DU academic council clears online course credit proposal despite objections, approves ‘semester away program’

The proposal said MOOC and offline courses will need to have “60% or more similarity”, going up to 75% for core and compulsory courses, to be applicable.

Delhi University’s academic council (AC) on Wednesday approved a proposal to offer students the option of earning 5% of their total credits from SWAYAM and other Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) platforms, despite objections of members. The plan, as well as a new “Semester Away Program” (SAP), now need to be approved by the executive council (EC), which will meet on April 29.

The plan, as well as a new “Semester Away Program” (SAP), now need to be approved by the executive council (EC), which will meet on April 29. (Representative photo)

Elected members stated that as they were in the minority as compared to nominated members, the proposals were passed despite their protests.

They said the move could jeopardise the quality of the students’ education. “The online course is allowed to have a variation of up to 40% from what is being taught in the university. This is worrying as even discipline specific core courses and discipline specific electives fall under the ambit of the proposal. Are we teachers expected to go over every MOOC course to ensure its quality?” Kamla Nehru College associate professor Monami Sinha told HT after the meeting.

“Right now it’s 5%, but tomorrow it may increase,” she further added.

The proposal also stated, “If required, the panel may recommend bridge courses or prescribe additional learning components to ensure alignment with the prescribed learning and credits.”

“Who will be making the bridge courses except for us teachers? This is additional work,” said Maya John, assistant professor at Jesus and Mary College.

“These courses can be offered as supplementary, but can’t be a substitute for classroom lessons,” said Anumeha Mishra, another AC member and professor at the Faculty of Law.

Members said the meeting was adjourned as they were sharing their concerns. The DU administration said the meeting concluded in a routine manner.

The proposal, which HT has seen, said the option would be open to students across undergraduate, postgraduate, and PhD courses and every department shall constitute a panel to identify and recommend suitable courses available on Digital Learning Platforms (DLPs).

It further said MOOC and offline courses will need to have “60% or more similarity”, going up to 75% for core and compulsory courses, to be applicable.

SAP could be launched in 2026-27, once approved

Under the SAP, students will have the opportunity to complete one semester of their academic programme at a Foreign Higher Education Institution (FHEI). “Once approved, we expect to launch it in the 2026–27 academic session,” said DU Registrar Vikas Gupta. “The programme aims to provide students with global exposure. While students will generally bear the cost, the university will ensure that no deserving candidate misses the opportunity due to financial constraints.”

According to the proposal, undergraduate students can apply for it in their 3rd, 5th, and 6th semesters, and the credits they earned at the FHEI will be counted towards the fulfillment of their degree. The proposal states that the university will support “few outstanding meritorious students” belonging to the SC, ST, EWS, PwBD, and OBC categories from financially weaker backgrounds.

In a letter to the AC, dated April 15, Elected academic council members accused the university of luring students through the SAP and flagging its various expenditure-related aspects.

The council also approved one-year postgraduate programmes across departments, the two-year MA philosophy programme, and self-learning material for the school of open learning courses in line with the Undergraduate Curriculum Framework 2022.