Student feedback to be used to improve teaching outcomes: Kansal

Jammu : Improving teaching learning outcomes, enhancing quality and facilitating employability must be guiding principles of the higher education system. This was stated by Principal Secretary, Higher Education, Rohit Kansal Monday. He was launching the Quality Enhancement and Learning Management System (LMS) for 11 leading colleges of Jammu division at Government College for Women, Parade here.
Terming technology as a potent enabler in making the teaching-learning outcomes measurable and effective, he said that it was now time to harness the power of technology in measuring and improving outcomes. The Quality Enhancement and Learning Management System (LMS) would provide a 360 degree Performance Insight through a detailed analysis of a number of parameters. Most important, it had provisions for regular feedback from learners to be received and analyzed. Every student too would have a dedicated account and would be able to receive personalized feedback and evaluation. Since the entire process was automated, both students and faculty would receive automatic emails on various aspects of their performance. The management of the college too would benefit from reduced paperwork and automation of processes. In particular applications for NAAC, NIRF, NBA could now be easily prepared and submitted.
He applauded the management of the MIET College, Jammu and its Director Dr Ankur Gupta for extending the use of their Performance Insight and LMS software to these colleges under their CSR initiative. He said that it is their immense contribution towards the development of higher education in J&K. He also lauded the efforts of all the allied colleges for rising up to the occasion and adopting it within a very short span of time. He stated that soon all the 142 colleges of J&K will be brought on the system and students given log in facility for it.
The Performance Insight and Learning Management System involves on boarding of teaching, learning, evaluation, inspection and administration among a host of other activities of education institutes on an online platform. The system helps bring transparency in the system and helps better collaboration through technology.
Kansal said that the end use of the technology lies with the user. He stated that the use of technology is as good as the user himself. He observed that the teachers should take the feedback from their students with open mind as the feedback is a potent mechanism to shine a light on many aspects of ourselves that we may be unaware of and help us improve both as professionals and individuals.
On implementation of the National Education Policy from the upcoming academic session, the Principal Secretary said that under the new policy all colleges would be transformed into centres of research and innovation. All our colleges would obtain NAAC accreditation. Colleges would also be linked with the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) for providing skill courses to its students, he informed. He also informed them that all colleges of J&K would be evaluated and ranked, the best performers amongst them would be rewarded.
While expressing satisfaction with speed of implementation of LMS by the colleges, the Principal Secretary assured them of financial support and urged them to strive for improving quality of education.
The Director Colleges congratulated the colleges and called this move of adopting the LMS by them as a milestone in improving the teaching process. She said that it would reduce paper work to a larger extent and make monitoring of the college processes easy for the administration.
The Principal Secretary later dedicated the new ‘Kamala Sohonie Block’ to the students of the college. The block includes science labs, classrooms, auditorium and several other facilities for the post graduate and under graduate students. The block has been named after the first Indian woman doctorate Kamala Sohonie.
Those present at the event included Special Secretary, Rakesh Kumar Badyal, Director Colleges, Dr Yasmeen Ashai, Principal Parade College Dr. Sarawat, Senior principals and other senior officers of the Higher Education Department.