The reluctance of the Tribhuvan University ( TU ) to update its syllabi and the ‘deteriorating’ quality of education have rendered around a dozen central departments under the Faculty of Humanities and Social Science without students, bringing into question the very existence of these departments.

Admission records in the various departments in the oldest university of the country show an unprecedented drop in the enrollment rate, leaving the teacher-student ratio at less than 1:2 in most departments. The Central Department of History used to have hundreds of students a decade ago, while the number now is almost equal to the number of the teaching faculty, which is 15, including five professors. The number of students, which was 16 in 2011, dropped to 11 last year.

However, officials say that though the number of students cross the 50 mark this year, most of them are ‘fake’ students admitted by unions to influence the Free Student Union election that was scheduled to be held on June 6. The polls, have, now been postponed.

Similar is the case in the Central Department of Geography that has 14 teaching staff. Forty-five students appeared for the examination from the department last year, while the number dropped to 30 this year, leaving the teacher-student ratio at 1:2.

Dozens of other departments are facing a similar situation with no formal classes being held in the lack of students.

“Formal classes have become rare in our department for want of students,” said Prof Bijay Ratna Manandhar, the head at the Department of History.The enrollment rate is poorer in the Departments of Urdu, Newari, Home Science, Culture, Hindi, Psychology and Sanskrit, where the number of students is almost equal to the teaching faculties.

Experts say the TU must immediately update the syllabus as per the changing times to keep these departments running. “Students seek courses that have a scope in the market,” said Bishnu Karki, an education expert, adding,

“The TU should focus more on imparting knowledge rather than just educating students.”

The syllabi of most of the departments have not been updated for the last two decades. Karki says students now do not see prospects of their development in traditional courses and teaching methods.

He said these departments will not get a fresh lease of life until and unless the academic environment is made more rigorous and interactive with more research works and practical classes.

source: the kathmandu post,12 August 2013