Musings of a college waiting for the NAAC to visit

I am a public college in a tier-2 city of northern India. I would rather not reveal my identity and stay anonymous since I am going to be visited soon by a team of the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC). Established in 1994, the NAAC evaluates and accredits different Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). The self-professed objective of NAAC is to “make quality the defining element of higher education in India.” The preparatory work for NAAC’s accreditation process is undertaken in a straight-jacketed fashion by most HEIs, with each step of the way being carefully considered and calibrated.

There is little room for spontaneity or surprise impromptu checks by the Body. The spirit of creativity and inquiry, which is so important to the advancement of education, is given short shrift, and strict adherence to procedures is emphasised.

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In my case, the visit is due to take place in early 2023, and I am at the centre of hectic preparations as such. I am being spruced up with new noticeboards, signboards, fresh coats of paint, and green, leafy plants. A mine of information about curricular and co-curricular activities conducted over the past five years is being unearthed and, at times, manufactured. This raking up and, I dare say, making up of the past record is crucial for my senior management, for if everything is done properly, it might well translate into a high grade from the NAAC. What tangible benefits this process of grading will eventually spell for me as an institution of higher learning or for my students is, as yet, unclear to me. I am only listing out some elements of the frantic activity underway to prepare me for the impending visit.

Mock drills and trials are being routinely conducted to prepare my students and staff to face the NAAC team. Elaborate databases are being collated. There is particular emphasis on cataloguing skill enhancement courses, offering possibilities for employment generation. The extent to which these courses are actually beneficial for students remains a marginal concern, however.

Detailed lists are being compiled not just of existing curriculum and programmes but also of available information and communications technology equipment. Care is being exercised to take note of their make, model, design, and exact number, while the actual functionality of equipment and whether it can be accessed by students and teachers on a day-to-day basis seem like issues of little interest.

Digital teaching and learning, the organisation of smart classes, and the use of online resources emerge as catchphrases here, while the problem of limited internet connectivity, that colleges like me usually face remains for the most part unresolved. My case is not starkly different from many other HEIs within the country, forced to function with no or, at best, gravely inadequate internet access.

As preparations for NAAC’s visit and accreditation proceed apace, I see schemes of student mentoring, counselling and support being hastily framed and executed on paper. Similarly, the deplorable record of resources and facilities that can allow for or improve accessibility on campus for people with various types of disabilities is only now gaining attention.

Photographs of a few isolated ramps and elevators within the premises are being snapped and collected in haste to serve as evidence of a concerted institutionalised effort in this direction. For the sake of showcasing my academic excellence before NAAC, students who have passed out from here over the past decade are being hunted and tracked down. Those who have qualified for a national-level examination, got placed in a reputed company or organisation, and secured high-paying jobs are being cajoled and persuaded to share their photographs, certificates, and other details.Names and personal records of the so-called “student achievers” are being bandied about with little concern for safeguarding their identity or privacy. Alumni groups and associations, long defunct, have been brought to life. And new ones have been cobbled together at the instance of the faculty and management.

Amidst this hectic activity, I wonder to what extent I am really accomplishing my core goal of imparting quality higher education, for which I am soon to be tested by the NAAC. These musings lead me to ponder other key questions: Can the present system of grading and accreditation plug the glaring gaps in higher education in India, or does this system itself require critical scrutiny and overhauling?

(The writer is a historian.)