S. Vishnu Sharma
UGC, educational institutions can likely begin academic sessions by September this year. This is one of the recommendation made by an expert panel set up University Grants Commission.
Amidst the outbreak of corona virus in the nation currently, educational institutions are not able to commence the academic sessions in a timely manner and UGC has set up an expert panel to look into the prospects of conducting exams related to higher education.
UGC Panel Recommendation was that the exams for graduate and post graduate courses can be conducted in July as they could not be conducted as per the earlier planned schedules as nation went into a self-imposed lock down to prevent COVID-19 situation from wreaking a havoc.
Various sources say, the UGC Panel Recommendations will be taken into consideration with regards to academic calendar preparation and also issuing guidelines with regards to academics.
Even conducting higher education exams online also seems to have got the required impetus. Expert panel setup by UGC under the leadership of IGNOU Vice Chancellor Nageshwar Rao also is said to have been in favour of adopting online examinations.
It must be recollected that a committee under the leadership of Vice chancellor of Haryana University R.C. Kuhad was established to look into the prospects of conducting exams amidst the present lock down situation.
The other committee was headed by Nageshwar Rao which was looking into suggesting measures to improve online education. These panels are said to have given their reports to the Central Government.
Now the hint is that if the recommendations of these two panels are taken for implementation, students are not likely to avail winter vacation and are also likely to work on holidays also to help compensate the lost study days.
While expert panels set by UGC have given their recommendations, experts and students feel the repurcussions of whatever is happening now will be felt in higher education in the subsequent months.
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A minor delay in conducting exams will not be an issue, however when a major problem bothers the nation, the impact is bound to be present on academics, says T. Sadanand, a history lecturer.
The corona virus has put on hold many things like academic sessions, final examinations. All these will show up the impact on placements. When academic sessions and final examinations are not conducted on time, the chances of conducting placements on time are also remote, says S. Amritaraj, a final year engineering student.
Giving it to technology is Amritaraj. This is the right time when we can make use of technology to conduct online exams.
N. R. Krishna Kumar, another lecturer in an arts college giving another dimension to the point of conducting exam says the exams for the final year must be conducted first as they are the ones who will be aiming for competitive exam also and will require their qualification exams (graduate, post graduate courses) to be over first.
While UGC is contemplating on all measures to ensure things go in an orderly manner with regards to higher education, students are having their own concern. ‘I am yet to write my final year exam in MA History and on the other hand I have applied to couple of competitive exams,’ says Mohammed Arif, a final year post graduate student.
Students like him are now facing tough time, as they are compelled to maintain two study time tables. One for their post graduate exam and the other for competitive exam. ‘It is tough doing it,’ he says.
Normally post graduate or graduate courses (regular education) exams must be over now. If that was the case, I would have had the liberty of focusing on civil services preparation alone. Thanks to the present situation, I can’t do that now. While concerns for students may not end as of now, the hope is for better times ahead.