Gujarat must improve education quality

Ask him for a feedback on the quality of education of colleges in Gujarat and the bleak expression on his face speaks volumes. All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) chairman SS Mantha told dna that since Gujarat is a state of vision and visionaries, it is expected from experts here to improve the quality of education and teachers.

Mantha, who came to take part in the one-day seminar on National Vocational Education Qualification Framework at the Gujarat Technological University (GTU) on Thursday, told dna that it requires innovation to improve quality.

“Like any other state, Gujarat also needs to improve quality.

The state can implement train the trainer concept, open source learning or use ICT (information, communication technology) base to give value addition to teachers’ knowledge.

More and more people should be encouraged to do PhD and teachers should be sent to different parts of the country and even abroad for better exposure. Like student internship, there should be internship for teachers, too, at least for six months in three years. This would expose them to better practical training,” said the AICTE chairman.

When asked about the quality of institutes and colleges, Mantha was quick to mention that the sole responsibility lay with the concerned university. “Who designs the curriculum? Who decides affiliation of colleges? Who inspects academic credentials? When all the things are monitored by the varsity, how is AICTE responsible for having poor quality colleges?” he wondered.

Mantha said the university should be strict enough to cancel the affiliation of any institute or college that lacks infrastructure and quality teachers. “Has any university cancelled any affiliation in the last few years?” he asked.

Talking about the high number of vacant seats in professional courses, Mantha said there was no direct connection between the number of colleges and vacant seats. “All we need is robust facility mechanism and a level playing field for quality of education. Let there be more private colleges. Only colleges that provide quality education will sustain,” he pointed out.