The New Normal Examination And Academics

Due to the ongoing Covid-19 crisis, a large number of higher educational institutes are now moving to online teaching mode, even the examinations will be held online considering this scenario, University Grant Commission (UGC) has put out new guidelines regarding examination and academics. On the guidelines provided by UGC, Dr Abhay Jere, Chief Innovation Officer, Ministry of HRD, Govt. of India and Prof. D.P. Singh, Chairman of UGC, discuss on the guidelines-how e-learning, online examinations will be the new normal during this Covid crisis. Corporate Citizen brings you the excerpts

"We have asked the academic fraternity to help students to access other modes to study. Teachers can send the photocopy of notes to students in different ways"

- Prof. D.P. Singh

Dr Abhay Jere: I have seen the recent guidelines put up by the UGC and they are very detailed how to conduct exams, how should be academic session conducted and so on. So, what should be the considerations given by the committee when these guidelines were framed?

Prof. D.P. Singh : Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent nationwide lockdown, how to conduct the examinations, what would be the admission process for the next academic year etc., were the concerns before the teachers, students, and all the institutions related to higher education. Forums were built wherein we can constitute a committee of experts which can look into comprehensive leads. To address the issues related to examinations, issues related to academics, issues related to PhD and MPhil students, issues related to laboratories’ functioning etc., a committee under the chairmanship of R.C. Kuhad, former, UGC Member, Vice Chancellor at the University of Haryana, was constituted and they were given with the responsibility to come out with some recommendations, which can be shared with the universities in the form of guidelines. I am very happy to say that the committee along with the experts who were in the committee, they worked with some of the members and they were in touch with the vice chancellor, they were in touch with other academia in general and came out with the other recommendations.

In addition, these recommendations were placed in front of the commission, as per the procedure, and it was discussed and after the approval and acceptance of the committee, the UGC issued the guidelines for the universities and the colleges.

UGC has come up with some interesting guidelines, especially regarding examinations. Now, in these guidelines, you have suggested open book examinations, open choice questions and so on. Do you think our academicians are ready for these kinds of exams because setting question papers for exams is a bit different and tricky also? Do you think our professors are equipped and capable to set questions for such kind of exams?

I want to make it very clear, open book examinations, open choice questions these are some choices. The committee recommended several other options and while framing the guidelines, we thought of every institution. We thought of the diversity of this country, which is very wide, for example, geographical diversity and educational diversity, and the commission considered the report and it was suggested that the guidelines should be stakeholder-friendly. Particularly, it should keep into mind the various guidelines, various protocols issued by the Central Government and the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Home and the local administration. The prime concern is the health and safety of the students.

The guidelines are very flexible and we have written very particularly in the letter addressed to the vice chancellor of all colleges. In the guidelines, it is mentioned that the universities and higher educational institutions can adopt, adapt and implement the guidelines and wherever modifications, alterations are required which are most suited in the existing circumstances and near future of circumstances to be carried out. Therefore, the guidelines are very flexible, besides open book examination, we have given other options also.

I agree with you that it will take some time to get to it. However, there are certain options as well, type of examinations, how the examinations should be conducted and so on. We have given the modified suggestive academic calendar also. We have suggested that examination of terminal/final semester can be held in July and after that, the examination of other semesters could be organised in mid-July. Then, the next session for senior students can start from the first week of August and the new batches will start from September. So, we have given lots of choices for the universities and on the basis of those choices, they can select the best one for them.

You rightly said that we have diversity, even the internet is not present all over the country. Online education is going to be a challenge in remote parts of our country. So does UGC believes that in the Post-Covid world, will there online mode (regarding education) for urban academic institutes and conventional teaching mode for rural or it will be blended for all? What is your take on this?

UGC is not suggesting a complete shift to online education; I want to make it very clear. As per the norms of social distancing, people distancing are to be followed, e-learning, which is in various forms is the alternative. We are aware of the diversity of this country, students are in the rural areas also, but wherever the facilities are there, they can use the e-resources but besides that, we have DTH channels, Doordarshan and other channels. We have asked the academic fraternity to help students to access other modes. Teachers can send the photocopy of notes to students in different ways. In addition, in the academic calendar, we have suggested that after the closing of institutions in March, we had requested the teaching and learning through whatever modes possible. At the very beginning of March, we had issued an advisory to the higher education suggesting the various modes which are available, and the students are aware of it, that helped them a lot. Through Swayam Pravah, we are also reaching to students.

"Prof. Dhirendra Pal Singh (D. P. Singh) has about 34 years of professional experience in different aspects of educational planning and administration, institution building, teaching and training, research and development, international cooperation etc. in various capacities in different institutions including Director, National Assessment and Accreditation Council an Autonomous Institution of University Grants Commission (UGC) & Vice Chancellor of three universities - Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Varanasi; Dr. Hari Singh Gour University, Sagar and Devi Ahilya University, Indore. Prof. Singh joined the University Grants Commission (UGC) as Chairman on 1st January, 2018. Since then UGC has taken several initiatives for promoting the quality of higher education. These initiatives are broadly categorised as Regulatory initiatives, Academic and research initiatives and digital initiatives."

- Prof. D.P. Singh

One of the most important platforms, which is available, is Swayam, a number of students are using that platform. Initially, before Covid-19, the adoption of Swayam was not done by universities. Do you think that UGC is now more successfully pushing universities to adopt Swayam from giving credit?

Yes, under the Swayam regulation, which is existing from 2016, there is a mention that, universities who take Swayam, up to 20% credit should be given of the total courses. We are now thinking of increasing it up to 40% so that more courses are available. We have already requested higher education institutions to adopt the books and to study through Swayam and having a mechanism of transfer and now we will be writing to them and précising them, which will be beneficial to students. At the same time, the UGC and the inter-university centres of UGC of CEC (Consortium for Education Communication), and information and elaborative network, are these all institutions working together so that we have more successively on the Swayam portal.

Previously, because the academic calendar was stretched, a large number of students would get the opportunity to reappear for exams to improve their grades, to improve their marks. Now in the current situation, when will that kind of facility will be available for them?

We have provided that opportunity to them in the guidelines. We have requested the higher education institutions that the students should be provided with this option. It is mentioned very clearly in the guidelines, that if any student wants to improve the grades, he/she might re-appear for such exams. If you look at the guidelines, you will find that they are student friendly, and the interest, concern of students’ committee at large is addressed.

Another worrying factor for youngsters will be especially for those who are doing PhD and post-graduation. Because a lot of laboratory work is also involved. With undergrads, you can always give an exam, you pass-out and you get a degree. But when it comes to MTechs, MPhils and PhD, there is a huge amount of laboratory or fieldwork that they have to do. While considering this Covid crisis, they may not be able to go to labs or they may not be able to go on fields, so what these new guidelines offer them?

The committee has discussed this issue with fellow vice chancellors, the institutions, and on the basis of that, the committee has suggested in the guidelines some ways and means be evolved, so that the students can go to their labs; since experiments are time bound, they are told that they have to go labs for the experiments to get done. Another thing is the consensus of the MPhil and PhD students, we have extended the period of the thesis by six months, another thing is the provision guidelines is there, the viva can be conducted by video and other methods. These two provisions have been given in the guidelines.

"As per the guidelines suggested by UGC, the ongoing Covid-19 crisis has made students, teachers and higher academic institutions shift to online learning and online examinations"

- Dr Abhay Jere

These academic guidelines, whether they are time-bound and whether they are just confined to the Covid crisis or now you look at the guidelines as the new normal for the UGC?

Actually, the way the post Covid situation has been projected and the way they are going through it, we have to perhaps learn to live with coronavirus. Although the guidelines framed for the current academic session will be affected, one thing is sure that higher education institutions, besides the campus learning, they should also think of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) enabled education, the use of e-learning, IT-enabled methods, the various resources that are there to promote online learning. But at the same time, face to face teaching should be there and therefore we can think of long run and a blended model of teaching, which I think is a necessity also and therefore, having virtual classes with the effective technology is also required. We have also suggested training our faculty through various modes in these teaching and learning processes. We should think of ways, means and methods of strategies suited to students in a particular locality that is the take of UGC.

One aspect is exams, which is very relevant for students. The second aspect of these guidelines is regarding the next academic sessions. Would you like to elaborate on that also?

As I mentioned about the academic sessions earlier, we have considered some suggestions for this and the next academic calendar. After the closing of institutions which happened on 16 March, we have suggested that up to 31 May, learning through various methods, e-learning, social platforms through Swayam, etc. that should continue till 31 May and from 1 to 15 June, we have suggested the finalisation of the dissertation, project work, internship reports, and other academic activities which they should continue up to 15 June. From 16-30 June, we have suggested having summer vacations. We have given a provision in the guidelines that if the situation so demands due to the Covid-19 pandemic and considering the protocols of the central government, if normalcy is not there then the summer vacations can be a bit longer, it can be of one month also. In that case, those activities related to e-learning, dissertation and etc. should continue till May 31, this is what we have suggested. Based on this, the next session, the examination for the current session should be for the terminal semester that should be from 1 July to 18 July and for the remaining semesters, those can be held from 16 to 31 July and the result of the final semester should be declared by 14 August. For the next academic session, we have suggested starting the classes on 1st August of senior students; and for the new batches, it should start from September. We have told the institutions to look for various options as well. These guidelines are student-friendly and institute friendly.