Edu dept. begins verifying installation of biometric systems in junior colleges
Students are receiving most of their education in coaching classes, attending junior colleges only for formalities and bogus attendance
In a bid to curb the rise of coaching classes’ influence on entrance exams such as JEE and NEET and to phase out the integrated junior college system, the Maharashtra school education department has started verifying the installation of biometric systems in junior colleges. A report regarding this has been submitted to the education department, and a decision is expected to be taken soon. In the integrated junior college system, junior colleges are integrally connected with coaching classes and only enrol students for the purpose of appearing for the class 12 board exams. The students are marked present in such colleges even though they attend college only for practicals.
Professor Shantanu Kamthe, a senior education expert from Pune, said, “When students take admission in class 11, either the coaching administration or the students negotiate with the junior colleges. Accordingly, students attend college only for practicals and they are marked present even though they continue their entire education in coaching classes. This results in students attending only coaching classes for both classes 11 and 12.”
A senior education official on condition of anonymity said, “Many junior colleges in the state are merely operating on paper, with no actual teaching taking place. To address this, biometric attendance will be made mandatory in junior colleges and students will have to register their biometric attendance when arriving at the college and while leaving it. Based on this attendance, students who complete 75% attendance will be allowed to appear for the class 12 exams. The school education department believes that this system will ensure that students actually attend junior colleges for the educational process apart from exerting control over coaching classes.”
Professional degree courses, such as medicine and engineering, offer admission based on entrance exams. As a result, in cities like Pune, Mumbai, Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar, Nagpur, Kolhapur, and Amravati, there has been a significant rise in coaching classes for entrance exams like NEET, JEE, and MHT-CET over the last decade. Students are receiving most of their education in coaching classes, attending junior colleges only for formalities and bogus attendance. These junior colleges are in cahoots with the coaching classes.
State school education minister Dada Bhuse said, “Our education department officials are taking a review of junior colleges as it is found that a large number of students are attending coaching classes and not attending the college lectures. Once the final report is submitted, we will take a call on the installation of biometric systems in junior colleges.”