The Changing Face Of Engineering Education In Kerala -An Empirical Study At Engineering Colleges In Kerala

The engineering education in Kerala is undergoing dramatic changes. Around fifteen years back only cream students went for engineering studies. At present students are joining the course not for passion to engineering stream but as a matter of prestige and pressure from external environment. The scenario is not different among the faculty community also in terms of quality erosion. The present study aimed to find out the impact of age group, educational qualification, experience, extend of participation of faculty members and impact of career development programs on the quality of teaching. The most popular career development tool utilized by faculty members in the field of engineering is attending Seminars. It may be due to the fact that it is an easy task. The research revels that the majority of faculty members in the Engineering discipline belong to thirty five years and their basic qualification is B.Tech. Apart from that, attending workshops, faculty development program, participating in national and international conference helps a faculty to increase the quality of teaching. It is viewed that there is reluctance from the part faculty members in participating in career development programmes. The history of education in India The history of education in the Indian subcontinent began with teaching of traditional elements such as Indian religions, Indian mathematics, Indian logic at early Hindu and Buddhist centres of learning such as Taxila (in modern-day Pakistan) and Nalanda (in India) before the common era. Islamic education became ingrained with the establishment of the Islamic empires in the Indian subcontinent in the Middle Ages while the coming of the Europeans later bought western education to colonial India. A series of measures continuing throughout the early half of the 20th century ultimately laid the foundation of education in the Republic of India, education in Pakistan and much of South Asia.The Early education in Indian commenced under the supervision of a guru. Initially, education was open to all and seen as one of the methods to achieve Moksha, or enlightenment. As time progressed, due to superiority complexes, the education was imparted on the basis of caste and the related duties that one had to perform as a member of a specific caste. The Brahmans learned about scriptures and religion while the Kshatriya were educated in the various aspects of warfare. The Vaishya caste learned commerce and other specific vocational courses while education was largely denied to the Shudras, the lowest caste. The earliest venues of education in India were often secluded from the main population. Students were expected to follow strict monastic guidelines prescribed by the guru and stay away from cities in ashrams. However, as population increased under the Gupta empire centres of urban learning became increasingly common and Cities such as Varanasi and the Buddhist centre at Nalanda became increasingly visible. The Education in India in its traditional form was closely related to religion. Among the Heterodox schools of belief were the Jain and Buddhist schools. Heterodox Buddhist education was more inclusive and aside of the monastic orders the Buddhist education centres were urban institutes of learning such as Taxila and Nalanda where grammar, medicine, philosophy, logic, metaphysics, arts and crafts etc. were also taught. Early secular Buddhist institutions of higher learning like Taxila and Nalanda continued to function well into the common era and were attended by students from China and Central Asia. On the subject of education for the nobility Joseph Prabhu writes: "Outside the religious framework, kings and princes were educated in the arts and sciences related to government: politics (danda-nıti), economics (vartta), philosophy (anvıksiki), and historical traditions (itihasa). Here the authoritative source was Kautilya’s The Changing Face Of Engineering Education In Kerala -An Empirical Study At Engineering Colleges In Kerala