The time has come to take stock of Kerala’s technical education sector in the backdrop of the phenomenal growth in science and technology. The state seems to have lagged in shaping up its engineering education sector to reflect the rapid changes in technology and the marvellous inventions stemming from them.
Kerala takes pride in leading the country in education and human resources but the state cuts a sorry figure when it comes to higher education. Kerala has 15 universities apart from engineering colleges and other educational institutions in every nook and cranny of the state.
The state is home to institutions such as the College of Engineering Trivandrum, one of the pioneering engineering colleges in the country, yet there is none famed outside its borders.
Outdated curricula, teaching methods, quality of teachers and a lack of physical infrastructure have all contributed to the low standards that plague the technical education sector in Kerala. The consistently low pass percentage and a dip in standards had even forced the court to form a committee to look into the matter.
Education policies, particularly in the technical education sector, call for a revamp. We are moving on with an outdated scheme and syllabus. Updates to the syllabus are often reduced to customary rituals. The academic councils of the universities deliberate anything but academics. The education sector is yet to tap into latest technologies or ensure the participation of the industrial sector.
Kerala faced major setbacks as the pressure groups in the education sector turned a blind eye to the winds of changes blowing around us.
The state does not lack much when it comes to infrastructure in the engineering education sector but even the existing facilities are not fully utilised for either lack of knowledge or initiative.
We know how Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune and Noida overtook Kerala, where the first information technology park in India was set up. Only a handful of companies come to Kerala for campus recruitment.
Our teaching community has to shed its habit of confining education to the mechanical coverage of syllabus. They should take the students along. Professional teachers are required to be the guides for students. What is important is to know what to learn and how to learn it.
On a related note, a comprehensive change in the teaching and examination methods in the high school and higher secondary education sectors is a prerequisite for moulding a generation of quality students.
The changes brought about by the A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Technological University have raised hopes in the technical education sector. Applications-based studies and a technology-updated syllabus will make sure that a generation is made job-ready. The university had to drop its plan for online examinations due to controversies but the announcement of results within a month of examinations is a positive sign.
The technical education sector needs comprehensive changes. Society needs to be prepared to accommodate those changes. We can’t afford to view self-financing colleges as yet another mode of business. Most of the engineering colleges in Kerala will have to shut down in another ten years unless they take notice and improve their standards.
(The writer is the director of the All India Council for Technical Education)