13 of 17 postgraduate teachers on MU boards of studies are not qualified
Thirteen of the 17 postgraduate (PG) teachers, who are on the Mumbai University (MU) boards of studies for various subjects, are not qualified as per the Maharashtra Universities Act.
Thirteen of the 17 postgraduate (PG) teachers, who are on the Mumbai University (MU) boards of studies for various subjects, are not qualified as per the Maharashtra Universities Act.
Boards of studies are university bodies that decide on the syllabus for both graduate and undergraduate courses. Each subject has a separate board of studies.
The act states that a recognised PG teacher from a college can be part of the board of studies of a subject if he or she has ten years' teaching experience and if his or her college has a PG department in that particular subject.
An application filed under the Right To Information (RTI) Act by university faculty reveals that only four PG teachers come from colleges with functioning departments in the subject that they have been elected for.
"The boards of studies for important subjects such as economics, political science, business economics and philosophy have PG teachers who are not eligible for the post. These people are making decisions on the university syllabus," said a faculty member requesting anonymity.
"In some cases, the same unqualified teacher is part of two boards of studies. If these teachers don't teach the subject how can they understand the needs of students and evolving trends?"
The university has permanent boards of studies in about 38 subjects and more than 40 ad-hoc boards of studies. Permanent boards of studies have a tenure of five years. Ad-hoc boards of studies are created for two years and have members appointed by the vice-chancellor.