List of Former Directors of the A.S.C.

Objective of the Academic Staff College

The objectives of Academic Staff Colleges (ASC) are to enable (newly appointed) lecturers to:

• Understand the significance of education in general, and higher education in particular, in the global and Indian contexts.
• Understand the linkage between education and economic, socio-economic and cultural development, with particular references to the Indian policy where democracy secularism and social equality are basic tenets of society.
• Aquire and improve basic skills of teaching at college /university level to achive goals of higher education.
• Keep abreast of latest developments in their specific subjects;
• Understand the organisation and management of a College/ University and to perceive the role of teachers in the whole system,
• Utilize opportunities for development of personality, initiative and creativity; and
• Promote computer literacy as well as internet knowledge.

Functions of ASC

The functions of an academic staff college will be to plan, organize, implement, monitor and evaluate orientation courses for newly appointed college/ University lectures within the jurisdiction of one or more universities in a state. An ASC will also organize refresher courses for serving teachers and orientation programs for serving teachers, and orientation programs for senior administrators and heads of department, principles, officers, etc. Specifically, an ASC will:

• Formulate a programme of orientation along the broad guidelines given below.
• Identify resource persons in various field of specialization for running the orientation courses and refresher courses, and familiarize such resource persons with the philosophy and guidelines for the courses. The list of recourse persons should be approved by the chairman of the advisory committee of ASC.
• Setup a documentation-centre-cum-library for reference and source materials necessary for the courses.
• Produce specially design material required for effective implementation of the courses .
• Organize monitor and evaluate courses for teacher.
• Create a culture of learning and self-improvement among teachers so that it becomes an integral part of the education system at the tertiary level.
• Organize orientation programs for heads of departments, principals, deans and other decision-makers to familiarize them with the philosophy of orientation to facilitate reform in higher education through appropriate modification of the management systems at various levels.
• The refresher courses run by the ASC will provide opportunities for teachers in service to exchange experience with their peers and to mutually learn from each other.
• Provide a forum for serving teachers to keep themselves abreast of the latest advances in various subjects.
• Provide opportunities to further widen their knowledge and to pursue research studies.
• Provide an introduction to new methods and innovations in higher education so that the participants can in turn develop their own innovative methods of instructions.

Principal’s Meeting / Workshop for Academic Administrators

Each ASC may organize one or two meetings of principal/ heads/deans/ officers in a year to:

• familiarize them with the philosophy and importance of orientation Programmes and refresher courses, and persuade them to depute teachers;
• enable them to understand their new roles as supervisors; and
• facilitate reform in higher education through appropriate modification of management systems at various levels.

Registration fees

Every participant is required to pay an admission fee of Rs. 500/- at the time of admission to a Orientation course/ refresher Course. This registration fees of Rs. 500/- is non-refundable and is to be paid in the form of an A/c payee DD payable to “The Director, UGC-Academic Staff College, B.R.A.Bihar University Muzaffarpur.”

Administrative structure of the ASC

The catchments area of this ASC extends over all the institution falling under the territorial jurisdiction of J.P. University, Chhapra; L.N.Mithila University, Darbhanga; K.S.D. Sanskrit University, Darbhanga; B.N.Mandal University, Madhepura in addition to the host B.R.A.Bihar University Muzaffarpur.

Curriculum (For Orientation Programs )

Duration : 4 weeks (28 days )
In order to achieve the objectives set for the orientation programs under the action plan of NPE 1986, the curriculum for the Academic Staff Orientation courses shall have the following four components.
• Component A: Awareness of linkages between society, environment, development and education
• Component B: Philosophy of Education , Indian Education System and Pedagogy
• Component C: Resource awareness and knowledge generation
• Component D: Personality Development and Management

The orientation programs will have a minimum of 144 contact hours i.e 6 hours in a day for four weeks programme. There will be no non-working days except on Sundays.

I am to convey the UGC approval for conducting the Orientation/Refresher Courses in the following subjects/disciplines during 2004-05 (as per norms of the Scheme of Academic Staff Colleges)

It has been decided that Orientation Programme / Refresher Course should have I.T. based contents and about one week time should be devoted to I.T. based contents and training in Orientation Programmes and in Refresher Courses the I.t. Component should be adjusted as per requirement. Each participant should be deposit Rs. 500/- as Registration fee (non-refundable) at the time confirming his/her participation in a programme/course. Minimum number of participants in a course is 40.