About IQAC
Today’s Millennial world seems to push quality to the backbench prioritizing quantity in every aspect possible. Quantity might look attractive and beneficial but ultimately it is quality that steers the world forward. Especially in the arena of education which standardizes the moulding of character and personality, quality in educational programmes stands supreme. This requires systemic planning in college governance, curriculum designing, infrastructure, research, teaching learning process, evaluation, extra curricular pursuits, best and innovative practices. All this to happen, we need to have a forum through which all effective planning can be realized and there comes the executive body, the IQAC.
Best Practices
- Describe at least two institutional best practices
- Upload details of two best practices successfully implemented by the institution as per NAAC format in your institution website, provide the link
BEST PRACTICE: I
Title of the Practice: Mentor-Mentee ProgrammeMentoring provides genuine support and guidance to students of Tertiary Education Programmes who are experiencing challenges in learning due to educational, social, emotional and behavioral problems that are consequently affecting their learning and performance.
Objective of the PracticesEffective mentoring seeks to offer motivation, rock-support, directive guidance and role modeling to mentees while they journey through the challenges of College education with English as the medium of instruction and peers from different social and educational
backgrounds.
To effectuate the success of mentor-mentee relationship, the mentor should
- Be a consultant and counselor
- Be a trusted confidant to listen with compassion
- Be able to give constructive feedback
- Be knowledgeable and non-judgmental
- Value diversity of perspectives
- Help in setting goalsand develop capabilities
- Provide pillar support to steer through challenges
The ContextThe transitional period between Secondary Education and Tertiary Education poses a
host of problems like economic stress, lack of parents‟ diligent guidance, pressures from family and parents to conform to certain standard practices, social media affecting their mental and emotional well-being, challenge of making good friends and getting connected to others, disappointments in friendships, mental and physical health issues, issues with body image, inadequate knowledge of time and stress management and lack of positive role models. The new ambience, new acquaintances and new teachers leave them puzzled as to whom they could confide their problems. Not knowing whom to turn to for support and help and to deal with these
pressures, the adult learners bottle up their problems which in turn lead to frustration, left-alone
disheartenment and lack of emotional poise. Preparing the mentees not just for college life but for the journey of life becomes the mentor's priority.
The PracticeLong before "Mentor-Mentee" became buzzwords in the domain of higher education, this institution has been conducting its regular and well-planned Mentoring Programme but informal in nature and varied in nomenclature.
- Each student was assigned to the care of the teaching staff who made herself available for consultation and advice on all matters of academic and social nature
- Tutors met their wards at least once a week on the college premises
- All leave applications by the students are submitted through their respective tutors to the Principal
- Tutors submitted tutorial reports to the Principal and sent to the parents, terminal reports on the regularity and progress of their wards
- Students across the disciplines were allotted to a tutor and the medley strengthened a sense of belongingness and oneness amongst everyone.
- Counselling System (1975-1976 to 2013-2014)
- Groups of about 20 students were assigned to each member of the faculty who was designated as Counsellor
- The Counsellor was always available for consultation and advice on matters, academic and personal
- Records of students‟ background, progress, health, participation in College activities had been maintained
- Counselling sessions were conducted on 3rd Friday of every month between 3p.m. and 4 p.m. from 2000-2001
- Progress cards containing personal details and internal assessment marks and end semester marks of all six semesters were maintained from 2004-2005
- It was made mandatory for the Parents to accompany the students for the last counseling session of each semester and the parents were briefed on the academic progress, positive attitude, further efforts to be taken by the wards and parents and suggestions given for enhancement on all fronts
- Ward Counselling system (2014-15 to 2016-17)
- The formal interactions revolved around cleanliness, personal hygiene, dress code, ID Card, Punctuality, attendance, examination preparation, code of conduct and suggestion box
- Discussed individual problems they face on and off the campus
- Instructed to accord more importance to moral and ethical values
- Mentor – Mentee Programme (2017-18 - till date)
- All guidance activities, undertaken by the mentor like call records to parents, meetings and minutes of the meetings are recorded in a note book which is maintained by each and every mentor
- Professional guidance leading to selection of career and choosing avenues for higher education
Evidence of Success
- The genuine interest shown by the Mentor has developed a sense of confidence, support and security that they become balanced to face personal and academic challenges
- Consistent caring and guiding acts as a morale booster in improving regular attendance and contributes to personal and educational growth of the students
- Continuous monitoring for technical and soft skill enhancement has increased the number of employable graduates
- Alumni have expressed that they have maximized their potential, developed their skills, improved their performance and become the person they want to be
- Acceptance of others as they are and respecting their opinions are obviously exhibited in their behavior
- A strong and caring triangular bond is cemented day by day among parents, teachers and students
- The alumni gathering in hundreds during Golden Jubilee celebrations is the most powerful indicator of success of this programme
- All programmes have maximum 60 as the allotted strength and year after year, more than 200 applications are received making the admission process so difficult
- The help and guidance received is so ingrained in their minds that they voluntarily give back the same to the society through extension activities
Problems encountered and resources required
- The whole programme would be more successful if a student has the same mentor throughout the course but for some administrative reasons this could not be worked out
- Mentoring is a two way process where if one side is showing less interest, it would collapse the healthy relationship
- Space constraints pose difficulties in conducting sessions in separate classrooms
- Sometimes students preferring a particular teacher as the mentor cannot be accommodated given the large student strength
- The faculty in spite of their busy academic and administrative preoccupations, extend their genuine support but there is a possibility of not extending adequate quality time to their mentees at times
- If the mentees are allotted across the disciplines, they may feel free to share their problems and sometimes the familiarity of subject teachers makes them bottle up their difficulties
Notes
The Institution started with the vision of empowering girl students of the ruralagricultural community, by choice, admitted more first generation learners and willingly took up the greater responsibility of providing additional care for the overall development of the students. The Kongu region, by its very essence, is known for compassion, kindness and empathy and it is reflected in the basic attitude of all insiders, from the Management to the supporting staff. Academically and economically weak students are the cynosure of the institution from day one of its inception.
The success of this programme has to be mainly attributed to the faculty who consciously and consistently maintain a good contact with the parents and it is reciprocated in the same vein by parents and wards even beyond the classroom into the journey of life, for the spectacular reason of caring and sharing which reduces burden and doubles happiness.
BEST PRACTICE : II
Title of the Practice: The Remedial Programme
Objectives of the Practice
In the context of the huge gap between Secondary and Tertiary Education especially when medium of instruction is English, the institution has undertaken the initiative of empowering the confounded students to sail through smoothly with the following objectives
- To sensitize students to “We too can cross the Bridge”
- To provide a strong foundation to students who lag far behind their counterparts in understanding academic concepts
- To smoothen and to strengthen their journey towards higher education and research culture
- The institution is committed to make students earning a degree, a priority
The Context
Each student differs in terms of academic proficiency, learning abilities and performance. Students with learning problems tend to be diffident and more passive. They hesitate to express views or raise questions and gradually lose interest in learning. In colleges more study units are covered at a faster pace and some students find it difficult to catch up on basic concepts.
Students from vernacular medium find it challenging to catch up with the new set of academic habits like completing the assignments and proceed with self-study. This makes them slow down in the process of achieving expected competencies in core academic skills, resulting in the rise of dropout rates. The slow learners struggle with time management, reading strategies and examination skills. Life skills like interpersonal relationship, independent thinking, positive values and attitudes and setting a goal for future studies and career seem to remain a distant dream.
The Practice
The institution has been a pioneer in offering personalized care to the students since 1970. The Remedial programme has been undergoing changes in its draft, personalized individual attention and execution of well-defined objectives, but the springboard always existed to identify and improve academic capabilities among the students-in-need
Pre-Grant Period (1970-2004)
- Bridge course was organized for about 15 days to one month with intervening skill assessment tests to identify slow learners
- Teachers spent extra time to empower the students with expected levels
- Hostellers had their study hours from 6 p.m to 7 p.m and 9 p.m to 10.30 p.m. wherein the hostel staff went rounds supervising and encouraging them consistently
Post-Grant Period (2004 - till date)
- The Remedial Committee has drawn a well-structured plan and timetable for coaching and training through a well thought-out process
- Students for Remedial Classes have been identified through assessment tests during Bridge Course, class 12 percentage, teacher‟s feedback and internal evaluation
- Students who voluntarily wished to join such classes are also considered
- Student strength is kept to the maximum of 20 to 30
- Attendance is marked regularly; 30 days for I and II Year students 50 days for III year and PG Students in a semester
- Study materials have been specially prepared and distributed for easier understanding
- The coaching scheme specifies 10 days for Part I Tamil, 10 days for Part II English, 20 days for Major and 10 days for Allied subjects
- Regular disbursal of grant to each department for purchasing books for remedial students
- To enhance their visual and audio memories, teachers write the key phrases on the board
- Individualized remedial teaching is done before and after the class and during lunch hours
- Students who perform better are made peer teachers in self-study sessions. Peer-support helps in developing communication and cooperation skills
- Remedial teachers maintain a detailed personal record for each student
- Remedial teachers are mostly subject teachers who keep close contact with other teachers
Evidence of Success
- The healthy combination of Mentor-Mentee Programme and Remedial Programme has resulted in the roaring success of the award of a Rolling Cup by Government of Tamilnadu for the highest percentage of passes (82%) in the Degree Programmes with the first batch of first generation learners in 1975
- Secured 380 Affiliated University Ranks ranking from I to X upto the year 2007
- Parents and students have always appreciated the efforts of personal care and near 100% attendance is the evidence of importance attached by students towards this empowerment programme
- The alumni who underwent remedial programmes express their gratitude and attribute their success in life and profession to the academic personal care
- Significant increase was seen in scoring good marks and campus placement among the remedial students
- The consistent efforts have resulted in their ability to understand the difficult concepts in a better way which is visible in their improved scores
- There was significant qualitative and quantitative improvement in the level of achievement. The efficacy of the programme is reflected in the empowered and confident graduates who contribute to the nation in the capacity of well-rounded human beings
Problems Encountered and Resources Required
- In the context of 90% of students coming from Tamil medium schools, organizing remedial sessions poses serious constraints
- Due to the large strength in the first two years of UG programmes, batch-wise teaching becomes difficult
- Due to unavoidable reasons, when the tutors go on leave, the feeling of left-alone may surface though they are adequately taken care of
- The first generation learners have difficulties in coping with the regular classes as well as remedial classes
- Availability of time slots for practical in science laboratories in the noon break is a constraint as the laboratories are to be prepared for the regular practical
- Weak cognitive skills coupled with slow speed learning and low attention span pose a burden on the tutors
Notes
The faculty in every department have taken it as their social, moral and institutional
responsibility to take result-oriented qualitative measures to identify, encourage and embolden slow learners and to facilitate suitable ambience according to their pace of learning and needs. A comprehensive record maintained by the teachers on the learning progress serves as a reference. A healthy and conducive environment is created to improve their pace towards achieving developmental milestones
Institutional Distinctiveness - Martial Arts and Well-Being Practices
To create and to sustain a healthy society, emotional, physical and psychological well- being is obligatory and all-out efforts are taken to empower staff and students on one side and the alumni, Self Help Groups and the home-engineers on the other side to face any kind of health and safety-oriented challenges.
Our Institution has established The Centre for Martial Arts with a view to handle effectively stress-related problems and to create a sense of well-being. Though Martial Arts are codified traditions of combat for self-defence, they enhance physical, mental and spiritual development. Today's world is becoming too severe for women and it necessitates training for women in self-defence, with the following objectives:
- To get sensitized to the preservation of the nation’s intangible cultural heritage
- To practise wellness activities as entertainment as well as a means of spiritual development with a view to rationalise functions of the mind so that the body and mind can react immediately as a unit
- To practise Martial Arts as a part of philosophical and spiritual training
- To prepare students for Olympic Games as these arts are included as full medal sports
Empowering Women with Self-defence Techniques
The Vision and Mission of our institution is Empowerment of Women. Most of the students are from nearby villages and they need to cross many in-roads which may require them to be alert to safeguard themselves from the wrongdoers. As Self-defence techniques are equally important as education and employment, The Centre for Martial Arts uniquely contributes towards providing mental and physical alertness and strength
Expression of Interest
- Achieved quick recognition and outsiders show interest in participation in the training programmes
- Many home-engineers and school teachers express their willingness to get trained
- Alumni also undertake training and they coordinate training sessions for the outsiders
- Self-Help Groups collectively participate in the training sessions
- Teachers and students of nearby Government Schools have shown interest in getting trained
Implementation Strategy
The players and the volunteers staying in the hostel turn into trainers and coordinators and the Physical Director carefully charts the time slots for various groups. As the participants are from various sections of the society, the outreach is more than expected. The players who visit the institution for competitions, the alumni, the teachers on campus and their friends, the Self-Help Groups who conduct bazaars in the institution and our own students enrich the number of participants. Yoga and Swimming are also extended in addition to the Martial Arts like Silambam, Boxing, Karate, and Taekwondo
- Students are imparted training to ensure their coping skills, stress reduction and healthy development
- To exercise and relieve stress
- To boost self-respect and self-discipline
- To enhance their physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health
- To make them brand ambassadors of wellness
- Teachers on campus and off campus
- Teachers to emerge as role models for the students
- In the event of electric and electronic gadgets making everyday chores easier, wellness programmes are obligatory
- Relaxing the body and the mind after hectic sessions
- The ambience of the educational institution makes it comfortable for the women teachers
- Training and practice in the mornings and evenings facilitate the participation of off-campus teachers
- Alumni Involvement
- Coming back to the Alma Mater to cherish butterfly days as well as getting trained is a double bonanza
- Interaction among them facilitate emotional as well as professional sharing
- Yoga for mental health and Swimming for physical health in a women-only Institution open a free zone for them
- As representatives of the society, they become ambassadors for indoor and outdoor games too
- Self-Help Groups
- Women in 20s,30s and beyond get an opportunity for fitness exercises
- Interpersonal and intrapersonal relationships result in mature understanding of each other
- Feel-good factor and feel-young factor are getting boosted
- Swimming as the life-saving exercise enables the elders to get trained and this necessity is passed on to the children
- Home Engineers
- This institution provides a safe and comfort zone for the home-makers
- The prevalence of chain-snatching and pocket-picking purses necessitates women to learn Karate to meet the challenges
- The convenient program schedules enable the home makers to decide on time- slots
Success Indicators
- The participants have realised that swimming helps in burning calories, supports weight balancing, builds muscular strength and endurance
- Students on campus and school students have achieved a sense of confidence
- Accomplishment of Mental Health through Yoga contributes to self-esteem, self-control, emotional and spiritual well-being and the participants' behaviour stand evidence to that
- Strengthening the bones is very important to women and boxing participants understand the impact and by word of mouth make it known that boxing can minimise belly fat leading to good health of the heart
- Taekwondo is found to be popular among school children as this increases the sense of alertness and confidence
Limitations / Challenges
- Organizing round the clock training seems difficult but the systematic planning and the teamwork of volunteers and the faculty make it hassel-free
- Getting the school children for the morning and evening time-slots poses practical problems but long holidays compensate this
- Involving in technical and often explosive moves such as Kicks, Punches and Throws are initially difficult and harmful but gradually they get acquainted with
Resources Required
Martial Arts is a new area and extending the same to women poses a great challenge. Inhibitions are to be overcome and training sessions are to be meticulously planned to enlist more participants for every art. Regular workouts without break and bringing in the experts require a lot of planning and coordination. Since the Martial Arts are exhaustive exercises, generally, there is a thinning down of participants. Cultural thought-level block is common among women and requires consistent counselling and follow-up visits
