While the Telangana government is mulling the introduction of the Choice Based Credit System (CBCS) as recommended by the University Grants Commission (UGC) for undergraduate students in the State, a private autonomous college has taken the lead.
St. Joseph’s College (Autonomous) at King Koti is all set to introduce the system in the forthcoming academic year of 2015-16. Confirming this, P.L. Vishweshwer Rao, Director, St. Joseph’s UG and PG College, said that the decision to introduce CBCS was taken by the academic council a fortnight ago.
“Representatives from the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the National Assessment Accreditation Council (NAAC) had inspected our college premises recently. Our ‘A’ grade college is probably the first to introduce the CBCS,” he claimed.
CBCS, a semester-wise grading system, allows students to study interdisciplinary subjects along with their regular course work. For instance, Prof. Rao explained that a B.Sc student could choose to study a subject from commerce stream if he wishes.
Undergraduate students studying in State universities and affiliated colleges might have to shift from the yearly exam system to CBCS in the near future, as the Telangana Council for Higher Education (TSCHE) is currently holding meetings to discuss the issue with faculty members from various universities and colleges in the State.
Ever since the UGC initiated the pilot project on the CBCS and began to urge universities and colleges to follow suit, it has fuelled concerns among the faculty as they apprehend that the existing infrastructure and staff strength in colleges is not sufficient to introduce such a system.
“Faculty members involved in the meetings are amenable to introducing the CBCS in State universities and colleges provided inadequacies they have pointed out are addressed,” said Prof. Mallesh Sankasala, vice-chairman, TSCHE. He mentioned adequate staff and provision of labs as some of demands put forth in the meetings.
Prof. Sankasala said that the CBCS is also one of the main criteria meted out by the UGC. It is also a requirement if an institution wants to get an NAAC grading. The six universities in Telangana have about 1,200 colleges affiliated to them.
