External Peer Review Report

Department of Urdu

Dhaka University, Dhaka, Bangladesh

26th

December, 2017

Ahmad Shukri Yahaya Dr. Md. Rezaul Karim

Dr. A.F.M. Aminul Haque

1

Table of Content

Chapter Title Page

1 Introduction 3

2 Background of University 6

3 Main Findings of Review 9

4 Recommendations 19

5 Concluding Remarks 23

Appendices

Appendix A: Guidelines on Aspects

Appendix B: Review Schedule

Appendix C: Review Team Members Appendix D: Exit Report (submitted to IQAC right after the review process)

Appendix E: Examples of lesson plan, ILO, etc. Appendix F: Judgment Table

Appendix G: References

2

Chapter 1

Introduction

Quality assurance and continuous improvement in academic programs are critical to meet the

complex environments of human rights and social justice. Self-assessment is the first step towards

quality assurance in education. Recognizing the fact, the objectives of further improvement of the

academic programs for Department of Urdu, University of Dhaka, has gone through a self-

assessment process and prepared a SAR in cooperation and feedback received from the major

stakeholders in the line with major quality assurance areas under the guidelines set-forth by the

University Grants Commission (UGC) of Bangladesh. This chapter describes the main principles of the quality assurance program review process, and

the aspects reviewed. The methodology undertaken is also explained.

1.1 Main Principles of the Program Review Process

The evaluation is meant to validate, verify, and add on to the information given in the Self-

Assessment Report (SAR) prepared by the Department of Urdu. The SAR was obtained in

softcopy on 13th

November 2017 and the hardcopy on the first day of the review visit. The review process is not an accreditation process. Instead, it is to identify the Department’s

strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities in order for it to plan a continuous improvement program

for the near and far future. Since this is the first time an evaluation of this kind is carried out, the

Department would take some time before it can be fully ready for a proper accreditation exercise.

1.2 Aspects Reviewed

The aspects reviewed are as per the guideline stipulated by the IQAC (see Appendix A). There are

ten aspects that are given as follows:

1. Governance

2. Curriculum design and review process

3. Student admission, progress and achievements

4. Teaching and Learning

5. Assessment of student performance

6. Physical Facilities

3

7. Student Support Services including extra-curricular activities

8. Staff and Facilities

9. Research and Extension

10. Process Management and Continuous Improvement

1.3 Methodology

The key features of the peer review process include the followings: • The critical analysis of the Self-Assessment Report (SAR), provided by the SAC,

Department of Urdu, University of Dhaka.

• Observation of teaching-learning process in a lecture room environment. • Review of a wide range of academic and administrative documents including attendance

record, answer scripts, students' profile, CV of Faculty members, books, Journals etc.

• Gathered information on activities related to quality assurance in higher education through

intensive discussions with the major stakeholders including students, faculty members,

alumni, employers, non-academic staff, University administrations and top management. • Site visit to central facilities such as library, medical centre, sports facilities, student hall (both boys (Jashimuddin Hall) and Girls (Ruqayyah Hall), canteen, student welfare

departments such as proctors, student advisors etc.

• Identified the strengths and weaknesses of the department. • Observed available laboratory facilities such as computer laboratory. • Identified the areas needed for further improvement of quality enhancement in education.

The SAC of the Department of Urdu, University of Dhaka, in cooperation with the IQAC at

Dhaka University, organized various activities during the site visits from 21th

November to 23th

November 2017. The site visits included a number of meetings with various stakeholders across

the University, including the Librarian, Dean of Arts Faculty, Proctor, Controller of Examinations,

Registrar, Head of the Department, Academic and Non-academic Staffs, Students, Alumni, and

Employers. All the meetings included open discussion, question-answer session among the

representatives of the stakeholders and the external peer review team members. The stakeholders

were open, and engaged actively during the discussions with the team members, which greatly

increased the quality of the conversations and brought useful insights as well.

The external peer review team appreciates the help and initiative taken by the Department of

Urdu, University of Dhaka, for quality assurance. The team is also thankful to the Director and

Additional Directors of the IQAC at University of Dhaka, Head of the Department of Urdu,

University of Dhaka, and the SAC for their useful works in this regard.

The review schedule is given in Appendix B. The schedule was provided by the Department of

Urdu SA team leader. The review team adheres to the schedule most of the time.

4

1.4 Review Team

This peer review is based on the SAR prepared by the Self-Assessment Committee (SAC),

Department of Urdu, University of Dhaka, and documentary evidences made available to the

external review team during the site visit. The members of the external peer review team are; Professor Ahmad Shukri Yahaya (Foreign Quality Expert) Professor Dr. Md. Rezaul Karim (QA Expert, Local) Professor Dr. A.F.M. Aminul Haque (Subject Expert, Local)

Refer to Appendix C for further details of the external peer review team.

5

Chapter 2

Background of University

2.1 Introduction

In this chapter, some information on the Dhaka University (DU) is given. The information

is gathered from the official website of the University as well as from the Department of

Urdu Self-Assessment Report.

2.2 Academic Programs at DU

DU was established on the first day of July in 1921. It was set up in the city of Ramna on

600 acres of land. The university started its activities with three faculties, twelve

departments, sixty teachers, 877 students and three dormitories (Halls of residence) for the

students. At present the University consists of 13 Faculties, 77 Departments, 11

Institutions, 20 residential halls, three hostels and more than 51 Research Centres. The

number of students and teachers has risen to about 37,064 and 1,885 respectively. Most if

not all of the faculties adopt the semester system. The university has thirteen faculties that

are Faculty of Arts, Faculty of Business Studies, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Faculty of

Engineering and Technology, Faculty of Education, Faculty of Fine Arts, Faculty of Law,

Faculty of Medicine, Faculty of Postgraduates Medical Sciences & Research, Faculty of

Pharmacy, Faculty of Science, Faculty of Social Sciences and Faculty of Earth and

Environmental Sciences. The structure is organized according to faculties, academic

departments, and institutes.

The Department of Urdu is one of 17 Departments under the Faculty of Arts. The

Department of Urdu and Persian was established on 1st

July 1921. It became a separate

department from 10th

March 2007. The Department offers four-year B.A. (Honours) and

one- year M.A. programs along with two-year M.Phil. and three-year Ph.D. programs. 2.3 Research

Apart from undergraduate studies, DU also offers postgraduate education, where research

is carried out. Members of staff are encouraged to carry out research works alongside

teaching duties. Academic staffs also carry out research as part of their duty.

6

2.4 Extra-curricular Activities

DU students participate in many extra-curricular activities on offer, including football,

basketball, badminton, volleyball, etc. There are also social activities, cultural programs,

and inter-department competitions. During national crisis times like floods and cyclones,

students and staff contribute in relief efforts to alleviate the sufferings of the affected

people. The Department has formed a Language club, a Debating club and a Sports club.

However, there is no community service policy officially initiated by the department, the

community service is done by the student’s community separately. The Department of

Urdu does not provide community service.

2.5 Mission and Vision

The official website of DU does not mention about the Vision and Mission of its

university. It is very important to have a Vision and Mission statement of the university. A

Vision statement describes the desired future aspirations of the university- it is a source of

inspiration and motivation. A Mission statement defines the university’s business, its

objectives and its approach to reach those objectives. It concentrates on the present.

Elements of Mission and Vision statements are often combined to provide a statement of

the university’s purposes, goals and values. The Vision and Mission statement should be

short, precise, and informative and need not give detailed information.

The vision and mission of the Department as provided in the Catalog of Program booklet

produced by the Department of Urdu is as follows:

Vision Language is the main source of communication and expression of ideas and thoughts of

the people and literature is the most effective tool to disclose a person’s emotions and

fallings that represents the environment and society around the person at large. This

department wishes to develop and enlarge language ability in the students and to

promote literary interest in creating and expressing their felling and expressing their

feelings and emotions in their writings.

The Department of Urdu, University of Dhaka teaches the students values, ethics,

morality and humanity through Urdu literature.

To develop linkage program with the Urdu Departments of various universities of Asia,

Europe, Africa and America continents.

Formation of the department is to link among national, international and near countries

languages.

Developing the skills of the students through the strongest courses outside of the

department.

Mission Teaching Urdu (popular language of sub-continent) at different academic levels.

7

Offering B.A. (4 years), M.A. (1 year), M.Phil. (2 years) and Ph.D. (3 years) program

in Urdu in order to promote comparative studies, research activities and awareness

among the scholars.

Teaching comparative studies of languages: Urdu, Bengali, Hindi, Persian and English.

And the prominent poets and writers of sub-continent.

To enhance the skills of communication through writing and speaking among the

students and to encourage them in participation research and analytical studies.

To arrange regularly inter-year sports competition, debates, cultural program, seminar

lectures program, workshop and other co-curricular and extra-curricular activities.

2.6 Some Comments

DU should produce a vision and mission statement. A vision statement should be the

aspirations of the university in the future. A mission statement is what the organization is

doing. The vision and mission statement of the Department of Urdu is very long. The vision

and mission statement should be short, precise, informative and need not give detailed

information. It is suggested the vision and mission statement of the Department be relooked

and change accordingly. The vision and mission statement of the Department must support

the vision and mission of the university.

8

Chapter 3

Main Findings of Review

3.1 INTRODUCTION

There are three members of the Self-Assessment Committee at the Department of Urdu. The SAR

was written in a well-structured manner and contains some information. It is our opinion that the

SA members have done a lot of work to start off the quality assurance project. However, the SAR

does not contain the information about the current situation of the Department. The SAR only

discusses about the questionnaires that are given to the stakeholders. For a good SAR, the

description on the current situation of the department must be included. The Intended Learning

Outcome (ILO) must also be included in the SAR. At the moment, the Department does not have

any ILO. The quality assurance process needs to be properly documented. It can be seen that all

the aspects stipulated in the IQAC document have been addressed in one way or another at some

point of its operation. The SAR contains many improvement ideas that will benefit the Department

if implemented. Although there are quality aspects that have been carried out, there is no

structured system of implementation. In other words, they are carried out only when the need

arises. As such, this may hinder success and sustainability of the good practice.

In this chapter, discussions on the areas of quality assurance were critically reviewed at the

program level. The main areas of improvement are taken based on the strength, opportunities and

weaknesses of the Department, as reported in the SAR and accumulated from the reviewers’

observations, dialogs and discussions with various parties associated with the Department.

Since there are many action items to be taken up, they are placed under short term, medium term

and long-term plans. The main points in this chapter are given in Appendix D, which is also the

exit report handed over to the Department at the end of the evaluation on 23th

November, 2017.

3.2 AIMS AND INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES

Currently, the Department has no intended learning outcomes (ILO) of its students that it aims to

achieve. Development of the ILO should be among the first projects the Department should

undertake in the near future. Appendix E gives samples of ILOs.

9

3.3 REVIEW FINDINGS

The finding of the evaluation process, as reported here, is given in terms of the aspects enumerated

by the IQAC, namely (i) Governance, (ii) Curriculum Design and Review Process, (iii) Student

Admission, Progress and Achievements, (iv) Teaching and Learning, (v) Assessment of Student

Performance, (vi) Physical facilities, (vii) Student Support Services including extra-curricular

activities (viii) Staff and Facilities, (ix) Research and Extension and (x) Process Management and

Continuous Improvement. 3.3.1 Governance

The University has documented its organizational structure, with defined responsibilities of the

Chairperson of the Departments and the individual faculty members, in compliance with the legal

framework under which the University is established. The Department has official hardcopy

documents that are kept in the office files. As per the University provision, there are panels of

question paper setters who carry out their duties as per the requirement of the University. The

Department’s academic calendar is available, and the Department tries its best to adhere to it. The

process of student admission and staff recruitment are well documented in the Statutes and

Ordinances, and adhered to. Some vital information is published in the website.

The Department uses the University’s periodically published ‘Academic Calendar’ books that

spell out many of the procedures used. However, the term ‘calendar’ should be substituted with

‘procedures’ to reflect the actual content of the books. The Department does not have a full

curriculum handbook but a booklet called Catalog of Programs that provided useful information of

the Department.

The main area to improve under Governance is the adherence of the Department to the academic

calendar prepared. Although the Department has official academic calendar, it is often unable to

strictly follow the calendar’s schedule. For example, results are not published on time. One of the

reasons for this failure is the delay in grading examination scripts, which arises because of the

two-examiner system of grading that the Department practices. Improvement of examination

results is also responsible for the delay. Sometimes there is a three months delay of the results. In

addition, there are also other reasons that are due mainly to factors not within the control of the

Department (for example the weather, floods, political unrests, etc.). Another main area that needs

improvement is the allocation of budget (about 1.4 Lakhs per year) that is clearly not enough to

run the program efficiently.

It is observed that students are not clearly informed in advance about the aims, objectives, learning

outcomes of the program, and the methods of assessment. These should be disseminated

accordingly, including by uploading the information onto the website. A student handbook

containing all relevant information about the course, the curriculum, rules and regulations should

be provided to all new students.

10

The Department has obtained some inputs from stakeholders (students, alumni, employers, and

staffs) for academic development, which is praiseworthy. Soliciting of stakeholders’ opinion is not

done on a regular and institutionalized basis. It is suggested that the Department institutionalizes

and documents the process of taking and implementing stakeholders’ (students, staffs, alumni,

industry, etc.) opinions for academic development. It should establish regular contact with

stakeholders and seek their views on all aspects of teaching, learning and research. The

Department should obtain periodic feedback (at least once a year) from the stakeholders for

improvement of the governance.

Currently, DU does not have a Vision, Mission, Goals and Objectives. It is important that DU

provide its Vision and Mission statement. The Department provides its own Vision and Mission

statements. However major changes are required so that it is in line with the Vision and Mission of

the university.

The Department has only two lecture rooms to cater for a total of 350 students. Clearly, this is not

enough to accommodate the number of students. For quality education, at least five lecture rooms

should be provided immediately. There are less than five computers in the department. Again, this

is not sufficient. The Department needs a computer room with sufficient sets of computers. There

is no seminar room at the department. Students request that a seminar room with proper facilities

be provided so that students can study and revise their lectures in between classes.

3.3.2 Curriculum design and review process

At the moment, the Department does not have a full-fledged curriculum. It only has a booklet of

the syllabus for the B.A. (Honours) course. The syllabus outline marks distribution, brief course

content for each course, and information about the course. Some of the courses are basic in nature,

while others are applied-based. Due to the basic nature of the courses, students acquire solid

theoretical knowledge. This is the strength of the program, because students who are equipped

with such theoretical knowledge can have easy access to further study and research. The syllabus

does not include the ILO’s. Thus, the Department should incorporate ILO’s in the current syllabus.

During discussions with alumni, there are remarks on how some of the content is outdated, while

other emerging topics within the field are not embedded in the program. The alumni and students

have suggested that the syllabus should include optional courses such as Management Courses,

Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Psychology, International Relations, Political

Science and Development Studies. The students also suggested that more courses in English

should be included in the syllabus. The Department carries out review of the content of the

syllabus, which is good. The review is done every two years as directed by the University.

However, it is not properly institutionalized and perhaps not very comprehensive too. The

Department should look into this, and find a way to have periodic meetings that lead to the

development of relevant and need-based syllabus and curriculum. This should be carried out

formally, with the participation of current student representatives, alumni representatives, and

most importantly, members of the industry. It is suggested that the meetings be held at least once

11

per year. The curriculum must also be aligned with the ILO and program objectives. To maintain a

high standard of program and to measure the quality, benchmarking among prestigious

universities should be done during curriculum design.

The current syllabus of the Department does not follow the standard definition of credit hours. The

standard definition is 1 unit is equivalent to 1 hour of lectures. However, the Department defines

1-unit course as equivalent to 4 hours. The Department should take immediate action to

standardize the definition of units.

3.3.3 Student Admission, Progress & Achievements

Current Students admission process for Department of Urdu of DU is part of

the Central Admission Test Program of the University, as being followed in all

Public Universities of Bangladesh. It is also very competitive and transparent.

At the moment, student progress and achievement are kept in the record system manually. The

records that are kept manually are the total number of years, semester, and credits, for each

student, to be eligible for certification and other credentials. This system is outdated and needs to

be updated. Thus, monitoring system software should be designed so that student progress and

achievement can be obtained by a click of a button. The publication of examination results was

found to be delayed due to the assessment process and some other factors and this leads to

frustration among students. Thus, the department needs to change or modify the assessment

process to enable on-time publication of results. The drop-out rate of students due to examination

failure for the Department is found to be about 30%. This rate is quite high. The Department

should develop a policy to reduce the drop-out rates.

Currently, there is no formal counseling and career services for students in need of assistance in

the Department. It is advised that the Department appoints a few teachers to be counselors as well

as advisors for career development of students. These appointed teachers will need to undergo

basic courses.

3.3.4 Physical Facilities

The University environment and campus life are safe, with adequate facilities. The Department is

located at a building under the Faculty of Arts. The Faculty of Arts shares some of the buildings

from other Departments that are not under its management. This puts some constraint on the

facilities of the Department of Urdu. Hence the Department has limited facilities. Lecture rooms

are not adequate to accommodate all the students. For quality education, at least five more lecture

rooms should be provided to the Department for conducive learning environment. Online library

facility is not available in the Department. Thus, an online library facility should be provided in

the Department. Only a few of the lecture rooms are equipped with multimedia projectors. It is

suggested that all lecture rooms be provided with multimedia projectors. There are no computer

12

rooms and only three computers are available. There are also not enough offices for the teachers.

Two or more teachers are sharing a single room which hampers mentoring of students and affects

privacy as well as research. The non-academic office is small for conducive working condition

with four staff sharing a small room. Appropriate room sizes should be provided.

The department does not have a seminar library. Thus, a seminar library is urgently required so

that students can spend time between lectures. However, the central library has a good collection

of books, journals and periodicals. This will be very helpful to the students. Internet access

through Wi-Fi is only available at the seminar room. Students request that Wi-Fi be made

available everywhere in the department. A full-fledged website containing all relevant information

about the Department and Faculty, students, alumni and other important information should be

maintained. Currently the departmental website is not up to date.

Staffs requested that they are provided with a common room with appropriate facilities. The

students requested that toilets be cleaned regularly so that it is hygienic. Female washroom was

found to be inadequate. Playground, sports facilities, and gymnasium should be made available to

all the students. The non-academic staff requested that accommodation for them is provided since

some of the staffs have to travel quite far to work.

Students are provided healthcare facilities centrally. The University has a medical center inside the

campus. The medical centre is well equipped with all facilities like pathology, X-ray, dental

facilities, ophthalmology, and physiotherapy. However, there are about 23 doctors to cater for all

the students. Hence, students’ complaint that the services they receive are not satisfactory. Thus,

some reforms are needed.

The EPR members have the opportunity to visit the Jashimuddin Hall of residence for male

students. The hall has very good facilities including study rooms and a mosque. There are societies

such as the debating society and the blood donation society. The canteen is clean, hygienic and

well maintained. We also visited the Ruqayyah Hall of residence for female students. The

ambience of the hall is very good and facilities are ideal for students. Two new blocks of residence

are nearly completion at the Ruqayyah Hall and this will hopefully reduce the problem of over-

crowding. However students requested that proper and more conducive accommodation facilities

be provided. This might be due to over-crowding in the hall.

3.3.5 Teaching and Learning

The teaching staffs of the Department are well qualified, with a good blend of experience and

relatively new teachers. Currently there are nine teachers with six Ph.D. holders and three teachers

with M.A. The Department consists of one honorary professor, four professors, two associate

professors, two assistant professors and one lecturer. The teachers’ scholarly ability is very good.

However, since there are relatively new teachers, it is suggested that these teachers are required to

be up-to-date in their subject knowledge. At present, teacher student’s ratio is fair at 1:40. Most

students feel that there is a good relationship between students and teachers. During the

13

EPR’s visit, classroom observation was done and there are good interactions between teachers and

students. This is commendable.

At the beginning of each course, most teachers provide outlines and objectives of the course but

they do not provide a complete lesson plan for the students. The lesson plan should consist of the

scheduled teaching activities such as topics, assignments, tests and quizzes that are planned for the

semester. Currently, no lesson plans are provided to the students. Students should also be informed

of the criteria, processes, techniques that will be used to assess performance. Tools and rubrics

that will be used to assess performance must also be informed during the first lecture.

There is at three extra-curricular activities that are carried by the Department that is the language,

debating and sports club. The current syllabi do not accommodate co-curricular activities. Thus it

is recommended that future re-design of syllabi should include co-curricular activities to produce

well rounded and skilled graduates.

At the moment, there is no institutionalized arrangement for training teachers. Many teachers

remain deprived of pedagogical training. They are unaware of Bloom’s taxonomy and other

pedagogical aspects of an effective teaching-learning process. Thus they can hardly follow

pedagogical strategy in the classroom.

The assessment method followed by the Department is not complicated and hence it is clear to

students and teachers. After discussing with students and teachers, the external peer reviewers are

convinced that the assessment strategies are considerably fair.

Teaching and learning is hampered by the acute shortage of lecture rooms. Currently, there are

two rooms allocated as lecture rooms which are not enough to accommodate the students. The

lecture rooms are equipped with modern teaching aids such as multimedia facilities and audio-

visual systems but are seldom used for teaching especially during the classroom observation. Thus

it is recommended that at least five more rooms are to be provided to the Department and modern

teaching aids should be included in the lecture rooms. Currently, the Department does not have a

computer laboratory. It is proposed that a computer laboratory be provided with well-equipped

computers that can accommodate the number of students.

3.3.6 Assessment of student performance

The assessment of the students’ performance show good compliance with the university rules and

procedures. However, evaluation of the answer scripts is fair but was done by two to three

different examiners. This may cause delay in publishing of the examination results in some cases

because of the time taken to evaluate the answer scripts. Students said the results are only

published two or three months after the examinations. Thus it is suggested that assessment process

and its components should be re-designed so that results can be published on time. It is also

suggested that results of the continuous assessment should be shown to the students immediately

so that students can assess their strengths and weaknesses. There are no guidelines or policy

14

framework for teaching and learning assessment. Thus it is proposed that some form of guidelines

or policy for teaching and learning should be implemented.

3.3.7 Student Support Services including extra-curricular activities

Within the Department’s premise, there are no sports and game facilities. However, the University

centrally provides such facilities. There are many playgrounds available in the campus. Students

can play whatever games they like can go to the playground of their choice. Students are generally

happy with the co-curricular opportunities given to them as they have enough opportunities to

participate in the activities that they like. This is laudable, given the fact that students learn much

from outside-the-class activities and interactions. Students also feel that there is at least one extra-

curricular activity carried out by the Department.

DU provides limited number of scholarships to meritorious students. There are occasions where

the High Commission of Pakistan provides scholarships for the students of the Department. The

Teacher-Student Centre (TSC) of DU also arranges part-time jobs and financial assistance for poor

and meritorious students. The Department has a Students Welfare Fund through which financial

support are provided to the students. This is good but some effort is required so that more

scholarships are made available to students.

Medical facilities are provided by the University. The University has a medical centre inside the

campus. The medical centre is well equipped with all facilities like pathology, X-ray, dental

facilities, ophthalmology, and physiotherapy. However, there are about 23 doctors to cater for all

the students. A number of students said that the medical facilities are not easily available to all

students.

Currently career counseling is not available for the students. It is suggested that the Department in

collaboration with the University can provide at least a yearly event such as a Career Week where

government departments, companies and other entities can provide information about job

opportunities. A member of staff can also act as career advisors to the students.

The Department does not have an alumni association. During the meeting with the alumni, they

are very positive and willing to contribute to the alumni association. Thus it is recommended that

an alumni association be formed as soon as possible. The Department should take advantage of

them by explicitly making known what it wants from them. For example, it should be clearly

stated that the Department wants more participation of the alumni in teaching delivery, curriculum

design, career guidance and counseling, job fairs, fund-raising, donation, etc. As in anywhere in

the world, alumni are usually willing to make monetary contributions if they are formally asked,

and if there is a formal system of collecting and dispensing the money. The Department and in

particular the University should organize programs relating to career guidance and university

industry collaboration with the active participation of the alumni association. The Department

must also encourage the participation of students on community services. At present, this is done

informally.

15

Canteens are adequate in numbers around the campus. However, students feel the need for more

canteens that serve better quality foods, provide good services and offer subsidized prices.

3.3.8 Staff and Facilities

The University has a well-documented recruitment policy for academic and non-academic staff.

At the moment there are nine academic staffs and five non-academic staffs in the Department.

Currently, this is not an ideal number for the Department. Some new academic and non-academic

staffs should be employed based on the number of students in the department.

The Department has organized guest lectures where specialized talent and reputed professional

executives are invited to highlight the topics of current interest. This is done irregularly. This type

of seminar should be done periodically and proper documentation must be done. Academic staffs

should also conduct seminars and workshops on their expertise so that new knowledge can be

shared among teachers and postgraduate students.

The Department does not have a good system to help poor achievers among the student

population. It is recommended that the Department establish a formal academic guidance and

counseling system. All faculty members should be assigned a number of students under their care

from the time the student register until the time they graduate. This way, each student has their

own academic advisor who is aware of the student’s academic achievements and problems. Hence

the Department should allocate some fund so that teachers can be trained to be effective academic

guidance and counselor.

Teachers should also conduct regular lectures, complete the course in stipulated time and

publication of examination results must be done according to schedule. This suggests that lesson

plans for each course are vital.

The non-academic staffs are quite happy with their relations with the teachers and students.

Nevertheless, they face a number of issues about work priorities. Their desire is to have a better

relation concerning the working environment. They are also worried about their career

development. There are no training facilities for the non-academic staff and well as academic staff

provided by the department of the university. Thus it is suggested that training programs for non-

academic staff as well as academic staff be introduced by the Department or by the University to

provide necessary skills.

3.3.9 Research & Extension

The senior faculty members have an impressive list of publications. There is a good publication by

a member of the academic staff called Poet of Politics that was recognized by the government.

Some of the faculty members are also involved at national level about mitigating issues and crisis

16

of the Urdu language. This is highly commendable. However, the junior faculty members have not

produced quality publications. Therefore the faculty members must motivate students to produce

high quality research works. This will in turn produce high quality publications. The department

has also produced a yearly journal called Journal of Urdu. This is laudable. Some effort should be

done to make the quality of journal to be higher and obtaining the status of ISI or SCOPUS

journal.

Research grants are not readily available to the teachers. There are also no external research

funding obtained by the teachers in the Department. Thus, it is recommended that all faculty

members must be encouraged to obtain funds for their research work. The University can play a

major role by providing enough funds so that teachers can actively conduct research activities.

This in turn will produce high quality journal publications.

The Department should explore research opportunities with other members of the industry as well

as with alumni. The Department can be a source of the industry to undertake Ph.D. on a part time

basis. Thus dialogs with members of the industry should be performed so that dissemination and

transfer of research findings to the industry can be made. A Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for collaborative university-industry research should be undertaken.

The external peer reviewers found that documental evidences for policy and program on research

and development (R&D) are not available in the department. It is proposed that policy and

program on R&D be implemented immediately. It was also found that the research environment is

not conducive in the Department because of lack of facilities that are available.

3.3.10 Process Management for Continual Improvement

The Department has recently established internal quality assurance system as provided by the

guideline of the IQAC and appointed SAC members as a mechanism to coordinate the activities.

The SAC team of this department should have good interaction and relation to steer its future

quality-related activities. The Department should now prepare a comprehensive improvement plan

and implement it appropriately. The SAR should be improved further, as well as the

recommendations given in this report, can be used as the reference point for developing the plans.

Regular workshops and meetings to get feedback from stakeholders should be arranged on a

regular basis.

The external peer reviewers have found some important points that are lacking as follows: (1) Self-assessment was not done on a regular basis. (2) Feedback system from different stakeholders such as alumni, industry, employers and

students are not taken into considerations. (3) Short-term, Medium-term and Long-term actions plans for continuous improvements must

be implemented by the Department and the University. (4) Formal evaluation of teaching and learning mechanism must be done (5) Skill development for staff and faculty are not in place

17

(6) Key Performance Index must be followed for promotion/up-gradation of staff and

faculties.

18

Chapter 4

Recommendations 4.1 RECOMMENDED ACTION ITEMS FOR THE UNIVERSITY

While there is a big scope for the Department of Urdu to take up improvement projects to make

itself better for its stakeholders, support from the University is needed. This is because some of the

improvement items are beyond the capacity and capability of the Department due to financial

limitations as well as the restrictions stipulated in the University Statutes & Ordinance.

Below are some recommendations that can be taken up by the University (i.e. the IQAC, with the

support of the VC’s Office):

4.1.1 Publish all documents of University Ordinance and Statutes in DU’s general website. This

will enable transparency in the procedures used by the University administration. This is

especially important in justifying certain decisions made by the University leaders and

heads.

4.1.4 Publish the job specifications and expectations of all University administrators, including

the dean and the chairperson. Again, this will enable transparency to all staff members and

students. If there is no job specification in place, it should be developed appropriately.

4.1.5 Align and coordinate the academic calendar of all departments in DU. Alignment of the

academic calendar will reduce incidences of late examination result publication and other

instances of non-adherence to the academic calendar.

4.1.6 Develop a strong university-wide research policy. The policy should be designed in a way

that encourages and motivates research to be carried out by teachers. The policy should

also address and facilitate the issue of funding. KPI for teachers should be well-defined.

4.1.7 Draw up a short, medium, and long term plan for the upgrading of the University’s

academic & research infrastructure. The present small amount of research funding hinders

the progress of higher level research at the Department.

4.1.8 Draw up a short, medium, and long term plan for the upgrading of the University’s physical

infrastructure. Facilities such as lecture rooms, computer laboratories and computer

facilities, common rooms, prayer rooms and toilets should be addressed. Maintenance

procedures and allocation should also be addressed.

19

4.1.9 Draw up a short, medium, and long term plan for the upgrading of the university’s ICT

infrastructure. Internet bandwidth needs to be improved for faster connectivity.

4.1.10 Monitor student satisfaction of the various facilities provided throughout the university,

such as medical, hostel facilities and canteen.

4.2 RECOMMENDED SHORT TERM GOALS FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF URDU

(1 month-3 months)

Below are some short-term goals recommended to the Department. Each goal warrants the setting

up of a small committee who work together and report to the Chairperson on a regular basis (every

2-weeks or every month). The Chairperson should be assisted by the SAR Committee in the

deliberation of the plans to achieve the goals.

4.2.1 Develop lesson plans for all the courses offered in the current year (See Appendix E for

sample lesson plan; suggested KPI: no. of courses with lesson plans developed)

4.2.2 Develop program learning outcomes (ILO), and Course Outcomes (COs).Map all three.

Alignment is very important to avoid skill mismatch. Publish in website. (Teachers require

some training to do this) See Appendix E for samples; suggested KPI: existence of

graduate profile, ILO and CO is the Department website)

4.2.3 Introduce peer observation and teaching performance evaluation by students. (Suggested KPI: existence of evaluation format, and implementation of the evaluation)

4.2.4 Introduce official alumni association. (Suggested KPI: Details of the association’s aims,

objectives, and activities spelled out)

4.2.5 Re-examine the current examiner system (which is the reason for delay in the publishing of

exam results). As discussed during the review, perhaps dividing the exam questions into

two parts, with each part sent to different examiners simultaneously would overcome

problems of delay. Alternatively, the department might want to explore NOT sending to a

second examiner at all, thus saving much time and financial resources in doing so.

4.2.6 Set up teacher-student interaction programs (dialogs, cultural events, sports events, picnics,

etc.) throughout the year. Involve some students in the planning of the programs to get

ideas from them and to garner cooperation from them when the programs are going to be

implemented (Suggested KPI: number of programs implemented in the year)

20

4.3 RECOMMENDED MEDIUM TERM GOALS FOR THE DEPARTMENT (4 months – 12 months)

Below are some medium-term goals recommended to the Department. Each goal warrants the

setting up of a small committee who work together and report to the Chairperson on a regular

basis (once every month or once every two months). The Chairperson should be assisted by the

SAR Committee in the deliberation of the plans to achieve the goals.

4.3.1 Develop documented procedures for doing curriculum review, assessment, getting

stakeholders’ (students, employers, alumni, staff, etc.) feedback, peer observation and

monitoring, academic guidance, counseling, etc. Industry practitioners and alumni

representative should be included in the curriculum committee with necessary amendments

of existing rules. Teachers need to undergo proper training to get this carried out well. (Suggested KPI: number of teachers who have undergone training on this, number of

related procedures developed, implementation of the procedures)

4.3.2 Send teachers to go for pedagogical training, including on Bloom’s taxonomy (Suggested

KPI: number of teachers sent for training, number of areas covered in training sessions,

implementation of proper pedagogy during lectures)

4.3.3 Allocate academic advisors for every student in the Department. Publish the list of

academic advisors and their charges (students) in the departmental website. (Suggested KPI: number of teachers appointed as academic advisors, existence of list of academic

advisors and their students in the departmental website)

4.3.4 At the beginning of the studies, students should be provided with a handbook containing

academic calendar, program learning outcomes, and all other relevant and necessary

information.

4.3.5 Identify the training needs and other needs of support staff, and make plans to fulfill the

needs so that they are not left behind in the Department’s quest for excellence.

4.4 RECOMMENDED LONG TERM GOALS FOR THE DEPARTMENT (1-3 years)

Below are some long-term goals recommended to the Department. Each goal warrants the setting

up of a small committee who work together and report to the Head of Department on a regular

basis. The Head of Department should be assisted by the SAR Committee in the deliberation of

the plans to achieve the goals

4.4.1 Organize dialogs between members of staff and some employers to identify areas where the

employers (who are also members of the industry) can work together with the Department

in terms of curriculum review, research collaboration, student visits, student career

21

counseling, etc. The dialogue should lead towards having an Industrial Advisory Council to

get insights on the emerging needs of the industry and contemporary issues, and

developing MoUs with the employers/industry. (Suggested KPI: number of dialogues

between staff and employers, existence of Industrial Advisory Council, number of MoUs

signed, number of activities carried out under the MoU)

4.4.2 Bring in the industry representatives as honorary/adjunct faculty to support teaching and

learning and bridge the gap between academia and industry. (Suggested KPI: number of

honorary/adjunct faculty, number of visits/class sessions made by the honorary/adjunct

faculty)

22

Chapter 5

Concluding Remarks

There are some areas and aspects that the Department of Urdu has shown merit, but more work

needs to be done. The Department must be willing to carry out the QA process whole heartedly. It

is of utmost importance to institutionalize all good practices so that they remain to be executed

even after the current administration is changed. A proper ‘standard operating procedure’ is

needed to ensure the sustainability of all the good practices. As it is, in carrying out the initial

assessment in accordance to the IQAC procedure, the Department has shown that it has started its

journey towards excellence. However, the Department must be willing to accept the changes that

are required for these changes to happen. Teamwork is of utmost importance. This report merely

validates and fortifies what the Department has reported in its SAR.

Because of the enormity of the task at hand, it will take some years before all the concerns can be

resolved. The challenge is to keep the momentum and enthusiasm high. There is much work to be

done, and there are numerous financial and physical constraints to be dealt with. Nevertheless,

with more commitment among teachers, SA members and the Dean of the Faculty, the

Department will be able to succeed.

23

SAM Annex 8 APPENDIX A: GUIDELINE ON ASPECTS

Annex 8

GUIDELINES FOR EXTERNAL PEER-REVIEWERS

Introduction 1. The UGC through its QA Unit wishes to ensure that the peer-review process makes a full

contribution to its quality assurance and accreditation process. In this context the role of the

peer-reviewers is multifaceted and demanding. The reviewers can assist the universities to

develop their quality assurance systems and for continual improvement of their standards. 2. This note offers guidance to the reviewers and other participants in the peer-review process

on the standards of conduct expected. 3. The QA Unit will monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the review process. Code of Conduct 4. The reviewer is expected to:

• Take all reasonable steps to know and understand the published quality assurance and

accreditation process and in particular the methods of developmental engagements and

accreditation.

• Ensure that they remain up to date with any developments in the published method,

including attending conferences and workshops arranged for peer-reviewers by the

Unit. • Conduct their roles and activities in reviews in a way that fully respects the published

method and protocols, including reaching justifiable evidence- based judgments.

• Undertake their part in review in a way that respects the mission of the entity they are

visiting and avoids bringing to the process any prejudices.

• Show courtesy to all colleagues with whom they work in the review team and in the

institution, including respect for their views and opinion.

• Complete the assignment on time and to a high professional standard, drawing upon

the hand book and the guidance provided in the review.

• Respect the confidences shared in the course of the review, so that they do not divulge

any information on the self-evaluation, the findings of the review team or the conduct

of the review to any other university, any member of the public or the media.

• Contribute a requested by the QA Unit, to the evaluation of the process by offering

constructive comment of their experiences as a reviewer.

• It is expected that peer reviewers will provide the entity with judgments basing on the

review observations for all the QA areas and overall.

Self-Assessment Manual

SAM Annex 9

Annex 9

External Peer Review Report Format Chapter 1

This chapter outlines the main principles of program review, lists the aspects under review and

describes the peer review process. Chapter 2

In case of institutional review, provide a brief history of the University with vision & mission,

Faculty/School/Institute and Department/Discipline and programs in offer. For program review report, provide a brief history of the University, Faculty/School/Institute

and Department/Discipline and describe the program(s) offering entity and the program(s) in

details being reviewed. Chapter 3

Aims, Learning Outcomes of the program(s) provided by the department in its Self-

Assessment Report. Chapter 4

This is the main body of the report that summarizes the findings as the outcomes of the

external peer review in each of the aspects of self-assessment. This chapter should:

• Clearly highlight the strengths and good practices found by the reviewers in each aspect;

• Clearly describe any weaknesses identified by the team; and

• Identify the possibilities and scope of further improvements.

Chapter 5

In this chapter the review team will provide the concluding remarks and specific

recommendations for further improvement and overcome the limitations of the program

offering entity. The review team will also provide judgments on overall performance of the

entity specifying the judgments for of each aspect of self-assessment following the sample

format and rating scale given in the annexes 10 & 11 respectively. In addition, the review report must be signed by the review team members with

acknowledgement and affirmation. 2

Self-Assessment Manual

SAM Annex 10

Annex –10

JUDGEMENTS

Based on the observations during the peer review visit by the Review Team following aspects

were judged using the given rating scale:

Aspects Reviewed

Judgment Numerical

Given Weight

Governance

Curriculum Design and Review

Physical Facilities

Student: Admission Progress and Achievements

Teaching and Learning

Assessment of Student Performance

Student Support Services

Staff and Facilities

Research and Extension

Process Management for Continual Improvement

Total

Final Score Overall Judgment

0 – 15 Unsatisfactory

16-25 Poor

26-35 Good

36-45 Very Good

46-50 Excellent

Considering the judgments given for the different QA aspects, the Review team is able to give an

overall judgment of ………………. for Department of………………….., University of ……….. 3

Self-Assessment Manual

SAOM Annex 11

Annex 11

Rating Scale

Rating Description

5 (Excellent) There are clear and documented policies, procedures and strategies,

which are consistently followed across the program offering entity or

institution. Conformance to these policies, procedures or strategies is

being monitored and action taken for improvement.

4 (Very Good) There are clear and documented policies, procedures and strategies,

which are mostly followed. Conformance to these policies, procedures

or strategies is being monitored and action taken for improvement.

3 (Good) Some form of process takes place, but policies/procedures/strategies are

not clearly stated or documented. Adherence and monitoring takes

place but are not consistent.

2 (Poor) Process takes place in isolation. There is no clear policies/

procedures/strategies guiding the implementation of the process.

Monitoring is not consistent.

1 (Unsatisfactory) No evidence of any policy/procedure/strategies. Process or action takes

place on ad-hoc basis when necessary.

4

APPENDIX B: Review Schedule

Institutional Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC) Room: 401, Centre for Advanced Research in Arts and Social Sciences

(CARASS) (In between Atomic Energy Commission and TSC) University of Dhaka, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh, Phone: +88 02 9661900/4650, Fax: +88 02 9667222

SCHEDULE OF ACTIVITIES FOR EPR TEAM

PROGRAM ENTITY: DEPARTMENT OF URDU

DATE: 21-23 NOVEMBER, 2017

PROGRAM

Sl. Time Activity Venue

Day-1

01 09:30AM-

Meeting with IQAC IQAC

10:00AM Building

02 10:00 AM-

Meeting with SAC Department

11:00 AM

03 11:00 AM-

Tea Break Department

11:30 AM

04 11.00 AM Meeting with alumni Department

05 12:00 PM Meeting with Employers Department

06 01:00 PM -

Lunch Break Department

02:00 PM

07 02:00 PM - Discussion on

Department

04:30 PM Curriculum Design and Review

Teaching- Learning &Assessment

08 04:30 PM -

Snacks & Wrap up of Day-1 Department

05:00 PM

Day-2:

09 09:30 AM Arrival at the university Department

10:00 AM - Visiting Physical Facilities: Medical

University

11:00 AM Center

10 11.00 AM

Tea Break Department

11.15 AM

11:15 AM - Meeting with Students Department

12:15 PM

11 01:00 PM -

Lunch Break Department

02:00 PM

12 02:15 PM - Visiting Physical Facilities: Residential Department

03:45 PM Hall and Central Library

Institutional Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC) Room: 401, Centre for Advanced Research in Arts and Social Sciences

(CARASS) (In between Atomic Energy Commission and TSC) University of Dhaka, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh, Phone: +88 02 9661900/4650, Fax: +88 02 9667222

Discussion on

Physical Facilities

03:45 PM - EPR Meeting Department

04:45 PM

13 04:45 PM -

Snacks & Wrap up of Day-2 Department

05:00 PM

Day-3

14 09:30 AM Arrival at the university Department

10:00 AM - Meeting with Department

15 10:45 AM Non Academic Staff

10:45 AM - Meeting with Academic Staff Department

11:30 AM

16 11:30 AM

Tea Break Department

12:00 PM

17 12:00 PM Discussion on

Dean Office

12:30 PM Governance

18 12:30 PM - Discussion on

Department

01:00 PM Research and Extension

01:00 PM - Discussion on

19 01:30 PM Process Management & Continuous Department

Improvement

20 01:30 PM -

Lunch Break Department

02:30 PM

21 02:30 PM -

EPR Meeting Department

04:00 PM

22 04:00 PM -

Overall Wrap up Meeting Department

04:30 PM

23 04:30 PM -

Logistics Meeting Department

04:45 PM

24 04:45 PM -

Snacks & Closing of the visit SAC

05:00 PM

APPENDIX C – REVIEW TEAM MEMBERS

List of External Peer Reviewer (EPR) Department of Urdu

University of Dhaka, Dhaka 21-23 November 2017

# Type Reviewer

Professor Ahmad Shukri Yahaya

School of Civil Engineering,

1. SA Expert (Overseas) Engineering Campus,

Universiti Sains Malaysia,

14300 Nibong Tebal, Penang, Malaysia

Email: ceshukri@usm.my

Professor Dr. A.F.M. Aminul

Haque(Subject Expert, Local)

Department of Islamic Studies

2. Subject Expert Chittagong University

Bangladesh

aminhaque047@gmail.com

Professor Dr. Md. Rezaul Karim (QA

expert, Local)

3. SA Expert (Local)

Urban and Rural Planning Discipline, &

Ex-Director IQAC, Khulna University

Bangladesh

rkarim1960@yahoo.com

Appendix D

Exit Report

External Peer Review and Validation of Self-

Assessment Report of the

Department of Urdu

University of Dhaka

23 November2017

Department of Urdu 23_11_2017

Forewords

This write-up presents the exit report on the External Peer Review and Validation of Self-

Assessment of the Department of Urdu, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh, carried out from

21-23 November 2017.

Quality assurance and continuous improvement in academic programs are critical to meet the

complex environments of human rights and social justice. Self-assessment is the first step

towards quality assurance in education. Recognizing the fact, the objectives of further

improvement of the academic programs forDepartment of Urdu, University of Dhaka,has

gone through a self-assessment process and prepared a SAR in cooperation and feedback

received from the major stakeholders in the linewith major quality assurance areas under the

guidelines set-forth by the of University Grants Commission (UGC) of Bangladesh.

External Peer Review Process This peer review is based on the SAR prepared by the Self-Assessment Committee (SAC),

Department of Urdu, University of Dhaka, and documentary evidences made available to the

external review team during the site visit. The members of the external peer review team are;

Professor Ahmad Shukri Yahaya(Foreign Quality Expert)

Professor Dr. Md. Rezaul Karim (QA Expert, Local)

Professor Dr. A.F.M. Aminul Haque(Subject Expert, Local) Key features of the peer review process include:

• The critical analysis ofthe Self-Assessment Report (SAR), provided by the SAC,

Department of Urdu, University of Dhaka.

• Observation of teaching-learning process in a classroom environment.

• Review of a wide range of academic and administrative documents including

attendance record, answer scripts, students' profile, CV of Faculty members, books,

Journalsetc.

• Gathered information on activities related to quality assurance in higher

educationthrough intensive discussions with the major stakeholders including

students, faculty members, alumni, employers, non-academic staff, University

administrations and top management. Department of Urdu 23_11_2017

• Site visit to central facilities such as library, medical centre, sports facilities, student

hall (both boys (JashimuddinHall) and Girls(Ruqayyah Hall), canteen, student welfare

departments such as proctors, student advisors etc.

• Identified the strengths and weaknesses ofthe department.

• Observedavailablelaboratoryfacilities such as computer laboratory

• Identified the areas need for further improvement of quality enhancement in

education.

In preparing this review report, the following areas of quality assurance were critically

reviewed at the program level:

1. Governance

2. Curriculum design and review process

3. Student admission, progress and achievements

4. Teaching andLearning

5. Assessment of student performance

6. Physical Facilities

7. Student Support Services including extra-curricular activities

8. Staff and Facilities

9. Research and Extension

10. Process Management andContinuous Improvement

Visiting Sites of the External Peer Review Team

The SAC of the Department of Urdu, University of Dhaka, in cooperation with the IQAC at

Dhaka University, organized various activities during the site visits from21 November to 23

November2017. The proceedings will be itemized and listed in the final peer review report.

The site visits includeda number of meetings withvarious stakeholders across the University,

including the Librarian, Dean of Arts Faculty, Proctor, Controller of Examinations, Registrar,

Head of the Department, Academic and Non-academic Staffs, Students, Alumni, and

Employers. All the meetings included open discussion, question-answer sessionamong the

representatives of the stakeholders and the external peer review team members. The

stakeholders were open, and engaged actively during the discussions with the team members,

which greatly increased the quality of the conversations and brought useful insights as well.

Department of Urdu 23_11_2017

The external peer review team appreciates the help and initiative taken by the Department of

Urdu, University of Dhaka, for quality assurance. The team is also thankful to the Director

and Additional Directors of the IQAC atUniversity of Dhaka, Head of the Department of

Urdu, University of Dhaka, and the SAC for theiruseful works in this regards.

Major observations are given in the following table.

Areas Strengths and Limitations/Observations

Opportunities for further

Reviewed good practices improvements

The University and PoE need

Vision, Mission, Goals

to amend the Vision,

The university Mission, Goals, Objectives

has a well-

and Objectives of the and strategic plans

Department of Urdu is

defined For quality education, at

present in the SAR but

organizational require some changes

least FIVE more classrooms

structure with are to be provided

Acute shortage of

clear number of classrooms,

immediately to the

responsibilities department.

number of computers and

Reports on The new curriculum to be

related

washrooms. developed by the PoE should

Non-existence of

academic include Intended Learning

periodic review and

calendar in Outcomes to reflect the

ratification of policies

printed form mission and objectives of the

and procedures of the

exists PoE.

Governance Program offering Entity

Transparency Periodic (at least once a

of policies,

(PoE) year) feedback from the

Lack of a system of

systems and stakeholders is necessary for

receiving feedback from

procedures improvement of the

the stakeholders for the

The University governance.

purpose of improvement

website Policies on promotion/up-

Office

with reference to gradation of the non-

teaching, learning, and

documentation academic staff should be

research

of all records is uniform.

Allocation of budget (1.4

maintained lakh) is not enough to run The university should

well in the the department for

provide sufficient allocation

department to the department

quality education

office Should include discussions

on Governance in the SAR

report.

Curriculum Content on Curriculum is yet to be Curriculum alignment and

Design and subject matter developed skills mapping are to be

of the syllabus Stakeholders (Employers established.

Review

is well and Alumni) feedback Course learning outcomes

Department of Urdu 23_11_2017

designed are not accommodated are to be defined properly.

Informal duly in the preparation of Curriculum need to be

course outline designing syllabus designed to reflect the

is given to the The standard definition vision/ mission of the

students of credit hours is not university and the PoE and

Syllabus is followed it must be tuned with

reviewed every intended learning

two years as outcomes (ILO).

per direction of Representatives from

the university employers, alumni and

students need to be

consulted in curriculum

preparation.

Benchmarking with other

best practice universities

should be done during

curriculum design

Syllabus should include

several courses to be given

as optional subjects to

students such as

Management course, ICT,

Psychology, International

Relation, Political Science

and Development Studies

More courses in English

language should be

included in the syllabus to

develop the

communication skills of

the students.

Should include discussions

on this topic in the SAR

report.

The currently

No formal counseling

practiced Guest speaker from potential,

Student: admission services for students in both public and private

Admission, policy is well the department. employment agencies, need

Progress and defined and No career counseling is to be invited to deliver job-

Achievement approved by available oriented lectures/talks.

s the appropriate Drop-out rates is about Counseling service for

authorities 30% students need to be

The introduced by the

Department of Urdu 23_11_2017

Department Department/University.

and the PoE should develop policy to

University reduce drop-out rates

maintains a Should include discussions

good track of on this topic in the SAR

the students report.

academic

performance

Class rooms are For quality education, at

inadequate to least FIVE more classrooms

accommodate all the are to be provided

students immediately to the

Online library facility in department.

the department is not Networked computer and

available. online library facilities (in

PoE website is not good the department) should be

enough to represent up- provided immediately.

The Central to-date information A full-fledged website

library have a There is no seminar containing all the relevant

good library in the department information about faculty,

collection of There are only three students, alumni and other

books, computers in a room and facilities should be

journals and this does not constitute a maintained.

Physical periodicals computer laboratory Playground, sports facilities,

The EPRT The keyboard for the and gymnasium should be

Facilities

could not computers is not Urdu made available to all the

witness strong friendly students.

points about The staff seating room is Proper accommodation

the physical small for conducive facilities should be provided

facilities in working condition (four for the students for the

the staffs sharing a small enhancement of educational

department room) system

Accommodation for non- Ladies common room with

academic staff is not appropriate facilities is to be

provided made available.

There is no common Ladies washroom need to

room for staffs provided

Ladies washroom is not Should include discussions

adequate on this topic in the SAR

Students do not have report.

rooms for off-time or

leisure time between

Department of Urdu 23_11_2017

classes

The faculty’s room,

classroom, computer

room are not in the same

floor.

For a proper Teaching and

Learning environment, at

Adequate Teaching and learning is least FIVE more classrooms

affected due to acute are to be provided

number of

faculty shortage of classrooms. immediately to the

members with Due to lack of adequate department.

PhD degree (6 computing facilities, Adequate number of new

in numbers out practical classes are not computers are needed in the

of 9) effective for quality computer laboratory.

There are education. Need to have a seminar

interactions Some teachers, library with computer

between especially, the younger facilities with links to the

teachers and ones need to be up-to- Central library

Teaching students date in subject Teachers are to be provided

during knowledge. training on the recent

and Learning

lectures The classrooms are concepts and pedagogy.

Teacher equipped with modern Use of modern teaching aids

student ratio teaching aids in the classes should be

is fair (1:40) (multimedia facilities, encouraged

Good audio-visual systems) but Extending moral and ethical

congenial not usually used for values is an essential part of

relation teaching during quality education.

between classroom observation. The department should

students and There is minimal or no introduce at least one

teachers community engagements community engagement

by the department activity per semester

Should include discussions

on this topic in the SAR

report.

Good Answer scripts of Results of the continuous

compliance of formative assessments of assessments should be shown

Assessment university rules students are not exposed to the students immediately

and procedures to the students for self-assessment of the

of Student

Evaluation of There is no guidelines or students.

Performance

answer scripts policy framework for There should be guidelines

seems to be teaching and learning or policy for teaching and

fair. assessment learning in the curriculum

Department of Urdu 23_11_2017

Results are

published in

due time

Scholarships

are awarded to Academic and social

meritorious

Academic guidance and counseling need to be

students.

counseling are not introduced by the university.

Medical

formally available. Better medical facilities

facilities are

Very few of scholarships needs to be provided

available

are available for the Extra-curricular activities

Library

Department of Urdu. and sports facilities should

facilities are

Medical facilities are not be increased and it can also

Student available.

easily available to all be incorporated within the

Support Hall of

students academic calendar

Services residences are

Career counseling is not More canteens with better

provided with

good education

in existence for the quality food, good services

students. and subsidized prices are to

environment

Canteens are not be opened in the campus

There exists

adequate in numbers in Should include discussions

two clubs that

the campus on this topic in the SAR

are debating

report.

and cultural

clubs

Introduce stakeholders’

feedback (especially from

the students) including peer

No formal feedback observation on teaching and

system is adopted in the learning.

Extent and EPR team PoE Communications among

use of could not find Lack of active student academic advisor and

any such body(union/club). students need to be

student

practice in the Formal allocation of off- improved.

feedback

PoE. class consultation hours Consultation hours should be

are absent for the allocated during the off-class

students hours

Should include discussions

on this topic in the SAR

report

Well-defined Opportunities for

Staff and recruitment Teachers hardly receive improvement for teaching

Facilities policy is in any research grants staff with doctoral and post-

practice. Formal accountability of doctoral degrees are

Department of Urdu 23_11_2017

the faculties to the higher necessary.

authority is not Non-academic staff career

functioning. development may be

Staff development center strengthened.

does not exist in the Monitoring and

University. accountability is expected.

No training facilities for Training program for

the young faculties and academic and non-academic

non-academic staff. staff could be introduced

Non-academic staff face either by the PoE or by the

a number of issues about University (IQAC may take-

work priorities. Their up this responsibility).

desire is to have better Should include discussions

relations concerning on this topic in the SAR

working environment. report.

Publication

record of

senior faculties

is impressive. Research grants are not

The available to the teachers Faculty members must

department No external fundings motivate students to produce

have produced arefound in the high quality research works.

a yearly department All faculty members must be

journal called Documental evidences encouraged to obtain funds

Journal of for policy and program for research.

Urdu on research and Research grants may be

There is a good development are not explored in collaboration

Research and publication available in the PoE with other faculty members.

(Poet of Quality publications by University could encourage

Extension

Politics) by a junior faculty is lacking and support faculty members

member of the The research and students to participate

staff that is environment is not actively in conducting

recognized by conducive in the research projects by

the department providing enough funds.

government The students are not Should include discussions

Some of the exposed to research work on this topic in the SAR

faculty report.

members are

involved at

national level

for mitigating

issues and

Department of Urdu 23_11_2017

crisis of Urdu

language

Specific action plans need to

be designed and

Self assessment is not implemented to regularly (at

done on regular basis least once a year) perform

IQAC is well Feedback system from self assessment.

organized and

different stakeholders are Feedback from relevant

not sought stakeholders need to be

very dynamic

Medium-term and long- obtained to identify the

to arrange term action plans for potential areas for

required

continuous improvement improvement.

programs

are not there in the PoE Coordination among the

Process University

and the University. faculty members, with the

Management Formal evaluation of management, and with IQAC

administration

for Continual is committed

teaching and learning is needed for effective

Improvement

mechanism does not exist process management

to conducive

Skill development To ensure accountability and

learning mechanisms for staff and transparency KPI plays an

environment

faculties are not in place important role and hence it

for students

KPI are not followed should be followed.

and faculty

properly for Global standard for

members

promotion/up-gradation formative assessment should

of staff and faculties. be followed.

Formative assessment of Should include discussions

students are not adequate on this topic in the SAR

report.

Conclusion

The exit report reflects the observations made by the EPRT members during their visit to the

Department of Urdu, University of Dhaka. A full-length report will be submitted within the

stipulated time as per the self-assessment manual. The team observed significant good

practices carried out by some faculty members in the faculty. Such good practices could be

followed by the younger faculty and continued in collaboration with IQAC for teaching and

learning purposes. The review team is confident that implementing the recommendations

outlined in the report can benefit the faculty as well as the university to promote their image in the national and international arena. Department of Urdu 23_11_2017

Professor Ahmad Shukri Professor Dr. Md. Rezaul Professor Dr. A.F.M. Aminul Yahaya(Foreign Quality Expert) Karim (QA expert, Local) Haque(Subject Expert, Local) School of Civil Engineering, Urban and Rural Planning Department of Islamic Studies Engineering Campus, Universiti Discipline, & Ex-Director Chittagong University Sains Malaysia, 14300 Nibong IQAC, Khulna University Bangladesh Tebal, SPS, Penang, Malaysia. Bangladesh aminhaque047@gmail.com

ceshukri@usm.my rkarim1960@yahoo.com

Department of Urdu 23_11_2017

APPENDIX E: EXAMPLES OF ILO, TEACHING PLAN AND RUBRICS

A. Example of Intended Learning Outcomes for the Zoology Department in the Faculty

of Biological Sciences

1. Students will be able to apply the scientific method to questions in biology by formulating testable hypotheses, gathering data that address these hypotheses, and analyzing those data to assess the degree to which their scientific work supports their hypotheses.

2. Students will be able to present scientific hypotheses and data both orally and in writing in the formats that are used by practicing scientists. 3. Students will be able to access the primary literature, identify relevant works for a particular topic, and evaluate the scientific content of these

works. 4. Students will be able to apply fundamental mathematical tools (statistics, calculus) and physical principles (physics, chemistry) to the analysis of

relevant biological situations. 5. Students will be able to identify the major groups of organisms with an emphasis on animals and be able to classify them within a phylogenetic

framework. Students will be able to compare and contrast the characteristics of animals that differentiate them from other forms of life. 6. Students will be able to use the evidence of comparative biology to explain how the theory of evolution offers the only scientific explanation for

the unity and diversity of life on earth. They will be able to use specific examples to explicate how descent with modification has shaped animal morphology, physiology, life history, and behavior.

7. Students will be able to explain how organisms function at the level of the gene, genome, cell, tissue, organ and organ-system. Drawing upon this knowledge, they will be able to give specific examples of the physiological adaptations, development, reproduction and behavior of different forms of life.

8. Students will be able to explicate the ecological interconnectedness of life on earth by tracing energy and nutrient flows through the environment. They will be able to relate the physical features of the environment to the structure of populations, communities, and ecosystems.

9. Students will be able to demonstrate proficiency in the experimental techniques and methods of analysis appropriate for their area of specialization

within biology.

1

B. Example of Course Outcomes and Teaching Plan

TEACHING PLAN

EAA211 (2) – ENGINEERING MATHEMATICS FOR CIVIL

ENGINEERS SEMESTER I 2016/2017

a) Time & Place Lecture Time / Place 11.00- 1.00 (Tuesday) / DK8 -

Tutorial Time / Place 8.00 – 10.00 (Friday) / DK2 -

b) Lecturer (s)

No. Lecturer Email address Teaching load (Hour)

Lecture Tutorial

1. Prof. ASY ceshukri@usm.my 8

2. Dr MSI cesayuti@usm.my 10

3. Dr NHAR celindarahman@usm.my 10

4. Graduate Assistance (GA) - 14

c) Course Mapping

No. Course Outcome

CO1 Able to apply the basic principles of numerical methods, probability and statistics for solving problems

CO2 Able to analyse related civil engineering using the basic principle of numerical methods, probability and statistics

No. PO LT SS CP CA OE S Assessment Type

CO1 PO1 C3 CP1 Test; Assignment;

Quiz

CO2 PO2 C4 CP2 Test;

d) Course Distribution Assignment;Quiz

Coursework 40%

Examination

60%

i. Test 15%

ii. Assignment 20%

iii. Quiz 5%

2

e) Teaching Plan

W Date Lecturer Topics Assessments CO PO LT

Introduction to error in numerical

calculations; Number and number

accuracy, Absolute Error, relative and

percentage and error analysis; Application

1 5/9/2016 MSI to Civil Engineering problems.

Introduction to interpolation and

extrapolation.

Lagrange estimator; Forward Difference,

2

12/9/2016 MSI Backward Difference.

Central Difference, Divided Difference;

3

19/9/2016

MSI Newton Polynomial.

Assignment 1

CO1;CO2;

PO1;PO2

C3

Chebyshev Polynomial, Least Squares

Estimator; Extrapolation techniques and

4

26/9/2016

MSI curve fitting; Application to Civil

Quiz 1

CO1;CO2

PO1;PO2

C3;C4

Engineering problems.

Bisection Method, Newton Method,

3/10/2016

MSI Muller Method, Fixed Point Method.

5 Application to Civil Engineering problems. Assignment 2 CO1;CO2 PO1;PO2 C3;C4

6 10/10/2016 NHAR Gauss Elimination Method, Gauss-Jordan

Method, Jacobi Method. Application to

3

Civil Engineering problems.

Mid-Semester Test. Differentiation from

7 17/10/2016 NHAR table, Higher level differentiation.

Test 1 CO1;CO2 PO1;PO2 C3;C4

8 24/10/2016 SEMESTER BREAK

Formula For Numerical Differentiation

9 31/10/2016 NHAR and Quadratures Differentiation;

Assignment 3 CO1;CO2;

PO1;PO2 C3;C4

Newton-Cotes Rule, Weddle Rule. CO3

Trapezoid Rule, Simpson’s 1/3 And 3/8

Rule; Application to Civil Engineering

problems.

10 7/11/2016 NHAR

Introduction To Differential Equations, Quiz 2 CO1;CO2 PO1;PO2 C3;C4

Initial Value Problems.

Taylor Series Method, Euler Method,

Modified Euler’s Method, Predictor-

Corrector Method, Runge-Kutta Method;

11 14/11/2016 NHAR

Application to Civil Engineering problems.

Finite Differential Estimator for partial

differentiation.

Solution to Laplace Equation (Formula

21/11/2016 ASY

for standard five point problems), Heat

12 Equation, Wave Equation, Crank

Nicholson Method. Application to Civil

Engineering problems.

4

13 28/11/2016 ASY Probability, Probability Distributions. Assignment 4 CO1;CO2 PO1;PO2 C3;C4

14 5/12/2016 ASY Sampling Distributions; Hypothesis

Test 2 CO1;CO2 PO1;PO2 C3;C4

Testing And Confidence Interval.

12/12/2016

ASY

Curve Fitting, Simple Linear Regression

15 and Correlation; Application to Civil CO1;CO2

C3;C4

Quiz 3 PO1;PO2

Engineering problems.

16 19/12/2016 REVISION WEEK

17- 26/12/2016- EXAMINATION

19 15/1/2016

20- 16/1/2016- SEMESTER BREAK

23 12/2/2016

f) Examination Plan Q Topic CO PO LT CP OE S Lecturer

1 Interpolation/extrapolation/curve CO1 PO1 C3 CP1

fitting. CO2

MSI

PO2 C4 CP2

2 Nonlinear Method. CO1 PO1 C3 CP1

Simultaneous linear equation. CO2 PO2

MSI

C4 CP2

3 Numerical differentiation/integration. CO1 PO1 C3 CP1

NHAR

Simultaneous linear equations CO2 PO2 C4 CP2

4 ODE/PDE CO1 PO1 C3 CP1 NHAR

Probability and statistics CO2 PO2 C4 CP2 ASY

5 Probability and statistics CO1 PO1 C3 CP1

CO2 PO2

ASY

C4 CP2

*Answer 4 out of 5 questions

5

C. EXAMPLE OF FINAL YEAR PROJECT RUBRIC

FINAL YEAR PROJECT EAA492/6

DISSERTATION ASSESSMENT RUBRIC - SUPERVISOR

School of Civil Engineering Title of Project :

Academic Session 2014/15 Name of Student : Matric No :

COMPONENTS MARKS

TOTAL

1-2 3-4 5-7 8-10

Problem Statement and Problem statement and

Problem statement and project Problem statement and project

Problem statement and project project objectives are clear

objectives are clear and objectives are very clear and

Project Objectives objectives are unclear. but need modification and

adequate.

accurate.

clarification.

Literature One or two resources recorded Systematic survey attempted Comprehensive review Literature review is very well

planned and systematically

but incomplete and providing a good basis for the

Review but limited to books. recorded with ability to discuss

inconsistent. project.

it in a broader context.

Poor statement of research Adequate statement of Good statement of research Clear and descriptive

Project Approach/ statement of research

methodology, sample, research methodology, methodology, sample,

methodology, sample,

Methodology instrument, analysis and sample, instrument, analysis instrument, analysis and

instrument, analysis and

procedures. and procedures. procedures.

procedures.

Adequate analysis and Good analysis and descriptive Excellent and advanced

descriptive reporting of analysis and descriptive

Reporting of results are not reporting of results that are

results that are related to reporting of results that are

CONTENT related to research objective, no clearly related to research

research objective with clearly related to research

Results and Discussion use of tables and diagrams, objective with good use of

adequate use of tables and objective with excellent use of

poor writing that may not flow tables and diagrams, good

diagrams, adequate writing tables and diagrams, very good

well and not comprehensive. writing that flows well and

that flows well and quite writing that flows well and

comprehensive.

comprehensive.

very comprehensive.

Poor summary, commentary Adequate summary,

Good summary, commentary Excellent summary,

commentary and commentary and

Conclusions and recommendations for and recommendations for

recommendations for recommendations for

implementation of future implementation of future

implementation of future implementation of future

research. research.

research. research.

References References are not adequate References are quite References are adequate and up References are most adequate

adequate and quite up to

and not up to date at all. to date.

and very up to date.

date.

Project Benefits to Civil The impact of this research is The impact of this research is The impact of this research is The impact of this research is

very significant and can be

significant and beneficial to

Engineering not significant. significant but unclear. utilized for future

specific research area.

advancement.

6

Continue on next page

COMPONENTS MARKS TOTAL

1-2 3-4 5-7 8-10

Required components are

Layout consistent with the The report follows precisely

the prescribed format. Very

Quality is low, little or no present. Report details

Report Structure prescribed format. Easy to read easy to read and follow.

structure with no depth and not activities undertaken with

and follow. Report is organized Report is very organized, well-

FORMAT

organized. explanation and quite

with few grammatical errors. structured and few corrections

organized. required.

Reference Format

Little or no conformation to Some errors in formatting Few minor errors and Good format and very

format and not consistent. and quite consistent.

consistent. consistent.

Grammar structure is quite Uses proper grammar and

LANGUAGE Grammar and Clarity Grammar structure is adequate Uses proper grammar and spelling with clear, concise

adequate and explanation is

but explanation is not clear. spelling with clear explanation. and comprehensive

quite clear.

explanation.

Student has a good initiative to Student has a very good

initiative to complete the given

Student has no initiative and Student has less initiative and complete the given tasks and

Initiative and Effort tasks, with extra ideas

effort to complete the given effort to complete the given demonstrated effort to explore

exploration, two-way

tasks. tasks. ideas outside the proposed idea

discussion and exchange of

by supervisor.

information.

Application of Minimal standards in the Adequate standards in the High standards in the Excellent and high standards

in the acquisition and

acquisition and application of acquisition and application of acquisition and application of

Knowledge application of knowledge,

KNOWLEDGE, SKILL knowledge, skills and ability. knowledge, skills and ability.

knowledge, skills and ability.

skills and ability.

AND ABILITY

Poor level of creative and Adequate level of creative

Good level of creative and Excellent level of creative and

ASSESSMENT Thinking Ability

analytical thinking. and analytical thinking. analytical thinking. analytical thinking.

Work Quality Unable to complete the given Completed the given tasks in Completed the given tasks in Completed the given tasks in

specified time but less specified time with good specified time with excellent

tasks in specified time.

quality level.

quality of work. quality of work.

Project Management Unable to plan and control the Able to plan and control Good planning and controlling Excellent planning and

ability to deliver the given and controlling ability to deliver

given tasks for project given and required tasks for

Skills required tasks for project the given and required tasks

completion. project completion.

completion. for project completion.

TOTAL

SUPERVISOR :_________________________________________________________________________________________ SIGNATURE AND DATE :___________________________________________

Comments/Recommendations :

Please write down your comments/recommendations (if necessary) on separate sheet

7

FINAL YEAR PROJECT EAA492/6

DISSERTATION ASSESSMENT RUBRIC – INTERNAL EXAMINER

School of Civil Engineering Title of Project :

Academic Session 2014/15 Name of Student : Matric No :

COMPONENTS

MARKS TOTAL

1-2 3-4 5-7 8-10

Problem Statement and Problem statement and

Problem statement and project Problem statement and project

Problem statement and project project objectives are clear

objectives are clear and objectives are very clear and

Project Objectives objectives are unclear. but need modification and

adequate.

accurate.

clarification.

Literature One or two resources recorded Systematic survey attempted Comprehensive review Literature review is very well

planned and systematically

but incomplete and providing a good basis for the

Review but limited to books. recorded with ability to discuss

inconsistent. project.

it in a broader context.

Poor statement of research Adequate statement of Good statement of research Clear and descriptive

Project Approach/ statement of research

methodology, sample, research methodology, methodology, sample,

methodology, sample,

Methodology instrument, analysis and sample, instrument, analysis instrument, analysis and

instrument, analysis and

procedures. and procedures. procedures.

procedures.

Adequate analysis and Good analysis and descriptive Excellent and advanced

descriptive reporting of analysis and descriptive

Reporting of results are not reporting of results that are

results that are related to reporting of results that are

CONTENT

related to research objective, no clearly related to research

Results and Discussion research objective with clearly related to research

use of tables and diagrams, adequate use of tables and objective with good use of objective with excellent use of

poor writing that may not flow tables and diagrams, good

diagrams, adequate writing tables and diagrams, very good

well and not comprehensive. writing that flows well and

that flows well and quite writing that flows well and

comprehensive.

comprehensive.

very comprehensive.

Poor summary, commentary Adequate summary,

Good summary, commentary Excellent summary,

commentary and commentary and

Conclusions and recommendations for and recommendations for

recommendations for recommendations for

implementation of future implementation of future

implementation of future implementation of future

research. research.

research. research.

References References are not adequate References are quite References are adequate and up References are most adequate

adequate and quite up to

and not up to date at all. to date.

and very up to date.

date.

Project Benefits to Civil The impact of this research is The impact of this research is The impact of this research is The impact of this research is

very significant and can be

significant and beneficial to

Engineering not significant. significant but unclear. utilized for future

specific research area.

advancement.

8

Continue on next page

COMPONENTS MARKS TOTAL

1-2 3-4 5-7 8-10

Required components are

Layout consistent with the The report follows precisely

the prescribed format. Very

Quality is low, little or no present. Report details

Report Structure prescribed format. Easy to read easy to read and follow.

structure with no depth and not activities undertaken with

and follow. Report is organized Report is very organized, well-

organized. explanation and quite

FORMAT with few grammatical errors. structured and few corrections

organized.

required.

Reference Format

Little or no conformation to Some errors in formatting Few minor errors and Good format and very

format and not consistent. and quite consistent. consistent. consistent.

Grammar structure is quite Uses proper grammar and

LANGUAGE Grammar and Clarity Grammar structure is adequate Uses proper grammar and spelling with clear, concise

adequate and explanation is

but explanation is not clear. spelling with clear explanation. and comprehensive

quite clear.

explanation.

TOTAL

EXAMINER :_________________________________________________________________________________________ SIGNATURE AND DATE :_____________________________________________

Comments/Recommendations :

Please write down your comments/recommendations (if necessary)

9

10

APPENDIX – F

JUDGEMENTS

Based on the observations during the peer review visit by the Review Team following aspects were

judged using the given rating scale:

Aspects Reviewed Judgment Numerical

Given Weight Governance 4 5 Curriculum Design and Review 2 5

Physical Facilities 3 5

Student: Admission Progress and Achievements 4 5

Teaching and Learning 3 5

Assessment of Student Performance 3 5

Student Support Services 2 5

Staff and Facilities 2 5

Research and Extension 3 5

Process Management for Continual Improvement 3 5

Total 29 50

Final Score Overall Judgment

0 -15 Unsatisfactory

16-25 Poor

26-35 Good

36-45 Very Good

46-50 Excellent

Considering the judgments given for the different QA aspects, the Review team is able to give an

overall judgment of GOOD (Score range 26-35) for Department of Sanskrit, University of Dhaka.

Prof. Ahmad Shukri Yahaya Prof. Dr. Amirul Haque Prof. Dr. Md. Rezaul Karim QA expert(Foreign) Subject Expert QA expert (Local)

School of Civil Engineering Professor, Department of Islamic Urban And Rural Planning Discipline Universiti Sains Malayasia Studies Khulna University

Rajshahi University

APPENDIX - G

REFERENCES

• Self-Assessment Manual, Published by HEQEP, QAU of UGC • Institutional Quality Assurance Cell Operations Manual, Published by HEQEP, QAU of

UGC • SAR of Department of Urdu, University of Dhaka • Site visit to Central facilities and Departmental facilities • Website of University of Dhaka (www.du.ac.bd) • Minutes of meetings/discussions with representatives of major stakeholders