New tech courses fall prey to old ways of teaching habits

Hyderabad: Questions raised over the much-talked-about the introduction of courses in the emerging technologies at B Tech and undergraduate level in various colleges in Telangana.

Recognising the importance of new courses like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Data Analytics, Cyber security and the like the State government had permitted an intake of about 18,000 seats in the emerging technologies from the current academic year.

Besides, similar courses are introduced in the science steams of in the degree colleges. However, now questions are raised over the same. Reason being, while the technologies are new the way they are allowed to teach at the colleges falling back in the old ways.

Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, Hyderabad (JNTU-H) senior faculty member said, "Experts from the academic and industry from the fields of Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Big Data etc have prepared the syllabus for the new courses."

The main focus was to make it more relevant for the students to gain employment or to go for higher studies in those streams.

However, the current syllabus of the AI and ML, Big Data shows that it was prepared to treat the courses only related to technology stream. And, the interface of these subjects with non-technical and non-science streams have been totally neglected.

Particularly, the whole issue of syllabus preparation has been done by the industrial experts and academicians chosen only from technology backgrounds, said former Professor of Computer Sciences, Osmania University College of Engineering.

Prof G B Reddy of Osmania University and an expert in the Constitutional Law, said the interface between the new technologies and its legal ramifications, and other implications should be taught to create necessary awareness and better learning curve for the students pursuing such courses.