Ramakrishna Mission Residential College (Autonomous), Narendrapur, has asked its newly-admitted students “to go through the fundamentals of their chosen honours subject from the syllabus they had studied in their HS course" before undergraduate classes start on October 1.
The college is planning to conduct remedial classes through a bridge course to plug any learning gaps.
A notice signed by Swami Shastrajnananda, the principal of the college, said: “The teachers will test their understanding of the concepts during the first few classes of the course.”
Since in-person classes could not be held because of the pandemic, it is imperative that the students take a hard look at the fundamentals before pursuing the honours programme, said a college official.
A teacher said students would not be able to grasp the subject at the undergraduate level if he or she was lacking in the fundamentals at the higher secondary level. Since classes could not be held, there are chances that some lacunae have remained.
“We want to address those gaps by conducting remedial classes through a bridge course. We want the students to go through the fundamentals extensively so that we can get a hang of their level of understanding and prepare the content of the bridge course. Or else, some students could find it difficult to continue,” he said.
Classes for first-year undergraduate students will start next Friday.
In Bengal, schools have been shut since March 2020 as a precaution against Covid. Schools had resumes in-person classes for students of Classes IX to XII from February 12. But classes were discontinued on April 21 following a renewed surge in cases.
A teacher said students who had been admitted last year attended classes at the HS level for two years before the pandemic set in in March 2020. They had written most of the Class XII board exam papers.
“But those who have taken admission this year could not attend the classes after they were promoted to Class XII. They passed the board exams without writing any papers. There is a need to strengthen their base so they don’t find it difficult to negotiate the honours programme,” he said.
Students who applied to study honours this year were screened through an online admission test and viva and not on the basis of marks alone.
“But this may not always be adequate to comprehend a student’s grasp of the fundamentals. So, we have to test them and arrange the bridge course. If a student performs poorly at the undergraduate level, this will impact the reputation of the institute,” the teacher said.
Students of the college have been offering free online tutorials since late May to underprivileged students of Classes IX to XII, who have not been attending school because of the pandemic.
September 24 midnight deadline for GATE form online submission
IIT Kharagpur File picture
IIT Kharagpur, which will conduct the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) 2022 in February, has announced that the candidates have to fill in the online application form by September 24 midnight.
Unlike other years, the computer-based exam will not be conducted at any international centre because of the Covid pandemic.
The exam is conducted for admission to the master’s programmes at the IITs and select universities.
One of the examination centres is in Leh, in Ladakh, said an official.
The aptitude test will be conducted in 29 subjects and will be held on February 5, 6, 12 and 13, 2022.
Aspirants can apply online through the website https://gate.iitkgp.ac.