Delhi University constitutes NEP committee for framing syllabi

The seven-member committee includes principals from three colleges besides faculty from DU departments. It has been given the task of framing the syllabi with respect to the new interdisciplinary courses that are part of the undergraduate course programme approved by the university’s academic and executive councils in August this year.

The Delhi University (DU) has constituted a National Education Policy (NEP) interdisciplinary course committee that will frame syllabi in line with the new six interdisciplinary courses that have been approved for implementation at the undergraduate level from the next academic session.

Students at Delhi University campus after DDMA allowed DU to reopen on September 15. The university has formed a National Education Policy (NEP) committee to frame syllabi for six new interdisciplinary courses. (Sanchit Khanna/HT Photo)

The seven-member committee includes principals from three colleges besides faculty from university departments. It has been given the task of framing the syllabi with respect to the new interdisciplinary courses that are part of the undergraduate course programme approved by the university’s academic and executive councils in August this year.

“The NEP Interdisciplinary Course Committee is empowered to constitute Interdisciplinary Sub-committees/Working Groups for assisting the committee in framing the syllabi for the NEP Interdisciplinary Courses, comprising of teachers of the Departments, Centres and Colleges of the university,” the university’s registrar said in a notification issued on Monday.

From the next academic session, DU students will get the chance to opt for a three-year Honours programme or a four-year Honours in a discipline or four-year Honours in a discipline with research. In addition to the courses that exist in the current honours programme, the new programme shall include a number of additional courses in the first three years of the programme. These courses will focus on social and emotional learning, innovation and entrepreneurship, extracurricular activities, ethics and culture and multidisciplinary research.

SP Aggarwal, principal, Ramanujan College, and member of the committee, said that the committee will frame the syllabus for the new interdisciplinary courses that are being introduced as part of the four-year undergraduate programme. “We need to frame the syllabus and outline how the curriculum will be taught. These papers are practical papers, and we will strive to incorporate innovative teaching practices. We want to ensure that students develop a basic understanding of the paper as well as the practical application of the knowledge,” said Aggarwal. He said that the committee will meet in the coming days and added that details on the roadmap for syllabus framing will emerge after that.

Anju Srivastava, the principal of the Hindu College who is also a part of the newly constituted committee, said that while it was too early to comment on the processes that will be taken in the coming days, the committee will ensure that the exercise is undertaken carefully while prioritising the interests of the students. “I have been on the NEP implementation committee. Discussions on interdisciplinary courses have taken place in the past as well. While we have not had any meetings with the interdisciplinary course committee till now, we are aware that these are pertinent issues. We will have to do a lot of work to ensure that the courses are interdisciplinary, particularly, keeping in mind the interests of students who will be opting for these courses out of interest,” said Srivastava.