International Conference on “Building World Class Educational Institutions: Issues and Challenges”
DATE Aug 30, 2019
VENUE H.L Gupta Hall
The two day UGC sponsored International Conference on “Building World Class Educational Institutions: Issues and Challenges” concluded at MIER College of Education.
About 50 papers were presented by the participants during the sessions on various themes namely, Issues and Challenges for Creating World Class Institutions, Learning Outcomes as Indicator of Quality in Higher Education, Present Status of Higher Education in India, Higher Education System in India: Issues, Challenges & Suggestions, Challenges of Creating World Class Institutions in India, etc.
The second day of conference started with keynote address in session I, given by Prof. Amit Kauts, Dean and Head, Deptt. of Education, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar. Speaking on the theme he elaborated on ‘Issues and challenges for creating world class institution’. He said that the obsession with internationalization had resulted in priority being given to overseas scholars and graduates and has diminished graduates of many top domestic universities to second or third-class status. He added that in order to achieve world-class status, most universities have started paying close attention to the international university rankings.
The second keynote address was delivered by Prof. Rajni Kant, Director, Distance Education, University of Jammu on the theme ‘What goes in the making of a world class institution? He said that large endowments let universities set up attractive campuses, buy sophisticated equipment and provide generous scholarships to deserving students. Above all, they let them offer highly competitive salaries. High salaries are very important to get the best faculty in the world which is the pre-requisite for creating world class institutions. He highlighted the role of research and globally relevant curriculum in building high quality institutions.
Prof. Vijay Kumar, Director, International Academic programme, University of Missouri-Kansas, USA, delivered a keynote on the ‘Role of Technology and Research in building World Class Institutions’. He addressed the gathering through video conferencing. He explained that Colleges and universities have generally been quick to adopt new technologies, often even before their educational value has been proven. Throughout its history, higher education has experimented with technological advances as diverse as the blackboard and the personal computer. Some technologies have become permanent parts of the higher education enterprise. Others have been replaced as more sophisticated or more cost-effective technologies have emerged to take their place.The panelists deliberated on the themes and gave concrete suggestions for building such institutions. Prof. Adit Gupta, Director and Principal, MIER College of Education moderated the Panel Discussion. He also presented the formal vote of thanks. He thanked various dignitaries, keynote speakers & resource persons for enlightening the audience. He also extended a cordial thanks to the distinguished guests, Principals of renowned schools of Jammu, the delegates and the participants who have shown great enthusiasm and interest by participating in large numbers.