Academic Year 2021-22 Begins
July 9, 2021
On July 7, 2021, we began our Academic Year 2021-22 with renewed hope amidst the ongoing pandemic. Being the second consecutive year with students remaining off-campus, the Undergraduate, Post-Graduate and Doctoral councils of the University are gearing up to implement some effective changes in their approach to hybrid classes and ensure students are offered an immersive learning experience. Here’s what the Council members had to say about their plans for the year ahead.
UG Council Member and Assistant Professor at NLSIU, Sanyukta Chowdhury said that the University is implementing a two-section approach to course delivery this trimester for the students of the undergraduate programme. This is being followed for the incoming 2021 cohort as well as for second year students. Through this approach, the University aims to enhance learning outcomes with a reduction in the group size and improvement in the scope for student-teacher engagement.
“Undergraduate students in their third, fourth and fifth year, have chosen from a wide range of elective courses being offered this trimester. We hope that they gain from the knowledge and insights offered by practice area experts” she said. Some of the elective courses offered this year are: Impact, Innovation and Investment; Downstream Oil and Gas; Investment Treaty Laws; International Refugee Law; and Contesting Ableism: Law and Disability.
With classes to be held five days a week, for four hours per day, the University has designed a balanced programme to ensure optimum participation from students.
Impact of the Pandemic
Explaining how the pandemic impacted the course design and plans for the year, Chairperson of MPP Council and Associate Professor Dr. Sony Pellissery observed, “Due to COVID-19, a few components that required interaction with people and communities, such as rural immersion, had to be redesigned in innovative ways,” adding, “Further, to reduce the monotony of online lecture, more application-oriented pedagogy has been adopted. Students will be encouraged to discuss in small groups about the use of concepts taught in class.”
Transformation in Research
Chair Professor and Chairperson of the PG and Doctoral Council, Dr. T. Ramakrishna said, “The year ahead brings hopes, promises and possible transformation, in that we move towards hybrid classes and situation-driven innovativeness in online teaching.”
He mentioned that NLSIU is further looking at transformation in research degree programmes with research advisory committees streamlining the research process through collective wisdom, scholarly reviewed evaluation and public defense ensuring transparency.
Dr. Ramakrishna reiterated, “The trimester would be enjoyable in view of the approach to the legal framework discussion from a policy prism — that has been a refreshing orientation these years and hopefully continues — with renewed emphasis on current challenges from a global perspective. Conceptions of justice and emerging trends in Intellectual property rights would be equally interesting intellectual journeys with the students.”