Indian Higher Education

The Human Resource Development Centre (HRDC) of Pondicherry University invited Dr. Beloo Mehra to deliver a special lecture at the UGC-HRDC: Academic Staff College. This lecture was organised on June 3, 2019 as part of the HRDC Refresher Course on MOOCs and E-learning Content Development, offered for the university and college faculty.

Dr. Beloo Mehra delivered a 3-hour session on the topic: Human Elements in Online Teaching.

The session was primarily based on lessons learned and insights gained by Dr. Mehra during her 15+ years of experience with online teaching and learning at an American university. First half of the session included her presentation, while the second half focused on Q & A and free-flow discussion with the participants.

This report summarises the research conducted by the Australia India Institute for the Commonwealth Department of Education and Training on developments in India’s higher education sector. It outlines key areas of difference between the higher education systems in Australia and India and highlights the challenges and opportunities for effective engagement between Australian universities and Indian higher education institutions.

Education plays an important role for the country's development which includes social, economic and industrial etc. Indian higher education is the third largest in the world. We should make it according to the time and changing scenario of the world. India needs to focus on education for more educated and efficient people to drive our nation. In order to develop our country India as a digital nation we have to strengthen higher education with research and development .This paper is mainly focused on the current scenario of higher education in India. This paper aims to identify issues and challenges in the field of higher education in India.

This paper explains about terms and definitions of Digital libraries,  e resources in E-sodhsindhu followed by aims and objectives of E- Resources , types of consortia. It also explains how remarkable change had occurred with advent of E- sodhsindhu with reference to both print and online e-Journals. It also explains about subscription, usage and ease of publishing the Journal in terms of Money and Time. It also explains how Libraries transforming themselves and satisfying present user needs and requirements with greater speed and passing towards success In to Digital India the Information for all Project.

The Success story of the post – independent India turns out bleak when the question of quality is raised. Higher Education has been finding it difficult to meet the issues of unplanned expansion, educated unemployment, uneven growth, commercialization of education, financial crises, teacher burn out and the digital divide of quantity Vs quality, equity Vs excellence, creativity Vs conformity are posing continuous threats to higher education. At this Juncture, the new education must be teach every individual how to classify and reclassify information, how to look at problems from new direction and finally how to teach himself/herself. Teachers are the best trained manpower for a nation. Because, they produce Technologists, Scientists, Doctors, Engineers, Policy makers, Businessmen and Teachers. Therefore through quality assured training programs it has become necessary to produce, competent, professionals to meet the ever – growing demands of liberalization and globalization. Hence, the emerging Indians society needs to make the system of education must innovative and futuristic in order to the changing demands of the modern Indian Society. The existing education should be improved according to the needs of the time. It has to fulfill the demands of one’s own country and the changing scenario of the world. It must be competitive and co – operative. Looking into these factors the education from primary to higher and even technical education needs to be improved from time to time, to transform the capacity of the people’s vision for society. Every system of education aims at moulding the individuals to play their roles in the society most effectively.

Points from a Lecture-Discussion conducted by Dr. Beloo Mehra at the invitation of the Human Resource Development Centre (HRDC) of Pondicherry University. This was part of the UGC-HRDC Orientation Course offered for the university and college faculty. Dr. Mehra delivered a 3-hour session on the topic: Indian Perspectives on Education.

India’s National Science Talent Search (NSTS) examination (1963 to 1976) was imagined and implemented by some top scientists of the period. It aimed to identify 'talented' secondary school students with an aptitude for science and mathematics. Selected students attended undergraduate summer schools, did research in special labs during their Master's degree, and were supported by a scholarship till the completion of a Ph.D. Today, the extent to which NSTS changed the discourse of 'talent' as well as the mode and content of large-scale testing in India is often forgotten. Among the innovations that the examination introduced and legitimized include the Multiple Choice Question (MCQ) format. It shaped a positivist discourse around a special category of questions called the ‘thought-type’ in scientifically establishing the mental acuity of students. It also defined and used ‘extra-curricular knowledge’ as a proxy for scientific interest. Another legacy of NSTS’s discourse of objectivity was a misplaced confidence in separating the performance of candidates from the social advantages/disadvantages that shaped their school experience. Additionally, the importance of expertise in designing the examination did not give space to the input of school science teachers. Eventually, the design of the scheme fell short of the expectations of policy-makers as well as the aspirations of those who were selected. In 1977, the examination was redesigned as a general National Talent Search Examination (NTSE). A critical analysis of the short history of the NSTS enables us to reflect on the construct of ‘science talent’ and the challenges in identifying and nurturing talented students in science.

Indian higher education can boast of being one of the torch bearers among many developing nations for its rich plethora of dynamic content. Due to the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, in all the higher educational institutions, which includes universities, standalone institutes, and colleges, a total of about 10 million academic hours are compromised, which will be rather difficult to compensate. The University Grants Commission through its advisory instructed all the institutes to continue classes in online mode as per feasibility and engage ICT tools available for use in academic discourse. Many institutions have been using different social media platforms for the dissemination of knowledge. The present crisis has revolutionized the entire higher education architecture of the country through videoconferencing based online learning since there’s no other option to compensate for the compromised academic activities. This paper aims at exploring the kind of social media used to disseminate learning resources to the students, and the impact it crafting on their educational loss. It also elucidates the effectiveness of online classes, e-learning pedagogy, and its outcome through structured qualitative analysis.

For Citation: Dr Ankuran Dutta (2020); Impact of Digital Social Media on Indian Higher Education: Alternative Approaches of Online Learning during COVID-19 Pandemic Crisis; International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications (IJSRP) 10(05) (ISSN: 2250-3153), DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.29322/IJSRP.10.05.2020.p10169

नई शिक्षा नीति (NEP 2020) दरअसल गुरु द्रोणाचार्य के युग की वापसी है। Video
https://youtu.be/4PIQOcLZX5U

It is a recording of my talk at “All India Convention on Higher Education under NEP 2020” on 27th May 2022 organized by All India Forum For Right To Education (AIFRTE) Delhi Coordination Committee.

In the modern era of information technology, digital resources have become readily accessible source of learning for teachers and learners. One such movement that encourages and enables sharing such learning resources is OER (Open Educational Resources). In India OER movement is especially important as higher education is still facing the paucity of high quality teachers, inadequate infrastructure of the universities and more specifically their libraries, and the derisory quality of Educational Resources utilized at the various universities
and colleges. The paper intends to elucidate the OER movement in Indian higher education and to introduce the open educational resources initiatives in /Indian higher education. It also outlines the issues hindering the progress of OER in India along with the recommendations that address these issues.

To a large extent, the ongoing discussion of autonomy and academic freedom of higher education in India is noticeably confined only to financial autonomy and governance (Praksh 2011, Priyam 2015, Ghosh 2015, 2017). Therefore, the nation-specific issues inherited in the autonomy and academic freedom that a colonized country like India faces is not properly addressed so far. An attempt is made in this paper to address the notion of autonomy and academic freedom in the post-colonial context of the Global South. Towards that, the four dimensions of University Autonomy used by the European University Association is reviewed (EUA 2017) with critical insight from the South African attempt to decolonise higher education (Metz 2009a&b). Based on the review, it is found that a fifth dimension, the epistemological parameter should be added with it, especially with special reference to the colonized southern countries like India. Colonized countries like India, where modern higher education started during the colonial period, carries the reminiscence of colonization in all aspects of higher education, more specifically in the definition of knowledge. State, market and the public sphere consistently function as the instrumental agencies and the beneficiaries of colonised higher education in India. The paper discusses different aspects of epistemological autonomy to motivate the global South towards decolonizing higher education.

Intellection
: A bi-annual interdisciplinary research journal, Vol.III, No.II, July-December, 2015,
ISSN: 2319-8192

Positive Philosophy, Innovative Method and Present Education System
Dr. Desh Raj Sirswal*
Abstract:

Philosophy is an important relation with education as it gives theoretical ground  for its development. Principles and values of life learnt through education and experience gives
birth to philosophy. Philosophy lays the foundation of leading one‘s life based on principles.
Education is the so
urce of learning and philosophy it‘s applications in human life. While
discussing about the real nature of philosophy in present time, we should have a single criteria as if it to be acceptable to all reasonable people of the world. Positive Philosophy is an attitude as well as a methodology for both academician and common person. It make education process  positive so that it can make something useful for societal growth and in working process it also make the person sensitive about the societal problems and make them ready to be a part of  social change. Positive Philosophy is working on that issues which have some worth for human.  It is a process to do something creative. We are using innovative method. Innovation not only  simply implies questioning, reshaping, restricting but also developing through transformation. A teacher can play an important role in promoting this discussion because a teacher has the capacity to influence students with their thoughts and personality and engages them to creative activities. Innovativeness needs to be included in the curriculum. Once one becomes habitual to this attitude he/she will be ready to do some positive or creative. In this paper it is an attempt being made to apply positive philosophy though innovative method in our present education  system.

INCLUSION OF STUDY OF RSS IN THE UNIVERSITY SYLLABUS
OPEN LETTER TO THE VICE-CHANCELLOR OF RASHTRASANT TUKADOJI MAHARAJ NAGPUR UNIVERSITY
Respected Vice-chancellor Dr. Siddharthavinayaka P. Kane Saheb,
I am writing this open letter to you on a critical issue concerning the contents of the syllabus at your University. As per a communiqué of the the University which must have had your concurrence, the history of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), and its role in 'nation-building' have been included in the syllabus for in the second year BA (History) course. Surprisingly, it has been accommodated by removing a crucial topic, 'Rise and growth of communalism in India'. According to Mr. Satish Chafle, spokesperson the University it has been done to accommodate the "Nationalist school of thoughts". 
Vice-chancellor Saheb!
There cannot be a bigger lie than this that RSS was ever an Indian nationalist organization or it played any nation-building role so far as our democratic-secular India is concerned. On the contrary, RSS since its birth in 1925 with its Hindutva allies like Hindu Mahasabha led by VD Savarkar worked overtime to betray the glorious anti-colonial freedom struggle, denigrated all symbols of national unity, belittled the martyrs, demanded promulgation of inhuman Manusmriti as constitution of India, decried democracy  and demanded conversion of democratic-secular polity into a Hindutva state. As if all this was not enough, the RSS idol and the Hindutva icon 'Veer' Savarkar led Hindu Mahasabha ran coalition governments with the Muslim League in 1942 and backstabbed Netaji when he was trying to liberate Indian militarily.
Sir,
I trust you as an educationist and believe that you have stakes in finding the truth about RSS or any other organization. I am producing immensely disturbing facts about the ideology and practices of RSS from its own archives and no other source.
LINK FOR THE FULL TEXT OF THE LETTER:
https://countercurrents.org/2019/07/inclusion-of-study-of-history-of-rss-in-the-university-syllabus

This paper complements A Report on Australia's Engagement with India's Higher Education System by providing additional data and analysis regarding the nature and extent of university engagement. The report has been prepared by the Australia India Institute for the Commonwealth Department of Education and Training.

Keeping in mind the inevitable drift between alumni and institution, universities ought to ensure that the alumni are kept updated, so they can stay connected with and keep side by side on the advancement of the institution. Great graduated class connections bring numerous advantages to both the establishment and the graduated class. As alumni of the organisation, graduated classes have an extraordinary association with the college and are, ideally, a sizeable portion of its progressively steadfast supporters. The capable graduated class will have an abundance of experience and aptitudes to impart to current understudies through talks and pamphlets. The article talks about the connect of CHRIST (Deemed to be university) with the alumni, that are said to be the backbones of the university. There is a strap between the importance of a connect, for alumni and for the benefit of the university. As an alma mater, the importance is of these relations are explained from the beginning of their course to the students, through interactions with alumni at the very start. The study also talks about the various departments of the university, and their relations with the alumni. Each department benefits in a different way, and these are reflected in the growth and excellence of the university. The article with elaborate on the importance and the concept of alumni.

The aim of this paper is to highlight the role E-learning in Distance education. Day by day, as information technologies
improving, the mode of learning is changing from classroom to online. An E-learning System can provide the
real-time interaction between the remote students and the instructor just like in the classroom lecture. It evaluates the
role of e-learning in the distance education in Indian perspective. It also discusses some initiative taken in India.

It has been often argued in New Literacy Studies (NLS) that beyond our ability to simply read and write in print, literacy broadly defined is no less than our ability to interpret and function in the world we live in, which includes everything from films, music, technology, food and sports to cultural practices and social mores. The places we inhabit in our social worlds and our everyday experiences in these places teach us to read our worlds and function according to our knowledge of our world. In the process we interpret and produce meanings through our actions. However, a principal criticism against schools at any level has been the failure to acknowledge and/or tap into students‟ learning in the world. Drawing on educationists and philosophers like Gruenewald, Jardine, Tagore, Dyson, and Bigelow, the paper argues that by neglecting students‟ everyday learning-in-the-world, schools perpetuate an epistemic violence on students by severing
their school learning from their cultural life-world. As a result of which, schools often fail many students by turning formal education into something “unreal, heavy and abstract” (Tagore, 2009) for them. As a corrective, then, the paper attempts to build a case for the need of a placed-based, integrated
curriculum at all levels of schooling. Next, building on examples offered by India‟s eminent literati and educationist, Rabindranath Tagore‟s experimental model school in India and the widely emulated Foxfire program in U.S.A, both of which has much in common, the paper offers a vision for meaningfully integrating university education with students‟ lives in the most commonplaces of all places such as classrooms, canteens, hallways, cafeterias, homes, back yards and street-corners, among others. The paper supports its
argument with two empirical examples from the author‟s academic life in an Indian university. The examples offer two real life incidents with great learning potentials that the author as a student had participated in, but only one of which being located on the curricular border-space of the mandated syllabus, could be integrated to the official curriculum by an enterprising teacher, while the other was restricted to the marginal spaces of school learning. The paper argues that while in the first case, the author and his peers‟ learning-in-the-world
was successfully merged with his school learning, the latter was an opportunity lost to the tunnel-vision of academia. Not discounting its potential at the primary and secondary levels, the paper, therefore, argues that such integrations, when made possible, allows for university or vishwa-vidyalay (in Bengali it literally means a "world school‟ or a "universe school‟) education to become, true to its name, essentially universal by
encompassing the students‟ social universe. In conclusion, the paper argues that it is important for educators and education researchers to pay attention to the local places of their students‟ lives in order to build bridges between the state mandated curricula and students‟ socio-cultural worlds, and also offers some ideas for attaining it.

This paper analyses collaboration as to student mobility between British India and the UK in the early 20th century, highlighting the entanglement of different levels of supervision. It is mostly based on so far overlooked materials found at the British Library.
Since the 1850s, the development of colonial higher education in British India has led to the creation of several local universities. But higher education was also characterised by a growing number of students leaving colonial India to study in the United Kingdom. For instance, Oxford University welcomed its first Indian students in 1871.
A watershed was reached in the early 20th Century: after a few decades of laissez-faire, British authorities expressed their will to supervise Indian students’ flows. A committee was organised “to enquire into the position of Indian students in the UK”. Regular meetings led to the appointment of an educational adviser in 1909, later assisted by a secretary for Indian students.
These initiatives were based on collaboration at different levels. Advisory boards were also created in India and relations with institutions, especially with Oxbridge, were sometimes tough.

Social media tools are observed to play a vital role in the renovation of the conventional teaching and learning practices across the globe. Though primarily developed for online social communication, social media platforms tend to possess suitable tools that can be used for instructional purposes in order to initiate active learning among students. Additionally, the social publishing features that support User Generated Content (UGC) act as powerful drivers in converting social media sites into informal, networked and constructive virtual learning environments. The present study aims to analyse the use of social media platforms for educational purposes in developing nations such as India. The study intends to examine the penetration and reception of social media platforms in higher educational institutions in urban as well as the technologically deprived rural areas. An extensive survey was conducted among the faculty members in the higher educational institutions in the state of T...

To have educational opportunity in foreign countries has been a long cherished goal for students of underdeveloped and developing countries. We all select those developed countries which are scientifically and technologically advanced in providing quality education. It is because of our misconception that mere getting admission in the universities of developed nations bring weightage to our opportunities of getting jobs. In the glorious past of Indian history, the students from far and wide selected India as the place for their higher education. India was considered to be the knowledge centre of ancient wisdom of great seers. But today, students choose India very seldom for their higher learning and even students from India are also fascinated to go abroad for specialized courses because of the number of scholarships and fellowships available on the basis of merit. It is a right time to ponder over the reasons why India, which was once considered to be the knowledge centre, is being rejected by the students. Reasons can be listed as the development in the field of science and technology, effect of globalization and westernization, flexibility in the teaching-learning practices. The apex bodies of higher education of India must reflect on the points of making India again a knowledge centre. This paper gives some reflections on the internationalization of Indian higher education and its challenges. It contains the existing practices and methods for attracting foreign students in India for higher education.

During 2020 and beyond, coronavirus disease has profoundly disrupted global economic, health and higher education systems. As universities shuttered campuses and businesses locked down, Australia's export education sector stalled. Many international students who were able to return home, did so, while those who could not, would experience varying levels of support and exclusion. Government policies and practices during 2020 are analysed alongside research literature and media reports to provide an overview of how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the Australian higher education sector and international students. Specifically, the analysis addresses the emerging and emergent impact of this pandemic on the public higher education sector and its international education activities and proposes corresponding recommendations for systemic and institutional recovery. These recommendations call for increased government fiscal and welfare support, strengthened regulatory safeguards, extended post-study work rights, progress regarding foreign qualifications recognition, and institution-level strategies. A long and varied list of sources chronicles events.

Across the educational institutions of India ranging from public to private universities, humanities or technology-oriented institutions, the Department of English holds its ubiquitous presence. This article claims that this nation-wide spread of teachers and students of English departments in India can be utilised for various academic and creative endeavours in keeping with the vision of the National Educational Policy, 2020 which promotes translation of Indian texts. The article suggests that these departments consisting of bilingual faculty and students can act as regional hotspots of translation of literary and academic texts and can provide a working corpus to the proposed Indian Institute of Translation and Interpretation.

The Introduction begins with the consensus that writing pedagogy in India is grappling with its own identity within university ecosystems. It is currently at a stage in Indian higher education that is marked by failures and relentless trials. The Introduction argues that this failure could be productive of forging new pathways best suited for the multilingual nature of the Indian classroom. It emphasizes on writing as a process and not just as a product, and how such process-oriented approach towards writing can make use of lived or peripheral languages in the process of producing the final product in Standard English prose. It pays close attention to some of recent proposals of the National Education Policy 2020 in this regard. The Introduction is also consistent with the existing literature on writing pedagogy based on care. However, it is cautious in treading this path of care as it notes that care must move beyond the discourse of ‘sickness’ and ‘remedy’ for those who lack proficiency in English. Instead, it proposes that these centres could emerge as an emancipatory antidote to a collective sickness of putting pen to paper: a struggle shared by all, regardless of socio-economic statuses. In the final section, the Introduction proposes a pedagogy that can be built through a commitment to affirmative action policies in private universities. Through references to Ambedkar’s statements during the debates on linguistic states and Hany Babu M.T. 's proposal on bilingual education, it contends that English could be an equidistant language from all the other languages in the classroom and live a life of objective reasoning in that space. It also contends that we must imagine the multidisciplinary writing centre as a space that is equidistant from specific disciplinary regimes of writing and knowledge production to make the project of the writing centre truly emancipatory.

Victoria’s India Strategy: Our Shared Future prioritises the relationship with India, including international education, Victoria’s largest services export sector. As outlined in Victoria’s International Education Sector Strategy, a vibrant international education sector is central to positioning Victoria as Australia’s Education State. Victorian universities are well placed to leverage their longstanding international education and online learning experience to achieve success in international markets.
This policy brief reflects the outcomes of the Online Learning in Higher Education Industry Sector Roundtable conducted in India in February 2020. This event involved 62 participants from Australian universities, Indian higher education institutions (Indian School of Business, Amity Online and Institute of Management Technology Centre for Distance Learning, Ghaziabad), Australian and Indian government authorities, KPMG, Rajasthan Royals and Indian private MOOC platform, UpGrad.
Together with desktop research, the roundtable participants have helped shape the three recommendations offered in this Policy Brief. These would see Victorian universities increase the supply of online higher education content in India through partnerships with relevant Indian and global platforms and by making available a targeted package of offerings reflecting India’s price and brand sensitivities, complemented by a faculty professional development program.

नागपुर विश्वविद्यालय पाठ्यक्रम में आरएसएस का अध्ययन शामिल:
क्या छात्रों को आरएसएस के अभिलेखागार में बंद राष्ट्रविरोधी दस्तावेज़ों को पढ़ने का मौक़ा मिलेगा?
प्रजातान्त्रिक-धर्मनिरपेक्ष भारत के इतिहास में पहली बार नागपुर की 'राष्ट्र-संत राष्ट्रसंत तुकडोजी महाराज विश्वविद्यालय' पाठ्यक्रम में आरएसएस का अध्ययन शामिल किया गया है। विश्वविद्यालय की एक विज्ञप्ति के अनुसार बी.ए. (इतिहास  द्वितीय वर्ष)  के कोर्स 'भारत का इतिहास (1885-1947)' में से 'भारत में साम्प्रदायिकता का उदय और विकास' हटा कर 'राष्ट्र निर्माण में आरएसएस की हिस्सेदारी' के अध्ययन को शामिल किया गया है। यह परिवर्तन कियों किया गया इस का कोई स्पष्टीकरण नहीं दिया गया है। 
पाठ्यकर्म में यह 'एंट्री' साफ़ बताती है की राजनैतिक क्षेत्र के बाद शिक्षा संस्थानों में किस तरह हिन्दुत्वादी राजनीती और  संगठनों के अध्ययन पर ज़ोर दिया जा रहा है ।  आरएसएस से जुड़े 'शिक्षविद' जब इस हिन्दुत्वादी संगठन को देश में वैधता दिलाने की कोशिश कर रहे हैं तो देश के प्रजातान्त्रिक-धर्मनिरपेक्ष वयवस्था में विश्वास रखने वाले शिक्षकों और छात्रों के लिए भी एक सुनेहरा मौक़ा है जब वे आरएसएस की राष्ट्र-विरोधी विचारधारा और कुकर्मों का भन्डा फोड़ सकते हैं। ऐसा करने के लिए सिर्फ एक काम करना होगा की आरएसएस के अपने अभिलेखागारों में दफ़्न शर्मनाक दस्तावेज़ और इस के कुकर्मों का ब्यौरा सार्वजानिक करना होगा। आरएसएस ने 'भारत माता' (जिस की असली संतानें होने का दवा आरएसएस के लोग करते हैं) को अंग्रेज़ों के चुंगल से आज़ाद करने के लिए छेड़ी गयी महान आज़ादी की जंग से किस बेशर्मी से ग़द्दारी की थी, संघर्ष के प्रतीकों के कैसे ज़लील किया था, शहीदों का कैसे मज़ाक़ उड़ाया था, कैसे मुस्लिम लीग से मिलीभगत की थी,  नेताजी सुभाष चंद्र बोस की पीठ में चुरा घोंपा था और देश के प्रजातान्त्रिक-धर्मनिरपेक्ष संविधान की जगह मनुस्मृति लागु करने की मांग की थी उस के कुछ नमूने, आरएसएस के अभिलेखागारों से यहां प्रस्तुत हैं।     
स्वतंत्रता आंदोलन से जानबूझकर विश्वासघात: आरएसएस के संस्थापक केबी हेडगेवार की स्वीकारोक्ति

We first look into the Primary Education sector and look into its characteristics and features and delve into the problems and opportunities associated with it. Then we move onto the Secondary Education sector and analyze its situation; how has it developed and a brief history about it. Next, we discuss the Higher Education scenario in India. This includes the scopes and opportunities of higher education in India and its position in the context of the developing and developed world. Lastly, we look into the peculiar problem of religious minorities through the scope of education. We try to understand why such a feature prevails and if it is causing a hindrance in spreading education or acting as a catalyst in some or the other ways.

This paper summarizes and critiques the important literature evaluating the history of India's Education Policies.

This chapter aims to dig deep into how science education and policy evolved during colonial India and
how after independence the government made efforts to streamline the science education and initiated
policy measures. The developments are categorized into four sections- evolution in the Ancient period;
pre independence colonial period; post-independence till the era of liberalization; and post liberalization
phase. The thinking does not only narrate the evolution and development of science education but
also diagnoses the inherent issues and seeks to provide policy measures for the state and civil society to
radically change the approaches in the existing system. The science policy studies can help in integrating
various branches of science along with social sciences for a proper perspective of science. In developing
science policy when social scientists are cooperating with scientist it helps develop a common language.
Social scientist can also be an important link between the policy planners and scientist by persuading
them to take the science and technology with a developmental perspective. A scientist having a policy
oriented approach could create public awareness of the role of science and technology in society.
Awareness could also involve consequences of such major decisions and their impact on man, society
and environment. They could also be useful in pointing major gaps that exist in the area of research
and development. Science and technology must not alienate tradition and culture. Science policy must
integrate traditional values and culture with technology. This is possible through incorporating aspects
of the traditional scientific and technological culture into current innovations for social development.

The paper examines the higher education scenario in India and attempts to point out why very few serious investors invest in higher educational sector. Several factors are responsible for this. Primary among these are the legal and legislative hurdles in several federal states. It is also seen that the bad precedent set by the existing institutions dissuade serious investments. These factors have led to specific problems for serious investors in this sector in India. The paper identifies these problems and suggests that a possible change in perception towards higher education would be most desired in the current milieu. Certain contours of change in perception are identified.

In India, education is in the concurrent list, where federal states and the central government share responsibilities. Until recently, legislations in higher education prohibited profit making in the sector. Higher education was defined as a not-for-profit sector.

The nodal ministry for education in India is the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD). The MHRD has a Department of Higher education which is the apex department “for the overall development of the basic infrastructure of Higher Education sector”. The University Grants Commission (UGC) under the Department of Higher Education in the MHRD acts as the coordinator as well as prescriber of standards for education in the country.

The central concern of the paper is an analysis of the definition and images of an ideal teacher that one gains while being trained in B.Ed programmes in India. The study explores this theme with the help of numerous student-teacher interactions, interactions with faculty members as well as textbooks (part 1) and other study material through which the author traverses. These interactions between student-teachers and teacher educators look into their experiences in the classroom, hostel life, teaching practice and assignments. These aspects have been contextualised and woven along with broader experiences and exposure that the author gained while working the field of education prior to the programme and the disjuncture that has come to permeate the ideals in teacher education programme. The paper uses these narratives to critique teacher education programmes as well as to highlight its stagnation. The data for this study emerged through detailed documentation while the author was a student, as well as through further discussions after the completion of the programme. ....

Since 1986, the University Grants Commission in India has made it compulsory for all applicants to the position of Assistant Professor to take the National Eligibility Test (NET). This commentary looks at the contents and objectives of the NET and asks:whether NET really contributes towards the improvement in the quality of teaching and training in journalism schools. To ensure the quality of higher education in India, the government established a statutory body, the University Grants Commission, in November 1956, through an Act of Parliament. The UGC primarily oversees the standards of university education and faculty appointments. One of its main tools of quality control is the National Eligibility Test (NET) and State Eligibility Test (SET) for lecturers conducted in June and December each year. With the growing concern for establishing a method of recruitment that ensures 'merit, objectivity and conformity with spatial and functional requirements' (University Grants Commission), the Mehrotra Committee in 1983 recommended that the NET/SET be made mandatory for appointments of lecturers in colleges and universities. In 1986, a Program of Action of National Policy of Education was implemented. Today, all applicants for the position of an assistant professor in journalism and mass communication must meet the following conditions: 1. Good academic record as defined by the concerned university with at least 55 per cent marks at the Masters' level.