Jubilee Post News & Views
Prof. Ashok Kumar
At present the Government of India has two opted two methodology for the evaluation of teaching and research institutes. The one is directly controlled and assessed by Ministry of Human Resource Development, MHRD , called as The National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) approved by the MHRD and launched by Honourable Minister of Human Resource Development on 29th September 2015 .
Every year, the Education Ministry releases the National Institutional Ranking Framework or NIRF ranking with the objective to promote competitive excellence among the higher educational institutions in the country based on the parameters that broadly include several factors such as Teaching, Learning & Resources (TLR), Research and Professional Practice (RP), Graduation Outcomes (GO), Outreach and Inclusivity (OI), and Peer Perception (PR).Teaching, Learning & Resources (TLR), Research and Professional Practice (RP), Graduation Outcomes (GO), Outreach and Inclusivity (OI), and Peer Perception (PR).Teaching, Learning and Resources. Every year, the Ministry of Education (MoE) publishes the NIRF Ranking in various fields including Engineering, Architecture, Pharmacy, Medical, and Dental. Colleges and educational institutes.
On the other hand, the second methodology is being examined by the NATIONAL ASSESSMENT AND ACCREDITATION COUNCIL (NAAC). NAAC conducts assessment and accreditation of Higher Educational Institutions (HEI) such as colleges, universities or other recognised institutions to derive an understanding of the ‘Quality Status’ of the institution.
Main objective 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. Evaluation is done by the NAAC to see the accordance with the quality standards which relates to the performances and outcomes of educational processes, coverage of the curriculum, teaching and learning processes, faculty and teachers, research and development, infrastructure, organisation, governance, learning resources, financial status and services provided to students.
The rankings of higher of educational institutions for 2022 were released by Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan. Besides the overall rankings, NIRF also released rankings in other categories.
It looks a strange phenomenon for me when I look the evaluation of educational institutes by two government agencies i.e., NAAC and NIFR. I observed that certain Institutes have been awarded A++ grades by NAAC but there is no place for them in the National Ranking in the first 100.
The institutions which were graded A++ by NAAC their NIRF ranking varies from 1 to 200. Do we want to say that qualitatively X university is best(A++, the highest Grade ) , but they do not rank in the first 100 institutes. Controrarily the institution who got A in NAAC are ranked within 100 among the best institutions in the country.
Well , one can say that the criteria of NAAC accrediation and University ranking NIRF have different parameters. NAAC has seven but NIRF has 5 parameters . therefore, one cannot/ should not compare the two organizations assessment. I do understand that one parameter can really change the whole scenario but the question is; there are Institute where the NAAC grade is A++ but no place in the first 100 of the educatioal institutes in the Educational institute ranking and similarly there are some universities which ranked in the top 10 positions in NIRF but they are having A NAAC grading .
One is really confused what should we conclude from these examples. Should we say that from quality point of view “A “is the best university in the country but among the existing Universities it is not within 100 rankings. Therefore, it seems, there is something wrong in either our assessment parametersor evaluation system.
Further there are several advantages for NAAC accreditation .NAAC accreditation identifies the quality of the institute in terms of its education, research, faculty, infrastructure, etc., as well as giving students confidence that they are selecting a quality institution. It gives an institute instant credibility and increases its admissions , the institutes: Eases chances for availing funds, Allotment of the project to the professors becomes easy., Research funding agencies become confident and allocate projects to professors., Increases brand value.,ffers a positive impression on the institutions with its increase in admissions, experienced faculty hiring and brings more professional employers for placements., earns recognition by UGC., provides credibility to the research aspect.
NIRF (National Institute Ranking Framework) was rolled out to introduce a well-defined ranking system for higher education institutions, making it a key decision criterion for admissions. It helps students find the best universities and motivates colleges to strive hard to enhance their services. Wheras NIRF has comparative less significance since its ranking is valid for one year only while NAAC grading is valid for 5 years Quality of an institute reamains the same for 5 years but the ranking changes every year.
I personally feel that ranking of an institution should be based on the quality of the institute. At the National level for quality / Ranking assessment there should be one criterion. I leave it open for you to decide.
(Author is Former Vice Chancellor, DDU Gorakhpur University & CSJM University Kanpur, CSA Agriculture University Kanpur, Vedic University Nimbahera, Nirwan University Jaipur.)
