Teachers at the Delhi University have decided to protest aginst the implementation of the semester system in colleges, not by conducting strikes, but by holding classes outside in the lawns. Members of the Joint Action body (JAB) of teachers will on Thursday and Friday, conduct classes in the lawns outside the office of the vice chancellor to draw his attention to the matter of implementing the semesters for undergraduate courses. Karen Gabriel, associate professor at St. Stephen's College and a member of JAB said that JAB currently had around 100 members. Out of these, around 20 are expected to take their classes out in the open. “The classes will be taught on the two days like any normal day and the students have been told about them. The classes would start at around 8:30am and students will only have to come out in the open and then can walk back to the campus for other classes,” she said. She further added that the administration of the university had never consulted the teachers before the decision to implemented the semester system was taken. The university has already implemented the semester system for 13 undergraduate science courses and there are now plans to completely shift all courses to the semester system mode from the upcoming academic session. Teachers from several departments such as economics, English, history and philosophy have already expressed their disapproval during their general body meetings at the switch to the semester system. Teachers have alleged that the content of the courses is being diluted in order to accommodate the new semester system.
