LAHORE, April 1: The elementary nature of questions put to the Punjab University BSc (Hons) students of Islamic Studies in a mid-term examination has exposed a complete lack of interest in the semester system on the part of some teachers.

Questions about the order of syllabus, name of the mother of the Prophet (PBUH), the number of obligatory prayers in a day and the name of the cave which the Prophet (PBUH) used to visit before the revelation had also exposed the “limited scope” of the semester system programmes, according to some university teachers who wanted the annual examination system restored.

Besides, there is a difference of 100 marks between the semester and annual examination systems. A majority of students have been scoring over 80 per cent marks in the semester system.

A senior teacher of the Government College University said that semester system could not succeed without standardized syllabus and examination. Similarly, class assignments, presentations and other academic assignments should also be standardized, he added.

The university has started the BA\BSc programme with a view to produce quality stuff for post-graduate classes. The BA\BSc (Honours) students would also be given a separate post-graduate degree.

The university has spent millions of rupees on a new block for accommodating the students of BA/BSc (honours) programmes in 20 disciplines, but it does not spend much on training teachers and improving the syllabi.

The university has so far launched the BA\BSc (Hons) programme in the institutes of Chemistry, Bio-Chemistry, Bio-technology, Environmental Sciences, Departments of Physics, Space Science, Sociology, Zoology, Botany, Mass Communications, Administrative Science and Molecular Genetics.

When contacted, the director of BA\BSc (Hons) programme, Dr Jamil Anwer, said that the semester system depended on teachers. “It is a teacher’s responsibility to deliver honestly. To put a check on each teacher’s performance is not practically possible.”

A major flaw in the semester system, he pointed, was the absence of any provision for external checking. He said that students often did not take internal checking seriously enough.

Mr Jamil said that he had proposed to the university that students must be examined by external examiners in final stages of the programme.

Problems of the semester system are not confined to the graduate level. Different post-graduate programmes under the semester system in the provincial universities and autonomous colleges also have no provision for external checking.

Some students have also expressed reservations about the semester system. They said the system had left them at the mercy of teachers, some of whom tried to create a school-like atmosphere. —-Zulqernain Tahir