Description
The paper discusses the challenges of teaching IR courses as part of the undergraduate (UG) program at the University of Delhi. With the recent implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) in 2020 across Indian universities, longstanding pedagogical practices across disciplines have been significantly impacted. In the context of IR, while the NEP framework remains ambitious in what such IR courses hope to deliver as learning outcomes; concerns under the same such as fewer classes per semester without shortening the syllabi requirements; larger batches of students compromising teacher-student ratio; and, mandatory submission of multiple internal assessments by students seem to compromise the learning outcomes. Among other concerns, such practices together have impaired individual teacher's ability to effectively impart disciplinary fundamentals (especially to 1st year UG students) and, pay heed to the nuances of individual syllabus topics. Having taught four core IR courses and two other elective courses on Human Rights in an international context over the last four years, the author argues that under NEP, the challenges of teaching and engaging in IR courses in the classroom remain formidable in the seeable future.
