By H Srikanth & Batskhem Myrboh
The enlightened public in the state is aware of the competing discourses that preceded the introduction of the Four-Year Undergraduate Program (FYUP) in 2023 in the UG colleges of Meghalaya. NEHU hurriedly prepared and approved the syllabi for FYUP. However, responding to the concerns of the UG teacher representatives, the Academic Council had then advised the university to implement the FYUP a year after. But the Vice-Chancellor, who was adamant on immediate implementation, notified it after garnering the support of a few college principals who endorsed his decision for a variety of reasons. Although the then Minister of Education was on record stating that several colleges were not ready for FYUP, for reasons best known, the state government also endorsed the NEHU’s decision. After so much wrangling, the FYUP was rolled out, and it is now in its third year. The students of the first batch of FYUP are now in their fifth semester. As FYUP will enter the fourth year in the next academic session, the Meghalaya Chapter of All India Save Education Committee (AISEC) felt the need to undertake a pilot study to understand the experiences and perceptions of the students and teachers. AISEC received feedback from over 300 students studying in the fifth semester in over 15 colleges in and around Shillong and also in other parts of Meghalaya. Here, we share some key points emerging from their responses.
Earlier, under the three-year degree programs, the students were focusing on a major and two minor papers. But under the FYUP, besides the major and minor papers, the students should study additional papers from the courses designated as Ability Enhancement Courses (AEC), Skill Enhancement Courses (SEC), Multi-Disciplinary Courses (MDC), Vocational Education & Training (VET) and Value Added Courses (VAD). The number of papers that the students have to study has increased from 18 to 33. The credits that the students have to secure for a three-year degree under FYUP increased from 72 to 120. Only those students who secure a CGPA of 7.5 are entitled to move to the fourth year of FYUP. In their fourth year they have to earn an additional 40 credits by completing five major papers, two minor papers and one dissertation. The students who are not interested in research have to study three advanced major papers to get a four-year honours degree.
The pilot study shows that all first-batch FYUP students were admitted to the degree program without the mandatory CUET program. Only 24% of respondents said that they attempted the CUET exams. Under public demand, till date, the UG colleges are admitting the students to UG programs even though they did not give CUET. But it is not sure whether the exemption would continue indefinitely. From the students’ responses, the AEC, SEC, VAD courses are offered mostly by the teachers within the college. More than 50% of the student respondents said that even papers under VET are taught by different teachers in the colleges. The vocational papers such as baking and confectionery, fashion design, piggery, mushroom cultivation, bee keeping, beauty care, carpentry, etc., are handled by teachers within the college, although they were appointed for teaching the core courses. Only a handful of colleges in the state have engaged training institutes, professional bodies and subject experts for imparting vocational education.
While one may appreciate the introduction of interesting papers in AEC, SEC, MDC, etc., NEHU did not make any efforts to come out with textbooks for teaching those papers. Eighty-seven percent of the respondents maintained that there are no textbooks for new courses introduced under FYUP. Only 17% of students have claimed that they rely on textbooks. Nearly 47% of the respondents declared they depend on notes provided by teachers. That the students have been exploring internet sources becomes clear from the fact that 27% of the respondents have indicated that they rely on internet sources as well. But interestingly, the students showed little interest in opting for Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). Only 11% of the respondents said that they opted for online courses. Explaining the reasons, 57% said that they preferred direct teaching by teachers to online teaching, and 8% said that the online courses are cumbersome and involve additional costs. Lack of orientation, connectivity problems and inconvenient timings are also possibly other factors which prevented them from opting for online courses.
To be eligible for a three-year degree under FYUP, the students have to do an internship / project in the fifth semester. In Meghalaya, there are no industries and big business companies where the students can work as interns. From the students’ responses, we understand that some did an internship in government and semi-government bodies, others reported that they have done internships in some NGOs, schools, colleges, laboratories, dairy / fish farms, villages, restaurants, and other odd places. The number of days they have done internships varies considerably. While the majority stated their experience as somewhat useful, there are quite a few who were not happy with the experience. While 40% of respondents admitted they did not spend any money for doing an internship, 33% percent said that they spent a little amount and another 27% stated that they had to spend a substantial amount to the agencies as an internship fee.
The students have to pay different fees–annual fee, exam fee, lab fee, hostel fee, internship fee, etc. Most students were informed that the college fees had increased substantially after introducing FYUP. Although many get scholarships, they are not adequate to meet the increasing costs of education. The study shows that the annual fee that they had to pay varies from college to college, and from course to course. Only thirty percent of student respondents, who come mostly from Arts subjects in non-Shillong colleges, said that they pay less than ten thousand rupees as annual fee. Fourteen percent said that they had paid between Rs. 10000 and Rs. 25000. But 28% of respondents said that they pay between Rs. 25000 and Rs. 45000, and another 28% stated that they had to pay more than Rs. 45000 as college fee every year. While few seem to have no problem with the fee, most respondents complained about the fee structure in the colleges.
Recently, there have been news reports complaining about the high dropout rate in the UG colleges. Responding to the query on dropouts, 49% of the respondents mentioned that there have not been many dropouts in their classes, 51% stated there have been dropouts in the department, with some 8% showing over 40% dropout in some classes. When asked whether they have backlogs, 18% admitted that they have backlogs. When probed why they have backlogs, 49% of the students who have backlogs complained about the heavy syllabus, 16% admitted that they did not put in enough effort, 29% mentioned other causes, and only 6% blamed the teachers for their poor performance.
When the students were asked to rank the FYUP implementation between 1 and 10, 27% of respondents said that it is below average, 41% stated that it is satisfactory and 32% rated it high. However, when asked whether they have any complaints against the FYUP, 80% of the students came out with one or another complaint. The students are critical of the unwieldy curriculum and syllabus. As they are forced to study many other papers, the students say that they have not been able to focus on major papers. Because of the inadequacy of teachers and classrooms, more often than not the syllabus is not completed. They reported that even though the colleges charge high fee, they are not improving the infrastructure. Their responses show that the exam pressure has caused too much stress and anxiety. Many are afraid of the backlogs, or poor scores. The students now in third-year of FYUP are definitely not as excited as they were when they joined FYUP in 2023. Do the authorities in NEHU and the state government, who sing paeans to the NEP 2020 every time they talk of educational reforms in the state, listen to the voices and concerns of the students?
