DU constitutes NEP panel to frame syllabi

The Delhi University (DU) has constituted a National Education Policy (NEP) interdisciplinary course committee that will frame syllabi in line with the new six interdisciplinary courses that have been approved for implementation at the undergraduate level from the next academic session.

The seven-member committee includes principals from three colleges besides faculty from university departments. It has been given the task of framing the syllabi with respect to the new interdisciplinary courses that are part of the undergraduate course programme approved by the university’s academic and executive councils in August this year. “The NEP Interdisciplinary Course Committee is empowered to constitute Interdisciplinary Sub-committees/working Groups for assisting the committee in framing the syllabi for the NEP Interdisciplinary Courses, comprising of teachers of the Departments, Centres and Colleges of the university,” the university’s registrar said in a notification issued on Monday.

From the next academic session, DU students will get the chance to opt for a three-year Honours programme or a fouryear Honours in a discipline or four-year Honours in a discipline with research. In addition to the courses that exist in the current honours programme, the new programme shall include a number of additional courses in the first three years of the programme. These courses will focus on social and emotional learning, innovation and entrepreneurship, extracurricular activities, ethics and culture and multidisciplinary research.

SP Aggarwal, principal, Ramanujan College, and member of the committee, said that the committee will frame the syllabus for the new interdisciplinary courses that are being introduced as part of the four-year undergraduate programme.

Anju Srivastava, the principal of the Hindu College who is also a part of the newly constituted committee, said that while it was too early to comment on the processes that will be taken in the coming days, the committee will ensure that the exercise is undertaken carefully while prioritising the interests of the students. “We will have to do a lot of work to ensure that the courses are interdisciplinary,” said Srivastava.