Courses locked up in the past

NEW DELHI: Does Delhi University keep up with the world? A quick look at the books used for its courses show that by and large they are out of date.
‘‘The world is changing at an amazing pace. Values, ideas, knowledge and socio-economic needs are in a constant flux. It’s unfortunate that some of our curricula is still locked up in the past while the world is moving ahead,’’ remarked Aruna Chakravarti, principal of Janki Devi Memorial College.
Emphasising that the revision of curriculum at frequent intervals is necessary for universities to catch up with the pace of developments in various disciplines, most students also acknowledge the fact that it is not an easy task to accomplish.
Said Bhaskar Chakravarti, a first year economics student at St Stephen’s, ‘‘Our textbooks do not provide us with updated information. But that’s understandable. While it’s important to infuse the latest developments in the syllabi, it is not possible to bring out new textbooks every year. To get an update on the new economic trends, we depend on magazines and journals.’’
However, he is quick to add that subjects like economics, general sciences and computer science need regular review as the latest research and activities ‘‘may shake the fundamentals of these subjects’’.
There are others who find the university programmes lacking in international perspective. ‘‘A lot of our courses are India-specific. In an age when we are talking of globalisation and WTO (World Trade Organisation) regime, the curricula — particularly in the professional courses — must cover international trends and aspects,’’ said Atul Pokhriyal, a first year MBA student at the Faculty of Management Studies, DU.
Aarthi Rajan, a final year English student at Gargi College presented another view. Referring to the changes made in the English curricula a couple of years ago, Rajan said, ‘‘Breaking away from English classical literature, the new curriculum includes books by Indian and African authors writing in English. For the first time, we have a separate paper on the new breed of contemporary writers. The revision has made the subject more topical and in a way, socially relevant.’’
Aruna Chakravarti, an English teacher herself, concurred with the observation. ‘‘The revision has also added new features like popular and science fictions, which were never considered a part of literature before,’’ she said.
Chakravarti felt that subjects like Sanskrit, philosophy and history are losing out to other subjects because ‘‘they score very low when it comes to market value’’. She added, ‘‘Professional and job-oriented courses are in vogue today.’’
Dean of students welfare at Delhi University and principal of Gargi College, Hema Raghavan acknowledged that there is a need and demand to have a fresh look at the university curriculum. Citing logistic hurdles, she however advised against ‘‘very frequent’’ curriculum changes.
‘‘Even the teachers need time to familiarise themselves with the new syllabus. Altering syllabi in quick succession may unsettle their tempo. Also, it’s not practical to change the syllabi before a batch has completed its term. It’ll be worthwhile to have a review every six years,’’ she said.