Dear Dr. Hmanta .K Baruahe, Thanks for your contribution. I agree with you that the quality of the university teachers should be controlled at the entry level. When a contract is made between a person & those who administer a university, the original copy might have stated "appointed to to teach in the Department of ......", then it is unfair to stop the annual rise in the salary of this employee after 6 years on the basis of not publishing research that led to promotion from assistant to associated professor. When the academic is evaluated on teaching this benefits the students but when the academic is evaluated on research this adds more benefit to the academic & very little  (if any) to the students. 

If we can say that the quality of universities` graduates is declined, then I think that there should be more focus on teaching process.

Both, teaching and research are important. There are examples that a good researcher is not a good teacher. Reverse is also true. May be we should have two promotional schemes which are equally "glorified", one giving more points for teaching and the other for research.

I totally agree with you Dr. Gunadya Bandarage. The quality of teaching has been hit hard by the much attention paid to either publishing research papers or co-authorship of these papers. Some scholars followed devious means for promotion. The student shouldered the consequences. Had  there been an application of  a system of rewards to excelling teachers, then we would have seen a rise in the quality of graduates.

The quality of educational standards depends on the quality of the teachers concerned. This should be controlled at the entry level.

Dear Dr. Hmanta .K Baruahe, Thanks for your contribution. I agree with you that the quality of the university teachers should be controlled at the entry level. When a contract is made between a person & those who administer a university, the original copy might have stated "appointed to to teach in the Department of ......", then it is unfair to stop the annual rise in the salary of this employee after 6 years on the basis of not publishing research that led to promotion from assistant to associated professor. When the academic is evaluated on teaching this benefits the students but when the academic is evaluated on research this adds more benefit to the academic & very little  (if any) to the students. 

Dear Dr. Nizar

In India, University Grants Commission (UGC-Central government funding and policy making body) prepares guidelines , fixes criteria for promotion and recommends universities that receive funding and adopt UGC-pay scales to adopt UGC criteria and guidelines for promotions. A scholar with Ph.D. becomes eligible to be promoted to full professor after completing 16 years of continuous service and fulfilling the criteria (can be viewed in the website). Merit promotion streams are also in place for meritorious teaching and research staff members. The promotional tree is: assistant professor, associate professor or reader and full professor.

Best wishes.

Dear All,

The causes of the quality decline of university graduates may be various from country to country. I think the major raison may be the continually spreading commercialisation which basically determines the standard of teaching and examinations. There may be troubles also with promotions. In Hungary, the newly introduced PhD cannot be a valuable scientific degree. I have experienced here at RG that PhDs of some countries were not able to calculate percentages and elementary analytical calculations caused them troubles. Ergo, there are high differences among PhDs of various countries.

I think we should not bend rules for promotions because of workload. university lecturer is supposed to be teaching and as the same time conduct research.

The decline in quality of graduates is not only because of promotion rules. Most of the Assistant Professors at junior level are loaded with exam invigilation and clerical work in dept.  The seniors are given charge of some or other activity not connected to teaching or research. This dilutes the focus on teaching and research. Secondly the faculty without any practical experience on application of the subject and update on latest developments in the field is getting bookish. In such circumstances students mug-up and get through without understanding. Industrial experience / exposure should be compulsory in order to elevate quality of graduates.

The contributions of the RG colleagues (Professors B.R. Rajeswara Rao, András Bozsik, Taratisio Ndwiga, and Anil Onkar ) are highly valuable & are welcome. I think that the presented ideas offer advantages to those who want progress: A commission is required to set clear fair guidelines for promoting staff on the basis of research & teaching. Commercialization has hit the academic process hard resulting in holders of PhD degrees who do not deserve MSc due to their horrible performance (I even saw, dear András, persons who had full professor title but could not teach or solve problems of first year general basic courses). Rules for promotion must not be bent for personal reasons (There are some universities which bend them in order to prevent specific scholars from promotion!). I agree that the decline of the quality of graduates is not solely due to imperfect promotion’s regulations; there are other reasons such as (when more weight – 10 points- is given to a single published research paper while -4 points- are given to decades of excellent teaching, then this encourages university scholars to ignore their duties of providing high quality teaching). The question is: Why are they bringing thousands of students to a university when these students will not be given proper education by teachers who are busy & not focused?  

Dear Dr. Nizar

Appreciate your valuable suggestions and conclusions drawn based on the posts.

Best wishes

Is it only due to the system/policies or questionable parameters. Ii agree to Prof. rao's submission that there is a clearly laid down policy by UGC in India. But what about the people at the seat of decision making. A rule is made for teachers to have a certain exam to be passed. does that put the person on equal footing with others or higher or lower is a function of the believes of the individual decision maker.

Why is that some time teaching is taken as a default profession till a so called dream job comes thru for candidates.are serious talent coming and getting retained in education. Even the ones who do venture in are not taken seriously as they being the OUTSIDERS to the system.

Why is the focus on quantifying a qualitative activity of teaching in to hard numbers. Mainly for evaluating a teacher.

Why is the system forcing people to acquire PhD not because he/she has the liking or aptitude but is a piece of paper needed to get rewards / grants / promotions / research projects.

I feel a systemic change is what is required. A need of alignment of goals of teaching to nation and society building. and capacity creation for creativity and change is behaviour.

May be a rating scale need to be redrawn.

I seek comments of the learned people of this thread to share their expert comments on a new evaluation system for teachers.

Should it be documentary evidence based (degree/certificate/awards) only. or some more needs to be added.

 Dear Dr. Sudeep Limaye, Your contribution is much appreciated. I agree with you that higher educational systems ought to be changed together with their "unscientific" ratings. I'll draw a simile from an industrial plant. If after all the processes & operations, the product came out with defects then the product must not go to the market. If it goes in a hasty manner, then (as we have seen from examples of highly developed countries)the product is withdrawn & those who bought it are compensated fairly. The product of any university is its graduates; if they are of low quality then the high interests of any nation is to rectify such university because at the end of the day, these " incapable" graduates will spread their harm in all directions.

 Dear Professor Roland Moraru, After thanking you for your participation , I must express my regards for your honest scholarly opinions. Admitting that the problem exists is scientific attitude. In some places, you will see "scholars" praising the "wise" decisions & policies of those above in a hypocritical cowardly manner . At the same time, the facts on the ground are contrary to the "propaganda":There is a decline in the quality of graduates. It is time for the "bosses" to halt evaluating the teachers ONLY; they themselves require evaluation by independent committees. It is ironical when you see the academic staff being singled out for evaluation while the administrative staff is NOT evaluated at all. As if those below are the center of the blame while those above are angels with no sins! 

Yes agreed there is a decline. Even the inputs to students should be made in line with industry demands, not just completing syllabus alone.

http://m.hindustantimes.com/india-news/cheating-arrangement-bihar-education-minister-says-fair-exams-impossible-in-state/article1-1328251.aspx

Dear Professor Krishnan Umachandran, Thank you for your valuable enriching contribution which included the terrible pictures of those who help their sons in exams in an immensely destructive manner "cheating". I have 2 wise quotes about the "crime" of cheating: 1) “Cheating in school is a form of self-deception. We go to school to learn. We cheat ourselves when we coast on the efforts and scholarship of someone else”. Quote from James E. Faust (American clergyman). 2) “The first and worst of all frauds is to cheat one's self. All sin is easy after that”. Quote from Pearl Bailey (American actress)

 Dear Sana Ullah, Thank you very much for your nice contribution.The decline in the educational systems is nearly worldwide. It is a serious problem that must be addressed properly by scholars & by governments "who claim that they are keen on serving their nations". The top & the bottom of the educational systems need rectification. I like RG & I think the RG colleagues offer  fruitful discussions that have a good impact  on academics now & will also have in the near future.

Such of those make heinous crimes, a terror record, poor development and cultural degradation.

Dear All,

Roland’s brief comment may be valid also for many ex-socialist countries.

English type BSc training was introduced some years ago into many EU countries where another higher education system was used former.

The new education instruction form (a 3 year training) has not proved to be too successful (a real disaster). The teaching material and the courses were drastically shortened, the curricula are not suitable for practical aims and the knowledge level of students is questionable.

Recently, a multimillionaire - working in animal husbandry - was interviewed by a national paper and expressed radically his dissatisfaction with the knowledge level of young BSc holders. In addition, the state secretary of higher education described modestly a decline of higher education in Hungary.

Here you are some details:

https://www.researchgate.net/post/What_are_your_experiences_with_the_introduced_BSc_training

https://www.researchgate.net/post/How_is_provided_and_assured_the_quality_of_higher_education_in_your_country

Dear Dr. Nizar Matar,

Dear All,

It is advantageous to be optimistic. I am afraid that fruitful discussions of RG participants are like talking to a brick wall when the structure, resources and funding of education is determined by policy makers. Once upon a time…

Dear RG colleagues, Your involvement in discussions of questions raised in RG (including this one) will have an effect either after a while or in the long run. Topics , discussed before, moved some deans of scientific research in some universities to send memos to the staffs warning them of publishing in "false" journals which only aim at collecting money. In the present world, a constructive idea in the internet will move fast & there is strong possibility that it will be picked by some noble persons who will utilize it for the good of the educational process; a process which is essential for the advance of any country. I believe that any advance anywhere will eventually benefit all of us. 

An anonymous scholar "by the name of rivulus" has this to say in this thread:

"From my experience, an attitude of looking down on teaching is too often cultivated among some faculty members, which makes it very difficult for other faculty (and graduate students) to take pride in teaching well and take the time learn the teaching skills. I can understand that some people value research over teaching, but it irritates the hell out of me when professors who choose to spend their time on good teaching instead of publishing are looked down on & penalized. I know of two Profs voted "teacher of the year" who did not get tenure because they didn't get enough publications. They spent their time grading carefully, planning stimulating lectures, helping students, etc. Just so I'm clear: I'm not against research -- it's a valuable thing -- just against the attitude that it's somehow superior to teaching. Different institutions strike a different balance between the two but I think too many PhDs are strutting around at colleges that are not primarily research schools with the wrong (self-deluded?) perception of their exalted role there.".

I think this contribution shows again why there is decline in the quality of universities' graduates nearly worldwide.

Yes, of course, You are quite right Dr.Nizar

Dear Nizar Matar,

Dear All,

The phenomenon you commented is well-known practically everywhere. Unfortunately, research results have been given a one-sided advantage in the last 20 years in my country and teaching merit has not been properly acknowledged. Students talked on an ecology professor who so concentrated on his research that he practically did not examined his students: it was sufficient to send him the official transcripts and he gave everybody an excellent mark.  He had this examination practice during many years.   

In India, political bosses influence so much in the University matters in the State controlled Universities that quality of teachers is no longer important! I administer a University; I know what I am saying!

Dear RG colleagues, Sorry for not commenting on your valuable contributions because of some problems in the last 50 days. In these days, I used to come to RG fast & leave fast because I borrowed a laptop from a student who needed it.

I am nearly sure ,from your ideas, that there is a general bias towards research in promotion & less consideration of teaching for such purpose in many places. I think that there is also a global trend to evaluate professors by students & a "smart" professor works on getting good evaluation by buying the students with high marks.

Don't you think that there is a smell of "conspiracy" here?  When a lecturer in country (X) teaches well, the people of (X) will benefit. When a lecturer in country (X) does research to send the benefits to country (Y) , then the people of (X) have gained nothing. Then why the people of (X) will finance the research & then the promotion to "fat" salary for that "researcher" ?  I think that, as dear Hemanta pointed out, politics influences the whole scene. We still live under colonialism but it only changed its face & its tools.

In fact, in India, in the Indian Institutes of Technology for example, whatever be the capacities of teaching and research of a teacher, the students who enter to study are very intelligent indeed. On top of that such institutes are highly ranked. Therefore, after graduation, such students get jobs outside the country. All the money that the Indian government spends to train such students thus go in vain. On the other hand, students who study in the low ranked institutes ultimately have to do the work of nation building.    

Dear George, I think that all the members of that department have betrayed the university & the country. Appointing an inferior member to them may be driven by personal calculations but this dishonest act will mean lowering the level of the department which they may claim that they are working for its advacement.

Dear Hemanta, If a farmer grows an apple tree & then all its production goes for the benefit of another person, wisdom will deduce that the other person has robbed the farmer or dictated on him to accept this unfair deed. A similar game goes on in universities of the 3rd world where countries spend too much money on students & professors (engaged in costly research & having high salaries for this) but eventually the bright students as well as the research results go abroad for the benefit of countries which paid nearly nothing. It is as if 3rd world universities have been "tailored" to be servants for foreign agendas.

Michael Williams wrote in the New York Times on 8 February 2011- Quote:

"I guess it's natural that the students themselves are the first ones to be scrutinized when it comes to concerns about the state of education. I hope, however, that equal attention is paid to the instructors & institutions. Given my current experience with post-graduate education, of more concern to me than the quality of students is the quality of our educators & educational institutions. In particular, I have questions about the primary focus of instructors--it appears that actual instruction is last on the list of priorities for professors (whereas research, and the money that comes with it, takes precedence). Assigning hours of reading & homework quite often is a lazy substitute for actual worthwhile instruction rather than a legitimate effort to guide students through scholarly works. When instructors take shortcuts, students learn from that, as well. Otherwise, educational institutions should just issue a reading list & some standard videotaped lectures, which will allow professors to focus more of their time on research and students to save money on full tuition." End of Quote.

I am grateful for Professor Reinaldo Requeiro who recommended this "4 years old question" 18 hours ago. This made me read it again & reflect upon what happened since then.

I am a retired person since October 2017 but still do some part-time work in my last University. I have never been interested in the so-called "promotion" through the years of my career. I just focused on carrying out a truly honest job which emphasized upon teaching with very little research that has not been published since it included novel discoveries for making important products by "cheap" methods. At least, 2 patents will be prepared in the near future.

Saying that, I still believe that the promotion standards at many universities must be changed so as they become fair or just. Publication of research papers can involve lot of cheating or fraud but teaching does not tolerate games of deception. It is true that a deceiving teacher may try to buy the silence or the approval of students by giving easy tests & high marks but this erroneous approach will surely be uncovered.