Page 10 - UNNAT BHARAT ABHIYAN

Fostering Social Responsibility & Community Engagement in Higher Education Institutions in India 9

Students of engineering, for example, can undertake research in partnership with
community on solid and liquid waste disposal.
c) Knowledge sharing and knowledge mobilization

The knowledge available with students and teachers in various disciplines is made
available to the local community to realize its developmental aspirations, secure
its entitlements and access its benefits from various agencies and schemes. These
can take the forms of enumerations, surveys, awareness camps and campaigns,
trainings, learning manuals/films, maps, study reports, public hearings, policy briefs,
cleanliness & hygiene teachings, legal aid clinics, etc. For example, students can
undertake ‘swachhta survekshana’ and/or nutrition survey for mothers and children,
and educate them about hygiene and nutrition.

d) Devising new curriculum and courses
Many institutions of higher education develop new curricula in existing courses as

well as design new courses to engage with community. This enriches the curriculum
of existing courses through locally-appropriate subject-matter. It also creates new,
locally appropriate educational programmes that interest new generation of students.
For example, new courses on financial inclusion, entrepreneurship development and
nutritional value of local produce can improve knowledge and business opportunities
for students.
e) Including practitioners as teachers

Local community elders, women leaders, tribals, entrepreneurs and civil society
practitioners have enormous practical knowledge of a wide variety of issues—from
agriculture and forestry to child-rearing, micro-planning, water-harvesting and
project management. This expertise can be tapped by inviting such practitioners
to co-teach courses both in the classrooms and in the field. Such instructors should
be duly recognized, compensated and respected for their practical experience and
knowledge.
f) Social innovations by students

The students can be encouraged to initiate learning projects with a social impact and
supported by HEIs. Incubation of such social innovation projects by students can
also have meaningful links to existing curriculum and courses. Some competitions
for social innovation are being organized by some HEIs; they should be integrated
into the curriculum.

2. Operational Guidelines
This section provides operational guidelines for implementation of this national curriculum
framework for fostering community engagement and social responsibility in HEIs.

It contains four sub-sections:

1.1 Recommended Curriculum for a new compulsory course in community engagement
for all UG and PG students in HEIs