Workshop on Quality Assurance & SSR Benchmarks at St Aloysius College, Mangaluru in Sanidhya Hall of the college, organized by St Aloysius College (Autonomous), Mangaluru and St Ann’s College of Education (Autonomous), Mangaluru in association with Xavier Board of Higher Education in India; and All India Association for Christian Higher Education
Mangaluru: Sr (Dr) Dorothy D’souza AC, the Principal of St Ann’s College of Education (Autonomous) Mangaluru in her introductory speech of the ‘Workshop on Quality Assurance and Benchmarks said, “\The Indian higher education system is in a constant state of change and flux due to the increasing needs of expanding access to higher education, the impact of technology on the delivery of education, increasing private participation and the impact of globalization. Higher education is generally understood to cover teaching, research and extension. If we critically analyse the different concepts of higher education, we can list the various roles higher education plays in society. Higher education is the source or feeder system in all walks of life and therefore supplies the much-needed human resources in management, planning, design, teaching and research”.
” At this juncture, one of the prime objectives of India is to develop an education system which can deliver quality in terms of skilled and employment-ready workforce, while focusing on world-class research and innovation. Education is one of the most complex services. Hence assessing quality in higher education institutes is highly challenging as there are multiple ways to define quality in the sector. What is quality? A simple definition would be ‘fitness for purpose at minimum cost to society’ added Sr Dorothy.
She further added, “The Commonwealth of Learning (COL) a partner with the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) in bringing out the ‘Quality Assurance in Higher Education: An Introduction’, a volume states that aims to address the needs of the generalist and the specialist; the policy maker as well as the practitioner. It also signals the expansion of NAAC’s mandate from an organization which assesses and accredits institutions to one that would promote a culture of quality. Towards this end, this workshop is a guide and a road map to evolve towards a culture of quality. This implies that the major challenge for quality assurance in the years ahead is capacity building at all levels. Let this workshop help us to enhance the quality of our institutions”.
The Workshop on ‘Quality Assurance & SSR Benchmarks’ at St Aloysius College, Mangaluru in Sanidhya Hall of the college, was organized by St Aloysius College (Autonomous), Mangaluru and St Ann’s College of Education (Autonomous), Mangaluru in association with Xavier Board of Higher Education in India; and All India Association for Christian Higher Education on 5 May 2023 from 10 am-4 pm. The workshop began with a prayer invoking God’s blessings by St Ann’s College of Education students, namely Sr Nishmitha AC; Sr Prathima AC and Ms Bindu.
The welcome address was delivered by Dr Rose Kiran Pinto- the coordinator for Xavier Board Network collaborators and coordinator of the Workshop, where she also introduced the two resource persons of the Workshop, Prof Gabriel Simon Thattil-the Professor and Head, Department of Commerce, School of Business Management and Legal Studies, Director, IQAC University of Kerala; and Rev Dr Gigi Thomas- the Dean of studies, Head of the department, PG and research, Department of mathematics, Mar Ivanios College, Thiruvananthapuram. Rev Dr Joji Reddy SJ, President, Xavier Board of Higher Education In India, who had played a significant role in organizing the workshop and also emphasizing a platform highly proliferating quality assurance, addressed the participants of the Workshop online.
The other dignitaries on the dais for the inaugural of the Workshop were Rev Dr Praveen Martis SJ-the Principal of St Aloysius College, Mangaluru, Dr Alwyn D’sa-The Registrar and Controller of Examinations, St Aloysius College; Sr (Dr) Dorothy D’souza AC-the Principal, St Ann’s College of Education, Mangaluru; and Sonal Steevan Lobo-the IQAC Coordinator, St Aloysius College, Mangaluru. The vote of thanks for the workshop was proposed by Dr Alwyn D’sa-the Registrar of SAC, and the programme was meticulously and eloquently compered by Mrs Wilma D’souza- Assistant Professor, St Ann’s College of Education.
During the workshop session, Prof Gabriel Simon Thattil spoke on the subject ” Systems Approach to NAAC Accreditation’ during the morning session, where he said, ” The Vision of NAAC is to make quality the defining element of higher education in India through a combination of self and external quality Evaluation, Promotion, and Sustenance Initiatives. The Revised Assessment and Accredua=itataion (A & A) framework were launched in July 2017, and it represents a shift, making it ICT-enabled, Objective, Transparent, Scalable and Robust. The purpose of Assessment and Accreditation is to promote quality attainment for Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), to create support systems that promote quality; Continuous Improvement; Sustain Best Practices; Attai Benchmarked Standards, and to meet requirements for funding and external support”
He said ” Learning is made more joyful and Meaningful when students are given information Outcomes from the learning.The Output and Input relationships consist of Linking Systems, Forward Linkages and Backward Linkages. The Systems Approach is based on Input Quantitative, Process Qualitative and Output Quantitative. The Shift is based on Qualitative peer judgement to data based Quantitative indicator evaluation with increased objectivity and transparency; extensive use of ICT confirming scalability and robustness; Introducing System Generated Scores (SGS); Online Evaluation (about 70%) and Peer judgement (about (30%); Introducing the element of third party validation of data”
In the afternoon session, Rev Dr Gigi Thomas spoke on the ‘Revised SSR Manual and Benchmarks”. Participants, Sr (Dr ) Josephine (Assistant Professor, St Joseph College of Teacher Education for Women-Kerala) and Dr Kiran Prasad ( Assistant Professor at Roshini Nilaya of Social Work, Mangaluru) gave their experiences about the workshop. The overview of the whole workshop was given by Dr Rachael Natasha Mary, the Assistant Professor at St Aloysius College, Mangaluru.
ABOUT PROF GABRIEL SIMON THATTIL :
Prof. Gabriel Simon Thattil, Professor and Head, Department of Commerce, School of Business Management and Legal Studies, Director, IQAC University of Kerala. Dr Gabriel has produced 31 PhDs and over 50 MPhils, acted as the project coordinator for two major research projects of the Department of Commerce and was the coordinator for the SAP-UGC project, coordinator for the innovative project of the Department and has executed a major consultancy work for Federal Bank on behalf of the University. Currently, he is the Chief Editor of the Indian Journal of Accounting and is the Director of the Internal Quality Assurance Cell of the University of Kerala. It was during his tenure as Director that the University was accredited with an A grade in 2015 and an A++ grade in 2022. He is a Governing Board Member of the Centre for Development Studies, External; Editor for the Ramanujan International Journal of Business and Research (RIJBR), New Delhi.
ABOUT REV DR GIGI THOMAS :
Rev Dr Gigi Thomas, is the Dean of Studies, Head of the department, PG and research, Department of Mathematics, Mar Ivanios College, Thiruvananthapuram. With a high professional calibre, Dr Gigi was awarded the PhD in Mathematics from the University of Botswana in (2010), (MPhil) in Mathematics, from the University of Kerala (2001) (MSc) in Mathematics from the University of Kerala (1998) (BSc) in Mathematics major from St. Berchmans College, affiliated to Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam, Kerala, India (1988), Bachelor of Philosophy (BPh) from Pontifical Institute of Philosophy and Theology, Aluva, Kerala(1990) and Bachelor of Theology (BTh) from Pontifical Institute of Philosophy and Theology, Aluva, Kerala(1994).
With an exuberant attitude towards academics, Dr Gigi has qualified for National Eligibility Test (NET) for a Lectureship in Mathematics conducted by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and University Grants Commission (UGC), Government of India, New Delhi (June 2000). Currently, Sir is the NAAC Visit Steering Committee Convener and NIRF Nodal Officer, Mar Ivanios College (Autonomous) since 2018; Dean of Studies, Mar Ivanios College (Autonomous) from 2019 till date; Nodal Officer, AISHE and Nodal Officer, Study in India Programme, Mar Ivanios College (Autonomous).
