“THE PRESENT GENERATION IS QUITE DEMANDING...”
“... in a positive way,” Prof. Dr. Harsha K. Mehta, Principal – SIES College of Arts, Science and Commerce, Sion, tells Shraddha Kamdar
All it took was one phone call, and at the next available appointment, I was at her office for this interview. Elegant and composed, she was in the middle of sorting out several matters which go with the responsibilities of leading a prestigious college in the city. Even then, she did not falter once in articulating her thoughts and ideas, and with clarity offered her opinions on the topics at hand. Prof. Dr. Harsha K. Mehta, Principal – SIES College of Arts, Science and Commerce, Sion, offers interesting insights about student life today, and talks of ways in which excellence can be achieved. Excerpts from an interview:
How can we work around the syllabus to make the students more current with the information from the industry?
■ We supplement the syllabus with lectures conducted by specially invited guests from the industry who offer their knowledge and insights to our young students. We also offer very short courses to the students which add a lot of value to their knowledge. We must also remember that within the syllabus, the theory part is a necessity, it is not outdated. It is needed to build a strong foundation. Even though students feel that it is not needed within the industry, they must realise that it will enable them to understand how things can be done. With that, they can gain experience in how a company functions. Realistically speaking, in our country, Universities deal with mass education, and therefore we cannot expect the University to deal with all the problems.
So there should always be additions to classroom teaching?
■ I feel that classroom teaching is never sufficient. The add-on factors depend on the institute and the departments on how they take care of live and interactive projects for the students. It is the faculty’s job to encourage students to go beyond the syllabus. The University does not impose any restrictions, it is for the institute to push the students. There are innumerable opportunities for the students.
For instance, here at SIES, we run a Centre for Excellence where we offer 67 additional courses to the students. These include language proficiency classes, computer courses as well as self enrichment programmes. We also offer ‘earn while you learn’ courses like nail art, chocolate making and candle making, apart from a course in Vedic mathematics. Over all, the students have a lot of scope in improving their knowledge and skills with this Centre.
Apart from that, there are associations which are extensions of the departments to conduct activities with supplement and complement the syllabus. Students go for field visits and excursions, hold exhibitions and interact with resource persons from different parts of the country. This provides them with a certain professional edge.
Can you give a few instances of classroom interaction?
■ The teachers have to make the subject lively and interactive for the students in any way possible. These things have to be taken care of at the college level. It essentially depends on the teachers and how they do it. After all, students can read the texts, they need more involvement. So teachers use role plays, case studies, and even film screenings to involve the students. With all of these activities, students automatically connect with the teacher and form a certain bond. Blended learning with online material as well as Smartboards helps a lot.
Another factor that differentiates us is that students get to offer feedback on the teaching styles of the faculty, and their reports are taken into consideration while offering feedback to the faculty. This is important since the demands of the present generation are quite different from the previous ones, and teaching styles have to change accordingly. In a very positive way, since the students have all the information, their demands are different towards learning and knowledge.
How do you motivate students to attend class, especially in the commerce section, where students tend to skip class a lot?
■ Yes, we are facing issues as well, and often students make an excuse that they are pursuing other professional studies like chartered accountancy (CA) and the like. We also understand that they need to pursue such courses. However, since our lectures are held in the mornings, we request the students to pursue all additional activities after 10.30 am, after they are done with the lectures.
Of course there are cases where we have to rely on the University rule of that requires 75% and tell them about the consequences if they do not comply. We do not want complications later.
I must say here, that often the students’ attitude also poses a problem. They offer excuses about CA, but often they are attending coaching classes. If all the other courses including arts, science, BMM, and BMS are studying without coaching classes, why do commerce students have to flock there? They can manage their time well, but they think attending college is not important because of the coaching classes. This escapist attitude needs to be shed.
How important are soft skills today?
■ For the present generation, they are very important. Students need to be aware of the dressing sense and presentability, how to approach a person, how to talk to a person. Students also need to know how to be humble. These are the skills which improve the employability factor among students.
Any message for today’s students?
■ I would say to them that be honest to yourself, discover yourself and follow hat you are best in. Be the best you can. Don’t just blindly follow others, and certainly don’t blame the world for everything!