Indian Journal of Educational Research, Vol-2

2013·10.7 MB·

ISSN 2277-3819
Indian journal of
Educational Research
Volume II March 2013
l
Department of Education
I University of Calcutta
Professor Suranjan Das, Vice- Chancellor, University of Calcutta
Academic Advisor in Chief
Dr. Nimai Chand Maiti, Head, Department of Education, University of Calcutta
Editorial Board
Professor Debjani Sengupta (Editor)
Dr. Madhumala Sengupta, Dr. Nimai Chand Maiti
Dr. Md. Kutubuddin Haider
Advisory Board
Professor Dhrubojyoti Chattopadhyay, Pro-Vice- Chancellor (Academic), University of Calcutta
Professor Mamata Ray, Pro-Vice- Chancellor (BA. & Finance), University of Calcutta
Professor Mannar Mukhopadhyay, formerly Joint Director, NUEPA, New Delhi
Dr. Madhumita Bandhopadhyay, Associate Professor, NUEPA New Delhi
Swami Tattasarananda, Principal, Ramakrishna Mission Sikshan Mandira, Belur, West Bengal
Professor Pranab Kumar Chakrabarti, formerly Dean, University of Calcutta
Dr. Sanat Kumar Ghosh, Professor and formerly Dean of Arts, Rabindra Bharati University
Dr. Subrata Saha, Professor & Head,-Department of Education, Rabindra Bharati University
Dr. Subhalakshmi Nandi, Professor, Department of Education, University of Kalyani
Dr.Rita Smha, Professor and formerly Dean, Department of Education, University of Calcutta
Dr. Aditi Ghose, Professor, Department of Education, University of Calcutta
Dr. Mita Banerjee, Professor, Department of Education, University of Calcutta
Dr. Malay Kumar Sen, Associate Professor, Department of Education, University of Calcutta
Dr. Debasri Banerjce, Associate Professor, Department of Education, University of Calcutta
Dr. Santosi Haider, Assistant Professor, Department of Education, University of Calcutta
Dr.Jayanti Das, Associate Professor, Department of Education, University of Calcutta
Dr.Sudeshna Lahiri, Assistant Professor, Department of Education, University of Calcutta
Dr. Sridipa Sinha, Assistant Professor, Department of Education, University of Calcutta
Published 2013
© University of Calcutta
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any form or any means, without prior permission of the Editor.
Published by Department of Education, University of Calcutta, 1, Reformatory
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Press. 48, Hazra Road, Kolkata-700019
ISSN 2277-3819 - - Price: 100
ISSN 2277-3819
Indian Journal of
Educational Research
Volume]! March 2013
Editorial Board
Professor Debjani Sengupta (Editor)
Dr. Madhumala Sengupta, Dr. Nimai Chand Maiti
Dr. Md. Kutub Uddin Haider
Department of Education
University of Calcutta, Alipore Campus
1, Reformatory Street, Kolkata - 700 027
Indian Journal of
Educational Research
Volume II March 2013
Contents Pages
Editor’s Note
Teachers as Leaders In Higher Education 1-9
Sudhansu Bhusan
Application of Management Information System: 10-15
A Case Study on The University of Calcutta
Arindam Banik
A Study on Distress of Street Children in Kolkata 16-21
Metropolitan City
Bishnupada Nanda and Sunita Mondal
College Students’ Experience with Mathematics In School 22-33
Prabir Ghosh and Aditi Ghose
Education For All in West Bengal, India: 34-55
Towards Context-Relevant Quality Indicators and
Evaluation Policies for Primary Schools
Madhabi Chatterji
Education of Children with Disabilities in India : 56-67
Concerns and Policy Perspectives
Ajit Mondal and Jayanta Mete
Elementary Education of Slum Children: An Attempt 68-81
to Reach the Un-Reached
Indrani Nath, Mel,. Kutubuddin Haider, Nimai Chand Maiti
Epistemological and Pedagogical Implications 82-90
of Constructivism: A Contemporary Contemplation
Benudhar Chinara
From Shanty Town to School: A Silent Movement in 91-105
Post-Reform India
Mita Banexjee and Manimala Roy
Page
Impact of SSA In West Bengal: Equity arid 106-123
Some Quality Aspects N
Sanat K, Ghosh .
Inclusive Education: attitude and problems \ 124-132
as perceived by the secondary school students
Julie Dutta, Debasri Baneijee
Professional Growth Of Mathematics Teacher : 133-142
Looking Back & Looking Ahead
Madan Mohan Chel
Self- Concept: A Determinant of Academic 143-151
Stress and Perceived Parenting
Mom Mitra De and Debjani Sengupta
The Extent and Efficacy of Use of ICT: Belief 152-164
of Teacher Educators and School Teacher
Piku Chowdhury and Abhijit Guha
The Relation among Environmental Action, 165-176
Self Efficacy and Self Determined Motivation
of Trainee Teacher: A Structural Equation
Modeling Approach
Madhumala Sengupta, Sujit Pal and Pintu Kumar Maji
Research Abstracts
Educational Management: Citizenship Behaviour 177-178
and Job Satisfaction
Rudra Prasad Saha
Educational Psychology : Creativity 179-181
Rajib Mukhopadhyay
Educational Psychology : Stress Management 182-183
Sairindhree Sen
Educational Psychology; Student Personality and 184-185
Mode of Learning
Priyanka Das
Elementary Education : Inclusive Education 186-187
Indrani Nath
Page
Elementary Education: Sarva Shiksha Abhtyan 188-189
Nibus Chandra Sil
Environmental Education: Pro environmental 190-191
Behaviour of Visually Impaired Students
Pintu Kumar Maji
Developmental Psychology : Parental Pressure 192-193
and School Children
Veena Goenka (Poddar)
Developmental Psychology : Special Needs and 194-195
Language Development
Minati Saha j
Higher Education: Gender Stereotyping 196-197
'
Asis Kumar Dandapat
Pedagogy of English: Relative Effectiveness of 198-199
Teaching Strategies
Madhumita Chattopadhyay
Philosophy of Education: Integral Education 200
Hema Datta
Science Education: Comparison of Science Curricula 201
Kausik Chatteijee
Teacher Education: Pro Environmental Behaviour 202-203
of Teacher Trainees
Sujit Pal
Teacher Education: Transformation 204-205
of Secondary Education
Srabanti Mukhopadhyay
Women’s Education: Contribution of Sister N'wedita 206
Ramona Biswas
Book Review 207-209
Indian Journal of Educational Research
Editors’ Note
Dear Friends,
Hearty welcome to the second annual issue of Journal of Education Research. It is a research
journal of the Department of Education published annually by the University of Calcutta.
The first issue was published in 2013. Prop the very beginning it was successful in evoking
intense interest and praise among the fraternity. I hope, the second issue will be able to carry
the mantle as well. Two feathers have been added in our cap from this issue : i) publication of
an electronic version of the journal for better access among the researchers and ii) incorporation
of a new section on book review.
Like the first one, this issue also hosts articles on very pertinent issues seen from different
perspectives. Education for all is a universal agenda and it is our constitutional mandate. But
till today we are still far behind to reach the goal. For a nation, riddled with the problems of
over population, corruption, discrimination of any kind in terms of gender, religion and caste,
a sharp and unhealthy divide between the privileged vs. the poor, rural vs. urban, it is really
difficult to reach the unreach. This is a concern for all and it has been aptly reflected in the
content of the journal. Fifteen articles have been selected for publication in this issue. Out of
these fifteen, seven articles tried to examine the concept, problems and extent of education of
marginalized population from different perspectives. Other issues, which are equally pertinent
in education, life and living of people, like academic stress, professionalism, environmental
education, students’ experience with mathematics and management education are explored by
the researchers as well with due attention. Besides the empirical research articles, we have
four thought provoking essays. We are thankful to all our contributors who shared their thought
and experience with us.
From the very beginning, it was our motto to encourage the young researchers. That is why we
made an exclusive section with the research abstracts of students who received their Ph.D.
degree in the last convocation. We congratulate them and hope they will carry the legacy of
quality research in their journey to life.
Our whole hearted thanks to Professor Suranjan Das, Vice-Chancellor, University of Calcutta.
We are indebted to Professor Dhrubajyoti Chattopadhyay and Professor Mamata Roy, our Pro
Vice-Chancellors and Professor Basab Chaudhuri, our Registrar, for their active guidance and
inspiration in any academic endeavour we have undertaken. We are fortunate to have a highly
esteemed peer review committee who, in spite of their busy schedule, provided thorough and
critical inputs for each and every paper.
We hope in near future, it will act as a forum for national and international thinkers and
researchers in the field of education. Please join with us in this endeavour and be with us.
Thank you all.
Dr. Debjani Sengupta
Professor, Department of Education, University of Calcutta
Teachers as Leaders in Higher Education
Sudhanshu Bhusan
*1
It is of interest to examine the identity and role of teacher in Indian higher education.
Radhakrishnan Commission on higher education (1948-49) noted that “he (teacher) has
to stimulate the spirit of enquiry and of criticism” (p.68). Against the performance oriented
view the report notes “His success will be measured not in terms of percentage of passes
alone, nor even by the quantity of original contributions to knowledge ... but equally
through the quality of life and character of men and women whom he has taught”(p.69).
Two features emerge in the identity of teacher from above. Teacher should be an
intellectual with critical mind and that he should not be guided by some evaluative
criteria rather be judged by the character that he builds. The report further warns against
the danger of teacher politicians, low salaries of teachers and demoralisation. It argues
in favour of threefold classification or designation of teachers that exists even today,
with an additional grade of instructor who could be nurtured into teaching profession. It
warns against automatic promotion and salary increase and supports the title of Professor
to the person of experience, scholarship and research as well as distinction in teaching.
Above idealised view gives a unique identity and role to the teaching profession -
promotion of nation building and citizenship of democratic values of the freedom of
individual. Liberal education meaning thereby the cultivation of mind is as the heart of
it.
Antonio Gramsci argued that there were two broad categories of intellectuals, namely ;
i) traditional intellectuals such as members of the clergy, scholars and teachers who
served the status quo by allowing education to reproduce the existing social structures;
and ii) organic intellectuals whom every class produces “naturally” and who serves its
interests. The role of community of teacher as organic intellectuals to the society is to
generate and disseminate knowledge for state and civil society. The process of the
production and distribution of knowledge is formalised through schools, colleges and
research institutions, though there are many non-formal ways as well. According to
Antonio Gramsci teacher as organic intellectual plays a critical role in simply not
reproducing knowledge that supports hegemony but to contest hegemonic power and
culture. However, within colleges the relationship between institutional function and
critical thought, an essential ingredient or organic intellectual, is much less evident. The
predominance of institutional function and relative neglect of critical mind in the teaching
• Key Note Address delivered in the Department of Education, Calcutta University on September 5,
2012.
1 Sudhanshu Bhusan, Professor and Head of the Department, Higher and Professional Education,
National University of Education Planning and Administration, New Delhi 110016,
e-mail : hhushan.sudhanshufatanail.com.
community simply helps reproduce knowledge for the benefit of existing class that
dominates. It is necessary to understand how a large college system in India encouraged
intellectuals but not the organic intellectuals interested in critical inquiry. If indeed it is
possible to cultivate organic intellectuals in the undergraduate colleges, colleges shall
become the centre of critical discourse and community of teachers a potent source of
change in favour of poor and downtrodden as colleges are institutions that exist in close
proximity to the society. Teacher as leaders in higher education are supposed to play that
role of organic intellectuals.
The formal structure of college is closed by a permeable wall. Within a formal educational
structure the teaching community' directly engages with the student It is, therefore,
important that the terms of engagement has to be mutually determined in such a manner
that both remains satisfied in terms of expected functions and mutual benefits. The ideal
community of teachers should govern and be governed by themselves. In this sense
governance is internal to the structure of governance. If, however, governance, is
controlled by an alien structure not organically linked to the academic community there
may arise tensions and conflicts. There may be situations in which teachers' may not be
the masters of the educational structure within which they operate. They may be
subjugated and as subordinate follow the masters through various commands. This
process, however, may weaken the role of teacher as organic entity in the educational
structure. The more differentiated and fragmented they become they disconnect
themselves from the society and are guided more by self-interests. The central argument
of the paper is to understand the process of disintegration, differentiation, fragmentation
and fracture within an entity called - community of teachers. How teachers have weakened
themselves? How in this process were they subjugated? They have lost their identity as
liberal educator, as leader in higher education. As a result great injury has been inflicted.
There has been the loss of teacher as organic intellectual.
It is of vital importance to understand that permeable wall of educational structure is
connected'to the organs of state and civil society. It is necessary that this remains connected
through vital nerves that conveys what is happening in the society and knowledge is
then processed within educational system to be communicated outside and within it
Students are one vital link in this process. But the relationship of educational structure
to the state is much more direct in the sense that education structure derives its legitimacy
and support from state. Terms of support may be arbitrary or mutually determined. It
depends on conflict or confidence that each party enjoys with other. It also reflects what
is happening within society? What kind of democratic structure we have evolved and
what power structure dominates? Educational structure and community of teachers cannot
isolate themselves from what is happening outside it? The crucial point is whether
community of teachers in the role as organic intellectuals to the society has lived up to
the calls from state and the society. So long as the intellectual leadership is weak state
will subject it to follow norms and rules and teaching community will have to follow
bureaucratic process which will further weaken the organic role of teaching community
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for want of autonomy and creative engagement. The substantive issue is whether teaching
community is empowered enough to creatively engage with society and state and seek
autonomy.
The paper emphasises the point that community of teachers at present are not masters of
their own creation and they have become subjected to the internal and external pressures
causing fracture in the organic functioning. As a result teaching community has lost the
power, prestige and leadership role. It is quite possible that teachers may not have realised
that limited space made available to them is part of a design that has weakened them in
their own territory. The objective of the paper is to make them realise that “united they
stand and divided they fall”. It is necessary that systemic forces in this disintegration are
known and genesis of the problem understood well. Some of the systemic forces in this
disintegration and loss are attempted in this paper. The substantive issue is debate on
quality in higher education has eva'ded the issue on empowerment of teacher as organic
intellectual and unless this happens no amount of accountability norms alone, guided by
neo managerial approach, can succeed in raising the quality of higher education as
understood in Radhakrishnan report way back at the dawn of independence.
What space or autonomy is available to a teacher?
In Indian higher education the colonial innovation of affiliating university system
distinguished a university and college. University was an examining body and it was
conferred the status of degree awarding power. College affiliated to a particular university
was the centre of teaching and learning .University overtime assumed the authority to
control quality by various mechanisms such as
(a) Affiliation to a college by the university was subject to inspection respecting the
suitability of starting a college with proper ambience, facility and infrastructure.
(b) Curriculum, syllabus, setting of question paper and evaluation of answer script was
determined centrally by the university.
(c) Annual examination, numerical mark system was introduced by the university, as
repeated examination was difficult to be centrally conducted and grade system was found
difficult to be standardised.
(d) In many government colleges managing committee of the college was constituted by
die university or state government to decide important matters of quality control and
governance with nominal representation from teaching staff.
(e) Recruitment policy of teaching staff was determined by the university or state
government and recruitment was centralised at the level of state government or the
university, rarely at the level of college with experts decided by the university authorities.
(f) Student admission policy and framework for implementation is determined by the
university.
(g) University also retains the authority to determine fees for all colleges - government
and government aided.
3