ASSIGNMENTS

SPECIALIZEDAREA: HIGHER EDUCATION

MASTER OFARTS (EDUCATION)-2nd YEAR
January 2019 & July 2019
MES-104: PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION

a) How can management of curriculum lead to an improvement in learning environment in an

institution of higher learning? (500 words)

b) List any five human resource challenges which, you consider, are being faced by
institutions of higher learning. Discuss the possible solutions for any two. (Hint: Challenges
like adoption of technology, diversity and inclusion, etc.) (500 words)

c) What is effective classroom management in the context of higher learning? Based on your
experience/opinion discuss the strategies that can help teachers manage classrooms
effectively? (500 Words)

Answers

a) How can management of curriculum lead to an improvement in learning environment in an

institution of higher learning?
Ans.: Curriculum evaluation deals precisely with the systematic process of determining and
appraising the proficiency level of the learning experiences of a particular level of studies. It
also helps in undertaking a systematic analysis of the course, its prerequisites and its place in
the efficiency of the programme as a whole, by evaluating all its contents. The purpose of
curriculum evaluation is to give a direction to improve the existing programme and to
examine its overall impact on student motivation and learning. It helps in reorganizing course
content and the teaching learning strategies in a more effective manner. Self evaluation and
overall validation are the ways and means of evaluation. Students, professional evaluators,
the peer group and the evaluator are other sources of evaluation. The components identified
for evaluation are-goals and objectives, prerequisites like entry level knowledge, contents,
processes, outputs, assessment procedures, references etc. The techniques for obtaining
evaluation information could be varied - subjective judgement, measuring student
achievement, generating student opinion, etc. Evaluative information can be used best by
improving teaching learning strategies and for ensuring the introduction of new courses, etc.
To define it simply, it is the measurement of levels of knowledge the student has acquired
after completion of the curriculum. Curriculum evaluation is mainly the determination of the
extent to which the instructional objectives have been achieved. Evaluation takes place at the
end of the curriculum transaction cycle - usually annually. As evaluation is a post event
phenomenon, good curriculum management demands periodic monitoring which acts like a
guided missile system to keep the curriculum on target. This can take place while the course
is in progress with the help of monitoring tests to determ ine the effectiveness of instruction
of the student.

1
The term 'curriculum development' is most popular while 'Transaction of Curriculum' is a
very recent concept introduced in education. The transaction of curriculum means
'management of curriculum'. 1.K. Devis has used the term 'managing teachinglearning' and
the teacher as a manager. Devis' approach has initiated and introduced the term 'management'
in the education process.
Curriculum evaluation, thus involves systematically appraising and measuring the
appropriateness and effectiveness of learning experiences at a particular level. A systematic
analysis of the course gives an idea about the selection and sequence of content, the choice of
teaching and assessment methods. The main aim of evaluation is to better the course for
students of the future.
ow does one assess the viability of a curriculum system? To define it simply, it is the
measurement of levels of knowledge the student has acquired after completion of the
curriculum. Curriculum evaluation is mainly the determination of the extent to which the
instructional objectives have been achieved. Evaluation takes place at the end of the
curriculum transaction cycle - usually annually. As evaluation is a post event phenomenon,
good curriculum management demands periodic monitoring which acts like a guided missile
system to keep the curriculum on target. This can take place while the course is in progress
with the help of monitoring tests to determ ine the effectiveness of instruction of the student.
Curriculum evaluation, thus involves systematically appraising and measuring the
appropriateness and effectiveness of learning experiences at a particular level. A systematic
analysis of the course gives an idea about the selection and sequence of content, the choice of
teaching and assessment methods. The main aim of evaluation is to better the course for
students of the future.
The most important objective of curriculum evaluation is to judge the effectiveness of the
curriculum right from goals upto the assessment procedure. As a practice, the tendency is to
divide the programme into components and each one is assessed. The entire programme is
evaluated at completion.
If success of the programme must be judged, evaluation is a must. Several aspects of the
programme, such as the suitability of each component, the sequencing, the inputprocess-
output must be judged. Evaluation serves several purposes.
The curriculum planners plan the instructional objectives after having arrived at the goals of
the programme. The objectives are aimed at fulfilling the goals. Evaluation of instructional
objectives will include feasibility studies on how far these objectives have been clearly stated,
how they relate to the students at a particular level of education and social background.
Questions such as - is it worthwhile to increase the level of the course or should we increase
its interrelation with other subjects? Evaluation of student achievement and related reaction to
the prescribed course are all important focus areas of the proper assessment of goals and
objectives of a particular programme or course.
b) List any five human resource challenges which, you consider, are being faced by
institutions of higher learning. Discuss the possible solutions for any two. (Hint: Challenges
like adoption of technology, diversity and inclusion, etc.)

2
Ans.: A higher education institution is only as good as the academic employees who carry out
its core function of teaching. The rest of the workforce is ultimately there to facilitate this
function – to do all the things required to cultivate a successful centre of learning.
That’s the challenge for HR leaders in higher education. Yet creating a culture and
environment that both academics and students can thrive in is not an easy task. Modern
universities and colleges face many of the same challenges as businesses in the corporate
world: employee retention, talent acquisition, customer satisfaction and future planning.
Developing a focused and coherent HR strategy is a fundamental responsibility in such a
competitive sector. The first step is to have a coherent organisational vision and strategy that
is centrally administered by HR, where appropriate.
Certain tasks like faculty hiring may need to be decentralised to individual departments but
HR can still offer support. Having clear lines of governance and communicating this to
individual departments can help to avoid any legal or compliance issues.
Otherwise, a fragmented approach can develop across departments – and tasks can be
duplicated by administration employees, which is a waste of human resources. The service
being provided in payroll, employee relations or hiring can also end up being handled in an
ad-hoc manner if it’s not part of a centralised HR strategy.
Goal-based planning is vital when it comes to addressing organisational design. What do you
want your organisation to achieve and what is the best structure to facilitate this? Ultimately,
getting the right organisation structure in place can help reduce costs, increase efficiency and
reduce the risk to the institution.
Institutions should reflect the demographic makeup of their student body and must seek to
have proportionate representation among the faculty and administrative employees. There’s a
cyclical process to developing greater diversity.
The process of improving diversity needs to start when these students enter the system.
Today’s undergraduates become tomorrow’s PHD students and the future academics and
faculty members will ultimately be selected from this pool.
Encouraging students from a diverse range of backgrounds increases the chances of
developing them for leadership positions, and having a diverse leadership encourages
students from a range of backgrounds to progress.
Institutions need to examine their hiring and appraisal processes if they want to encourage
diversity in their workforce. Talent development, mentoring and the elimination of
unconscious or conscious biases from the hiring process are all vital steps towards achieving
this goal.
Just like any other sector, the attraction and retention of top talent is an issue for universities
and colleges as competition for the high performers increases. You need a clear strategy and a
holistic approach to developing talent at all levels of the organisation.
HR needs to implement coherent succession planning, especially in a sector that can be
subject to financial constraints. Nurturing future leaders from within gives higher education

3
bodies a competitive advantage over rival institutions. Investment in succession programmes
is also a good way to avoid poor hires, which can negatively impact student morale and
league tables.
Mentoring and development training needs to be a core part of any institution’s talent
management strategy. Academics can sometimes feel a greater loyalty to their field of study
than to the particular institution they work for so it’s necessary to align these conflicting
interests. So HR needs to foster a supportive corporate culture that is focused on retaining
talent and engaging the workforce.
It’s especially important to recognise the goals of individual employees and provide them
with the means to meet these goals within your organisation. Individual learning and ongoing
development needs to be part of the fabric of your culture.
Higher education institutions are now becoming global players and they face a challenge to
attract the best and brightest students and employees from across the world. Income
generated from international students is an important revenue stream and adopting a global
perspective is one way to access this type of funding.
More universities are now working on international strategies and internationalising
curricula, according to a recent Deloitte report. Not only can this benefit their domestic
approach, it can also help to build an organisation’s international brand. This can then help
institutions to attract top global talent or to deliver programmes through partner bodies.
Adopting a global HR strategy is also another way to encourage greater diversity among the
student body and employees. Developing an internationalised approach can ultimately
generate revenue, improve corporate branding and sweeten the employee value proposition
for top talent.
c) What is effective classroom management in the context of higher learning? Based on your
experience/opinion discuss the strategies that can help teachers manage classrooms
effectively?
Ans.: Classroom Management consists of the teacher’s thoughts, plans and actions that create
an orderly environment and promote learning. Classroom management stands for
management of resources, pupils’ learning activities and behaviours in the classroom. It is
essentially a human relation skill. Classroom management is complex and many variables
need to be considered when making decisions about specific situations. Planning and
organisations, procedures used for handling various types of behaviours of learners are all
parts of classroom management.
Classroom management is an ingredient of successful teaching. The skill of classroom
management is one of the most important skills which every teacher must acquire to manage
his/her classroom effectively. Mentioned below are some important component of the
classroom management suite which have been identified by observing behaviours of teachers
in successfully managed classrooms. These classrooms exhibited a high prevalence of work
involvement and a low level of misbehaviour in learning setting. Which have been found to
be effective in creating an effective classroom ecology and learning milieu.

4
Probably, you need to consider the various areas of the classroom and design those areas for
use in a variety of activities. You also need to focus your attention on the physical aspects of
your room which include room arrangement, seating, bulletin boards and blacklwhite board
displays and the physical climate. Let us see what the latter includes.
The physical climate: A classroom is a 'home away from home' for both the teacher and the
students. It should thus be attractive and functional, keeping in mind grade and age level
appropriateness, the type of classroom activit*~ the teacher will engage in, and hislher
particular style of teaching and engagement. The seating arrangement must be designed in a
systematic way so that the organization of the seats helps the students to feel more involved.
For example, you can arrange seating in a U-shape, rows or a circle, so that you can see and
move easily towards the students.
Classroom management and control: Dynamics of CIassroom Management and their
lmpllcatlons for Practice Control of students by teachers tends to be regarded as the goal of
classroom management. This emphasis on control is so pervasive that control by teachers is
often seen as more important than the learning that goes on in the classroom. Although
control is necessary for the psychological balance in one's life, in a classroom context
management is not synonymous with control.
Classroom management is viewed as a broad concept, encompassing not just techniques to
control behavior, but also academic climate and effective teaching practices. Successfd
classroom management involves not only responding effectively when problems occur, but
preventing the frequent occurrence of problems. Therefore it may be more accurate and more
productive to think of classroom management as 'the orchestration of classroom life so that
all students can maximize their learning potential'.
Any teaching act is the result of a decision, whether conscious or unconscious, 1 I that the
teacher makes after the complex cognitive processing of available 1 information. Studies in
education have focused on a wide variety of variables, several of which are directly under the
teacher's control. These include room arrangement, selection of material, instructional
resources, academic tasks, handling of material, grouping for instruction, time on task,
discipline procedures, I teaching methods and assessment practices. The teacher is thus the
key actor I in generating an effective classroom environment.
Some basic guidelines and strategies for effective classroom management are presented
below for your better understanding:
 Always attempt to have an activity that is meaningful to you and that you anticipate
will be meaningful to your students. Have confidence that given a fair chance you
bring it off. This gives you an air of resolve you do pot have otherwise.
 Be aware of the attitudes you are projecting towards class activities. Are they attitudes
of confidence, enthusiasm, and purpose? Or are you communicating uncertainly,
frustration, and superficiality? Learn to take an inventory of your own moods and to
get yourself mentally ready to face a class.

5
 Work to avoid falling into a mechanical, matter-of-fact approach to teaching. Be
enough of a risk taker that you are not afraid to put a substantial amount of yourself
into your teaching.
 Make a serious effort to come to grips with the question of what is and is not desirable
and tolerable behaviour in your classroom. As a teacher of groups of young learners
you need to take a stance in favour of what is reasonable and acceptable group
behaviour as opposed to what is thoughtless and irresponsible.
 Learn to keep your fingers on the “pulse of the call”. Move swiftly and purposefully
to control behaviour that threatens to distract from the Lesson. Do not get in the habit
of\ignoring minor behaviour problems in the hope they will simply go away. In most
cases they will not disappear.
 Get students in tune with you before you attempt to carry on with your teaching
agenda. Be careful not to allow slippage here. Do not attempt to take over about the
competitions. Use pauses, restarts, or lowering about of the voice to cause students to
attend. Walk through exercises periodically with your students to keep them used to
working harmoniously with you.
 Learn to use silence to advantage and to cultivate body language. Your eyes and your
gestures are critically important to you here.
 Anticipate likely consequences of what you ask students to do. Try to avoid always
being in a reactive (corrective) position with your classes. Learn to use prevention
maintenance to keep yourself out of the corrective mode as much as possible.
 When it becomes necessary, use corrective maintenance calmly and confidently, but
make it penetrate. Do not interrupt the whole class to reprimand one offender
whenever it is possible to avoid it.
 Tell the class in clear terms what you are up to and the behaviour you expect of them.
Learn to recognize signs that adjustments in strategy are necessary.
 Make a determined effort to combat uncontrolled chatter in your classes. It is
disconcerting to you and to students trying to attention. Teach your students to
recognise when talking is acceptable and when it is disruptive.
 Do not get in the habit of doing classroom management on the run. Take time to plan
for it as a key aspect of your teaching.