Semester debate back: Economics teachers walk out of meet

Lua had called the meeting to discuss the “structure of the semester” system,after the DU administration sent a letter on February 9 asking its departments to ‘semesterise’ their syllabi before March 4. The DU semesterised 13 science courses last year; Vice-Chancellor Dinesh Singh later announced that rest of the courses will follow suit this year.

Economics teachers demanded that a general body meeting of all teachers handling the subject be called to discuss the matter.

The university had earlier said GBMs are not part of the university statutes,and hence cannot be held. The teachers,meanwhile,argued that the appropriate statutory body — the Courses Committee — does not have enough college teachers as members. They pointed out that GBMs,though informal,have been held before,and during syllabus revisions,to take the opinion of teachers who ultimately handle the course.

“The HoD was trying to project the problem as an administrative issue. We,however,felt that the semester system is an academic as well as an administrative matter. The general body of teachers had prepared a document detailing this,and those issues remain,” said a teacher who attended the meeting at the Delhi School of Economics.

A few of the teachers said they were “insulted” by the two-page document distributed at the meeting,which explained the proposed structure and papers for the BA (Hons) Economics course in the semester mode.

“No college teacher was involved in the preparation of this document. I cannot understand how a framework that has not been approved by the Executive Council of the university can be imposed on us,” said another teacher.

The teachers of Philosophy had rejected the implementation of the semester system at a GBM held on Thursday. A GBM of the History department had followed suit on Saturday.

“We reiterated the stand taken by the last GBM held in December 2009,stating that the semester system is not feasible and that its desirability is in question,” said Dinesh Singh,former Academic Council member and a History teacher at Satyawati College,who proposed the resolution.

The GBM of teachers of Political Science is due on Tuesday. The English department,after a two-day Departmental Council meeting,has decided to convene a GBM after a majority of professors felt that college teachers should be included in the syllabus-making process.