The urgency to improve learning attainments and quality of education is invariably underscored in every discourse and document on education policy formulation, reforms and implementation of the plans and projects developed thereafter. That conditions are indeed distressingly disturbing becomes evident from reports received from all over the country practically on a daily basis. The Agra University, established in 1927 and renamed Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar University in 1998, has been blacklisted by several employment agencies, as its credibility has been seriously dented because of frequent detection of fake marksheets issued by it.
This reputation is no recent development, but sadly enough, a prolonged public perception. Just a couple of years ago, it was pointed out that against 12,000 seats, the affiliated colleges enrolled more than 20,000 student-teachers. They were convinced that things can be set right in due course.
People do talk of great days of this university in days of yore and also refer to its illustrious alumni that include Pandit Hridaynath Kunjru, Dr Shankar Dayal Sharma, Chaudhari Charan Singh and Atal Bihari Vajpayee. This university is no exception; things even in several central universities are neither smooth nor conducive to sustained pursuit of new knowledge.
A UGC committee had been constituted to conduct an “academic, research, financial and infrastructure audit” of 10 central universities that includes illustrious ones such as the Allahabad University, Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), and Dr Hari Singh Gaur University, Sagar. Essentially, it was supposed to look into complaints and irregularities.
The expectation was to receive suggestions on how to improve the functioning of these universities. The committee, however, made a suggestion to remove ‘Muslim’ and ‘Hindu’ from AMU and Banaras Hindu University. It would have certainly plunged these; and also other universities in tension and turmoil. The situation was, however, saved by the prompt rejection by the Union Minister for HRD. People still remember what happened when the then Union Minister for Education and Culture, MC Chagla, had projected similar intentions in 1966. He had to beat a hasty retreat.
Sometimes, learned suggestions, bereft of contextual analysis and futuristic vision, inflict more harm than doing any good to the system. The introduction of Academic Performance Indicator (API) scores is one such instance, which has contributed visibly in lowering the academic pursuits in the universities.
Quality in higher education requires a sound base of quality of school education, which has declined in geometric proportions in ‘sarkari’ schools. A question paper for Class VIII approved by the Bihar School Board recently mentioned five countries: China, Nepal, England, Kashmir, and India.
Right from the preparation stage to moderation to final scrutiny and approval, a series of experts are paid decent honoraria by the board. Was it ignorance, or lack of commitment, or a well-planned mischief?
With such widespread callousness, initiatives such as RTE, SSA, and creation of bodies like Bihar Education Project Council have little relevance. It is a sad commentary that the sections of the society that need education most urgently—the weaker sections which still depend on sarkari schools—are just being deprived of education and learning solely because of an incompetent and corrupt system that refuses to learn from experience and reform itself. Abysmally low percentage of successful candidates in the Teacher Eligibility Tests indicates what is happening in teacher education institutions.
One must hasten to add that India still has teachers at every stage of education and all over the country who are performing their role in full sincerity and with unadulterated commitment even in conditions of serious deficiency and deprivations. They could play the leadership role in any well thought-out reform effort. Who else but Indian teachers and scholars can create an environment in educational institutions that nurtures creativity and innovations on one hand and on the other, presents a model of generating social cohesion and religious amity before a world that is grievously torn between violence, war, hatred, and insecurity.
J S Rajput
Former director of the NCERT
rajput_js@yahoo.co.in