Go online, pick courses & earn credits in Pune varsity’s new learning module

PUNE: Savitribai Phule Pune University will introduce a choice-based credit system in the undergraduate courses from this academic year.

The varsity is hoping to network with all state universities for inter-university student exchange programmes for short-term credit courses.
A maximum number of students, who clear standard XII, apply for conventional degree courses, but not many who graduate are employable.The new system will equip students with credits from a variety of courses available on national platforms like Swayam. These can be converted to university credits.
A choice-based credit system gives better mobility to students. Earlier, students had to follow a set pattern of subjects that were decided by the university. But with this system, the student can take about 30% of credits from other sources, say university officials.
“The marking system will be such that 50% of the marks will come from continuous comprehensive evaluation and the remaining 50% will be from term or semester ending examination. If a student of physics who wants to take a credit in music, he or she will be able to do so from now on. This will ensure that students get more choices within their discipline as well as in interdisciplinary areas. May be there is a course in nuclear physics or quantum physics, that is not available in the regular curricula but available online. The student can take it and enhance his or her employability,” Prafulla Pawar, registrar at SPPU, said.
The university is currently working on making inter-state university exchange of students and credits too. For example, if Solapur University has a course in sugar industry, or if Kolhapur University has a course in foundry, efforts are being made so that a student from Pune University will be able to do the short-term course and earn its credits.
Similarly, other students can come to Pune and do a short course if they think it will make them employable. The idea which is still in the planning stage, if successfully implemented at state university level, will be scaled up to national and international level, said authorities.
It becomes easier for autonomous colleges to implement new ways of learning and short-term credit courses are embraced better here.
“This will also make them more employable and will give them an edge over other students who have done the same core degree,” said Rajendra Zunjarrao, prinicipal, Modern College of Arts Science and Commerce, Shivajinagar.
Students must choose their MOOCs carefully, authorities said. According to them, the reputation of the teacher, the nature of the course, whether it is theoretical, or practice based, aim in taking the course and relevance of the course in today’s market should be thoroughly checked before taking up an online course.
Basics of machine learning can be taught online, but philosophy is better taught in a classroom with students discussing and debating the topics.
College of Engineering Pune (CoEP) was one of the first colleges in the city to accept MOOCs in their curricula.
Sandeep Meshram, CoEP’s former training and placement officer and now a corporate relations officer said sustaining the interest levels is important.
“Courses must be chosen on the basis of interest and the usefulness. Moreover, for the first year, the dean of the subject must still oversee the learning of the students even in MOOCs so that they don’t drop out,” Meshram said.