Get complete information on autonomous college education of India

As a part of an academic experiment in India, some colleges were granted autonomous status, with Worn to frame courses of study and adopt new techniques for aiding the teaching learning process, apart from gingering up their evaluation machinery. The colleges could lay down their own rules for admission of students.

Quite some years ago the UGC policy frame spelt out the need to “move away, from the existing system of the affiliating university or centralisation of academic authority and external examination.” too it recommended the decentralisation of authority and power from the university administration to University departments and from the universities to colleges to form an elastic and dynamic system and promote, innovative, and initiative reforms.

What, really, differentiates autonomous from other colleges is the freedom given to the former in tailing their own curricula, diversifying courses, adopting innovative forms of instruction to aid the leaching learning process and in having their own evaluation system.

Further, the faculty in fact, has to assume complete responsibility for the academic programmes offered. Naturally, accountability is in the process covering such areas as content of courses, quality of teaching and assessment of student’s progress

The other features, which call for a change of outlook and orientation on the part of teachers in autonomous colleges, stem from the modalities of their functioning. For instance the semester system and continuous internal assessment are being claimed as distinguishing features by these institutions. The end-of-semester examinations are only part of the task: quiz programmes, seminars, spot and surprise test and other forms of evaluation are also organised.

Again as the teacher wields much power the charge of prejudice and favoritism could be leveled against him and an appeal committee becomes inevitable. According to educational experts the constitution of such a committee makes the teacher careful in his marking and the system inspires confidence and trust.