The Chief Superintendent, who has the overall charge of conducting the examinations, did not even make an appearance at the college.Picture for representational purposeAs the spotlight turns on the flaws in conducting examinations and 'copying', let me share an experience I had in conducting exams at a distance education centre under the MG University.
I was given charge as the Additional Chief Superintendent at Kolkata. I was startled when I saw how those examinations were conducted at the South Kolkata Law College, in a city where the messages of Tagore, Mother Teresa, and Swamy Vivekananda resonate. The Chief Superintendent, who has the overall charge of conducting the examinations, did not even make an appearance at the college. Conducting the examinations was entrusted to two office personnel at the distance education centre. The examinations went ahead, throwing all the laws of the MG University to the wind. It was a farce, with the examinees taking the exam with the help of textbooks, printed notes and mobile phones.
When there arose opposition against these practices from within the examination centre itself, the Centre was shifted to makeshift area in a building under construction. Dismayed, I just wanted to flee from the place where this farce was being enacted.
I found the idea of off campus centres odd. This was my first visit to to a distant education centre outside Kerala. I have noticed the smooth functioning of distance education centres by foreign universities in other countries. For example, the centres of reputed universities based in UK and Australia function in Singapore. These centres are run under the supervision of universities. A campus and responsible officials are at these centres continuously. But at Kolkata, the centre was run by a private agency, which has no connection with the MG University. The university officials could have visited this Centre at the time of its inception. After that the involvement was reduced to just the annual conduct of the examinations.
When I contacted over the phone the university officials who were responsible for conducting the examination, I got very favourable responses. They told me to return at the earliest and file a detailed report. After four examination days, I returned and filed a detailed report.
When I had talked to some youngsters who appeared for the exam at Kolkata, they informed me that though this centre was charging a hefty fee, it was not providing enough classes, assistance or facilities. Perhaps as a Quid pro quo, the Centre allows the examinees to write the examination in the manner described above.
When I returned to Kottayam, I found that the newspapers were flooded with complaints here too. Even if there were faults and shortcomings, the universities in Kerala, particularly the MG University, had always taken pride in the conducting of examinations transparently and faultlessly. Are we losing that too?
(The writer is the Head of the Department, Physics, Uzhavoor St. Stephen's College.)
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