What could be the reason for the low pass percentage of State
Eligibility Test? Academicians, and candidates who took the test, share
their views.
In a bid to improve the quality of teachers in colleges
and universities, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has made it
mandatory that they clear the National Eligibility Test (NET) / State
Eligibility Test (SET), or complete a Ph.D. A pass in NET/SET will also
make them eligible to draw UGC payscales in colleges and universities.
But
the recently published results of the SET in Tamil Nadu looks like the
quest to improve the quality will deal a heavy blow to the quantity.
With only 1,396 out of 41,164 candidates passing the August 2011 SET
examination, there is a serious worry among senior academics about the
implication of this on the demand and supply of teachers in colleges and
universities.
While there is universal
disappointment about the poor results, it has also raised various
concerns like improving the number of passes, assessing study material
available for the examination, modifying preparation pattern of
candidates, and increasing the frequency of conduct of SET.
With
a pass percentage of 3.39, which in fact is an improvement over the
last examinations, the need for qualified teachers still remains to be
fulfilled.
From the 1,396 who passed, as many as 673
candidates cleared the Tamil paper, 213 cleared the English paper and
194 the management paper. Other passes were from bio-technology,
economics, physical education, journalism and mass communication.
No
candidate from the chemical sciences, geography, Hindi, library and
information sciences, mathematical sciences, and physical sciences,
cleared the test. For many who have not cleared the SET even after two
or three attempts, the only other alternative is to apply for a
four-year doctorate.
Feedback from candidates who
have passed and failed the test, and academics who have set the test
question paper and also evaluated the answer sheets, go to prove that
the reason for so many failures is not because the question paper is
tough, but because of poor preparation by the candidates.
R.
Sivakumar, assistant professor of Public Administration, Thiruvalluvar
Government Arts College, Rasipuram, who cleared the test, says, with
good preparation anyone can clear the SET.
“Most of
the SET syllabus is covered in the PG course. Also, for faculty who are
handling the subject on an everyday basis, it is much easier,” he adds. A
faculty member who has failed the test says she is not able to assess
her performance because the test results do not reveal the marks. SET
marks could be published to enable the candidate know where they had to
improve in the next attempt.
A senior professor who
has been involved in setting SET question papers and also in valuation,
says many teachers/candidates fail because the UGC mode of assessment is
not like that of a university.
Paper-I for 100 marks
examines the candidates on logical reasoning, while Paper-II for 100
marks consists of 50 multiple-choice questions on the subject, and
Paper-III for 200 marks is of descriptive pattern based on the subject
again. “One cannot say the questions are difficult. They are consciously
set keeping a certain standard in mind. If a candidate fails in the
first paper, his second paper is not even taken up for correction,” the
professor says.
Carrying the same point forward, P. Kanagaraj, associate
professor of political science, Government Arts College, Coimbatore,
who also coaches candidates for the UPSC Civil Services examinations,
says in many cases, highly meritorious students stop with UG degree once
they get a lucrative job.
“Mostly, those who do not
score very high marks in UG go for PG with teaching in mind. For such
candidates to clear the SET, the quality of higher education should be
improved, even from the UG level. Focus should be on the subject
knowledge,” he says.
And, according to him, a
doctorate being considered an alternative to the SET is illogical. “A
doctorate is not an ideal qualification for teaching. It focuses only on
a minuscule portion of the subject matter. Though SET too is not a
right yardstick, it at least deals with the subject matter on a major
scale,” he adds.
Echoing the sentiments of many,
Vice-Chancellor of University of Madras G. Thiruvasagam says the
eligibility test fails to ensure that there is supply when there is
demand and also raise the bar in terms of quality.
He believes that a period of training after the SET can
only ensure that a college will get a qualified teacher. Candidates have
to be trained in psychology, teaching methodology, pedagogy, use of
technology and effective delivery, to make them efficient.
There
is also a felt need that the test be conducted at frequent intervals to
maintain that balance between quality and quantity of qualified
teachers.
