Affiliation hitches
Anna University... are its standards too high? Photo: Vino John
INDIA STARTED aping the University of London's model of affiliating system in the 1850s. Three years hence, the British dropped the system as unviable.
But India's education system continues to cling on, as a former Anna University Vice-Chancellor puts it, to an archaic and outdated affiliation system. Reams of paper have been used up by academics and experts to call for a halt to the affiliation system, as this dependency on a centralised university body kills all creative actions, innovations in teaching and learning and hardly fosters any quest for the new.
In case you wonder why should one revive this old debate at all, here is the reason.
In the past few weeks, Anna University (which three years ago took academic control over 230 affiliated engineering colleges) has been sending teams to decide on further extension of the affiliation of the colleges.
This time however, there have been some new norms that have raised the hackles of the colleges. Much of the academic community is puzzled at the skewed weightage given for different parameters to gauge a college's academic strengths.
The Assessment scheme for affiliation 2005-06 gives different weightages for various parameters to judge each college:
For undergraduate programmes, on a scale of 1 - 100, faculty gets 45 points, library 15 points, laboratory gets 30 points. Surprisingly, the rest of the 10 points is split among 20 sub-parameters such as financial viability of a college, classrooms, power and water supply, approach road, hostels, canteen, playgrounds, gyms, student amenities, transport, medical and safety facilities, placement and training facilities, functioning of the planning and monitoring board, besides the central computing facilities (which alone is allotted 3 points).
Managements of self-financing colleges, which stand in the first 10 - 15 in academic ratings and placement are apprehensive about the scheme. However, as the process of affiliation is on, not many of the managements are openly coming out to challenge the weightages and the process itself. However, in private ask any of the managements, they reel out a litany of complaints.
The principal of an established college in western Tamil Nadu says he never underwent such a gruelling experience when it was affiliated to a general university. "The university insists on a 1:15 staff student ratio, but also wants more professors and assistant professors. When we do not have enough capacity in postgraduation how can we have so many professors? No college in that case will meet this requirement."
"If only one or half point weightage is given to infrastructure, where is the incentive for up and coming colleges to provide good support systems to students. In the long run, colleges will not spend on buildings, hostels, canteen or even toilets or general improvement of the education ambience," he notes.
Another chairman of a Chennai college, which is highly sought after by students during the single window admissions is unhappy at the fact that "Any college is weighed by the public and the industry only under two parameters — results and placement. Both get fractional points. Suppose we just fill the college with only retired professors and doctorates will it improve the situation? Why cannot they look at our placement record?" he asks.
The principal of another suburban college was shocked when he heard that some of the members of the affiliation committee were asking questions completely alien to the issue speaking about black money flow from engineering education. "What kind of mandate does an affiliating team have? The college requires treatment with dignity," he notes.
Finally, the affiliation committee also wants only numbers in terms of faculty and not the quality of the teachers already teaching there. Here one issue arises, say several principals. The faculty norms are calculated on the basis of sanctioned strength and not on the basis of student admissions. So colleges with higher vacancies hardly stand a chance in getting any points for faculty.
"I have nothing else to say but this," notes K.S. Babai of Meenakshi Sundararajan College of Engineering: "The kind of care and amenities we provide is equal to or better than what is given by many of the government run institutions. But still, we feel as if we are undergoing some inquisition. We definitely need better treatment."
But Anna University defends its stance, saying the main input in engineering education will be good faculty strength, library and quality labs. If a college is not up to the mark, they deserve lower ratings, university officials say.
As if to mollify the private colleges, the university which just completed 25 years, has unveiled a package for mentoring and helping the colleges. This includes providing staggered postgraduation courses for affiliated college teachers; encouraging sharing of facilities such as libraries and labs, and fostering innovation on the college through creativity labs.
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Karnataka
Chennai
Coimbatore
Hyderabad
Madurai
Tiruchirapalli
Vijayawada
Visakhapatnam
