IGNOU Introduces Progress Report Book
IGNOU Introduces Progress Report Book
With the change of guard, Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) is all set to make sweeping reforms in its approach towards delivering education through distance mode.
Apart from making its courses localised and making the universitys structure more decentralised, V N Rajasekharan Pillais, the new vice chancellor of IGNOU, primary aim is to eliminate the difference between the degrees offered by the conventional system and distance education. Agreeing on the disadvantage the graduates of distance education face at the job market, he said that with his personal intervention at all level, he should ensure that the degrees of IGNOU are not only at par, but also of a much higher quality than the conventional system degrees.
In his first proactive approach he, during an induction programme, announced the intro¬duction of the progress report book for students of the university. He said:The process of learning shall be highly interactive and this comprehensive record of the teaching/learning/evaluation activities of a student shall be maintained by the student duly authenticated by study centre coordinators and regional centres. This will create an atmosphere of accountability at all levels of learning.
Deviating from his predecessors, Pillai is of the view that although Distance Education Council (DEC) is an important body for quality assurance of open and distance learning, the council need not have an autonomous status. He said: Ensuring voluntary quality assurance on the part of the open universities and institutions offering distance education should be the primary aim. All good institutions will definitely come forward.
The VC also emphasised on continuous and extensive collaboration among open school system, and conventional and open universities. He said that the primary aim of open universities should be to emphasise on capacity building.
