Page 165 - Education World Dec 2021

EW SPOTLIGHT FEATURE

Undergraduate Degree in English Studies

Remains a Good Bet

E arly in 2 0 2 1 , an eminent U S public societies with higher or roughly comparable

gross enrolment ratios in higher education.
university announced a decision to
eliminate its C lassics department.
C ontroversy over termination of the English Studies in India -- and specifically
B.A. (Hons.) English and BA English -- has
department coincided with revelations adapted quite successfully to changing
about acebook and the ethics of filtering demands and ex pectations from within
T
or manipulating the circulation of some academe and from without. he curricula
F acebook user content, and it related to of English departments in India are quite
continuing unease within S academic different for those - years ago. The GC
circles about the ( supposed) dominance undergraduate English programme outlines
of ST E M and the perceived decline of the prepared at the time of the New E ducation
humanities. ne aggrieved faculty member P olicy ( 2 0 2 0 ) show considerably less minute
of the aforementioned university q uipped that attention, compared to documents from
ST E M minus humanities eq uals F acebook. 1 - years ago, to periods and genres of
Declining numbers of students enrolled in literature of England and America there is Prof. Denys P. Leighton,
humanities programmes in S colleges and less compulsory focus on areas such as Professor and Dean, Jindal School of
universities -- philosophy, anthropology, Jacobean drama, Victorian (English) poetry Languages & Literature O.P. Jindal
T
history and foreign languages and literature or the 1 9th century American novel. he time Global University
have been among the most impacted periods covered by most of the compulsory
fields -- have inspired a rethink about uses papers are longer. Also, courses have been
of the humanities among administrators, introduced re ective of comparative and 19 , B.A. (Hons.) English students in many
department heads and even ground-level world literature – namely, ‘I ndian C lassical I ndian institutions today have opportunities
academicians concerned about the viability L iterature’, ‘E uropean C lassical L iterature’, not only to read ‘the best that has been
of their fields. ‘M odern E uropean D rama’, ‘P opular thought and said’ (as atthew Arnold put
T
F ew institution heads anywhere in the L iterature’ and ‘P ostcolonial L iterature’. he it in the 1 s) but to begin preparing for
world actually contemplate ditching the result is a B.A. (Hons.) English curriculum careers in publishing and editing, media and
humanities. I ndeed, the pronouncement that is less Anglocentric, more Indian communications, translation work and other
about ST E M minus humanities eq uals in ected and less focused on what historians areas.
acebook re ects a wider recognition among and sociologists call elite culture. An undergraduate degree in English
leaders of business schools, data science Turning to elective courses, the new Studies is among the most versatile and
and environmental study programmes GC English programme outline features a valuable pre-professional academic degrees
worldwide that students and researchers large number of discipline-centric electives, worldwide. There is almost no field of creative
in the most ‘applied’ and utilitarian areas special electives and skill-enhancement endeavour that hasn’t been populated by
of work need to be educated about ethics courses devoted to P artition literature, travel English graduates. It should be kept in mind
and the nature of the human condition, writing, autobiography, literature and film that English Studies in an Indian university is
and that such teaching must take place and literary criticism, not to mention courses not separated from study of Indian languages
in several units of each university Not all devoted to academic writing, research and culture. English is arguably India’s most
.
consequences of banishing humanities can skills, translation studies and business important link language and the means
be foreseen, but many responsible people communication. his is likely to entice through which speakers learn about each
T
believe that the closing of ‘non-performing’ students who might otherwise have opted for other’s contributions to I ndian culture and
humanities departments will damage the mass communications and media studies. society. Not only the English language but the
academic ecosystem and compromise its any of the new model courses are geared reorganized field of English Studies is a door
use to society . toward developing skills in writing and using through which the world enters India and
Leaving aside various analyses of language in diverse work environments. I ndia reaches the world.
the ‘death of the humanities’, we should English Studies programme outlines and * * *
acknowledge that reorganisation and even syllabi of the institutions that aren’t req uired The Jindal School of Languages
elimination of humanities programmes over to conform closely to the GC outlines Literature (JSLL) of .P. Jindal Global
the past doz en years has produced some ( such as I I T s and I nstitutions of E minence) niversity inaugurated two new B.A. (Hons.)
qualified wins for academe overall along reveal even greater intellectual diversity programmes in 1 -- B.A. (Hons.) Spanish
with losses. The larger picture in India and deviation from ‘traditional’ norms. and B.A. (Hons.) English -- and is admitting
resembles that in the U nited States and other C ompared to their predecessors of 2 0 0 0 or the first cohorts of students in - .

EDUCATIONWORLD DECEMBER 2021