MLA moves HC to wrest higher edu back on state list

MLA moves HC to wrest higher edu back on state list

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:12.09.2021

A service organisation founded by a DMK MLA has moved Madras high court challenging the 42nd constitutional amendment through which higher education was transferred from the State List to the Concurrent List. If he succeeds in his plea, the state would be able to do away with NEET and NEP (New Education Policy).

The petition has been filed Aram Seyya Virumbu Trust through its representative, Dr Ezhilan Naganathan, a DMK MLA from Thousand Lights.

He has challenged the validity of Section 57 of the Constitution (42nd Amendment) Act, 1976 which deleted Entry 11 of List II (State List) of the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution and effectively transferred the subject of education to List III (Concurrent List).

Ezhilan said Section 57 violates the basic structure doctrine for the reason that the said amendment resulted in upsetting the federal structure envisaged by the Constitution framers. “By virtue of transferring the subject of education from List II to List III, the States’ executive/legislative autonomy in the matters of education has become subservient to Union’s executive/legislative powers,” he said.

The petitioner further pointed out that education has been treated as a provincial subject across various Constitutions like those of Canada, Australia, the US and even India prior to impugned amendment.

Noting that federalism is a basic structure of the constitution, the petitioner said, “…it was not the intention of the constitution makers to grant untrammelled power to the Union government with regard to the very basic subjects such as primary education.”

The plea moved as a PIL is likely to be taken up for hearing by the first bench headed by the Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee.

Marks boom and killing cut-offs: Time to rexamine exam system

BY INVITATION

Marks boom and killing cut-offs: Time to rexamine exam system

ANITA RAMPAL

12.09.2021

These are strange times indeed. The number of students this year with over 95% marks in the CBSE Class 12 Board examination is over 70,000; before the pandemic, in 2019, it was 17,000. During the Covid-19 lockdown, in 2020 this figure was 38,000. Almost all (99.4%) have passed. Similar benevolence can be seen in other state boards. In Maharashtra, 99.6% (from among 13 lakh candidates) passed the Class 12 examination; 98% (from among 26 lakh candidates) passed in Uttar Pradesh; and 100% (all 8 lakh) in Tamil Nadu. So what is happening? Why is the crushing pandemic and prolonged school closure inflating students’ marks? Without going to school, without a Board examination, with barely a quarter able to access ‘online’ lessons (not a substitute for education), most seem to have been gifted with a marks bonanza. Does this signal that school does not matter, or that marks do not have much value?

Perhaps the Boards, knowing that the majority had no access to education, did not wish to ‘fail’ or hold back students. This may be an important consideration for an unprecedented year, but the questionable doling out of marks has been happening for many years now, without improving the quality of learning for the majority, and needs to be seriously addressed before the examination system completely loses its relevance.

This year there’s another catch. At Delhi University, there are 69,554 seats on offer through what is called the ‘merit-based’ admission process. This central university draws students from different Boards and from across the country who aspire to study in this central university. The first ‘cut-offs’ for undergraduate courses are predicted to be staggering, with many crossing 97% (an aggregate of a student’s best four subjects) and very few close to 90%. In some courses, seats are expected to get filled as soon as the first list is out, but for others, through further lists, the cut-off is still expected to remain unreasonably high.

So what happens to a young person’s aspirations and opportunities, if with over 90%, she does not have the ‘merit’ to apply for admission to a course that could nurture her calling? What about her sense of self-worth? There are also concerns about the selfimage and arrogance of those with hugely inflated marks who enter higher education, where they are required to think and learn with more reflection, rigour and humility.

Moreover, if even those among the privileged bracket of the CBSE examination — the 5.5% candidates getting over 95% marks (or the 12% candidates getting over 90%) — have to grapple with a sense of uncertainty and ‘failure’ in what they want from higher education, what does it tell us of the majority of all our children? Most do not reach the level of Class 12. A large number is pushed out before they complete Class 8 (despite their Right to Education), while the official data shows that 30% of secondary students (Class 9-10) do not transition to the senior secondary stage (class 11-12).

We are currently faced with significant questions about the value of marks, the quality of ‘merit’ attached to them, and the scarcity of opportunities for meaningful higher education. Michel Sandel wonders why we continue to trust the “meritocratic tournament” that college admissions have now become to better our life chances, even when studies show that higher education in the US does very little to promote upward mobility. An elite private college like Harvard enrols very few poor students so barely 1% go up from the bottom to the top of the income scale. The countries with the highest mobility are indeed those with the greatest equality; the ability to rise depends on access to good quality education, health care and basic resources to support people through life.

Questioning notions of ‘success’ in his book ‘Outliers’, Malcolm Gladwell notes that Nobel Prize winners mostly come from ‘good enough’ colleges, not necessarily from high-ranking ones. He says that research about learning and intelligence shows that ranking higher education institutions ‘like runners in a race, makes little sense’. There are advantages of being in a more amiable environment where a good student gets a chance to be supported by peers and teachers, rather than being lost in a competitive cut-throat swarm of ‘high achievers’.

Sometimes bizarre results can propel us to see the irrelevance and damaging implications of a situation we have been tolerating as ‘normal’. This is that critical juncture. Hopefully, not just people working in education but all those watching or tacitly experiencing it will be compelled to call for a major change. We owe it to the millions of our youth, whose agency and ability during their most critical, creative years is sacrificed at the altar of such ‘terminal’ competitive examinations, at an ‘exit’ or ‘entrance’ stage.

Rampal is professor and former dean, Faculty of Education, Delhi University

FLYING HIGH: Those with inflated marks may also get inflated egos, and an exaggerated sense of self-worth

CMs should stop dragging their feet on school opening

Times of India 

SWAMINOMICS

CMs should stop dragging their feet on school opening

SWAMINATHAN S ANKLESARIA AIYAR

12.09.2021

Covid has been both a health and educational disaster. All schools were closed without debate when Covid struck. Cautious re-opening has begun at higher school levels but primary and upper primary schools have remained closed for over 500 days. Economists have shown that human capital — skilling, starting with schooling — is more important than financial capital. Yet even as India attracts billions of dollars into stock markets and start-ups, its human capital has been eroded by school closure.

Young children have not just failed to learn for 500 days but forgotten what they knew earlier, and many have lapsed into illiteracy. The problem is worse for the poor, in rural areas, Dalits, and tribals. The well-off have managed with private tutors and online help. This has worsened disparities and robbed the masses of gaining the ability to rise. A new survey report titled ‘Locked out — Emergency Report of School Education’ by Jean Dreze, Reetika Khera, Nirali Bakhla and Vipul Paikra, shows that 97% of parents in rural households want school re-opening, not to mention educators and economists. Yet chief ministers have dragged their feet.

School re-opening must be a top priority. Children below 12 are very unlikely to fall seriously ill with Covid. Teachers and other school staff are vulnerable but should all have been vaccinated by now. With safety guidelines, all schools should open, aiding not just learning but nutrition and the social benefits of children of all castes and religions going to school together. Maintenance and repairs of school buildings and equipment should have been done already, but have they?

Private schools tried to survive by switching to online education and raising their fees. This led 26% of poorer students enrolled in higher quality private schools to switch to lower quality (and often moribund) government schools.

School closure also meant the end of school mid-day meals. State governments were supposed to offer free food and cash to make up for this. But 20% of urban and 14% of rural families said they had received nothing. This could be due partly to free food being given quarterly. Some families may get their arrears soon.

Covid has worsened a problem already flagged by many educators: automatic promotion without exams. It makes little sense to promote those who can barely read to a higher class: they will fall further and further behind, and eventually drop out. The research study says automatic promotion means students are being promoted from Class 4 to 5 when school closure has eroded their skills to the Class 3 level. Those in Class 1 who cannot read at all because of school closure will nevertheless be promoted to Class 2 and be expected to understand textbooks in English! Learning English is no doubt an important skill much neglected by state governments in the past. But it must be preceded by a firm grounding in reading ability in the mother tongue. Otherwise, students will just be bewildered by a new, difficult language.

The researchers surveyed almost 1,362 children in classes 1-8. School closure drove many students to alternatives like tuition, online education, videos, or help from parents and friends. Some motivated teachers innovated small-group teaching in the open or in private homes, sometimes even the teacher’s home. But such individual heroics cannot make up for mass closure. The researchers found that only 47% of urban and 28% of rural students were studying regularly, while 19% and 37% respectively did not study at all. Just 42% of urban students and 48% of rural ones can read more than a few words.

Only 8% of rural parents and 23% of urban ones felt their children had adequate access to online education, which schools are supposed to offer to compensate for school closure. Many children had no access to smartphones, data, or understanding of how to use online facilities. Of those not studying regularly despite having smartphones, 43% of rural and 14% of urban students said they got no online material at all from their schools. As many as 57% of urban and 65% of rural online users complained of connectivity problems, showing how weak the broadband infrastructure is.

The researchers highlighted the need for an extended transition to help teachers and students overcome the scars of Covid. A “business as usual” approach risks dooming entire age groups to functional illiteracy. School opening is a must but should be followed by a completely new transitional approach to help students make up for the 500 lost days. This is new ground with no precedents. It requires careful planning, ample funding and flexibility to adjust to difficulties that arise.

Meet your governor: R N Ravi, an officer, and tough gentleman

Meet your governor: R N Ravi, an officer, and tough gentleman

Prabin.Kalita @timesgroup.com

12.09.2021

Ravindra Narayan Ravi, the new governor of Tamil Nadu, is a man to watch. Here’s why: The 69-yearold IPS officer who retired seven years ago as the special director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) before he was appointed the Nagaland governor, is moving from Kohima to Chennai, two capitals so removed geographically, culturally and politically, but what may remain unchanged would be his image of being a no-nonsense administrator.

Born in Patna, the Kerala cadre IPS office took to journalism for a short while before he joined the administrative service in 1976 after completing his post-graduation in physics. While he was in the IB, most in government circles would say, “Ravi knows the northeast like the back of his hand.” His appointment as the PMO’s emissary for the Naga peace process by Narendra Modi in 2014 was seen as a recognition of his knowledge of the region, whose boundaries stretch from Bhutan, Tibet and Myanmar to Bangladesh.

Five years later, Ravi was appointed governor of Nagaland, which earned him the rare distinction of being the first incumbent constitutional head of a state to double up as a peace interlocutor in the country. Within a year, he convinced the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah) to sign the first preliminary agreement. This is considered as a culmination of more than 80 rounds of peace talks between the Centre and the Naga organisation within and outside of India since1997.

Ravi has to his credit bringing the insurgent groups hostile towards India to the negotiating table. What stood between him and success was the NSCN (IM)’s demand for a separate flag and constitution for the Nagas. In 2020, he wrote to the Nagaland Democratic People’s Party-BJP government that he would invoke Article 371 (A) (1) (b) and take control of law and order in the state if it failed to stop rebel outfits from carrying extortions and violent activities.

In his letter, Ravi brought to the notice of chief minister Neiphiu Rio the presence of “dozen organised armed gangs” and rampant extortion by “armed gangs who are running a parallel government.” On the other hand, NSCN (IM) and seven other groups (who call themselves Naga National Political Groups) said they were merely collecting ‘legitimate taxes” and “contributions” from people.

Defending its position, the Nagaland government said Ravi’s assessments of law and order “do not appear to be factual.” A few months later, a mellowed state government asked all its employees to declare and give details if any of their family members are part of any underground insurgent group. Before his assignments as an interlocutor and governor, Ravi was the chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee in the PMO. In 2018, he also served as deputy National Security Adviser.

Over 60% Candidates Are Girls

After online prep, 1.1L appear for NEET today

Over 60% Candidates Are Girls

Ragu.Raman@timesgroup.com

Chennai:12.09.2021

Aspirants writing the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) 2021 on Sunday are a wary lot as most of the coaching they got was online. Experts say many students miss the face-to-face coaching and peer learning and performances could dip this year.

Many coaching centres and schools prepared the students one last time by giving them mock tests on Saturday afternoon, which they wrote wearing masks and gloves. Along with their knowledge and skill, Sunday’s exam is likely to test the endurance of students as the first batch will have to enter exam halls by 10.30am for the 2pm start because of Covid protocols.

From Tamil Nadu 1,10,971 students are scheduled to appear for the exam at 225 exam centres. In Chennai,17,992 students will appear at 33 exam centres.

J S Dharani, a medical aspirant from Ayanavaram, said preparation in online mode was a new experience and difficult. “The coaching institute and school guided us constantly. On a positive note, faculty members were available till 9.30pm to clarify our doubts,” she said.

She said the staggered entry timing and wearing masks for four to five hours inside the exam halls will test the endurance of the students. "We have attended mock tests wearing masks and gloves from 2pm to 5pm. I was comfortable for the first hour, but felt uneasy after that," she said.

Ebenezer Kirubakaran G, an aspirant from Tambaram, said, remembering the concepts was difficult in online mode preparation. He was doing aerobics and wearing masks at home in the past few weeks to prepare for the exam. He said the introduction of choice will help the students. Now students need answer only 180 of the 200 questions.

B Pavan Kumar, deputy director, FIITJEE Chennai, said, lack of peer competition and face-to-face coaching by mentors will impact the performance of mid-level students.

IIT Hyderabad 16th best in NIRF ranking

IIT Hyderabad 16th best in NIRF ranking

UoH bags 9th position and OU 32nd in the university category

The Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad has improved its NIRF 2021 overall ranking by one position.

City Bureau

Hyderabad 

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Hyderabad has improved its National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) 2021 overall ranking by one position. The IIT Hyderabad secured 16th rank among the educational institutions in the country while it was in 17th position in the 2020 rankings.

The IIT Madras has topped in the overall rankings which was released by Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday. The Indian Institute of Science and IIT Bombay bagged second and third positions.

The University of Hyderabad (UoH) was ranked 17th in this edition of the overall ranking while it was at 15th position in 2020. The National Institute of Technology-Warangal and Osmania University were ranked at 59th and 62nd positions this year while they were at 46th and 53rd positions respectively in the last year’s rankings.

Likewise, in the university category, the UoH has been ranked at 9th, Osmania University at 32nd and International Institute of Information Technology Hyderabad at 83rd position, while their 2020 rankings were 6th, 29th and 78th respectively. In the engineering category, IIT Hyderabad was ranked 8th, NIT-Warangal (23rd), IIIT Hyderabad (54th) and Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University-Hyderabad (62nd).

In the case of pharmacy, National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research, Hyderabad was at 6th position, while Kakatiya University and Anurag University were ranked at 48th and 61st positions respectively. The NALSAR University of Law and ICFAI Foundation for Higher Education got 3rd and 29th ranks in law category respectively.

The universities and institutions were ranked on various parameters that included teaching, learning and resources, research and professional practices, graduation outcomes, outreach and inclusivity, and perception. The placements and research publications were key parameters among the above.

UP makes mid-term exams must for all univs, private institutions

UP makes mid-term exams must for all univs, private institutions

Isha.Jain@timesgroup.com

Lucknow:11.09.2021

All the universities, including private institutions, will conduct midterm examinations in the academic session 2021-22 which is slated to commence from September 13.

In its latest directives, the government has made midterm examinations compulsory for students enrolled for all courses, irrespective of the system (semester or annual).

The idea is to ensure that students do not suffer in case of any crisis situation like Covid-19 pandemic. “In case of unavoidable circumstances, the mid-term examination will help in timely promotion of students without causing any loss to them,” said the order issued by additional chief secretary, higher education, Monika S Garg.

The directives are a part of the newly-released academic calendar for session 2021-22.

As per the calendar, universities should close fresh admissions to first semester/year by September 13.

To regularise academic session, which got derailed due to prolonged closure of educational institutions in wake of Covid-19 pandemic, the government has also asked institutions to cut down on winter vacation, if required.

Move aimed to help in timely promotion of students

‘Teachers may get 15-day summer vacay in shifts’

In addition, teachers may be given 15 days of summer vacation in shifts so that teaching-learning does not get unhamper.

Universities have been instructed to approve only very important leaves, except maternity, of teaching and non-teaching staff. Condolence meetings of only teachers and administrative staff will be held on campus only after 3 pm. Prior to it, classes will take place on campus, the order said.

The government has also instructed universities to hold extra/online classes if the total number of teaching days – 90 for semester system and 180 for annual system – are not met. Students should be convinced to use higher education digital library.