E-Paper
Students allege AKTU teachers rushing 6-month syllabus in 5 weeks
According to a student, many of them are not equipped with a high-speed internet connection that is required for online learning.
Engineering students at Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Technical University (AKTU) in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh allege that as soon as the examination schedule was announced, teachers have been trying to complete six months’ syllabus in just five weeks, giving no time for students to comprehend and grasp. Some students complained about the same by taking to microblogging website Twitter.
“How can our mind capture anything at that speed. We are unable to understand a single chapter. This is not the way to complete the course ahead of the final exam of B Tech,” said a student, Apurva Verma, in a tweet tagging AKTU and vice-chancellor Vinay Kumar Pathak.
Another student, said, “How can AKTU take our exam covering the entire syllabus when the semester duration is reduced to just 3 months. Also, there was a 20-day holiday during online classes in May.”
“First of all, students are finding it difficult to adapt to an online learning environment immediately after traditional classroom learning. Due to the sudden change, we are not able to adapt to computer-based learning. Students who have always been studying in the classroom, their minds are not able to focus on online platforms,” read Apurva’s tweet.
According to a student, many of them are not equipped with a high-speed internet connection that is required for online learning. Due to this, they face problems in going live for virtual learning and other platforms that require an internet connection, they said.
Students allege that even teachers face severe network problems and that’s why they reschedule classes quite often according to their convenience. “Not a single student is ready to take exams because we all faced many problems in this pandemic and many of us are under huge mental stress,” a student claimed.
Mohsin Afroz, a student, said, “We need time to study. At present, in my college, almost three units are remaining in each subject. So, for six subjects, 18 units are left to be taught that must be completed in five weeks. The college is ready with extra classes but there’s little time to study. It is not fair to just complete the course as a formality. If AKTU is willing to hold exams, they must give proper time or give relaxation in the syllabus.”
“AKTU may hold exams of only core subjects and must leave the elective subjects. In this way, we can get some relaxation. This semester started in April and classes remained suspended for almost one month, so we are left with only 3 months,” he added.
A student of a private engineering college said, “Most students live in villages where engineering books are not available. Poor internet connectivity is another issue. The students could attend only 50% or less of online classes. The AKTU semester should be of four months but online classes started on April 12. With weekend off and 20-day closure in May due to Covid-19, we only had 25-30 days of online classes. And I don’t think 25-30 days are enough for a whole semester at this level.”
A section of students said they are not wary of examinations. But what was bothering them was the online exam. “First of all, we are not worried about the exam. But I don’t think the online exam will be a great idea with just one month of classes. At least 20% of the syllabus is yet to be completed. How do they expect us to clear the exam? I am not begging for promotion. I am just asking to postpone the exam and conduct it offline in September. We need approximately four months of classes,” another student said.
“The university is aware that our syllabus is incomplete but still wants to hold examinations,” another student, named Arpit, said.
Another student urged the AKTU to “reduce the syllabus as colleges have not completed even half the syllabus and now they are trying to cover the remaining portion in a few weeks by increasing the number of classes. Due to this, students are facing huge pressure.”
Some students also that all students of the first year should be promoted because it is difficult to cover 70 to 80% syllabus in just one month.
AKTU pro-vice-chancellor Vineet Kansal said, “There are 750 colleges affiliated to the AKTU. By and large, a majority of the colleges continued their online classes except for a few days when the government ordered discontinuation following rising cases of Covid-19. There’s a possibility that some colleges may not have conducted online classes regularly. Maybe, a few students of these colleges are not happy with the examination and are opposing it. The final exams are still a month away. Students may start preparing for it.”
