Transforming higher education
Context:
- Prevailing condition of higher education and possible ways to remedy it.
Existing Conditions:
- Closing of the educational institute due to the pandemic.
- Focus is on Home based learning.
- Focus should be on accessible and affordable home based education along with complete reform of education.
Objective of Education:
- Providing knowledge in the relevant discipline to the students.
- The education imparted to the students will need to be supplemented with the skills needed for their jobs/enterprises.
- Mould characters of students.
- Make them able to play a constructive role in shaping the society and the world at large using the values and ideals of a modern, progressive society.
Concern with Higher Education:
- Small number of self-motivated students.
- Poor learning among the large number of students.
- Huge gulf between the curriculums taught in the colleges and actual job requirements.
- Lack of skills or knowledge to add to employability of students in order to reap the demographic dividend.
- Focus on completion of the syllabus without concern of outcomes.
- Undue emphasis on examinations to evaluate students’ knowledge.
Way Forward:
- Re-evaluate the syllabus every now and then to ensure that the syllabus is in line with the industrial requirements.
- Emphasis on substantive industrial internships as part of the course work in colleges.
- The evaluation of the learning outcomes of the students can be a mix of regular assignments, performance in the internship as rated both by the industry and the college, and a light, home-based proctored exam.
Reference: https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/transforming-higher-education/article32164033.ece