An Open Letter to the hon’ble Minister of HRD,
Ms.Smriti Irani
Respected Minister,
The Newspapers today speak about
your intention to scrap the FYUP introduced by the University of Delhi. Maybe
your move to abort this programme is in line with the promise made by your
party before elections and is a concession to the demands made by the Teachers
Association(DUTA) and student groups who
have not been well informed about the programme and the rationale behind
introducing it at the First degree level. Many fear that it is a backdoor plan to allow entry of
foreign universities that follow four year first degree programmes and thus
make Delhi University on par with them. In fact the US universities and some of the top European universities want
students to have a 16year study
before they can be admitted to a Masters programme.
But there has hardly been a debate on the academic rationale
to resist this change except to win brownie points and win favour of that
section of the academic community that does not like a year’s extension of the
UG courses. In continuation of this change at the UG level, Masters programmes
have been reduced from two years to one year of study. The academic debate on
the rightness and usefulness of 3+ 2 or 4+1 study is essentially a debate on
whether change is to be adopted or resisted. There have been a few other
changes Delhi University has introduced where change becomes the debating
point. All these changes have to be
validated against cause and effect sequence.
The opposition to the FYUP
unfortunately rests on the inability to recognize the rationale that demands a
change from three to four years and it has no patience to wait to see the
effect on the first batch of students who will be completing a four year degree
course.
The introduction of FYUP in DU in 2013, coming after nearly 200
years since the establishment of the University is to use the clichéd phrase
‘neither too late nor too little.’ The academic programmes in the last few
decades have failed to equip young graduate students with holistic learning to
develop into knowledgeable, responsible citizens. The rationale for the change to add one more year to the three year UG
programme is to provide extra time for the study of Foundation course and
Additional courses in disciplines other than the one in which the student seeks
to major.
It is also in line with the current world-wide enthusiasm for
Liberal Arts programme which seeks
to erase the divide between arts and sciences.
It is meant to provide inclusive learning in both streams. The idea is not to make students scholars in
all disciplines, but to give them a glimpse into different disciplines that
impact not only each other but impact life in many ways. Foundation course as the name suggests
relates to education or instruction in the fundamentals of any field of
knowledge. The dissatisfaction with the
Foundation course in Delhi University is not with the idea of a broad canvas
but in its failure to design an interesting and informative course. Teachers
have not been adequately informed and trained to teach these courses and so
they baulk at the idea of compressing vast knowledge of different disciplines into
capsule forms for students to learn. The disapproval by a large section of
teachers is due to the mind boggling task of catching a leviathan in a fishnet.
The problem of FYUP is the failure of DU
to design a proper structure that draws an acceptable line between inclusive
learning and in-depth learning.
In fact I had suggested the model of Great Book Series or The Wisdom of the Ages Series for the Foundation Course (which unfortunately
DU did not see ) where seminal books on
different disciplines are discussed by teachers in the class and students could
make a choice of three books to make a presentation each semester. The ideas
contained in these books are perennial ideas and students of Humanities will
learn about Theories of Science and vice versa. All these lectures which will
be delivered by teachers and invited specialists, have to be attended by all
students so that they make their choice of three books every semester to write
a paper. I give below a possible list of
books that students should be exposed . These are some of the books that come
to my mind. The teachers who opt to teach Foundation course must be given a
three weeks training programme to enable them select books of seminal ideas of
different disciplines that can influence
the growth of others. It is the richness of ideas and thoughts of brilliant
minds that are to be shared with students. These
are perennial ideas that relate them to life at all times. The taste for
reading among students will be the beneficial offshoot of such an exposure as
it serves the purpose, sufficient to kindle their curiosity without imposing
mental strain. FYUP is a welcome change that puts the student on a
multi-disciplinary foundation on which he can build the discipline of his
choice for advanced learning. The change to 4 years is certainly a change for
the better if the implementation is done with adequate training of the faculty.
Kindly do not throw the baby out with the water bath. This course is vital to
the intellectual and holistic development of the young students and helps them
to develop critical and analytical ability to make informed choices in their
life.
Another change mooted is the one year PG course which inter
alia puts greater onus on self learning rather than classroom lectures that
discourage independent thought and research. The structure of the course, the
examination schemes that should include a mini dissertation on a specified
project have to be properly worked out. Teachers will have to prepare their
lectures as mini capsules of all that have to be taught. Lectures should be
just two per week on each paper and the emphasis should be on seminars and
paper presentations by students. This change is long overdue as it encourages students
to rely on their own study than on classroom lectures. The five year
consolidated Masters programme (of four year UG + one year PG) replacing the current
three year UG and two year PG should not be seen as an academic sleight of hand
to ring in change; the rationale behind such an exercise is to provide holistic
development of students- something that is missing in our Undergraduate
programmes.
Kindly request the officials of HRD to explain why the
Ministry had remained silent all this while-which means an acceptance of the
FYUP and what is its rationale today to revoke it.
The students of the
earlier three year degree programme could not find gainful employment as they
were ill equipped both in theoretical knowledge and technical skills. The four
year programme gives them time to develop holistically and be trained in skills
that will fetch them reasonable employment.
Last but not the least, there is no point in letting loose
young men and women who at 21 are not adequately educated and trained to roam
around the streets. Let them be properly educated –even if it means one
additional year before they get a degree. Promise of jobs for all will remain
an election slogan if the present trend of untrained and under-qualified youth
continues. One additional year will not only arrest the number of unemployed,
but will positively impact nation’s progress as the universities turn out
worthy young men and women to contribute significantly. I hope you give due consideration to the
issues I have raised in this mail before taking your final decision.
With regards
Hema Raghavan
(former) Dean of Students’ Welfare, Univ. of Delhi and
(former) Principal, Gargi College,Univ. of Delhi.
Possible List of books teachers should discuss with students:
Amartya Sen’s book on Development as Freedom that discusses Capability Theory,
Martha Nussbaum’s on Cultivating Humanity, that discusses Global Citizenship
Fritjof Capra’s on The Web of Life or Hidden Connections, The Tao of Physics, Cosmic Dance of Shiva Nataraj, Quantum Physics, and Laws of Nature. on Science and Sustainable Development
Gurcharan Das’ on The Difficulty of being Good(based on the Mahabharata)On the Ethics of Governance ,Gandhiji's My Experiments with Truth on personal Ethics and Character Building
The Bible (specially the 18th Book of the Old Testament –The Book of Job that deals with Faith and Suffering), the works of the Sufi saint Jalaluddin Rumi, The Bhagavad Gita, Life of Lord Buddha, the Kabbalah etc on the core principles underlying world Religions
Andre Beteille’s The Idea of Natural Inequality, Anti‑Utopia, etc on Society and People
Ramacchandra Guha 's The Makers of Modern India
Robert Kanigel’s on The Man Who Knew Infinity: a Life of the Genius Ramanujan on the importance of Mathematics on our life.
More Books can be added and teachers can choose from them.
No comments:
Post a Comment