New Delhi: Universities and colleges across the country should develop a “foolproof plan” before beginning the new academic session (2020-21) in August-September this year, an expert UGC committee has suggested.
The foolproof plan should include recording the travel/stay history of all students and faculty members, adhering to social distancing norms and making lab-work virtual, according to a report by the committee accessed by ThePrint.
The committee has said the new academic session may start in August-September.
These recommendations were submitted by the committee to the University Grants Commission (UGC) last Friday.
The committee, headed by Haryana Central University Vice-Chancellor R.C. Kuhad, was constituted by the UGC to look into several issues related to the new academic session, holding exams in universities and colleges amid the Covid-19 lockdown, among others.
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Take all necessary precautions
According to the report: “The universities should develop a foolproof plan before the resumption of session, strictly following the norms of social distancing and other required precautions, to avoid any eventuality arising due to Covid-19.”
“The universities may devise a proforma to record the travel/stay history of the staff and students for the period when they remained away from the university due to lockdown so that necessary precautions may be taken in specific cases, if required,” the report added.
It further advised that “universities shall strictly comply with all precautions and preventive measures to curb the spread of coronavirus”.
“In view of the importance of social distancing, universities may take necessary steps to ensure that the students are given exposure to laboratory assignments/practical experiments through virtual laboratories, sharing of the recorded visuals of laboratory work and digital resources available for the purpose,” the report said.
Virtual classrooms, video conferencing
The report also suggested ways in which institutes can prepare themselves to deal with a similar crisis in future.
The committee suggested that 25 per cent of the syllabus should be completed online and the rest 75 per cent should be completed through classroom-teaching.
“In order to overcome such challenges in future, the faculty should be adequately trained for the use… of online teaching tools, so that they complete about 25 per cent of the syllabus through online and 75 per cent syllabus through face to face teaching,” it said.
Institutes have also been advised to develop virtual classrooms and video conferencing facilities.
“All teaching staff should be trained with the use of the technology. Universities should prepare e-content, e-lab experiments and upload the same on their websites,” the report added.
The UGC is expected to soon issue a set of guidelines for colleges and universities on how to go about with the new session based on the recommendations made by the committee.
The committee has also suggested ways in which universities can conduct exams amid lockdown. It said universities should either conduct online exams if they have the wherewithal or wait for the lockdown to get over and then decide a date for pen-and-paper examinations.
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There is alot of problem we are facing while attending online classes please start with are physical classes from September that is face to face like before but with proper rules to follow due to covid .
How can you tell that 75% syllabus are completed before lockdown…and other thing for online classess, their is not very good network for understanding the topic…we are facing always lagging problem..
Can u plz tell me about btech 3rd year student UGC only speak about 1,2, and final year students what about btech 3rd year student.