities is welcomed by St. Xaviers. Even though…

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Following the passage through Parliament of the Right to Free & Compulsory Education Act 2009, aka Right to Education Act (RTE), which came into force on April 1, the Tamil Nadu state government has commenced a statewide drive to enrol out-of-school children and drop-outs aged six-14 into school. The state government has legislated its own Uniform System of School Education Act 2010, prescribing a common syllabus for all 52,303 government and aided primary-secondary schools, and 4,400 private Matriculation board schools (200 CBSE and 52 CISCE schools excepted) in the state. This legislation has had the beneficial fallout of schools competing with each other to retain existing students and enrol more, because government grants are doled out to school managements on the basis of number of registered students.In this new and unusual race, the Chennai Municipal Corporation, after renaming its 282 corporation schools as ‘Chennai Schools on April 8, is a front- runner. A series of initiatives have been announced to enhance the popularity of corporation schools which have an aggregate enrolment of 105,580 students and 4,062 teachers. These initiatives include development of one primary-secondary in each of the citys ten zones into a ‘school of excellence; providing libraries to 67 high and higher secon-dary schools; and starting six community colleges and employment information centres for corporation school students. In addition, the provision of free uniforms, bags, shoes, geometry boxes etc to students of classes I to XII has been extended to cover 2,100 kindergarten children as well. However, monitors of the education scene in this southern port city are sceptical about the success of the corporations school enrolment drive. Over the past several decades government and corporation primary-secondaries have acquired a notorious reputation for infrastructure neglect, teacher absenteeism and abysmal learning outcomes. A recent study commissioned by the Chennai Municipal Corporation and conducted by student teams from the outreach department of the government-aided Loyola College, which studied 19 corporation schools with low enrolment, found that all of them have dirty, unhygienic toilets with some schools lacking even teachers toilets. Moreover maintenance of buildings is poor, and drinking water facilities and adequate security are woefully lacking. Teachers interviewed by Loyola students complained that they cannot concentrate on teaching as they are assigned numerous tasks such as conducting surveys and election duty. Parents interviewed also expressed dissatis-faction about teacher absenteeism, poor learning outcomes and lack of co-curricular activities. Poor parents who send their children to corporation schools are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of learning outcomes. Unfortunately not much learning happens in corporation schools because of teacher absenteeism and lack of discipline. Moreover government and corporation schools insist upon teaching in the Tamil medium until class V when theres a huge and growing demand for English medium education. Unless these basic issues are addressed by the state government, the enrolment drive of corporation schools wont succeed and the flight to private schools wont stop, says Father Xavier Vedam, vice principal, Loyola College and director of the outreach programme. Moreover there are…

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The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM)-led Left Front government of West Bengal has achieved another dubious distinction. It has failed and neglected to tap the huge cache allocated by the Central government to promote secondary school education in the states. Christened the Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA, ‘national secondary education drive), this centrally sponsored project was announced last year as an initiative to boost secondary education countrywide. A sum of Rs.20,120 crore has been allocated for the scheme during the Eleventh Plan (2007-2012), of which a sum of Rs.2 crore was granted to West Bengal in fiscal 2009-10 towards preparatory activities for implementing the RMSA programme in the state.Explaining the secondary schools development programme to Parliament on August 3 last year, Union minister of state in the HRD ministry, D. Purand-eshwari said: No predetermined state- wise allocation has been made, and Central assistance to state govern-ments will be based on appraisal of their annual plan proposals … (and) the scheme will be implemented by state governments. Under the RMSA programme, a generous grant of Rs.67 lakh per secondary is provided for upgrading infrastructure, building additional classrooms, improving laboratories and libraries, and providing basic amenities such as drinking water and toilets. But currently the grants are available only to state government-owned or spon-sored secondaries. The Central government sponsored RMSA programme has unearthed the reality that during the past 33 years that the CPM-led Left Front has been in power in West Bengal, it has cruelly neglected secondary education. Although the state boasts 106,354 primaries and upper primaries, a survey conducted by the state governments education department indicates that there are only 92 government or government-sponsored — 44 owned and 48 sponsored — and 11,500 government-aided private secondaries in West Bengal (pop. 80 million). Against this the state of Delhi (pop. 13.85 million) hosts 265 government-run secondaries and Meghalaya (pop. 3.2 million) boasts 11,500 government-aided private schools. With its shocking neglect of public secondary education exposed, the embarrassed Left Front government is arguing in favour of clubbing government-owned and government-aided schools (our aided schools are as good as government schools) to qualify for the RMSA grant of Rs.67 lakh per school. However Union HRD ministry officials maintain this is possible only if the managing committees of aided secondaries are dismantled and filled with state government representatives, a condition that is likely to be struck down by the courts as most aided secondaries in the state are minority institutions. I am amazed the West Bengal government didnt take an early initiative to impress upon the Central government that this policy will debar the huge number of aided schools with tens of thousands of children, from claiming RMSA assistance. This is bureaucratic sloth at its worst, says Prasanta Ray, emeritus professor of sociology at Presidency College, Kolkata. With West Bengals state legislative elections only 11 months away, the CPM will suffer another political setback. Meanwhile the states hapless primary school-leaving children are caught between a rock and hard place. Sujoy Gupta (Kolkata)

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Once one of the countrys most promising post-independence varsities, Bangalore University, (BU, estb.1964) whose techno-savvy graduates powered the spectacular growth of Indias globally respected IT industry, is in a tailspin. Since the early 1990s when a new genre of peasant leaders began calling the shots in the Vidhan Soudha, Bangalore — the ornate epicentre of political power in the southern state of Karnataka (pop.57 million) — the varsitys descent into nihilistic politics has increasingly begun to mirror the fractious caste-driven political wrangling in Vidhan Soudha.Right now Bangalore University, which has 473 affiliated colleges with an aggregate enrolment of 700,000 students, is split down the middle following a bitter row between vice chancellor Dr. N. Prabhu Dev and registrars M.G. Krishnan and V.G. Talwar. On April 2, Krishnan and Talwar submitted a memorandum to Karnataka governor H.R. Bhardwaj, chancellor of all universities in the state, accusing Prabhu Dev of splurging public money to fund his lavish life style, and nepotism in appointment of an unstatutory core committee. Four files with the records of his (Dr. Prabhu Devs) expenses have disappeared mysteriously from our cabin. These files pertained to two bills amounting to Rs.2.84 lakh and Rs.1 lakh drawn for the vice chancellors daily expenses, Talwar, regis-trar (evaluation), told media persons in Bangalore. It has been a painful, sad and humiliating experience since being appointed registrar. The provocation and humiliation at the hands of the VC is unbearable, added Krishnan. This memorandum of the registrars to Bhardwaj follows recent orders of Prabhu Dev curtailing their powers. A week earlier on May 29, the VCs office had ordered constitution of a 10-member committee to take exam-related decisions. Simultaneously the VC ordered transfer of administrative powers to deputy registrars in case the registrars fail to obey. Unfortunately for the BU registrars, their well-calculated move to go public and report Prabhu Devs misdemean-ours to the governor, backfired. On April 3, the governor/chancellor ordered an inquiry into complaints made against the two registrars, giving a clean chit to the vice chancellor. Bhardwaj appointed Justice I.P. Vashisht, a retired judge of the Allahabad high court, to probe allega-tions against the registrars and submit a report within the next two months. The on-off confrontation between Prabhu Dev and Krishan plus Talwar can be traced back to November last year when the vice chancellor refused to allow the varsitys newly-appointed registrars to assume office on the sprawling 1,100-acre university campus. The registrars, who had been appointed by order of the Karnataka state governments higher education ministry dated November 13, were asked to desist from assuming charge until the VCs office received official communi-cation from the chief ministers office. This informal stay order angered a large section of BU students who alleged that the vice chancellor was reluctant to accept the registrars appointment because of caste considerations. Eventually after three days of student and faculty protests, rumour-mongering and uncertainty, on November 19 Krishnan and Talwar assumed charge as registrars with the vice chancellor promising to work together for the betterment…

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“Today, what I am, I am because of education. So, I want that the light of education should reach to all… The government is committed to ensuring that all children irrespective of gender and social category, have access to education and fund constraints would not be allowed to hamper implementation of the Right to Education Act.” Prime minister Manmohan Singh addressing the nation on the RTE Act, which came into force on April 1 “We have million of Barack Obamas sitting here in India. Its a question of channelling them, moving them into the political system and giving them power.” Rahul Gandhi in India Today (April 12) “Our world-class research programmes and our culture of multi-disciplinary collaboration, which relies on having a critical mass of expertise in a variety of disciplines, cannot be easily replicated and transplanted elsewhere.” John Hennessey, president, Stanford University on foreign universities entering India (Forbes India, April 16) “Many women who do not dress modestly lead young men astray, corrupt their chastity and spread adultery in society, which increases earthquakes.” Hojatoleslam Kazem Sedighi, an Iranian Muslim cleric, blaming women for a spate of recent earthquakes around the world (The Guardian, April 19) “Consolidated power in Russia is the instrument of modernization. I would even insist it is the only one.” Vladislav Surkov, the Russian presidents deputy chief of staff (Time, April 19) “I am sorry. I feel for what you people have suffered. We hope that we can turn the page and move toward a better future together.” Pope Benedict apologising to victims of sexual abuse by Catholic priests (April 29) “Goldmans actions demonstrate that it often saw its clients not as valuable customers but as objects for profit.” Carl Levin, chairman of the permanent subcommittee investigating allegations of fraud against Goldman Sachs (Mint, April 29)

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Even though it visited 12 cities countrywide to elicit expert and public opinion, the task force working on giving shape and form to the National Commission on Higher Education & Research (NCHER) Bill, interacted with a very limited number of people. This was mainly because the visits were organised at short notice without proper publicity. Therefore the interaction with stakeholders especially academics and intellectuals was restricted, with many venues attracting just few people.On the other hand during the past few weeks when I discussed the Bill with several academicians, vice chancellors and school principals in Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra, I got the feel that too many stakeholders are not aware of the proposed reforms in higher education, and are capable of providing valuable suggestions if they are sounded. Therefore theres a clear and present danger that the report of the task force, which I understand had to complete its interviews by March end, will not truly reflect the views of a cross-section of stakeholders in higher education. Hence it would be advisable for the Union HRD minister Kapil Sibal to extend the deadline for public discussion, and make a genuine attempt to elicit the views of a greater number of higher education experts and stakeholders. For instance, the National Policy for Education (NPE), conceptualised by the late prime minister Rajiv Gandhi and approved by Parliament in 1986, stressed the need for creating an umbrella orga-nisation supervising and governing the entire spectrum of higher and professional education. NPE 1986 is the most comprehensive national education development blueprint put together by a wide cross-section of academics, corporate leaders and stakeholders in education. After prolonged discussions in the states and state assemblies, a programme of action was written and endorsed by Parliament in 1992. Therefore the process by which NPE 1986 was conceptualised, nationally debated and finally approved by Parliament, is an excellent template for the NCHER Bill. In this connection its pertinent to note that the National Knowledge Commission and the Yashpal Committee recommended broad consultation prior to creation of a new governance authority for all higher, technical and professional education. Yet the draft NCHER Bill gives the council supervisory authority over only the University Grants Commission, All India Council for Technical Education, National Council for Teacher Education and the Distance Education Council — institutions governed by the Union ministry of human resource development. Education insti-tutions which provide medical, dental, legal, agriculture and a host of other professional study programmes, and are licensed by several other councils reporting to other ministries, are outside the ambit of the draft Bill. They too need to be brought under its purview. Expansion of the governance ambit of the proposed NCHER Bill is important, because in the new 21st century economy we need graduates with multi-disciplinary education and training in a variety of skills. Such graduates can be produced only if we have academic institutions which offer modular, credit-based study programmes which encourage migration of students between different disciplines and faculties. We need…

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Confronted with rising incidence of stress, people from all walks of life are flocking to spas and wellness clinics. Therefore theres growing demand for qualified professionals in this global $255 billion industry A beneficial fallout of the sustained growth of Indias hospitality industry — hotels, restaurants, tours and tourism — is the simultaneous growth of the health and wellness business. Suddenly health and rejuvenation resorts aka spas, capitalising on the ancient Indian tradition of ayurveda and massage, are springing up in metropolitan India, driving the demand for professionally qualified spa therapists and spa managers. Con-fronted with rising incidence of stress, people from all walks of life are flocking to spas and wellness clinics for recharge and revitalisation. Indeed the explosion of indulgence in health and wellness is a global phenomenon. The value of the global spa and wellness industry is estimated at US $255 billion (Rs.1147,000 crore), making it one of the fastest growing industries worldwide. Not so long ago, spas were the luxurious preserves of the rich and super-rich around the world. Today, however, they have become more accessible and affordable for people of all segments of the middle class to de-stress and unwind in their comfortable premises. For school and college graduates, this emerging industry offers the advantages of attractive pay packages, quick advancement, opportunities for working abroad, and pleasant, stress-free work environments. Against this backdrop, professional massage and spa therapist study programmes are becoming increasingly popular. A course in spa therapy will familiarise the student with basic physiology and anatomy of the human body, help her understand body forms and identify imperfections. Moreover specialist programmes detail various types of massage and spa therapies, as well as the specific health problems they can rectify and heal. Besides learning how to reduce cellulite, students learn how to administer heat therapy, body wraps, mud wraps, body polishes and salt exfoliation processes. For those interested in a career in this sunrise industry, it makes sense to sign up for a professional programme in spa therapies and acquire international certification. There are several schools in Massachusetts, USA which specialise in professional education in this field. To acquire US-accepted certification, students should be certified by institutions approved by the National Certified Therapeutic Massage Workers Body. Among institutes in India offering courses in this field are the Ananda Spa Institute (ASI), Hyderabad which offers an eight-month spa diploma programme and the ASI holistic diploma (five months). A postgraduate diploma programme in skin and beauty therapy as also vocational courses are offered by the Shahnaz Hussain chain of institutes; the Body Tree Training Centres which provide ayurvedic medicine, massage and traditional Indian wellness training mainly to students from socially and economically backward communities. The southern sea-board state of Kerala hosts several schools for training in massage therapy, and likewise schools in Goa offer Abhyanga massage training in combination with Shirodhara. With the health and wellness industry booming, opportunities abound for qualified spa therapists at remuneration packages ranging from Rs.20,000-100,000 per month depending upon qualifications, experience…

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Ill be completing my law degree next year and am interested in signing up for an intellectual property rights study programme through distance learning. Which institutions offer this course?Sridhar Swamy, Bangalore Among the institutes offering study programmes in intellectual property rights through distance education are the National Law School of India University, Bangalore (www.nls.ac.in); IGNOU (www.ignou.ac.in); National Law University, Jodhpur (http://www. nlujodhpur.ac.in/distance.php); NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad (www.nalsarpro.org); Asian School of Cyber Laws, Mumbai (www.ascionline. org); Institute of Intellectual Property Studies, Mumbai (www.iips.ac.in) and Centre for Distance Education, Univers-ity of Hyderabad (www.uohyd.ernet.in). After completing class XII (science), I want to study marine architecture. Please advise. Rohit Agarwal, Chennai Admission into architecture degree programmes is based on entrance tests such as NATA or AIEEE. The list of colleges offering architecture degrees is available on the website of the Council of Architecture (www.coa.gov. in). The Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur (www.iitkgp.ac.in/) and Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (www.oec.iitm.ac.in/) also offer B.Tech and M.Tech dual degrees in ocean engineering and naval architecture. Moreover the department of ship technology, Cochin University of Science & Technology, Kochi (http://shiptech.cuset.ac.in/) offers a B.Tech degree in naval architecture and ship building. What is the price of an MBA programme in Australia? Please suggest some reputed B-schools Down Under. Also what are my chances of getting a scholarship? Neelam Bajaj, Mumbai The Australian Graduate School of Management (AGSM), Melbourne Business School, and University of Sydney are regarded as the top business schools in Australia. An MBA at AGSM would set you back by approx. US $35,000 (Rs.15.46 lakh). To qualify for admission into these B-schools you need at least two years of full-time work experience. Scholarships are difficult to come by but you have the option of negotiating a bank loan of Rs.20 lakh. After completing my B.Sc I want to enrol in a robotics engineering degree programme. What are the eligibility requirements? Suraj Rai, New Delhi Entry into engineering degree programmes is open to B.Sc gradu-ates with at least 60 percent average and mathematics as a subject. In some states, admission is based on B.Sc marks plus an entrance test. If you have recently enroled in a B.Sc programme after class XII (PCM), you could switch to an engineering bachelors degree programme through the usual engine-ering admission process and then press on for a postgraduate degree in robotics. Im in the second year of a bachelor of homeopathic medicine & surgery (BHMS) programme. What postgrad-uate study options are available to me? Shalini Patil, Pune Earlier there were specialisations in three fields viz, materia medica, homeopathic philosophy and repertory. The Union government has now approved postgrad courses in four more subjects — paediatrics, medicine, psychiatry and pharmacy. Please note that entry into postgrad studies in homeopathy is after completion of the five-and-half-year BHMS degree. The three-year postgrad degree includes one year of internship, during which the student has to reside on campus. Im in my third year B.Sc degree (home science) with specialisation in community resource management. Simultaneously I…

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The Indian economy has changed significantly in the past decade resulting in corresponding change in the nature of work and demand for skills. While more than half of Indias GDP is contributed by services, more than two-third of the population is still employed — or more accurately under-employed — in the agricultural sector.This indicates that while the demand for trained and skilled employees from the services sector of the economy has surged, access to VET (vocational education and training) has not improved. With only 12 percent in the 18-24 age group population having access to higher education, India is constrained by a severe and accentuating shortage of skilled manpower. Against this backdrop of a severe demand-supply imbalance of skilled personnel, the promotion of community colleges offers a win-win solution which could meet industry demand and improve employability of the 88 million in the age group 18-24 who dont/cant make it into traditional institutions of higher education. Therefore the teachers community needs to acti-vely support promotion and development of comm-unity colleges to meet the challenges of access to post-secondary education and bridge the skills gap of Indian industry. Recently, the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) announced the launch of 100 community colleges across India. Under the Eleventh Plan (2007-12), IGNOU plans to establish 400 new community colleges across the country. Community colleges in the US serve the purpose of providing easy access to secondary school leavers to vocational training for workforce development, offering non-credit certificate programmes related to community engagement or cultural activities, and preparing students for transfer to four-year bachelors degree institutions. Currently Americas nearly 1,200 community colleges enrol more than 11.5 million students constituting nearly half of all undergraduate enrolments, and produce almost 600,000 students annually with two-year associate degree certification. The average age of students in Americas community colleges is 29 years with nearly 60 percent enroled in part-time study programmes. In particular with the US economy experiencing severe recessionary contraction, community colleges are witnessing record enrolment, with laid-off workers looking for continuing education and middle class families for cost-effective post-secondary education. Given that tuition fees in public community colleges average $2,400 (Rs.1 lakh) per year against $6,500 (Rs.2.90 lakh) in public undergraduate colleges, and more than $20,000 (Rs.13.65 lakh) in private undergrad colleges, spending two years in a community college and transferring to a four-year college degree programme is making good economic sense to an increasing number of households across America. Encouraging and funding community colleges is making good sense to the Obama administration as well. President Obama recently proposed a $12 billion (Rs.54,600 crore) initiative to provide direct financial assistance to US community colleges for modernisation and construction, to improve academic and student support services and for funding online study programmes. The outcome of this massive investment is expected to increase the throughput of graduates from 1 million currently to 5 million by 2020. Somewhat belatedly, the community colleges movement is gaining ground in India. Pressing industry demand for trained and skilled workers; higher GER…

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