FDP’s at univs found wanting, higher education department bats for new module
The committee was formed by members from the directorate of collegiate education and the directorate of technical education, besides academicians, scientists and industrial experts.
Tamil Nadu State Council for Higher Education
CHENNAI: As the Faculty Development Programme (FDP) academic content of the State-run universities was found wanting, the Higher Education Department has ordered a new module for the teaching staff.
An expert committee observed that the present FDP programmes are not satisfactory.
The committee was formed by members from the directorate of collegiate education and the directorate of technical education, besides academicians, scientists and industrial experts.
Quoting the panel report, a senior official from the Higher Education Department said “FDP’s academic content and pedagogy should be a continuous process. However, the conduct of academic staff colleges in universities is not encouraging”.
He said that the expert committee also opined that being effective on the job and professional development are essential for teachers in higher educational institutions. “So, Tamil Nadu State Council for Higher Education or any other similar government department should design a programme for the faculty development”.
Explaining about the FDP scheme, he said it would give intense coaching to the teachers to plan and prepare the subjects well and understand the lessons to improve the teaching quality.
“These programmes will be conducted regularly during the vacation periods to enable the faculty members to participate and benefit.” The resource persons for the FDPs will be seniors and experienced faculty members from the University and also experts from the industry, he added.
The official said that in addition, a new mentorship programme will be initiated in all the higher educational institutions by which all new faculty at entry level are assigned mentors during their initial year of service. This will support them in academic matters, pedagogy, student engagement and research funding.
“Innovations and achievements in mentoring may also be recognised in career promotions of faculty”, he said, adding that as a part of the faculty development programme, audio-video lecture programmes will be conducted. A group of experts will deliver such lectures for various subjects.
