City Faculty Divided Over Its
Advantages
More than a week after the Centre
mandated that medical students across the country will have to pass the
National Exit Test (NEXT) to get the `doctor' tag, engineering students may too
have to take a similar test after completing their course. The proposed move
has the engineering faculty in the city divided over its advantages to
students.
The All India Council for
Technical Education (AICTE), Technical Education (AICTE), in its meeting this
week, is expected to discuss the viability of introducing an exit examination
that could help better the quality of engineering education provided across the
country . “This has been proposed by some academicians for understanding
quality levels of different universities and check on the same level-playing
field for comparison of scores,“ said a senior AICTE official. “We will discuss
this in the forthcoming meeting. We will also call for views and opinions from
different stakeholders from the sector. The modalities haven't been looked at
yet.“
The move, feel experts, could
help students in the long run. “The idea is good, though it will need a lot of
deliberation. In the long term, it will better the quality of students as they
will have to continuously update themselves. The exit examination could also be
very comprehensive and help test students better,“ said Suresh Ukarande,
in-charge faculty coordinator for engineering at Mumbai University . He added
that the AICTE should consult all stakeholders, including teachers, institutes
and students, to ensure that the exam is properly framed and works in
everyone's advantage.
However, some feel an additional
exam is not necessary .“When students undergo four years of rigorous learning
during the engineering course, they are able and ready for the industry . The
recruitment process at all corporate is intense and not just based on marks,“
said Vilas Shinde, principal, New Horizon Institute of Technology and
Management, Thane. “In spite of the best education, every industry has its own
working modules and hence, provides on-job training for recruits. Hence, an
additional test may not be required.“
On December 29, the Union health
ministry unveiled the draft Indian Medical Council (Amendment) Bill 2016 under
which after completing a fiveand-a-half-year course, medical students will have
to pass the NEXT before becoming doctors. After the announcement was made, Dr P
Shingare, who heads the state's department of medical education and research,
had said that NEXT is a good move. “How can we equate a student from X
university with one from Y University? NEXT will bring about standardization,“
he had said.
Source: TIMES OF INDIA-9th January,2017
