Semester System: Prospects and Avenues

Abstract

Since the last decade higher education .\)!Stem of India underwent dm stic re.form measures, with the obj ective lO cope with the gross enrollment ratio. or GER, to bring ii at par with the global al'erage. For it a holistic educational reform approach in thefor,n of semester sys tern has been introduced under the I J'" plan, and is being conli1111edjii'rthe,: Th e objecti ve behind introducing semester system has been to explore 11 comprehensive Fision, a consolidated approach to bring in the multidimensio11 al a11 d holistic tran4<;rrnation r~{1· 111dents to ohtain better goals. Semester svstem ever since its inception in all Undergraduate and post-graduate classes has drawn a great controversy. On one hand ii has lessen the academic burden of the students, made them more versatile and attenti ve through conti1111011s comprehensive evaluation and its twelve modes that pmv ide greater exp osure tu studen ts, p rovided practical lmowledge through project wurk, on the other Lack of in dep th studies, securing higher perce11tage with kn owledge superficial. increasing absenteeism. declining academic intere ·t and decreasing admissions have been among the alarming concerns. Challenges ure many. the present paper traces out ll1 e new avenues and scopefor widening the canvass of higher ed11 catio11 through semester system.