University of Delhi has been issuing a number of notifications regarding the conduction of online exams. It has been a subject of constant criticism ever since it came out within a notification declaring online exams for the third year students. If there is no relief from the current situation, the exams will take place through a model of ‘Open Book Examinations’.
Then what are the problems that these students have asked the administrative department of University of Delhi to address. Given that a lot of petitions have been filed not only by students but by teachers also. Let’s look at the major issues that have come-up:
1) Internet Accessibility:
This has been the major concern for most of the students. University of Delhi has been renowned for having a wide range of diversity among students which belong to different sects and regions across the country. Therefore,a lot of these students come from areas where there is no such internet connectivity available. Some regions of North-Eastern states and parts of Kashmir are one such places where this problem arises the most. The administration has to take into account such issues with utmost responsibility because a major section of students will be placed at a disadvantage.
2) Nature of degree/Courses Opted:
A wide range of courses are offered at DU. Ranging from degrees in honours and programme. The nature of such courses is seen as giving descriptive and length answers. Therefore it becomes very difficult to provide such a length by typing. Not everyone has the same capacity. This is, if they consider the same format for the exams too. Other solution is having MCQs. This is again problematic since the very nature of these degrees is violated. Considering they are planning for Open Book Test it will be interesting to see if they can assure that everyone has resources at this point of time. For instance,a lot of people came to their hometown when the lock-down was declared. Some do not even have their books with them. Is it fair to all those students? Only they know.
3) Lack of study material:
Yet again, another hurdle is the accessibility of the correct studying material. Various books that are a must study for specific courses are not available online. Even if they are available they are mostly not “free” or the person has to subscribe by providing money. Surely not everyone has the privilege to afford such materials.
4) In-efficiency of Online-Classes:
DUTA stated that online classes cannot be considered as a substitute for regular classes. A number of students didn’t attend the online classes. Reasons could be different for different people. But one major is the connectivity issues that occur. Not only students but teachers have faced such problems too. Many living in cantonments cannot enjoy the privilege of such online classes as they have jammers installed. On top of that online classes provide little or no interaction between the teachers and students. There is less room for person to person interaction as well.
5) Inadequate Technology:
The official site of DU has created problems for many students, every now and then. From filing the examination form to checking updates, there have often been cases of error in the site. This causes a lot of problem. Citing such example students have questioned the authority multiple times. Such interference if occur at the time of examination with whatever new technology they are planning to use, has raised major concerns amongst the students.
6) Difficulty in Evaluation:
The DUTA has constantly opposed conduction of exams through online mode. This comes from the fact that there has been no official notifications as to how the evaluation will take place. They argued that a student may have a good handwriting but not necessarily fluency in writing. DUTA considers it “discriminatory” and continues to oppose online exams.
COVID-19 has made things very hard for colleges and universities in terms of conducting examinations. With such problems lying ahead, it becomes necessary for the administration to come up with proper solutions. For further information stay connected and refer to the official site of DU.
http://www.du.ac.in/du/
