Many call for resuming physical classes as DU declares open book exams

According to the exam notification issued last week, DU will conduct the open book examination for third, fifth and seventh semester students from November 30. Teachers said it was time to go back to the usual exam mechanisms, in view of the improved Covid-19 situation in Delhi

With Delhi University preparing to conduct another round of open-book examination (OBE), starting November 30, students and teachers once again highlighted the need to resume in-person classes and exams at the earliest.

Teachers expressed concerns over OBE, saying that it raised concerns of dilution of course work assessment. (HT Archive)

Teachers said OBE raised concerns of dilution of course work assessment and it was time to go back to the usual exam mechanisms, in view of the improved Covid-19 situation in Delhi.

According to the exam notification issued last week, DU will conduct the open book examination for third, fifth and seventh semester students from November 30.

Abha Dev Habib, who teaches physics at Miranda House, said teachers were unhappy with the decision to conduct an open book examination and have approached the registrar with suggestions of holding in-person exams. Habib said offline exams could have been announced for third-year students followed by second-year students.

“Had proctored exams been announced, students could have focused more on studies. The third-year undergraduate students have appeared for only one in-person exam — the first semester exams before the pandemic. We are looking at a very diluted degree course for students in the absence of proctored exams. The absence of exams has eroded the whole idea of education. Students are finding refuge in OBE and not studying,” said Habib.

She said examinations for school students in the senior grades were also taking place in in-person, but the same mode was not being adopted for college students. “With a diluted degree, employment chances of students will be affected. Students should wake up to this reality and insist on pen and paper exams,” said Habib. She said the continued closure of colleges was unfortunate and despite suspension of in-person classes for a prolonged period of time, there was no blueprint on the resumption of in-person teaching.

Arshed Aziz, 23, a final-year postgraduate student of sociology at Delhi School of Economics, said there were apprehensions that the absence of exams would hurt the future academic and employment prospects of students. “There is a popular consensus that if we don’t give offline exams, our degree will not be valued. We will not be considered for higher education opportunities,” said Aziz.

He said online exams were fraught with challenges of connectivity issues and communication gaps, which hindered the whole test process. “In my department, around 12 students did not receive the results of the second-semester exams which were held online,” said Aziz.

Other students said resumption of offline exams did not make sense at a time when they were completing the semester in the online mode. Nitika Dabas, 20, a final year student of BSc Zoology at Ramjas College, said students were not prepared for an offline exam as yet.

“While we understand the importance of both in-person classes and exams, conducting offline exams for a semester that was taught online will not be fair to students. There are students who don’t have access to the internet and could not attend classes regularly,” said Dabas.

She said most students were waiting for in-person classes, but the university has not given any directions regarding that. “We are worried about the impact that the absence of offline exams will have on jobs. We don’t even have much practical experience. It is a bit frightening since we are aiming for a research degree in the future,” said Dabas.

DU’s dean of colleges Balaram Pani said the university was awaiting guidelines from the government and would aim to restart in-person classes and exams from the next semester. “Right now, the semester was taught online. If exams are conducted in-person, students living outside Delhi would face difficulties with regards to accommodation,. For the next semester, we can hold the semester sessions and exams offline,” said Pani