Aditya Dev & Deepak Lavania| TNN |

HIGHLIGHTS

  • In UP, an associate professor of English who can’t spell ‘evaluation’, and an economics lecturer who has no idea what ‘audit’ means or what ‘IMF’ stands.
  • UP governor and chancellor of the university Ram Naik said he will take suitable action.

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AGRA: Ruby Rai is in jail for not knowing what political science means and still topping the Bihar Board exams. But she at least has the fig leaf of still being a student. In Uttar Pradesh, an associate professor of English who can’t spell ‘evaluation’, and an economics lecturer who has no idea what ‘audit’ means or what ‘IMF’ stands for are in a mess of their own. But it’s also a reflection of the larger problem afflicting the education system in Uttar Pradesh, some of whose infamous teachers don’t know who Akhilesh Yadav is or when India gained its independence .

The present matter came to light during evaluation of answer sheets of BA English, history and economics at the Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management (ITHM) on Monday, when the centre’s evaluation coordinator grilled the two teachers after doubting their credentials. Both have valid degrees and teach at colleges affiliated with UP universities.

When contacted, UP governor and chancellor of the university Ram Naik told TOI: “Mail me the details of the teachers. I will get it inquired into and take suitable action.”

Shyam Bahadur, associate professor in English is working at Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Rohilkhand University, Bareilly, while Anil Kumar Pal, associate professor in Economics, is employed at Veer Bahadur Singh Purvanchal University, Jaunpur. Both have been teaching for more than a decade.

Evaluation coordinator and ITHM director Luvkush Mishra told TOI, “The English teacher used wrong grammar while writing a two-line application letter seeking permission for evaluating papers. And he spelled evaluation as ‘evalluation’. Shyam Bahadur also failed to answer basic questions about the subject.”

Pal failed to explain the meaning of ‘audit’ and didn’t know that ‘IMF’ stands for ‘International Monetary Fund’. Later, when told the actual answer, this is what he wrote: ‘International Money Found’.

“Both teachers have been blacklisted. It seems they have been evaluating papers for years and have extensive teaching experience,” said Mishra.

Sources said there is a huge cartel behind hiring these teachers. “Most are employees of private colleges run by well-connected people. They are underpaid and made to do all sorts of work. There are also question marks on how they obtained their degrees in the first place. So what can be expected from them?” they added.

Earlier this month TOI had reported about Mahendra Singh, teacher at Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapith (MGKV), Varanasi, who had awarded 37 marks out of 33 in 50 answer sheets of economics at the Khandari campus of the university.

University registrar KN Singh had a different suggestion to solve this problem. “All private colleges from where such teachers studied should be shut. What action can we take?” he said.

Meanwhile, several surprising cases have been surfacing in the ongoing answer sheet evaluation process of Ambedkar University. According to evaluators, weird text, currency notes, slogans and songs in answer sheets are surfacing on a regular basis.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/agra/In-UP-an-economics-professor-who-thinks-IMF-is-International-Money-Found/articleshow/52978173.cm