Govt’s self-study proposal finds few takers
Bhubaneswar: Higher education minister Arun Kumar Sahoo has said students will have to carry out ‘guided self-study’ for a 25% portion of the undergraduate (UG) and postgraduate (PG) courses, drawing criticism from teachers and students alike on Wednesday.
The higher education department has said it will provide books and online and offline study material to the students for the guided self-study. “They can approach their teachers if they have any doubts about the self-study portion of their course. This will make them enthusiastic, self-reliant and analytic,” Sahoo said.
A teacher of Utkal University, however, said not only was there no clarity about how students would go about the self-study, the government did not consult teachers before such a decision was announced. “Which 25% of the course will be given to the students for self-study? Will the students decide or will we teachers decide the portion concerned? The higher education department should have discussed the proposal with the stakeholders before taking a decision,” he added.
He said PG courses had five units each. “If we divide the syllabus into five units, each unit would cover 20% of the subject. How will the extra five per cent be decided? In UG courses, it will be easier as every subject has four units,” he added.
Srinibas Samal, a UG student, welcomed the proposal but said it would help only a section of students. “What about weak students who need the attention of teachers? They may not cope with the new style of study. There is no clarity on the issue,” he added.
Asoka Kumar Das, vice-chairman of Odisha State Higher Education Council, said, “We are alert to the students’ difficulties. Simple video lectures cater to only the upper 30% of the student population. With doubt-clearing sessions and target-oriented reading material, we are catering to the bottom 70%. Students need not worry.”