Recently the authorities of higher education in Punjab are in high spirits and are vibrantly taking up the underperforming and underutilized institutions.
The authorities seem to be in high spirits and are doing their utmost to restore the confidence and trust of the communities in public sector institutions where even the low fee in comparison to the private institutions has failed to attract potential admission seekers.
The efforts of higher education can be taken as laudable because of their involvement with the ground realities of the situations. But the mere visits to the institutions, though laudable yet are not sufficient, the government needs to take up cudgels against the deteriorating situation of the public sector educational universities.
The most significant component of the college is its faculty and students. Both makeup what is termed the educational process. Where the authorities are showing a keen interest in restoring the confidence in the public sector institutions, they must make the teaching component also equally efficient and generate a sense of ownership and commitment.
No labs in the Punjab government’s public sector are equipped with modern technology like interactive boards and online resources or manifestations.
Right now, a large number of faculty seem bent on keeping themselves as segregated from the institution as possible. They would love to spend their educational time out of the college premises more than inside it. So, the very first measure must be to make both the teacher and the taught component remain within the college premises as far as the official timing is concerned. Eye contact monitoring systems and camera devices can be installed to ensure the on-time entry and exit of the faculty and the students.
Besides, the labs of most institutions are almost obsolete in terms of requisite equipment and infrastructures which are almost half a century old. Attention must be paid to the modernization of these labs as per state-of-the-art technology and the resources allowed.
As far as my poor knowledge tells no labs in the Punjab government’s public sector are equipped with modern technology like interactive boards and online resources or manifestations. The staff supposed to provide technical support is untrained and illiterate to the 21st century’s needs for carrying out practical demonstrations of the latest knowledge.
The situation is pathetic in the case of computer-related labs and the staff. The world is working with 7 and 8th generations of computers and our labs are still struggling with 1st or second generation of computers. The computer labs are ill-equipped in an age when computing is involved in almost every section of our lives.
There is no possibility of giving a well-equipped, sharply skilled product in such a pathetic situation. The labs must be modernized as per the needs of 21st-century young people the manpower in these facilities must be trained in the use of modern technologies, and interactive sessions with machines must be made available to our young people.
Public sector institutions have millions of books in their stores, but these books remain untouched for years and years. We must realize that in this age of the internet, mobile devices have become a norm in utilizing, copying, and exploiting data and so the institution must provide access to their students to the digital format of libraries which may be further connected to the world libraries.
The librarians must engage the students of almost every discipline in teaching them skills of exploiting the online resources. In order to gain the requisite level of skill based product, the classroom is a crucial component of the whole system.
Many classrooms are being managed on the traditional patterns which does not give a competitive edge, and the students would not feel satisfied. The situation calls for a modernized classroom where all requisite modern technology is incorporated.
Multimedia, interactive boards, and online access to the interactive tools may be provided along with the proper writing arrangements, openness, freshness and good air quality. Residential facilities can further enhance the level of commitment because they provide the mental satisfaction of living and feeding. This targeted approach to the classroom can minimize the impact of class divide in our society. Students can be protected from class-based education. The much-touted one-education system can also be reached through this.
All these revolutionary steps to ensure quality education would need funding which is at least a time necessity. The governments must take cognisance of this and prioritize the issue. It must be taken as a matter of now or never. Besides, the public sector institutions must work on their alumni organization, so that donations can attracted alongside the endowments.
Moreover, co-curricular activities must take place in all disciplines every week to keep the student energized, motivated and well-trained. These and so many other measures can be taken to keep the competitive survival of the public sector colleges. Outside classroom engagements must be ensured through internships, practicums, and community engagement networks. At least this much is the need of the hour to restore the trust of the community in public sector colleges as the best educational institutions.
The writer is a professor of English at Government Emerson University, Multan.
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