Abstract:

IGNOU offers more than 129 programmes including Certificate, Advanced Certificate, Diploma, Advanced Diploma, Degree, Master and Ph. D. programmes. These are offered through a network of Regional Centres and Study Centres. Maintaining quality of education through the distance mode is always a challenge and that is why IGNOU has given adequate importance to quality issues by introducing practical component in certain programmes, to test the application skills of students. One such component of the BCA and MCA programmes is the project work (CS-76 for BCA and CS-17 for MCA). IGNOU has given adequate importance to the quality issues in delivering these programmes. A large number of projects are submitted at Regional Centres which has to make tremendous effort in maintaining the quality of the projects. The quality issues like copying the project, making fake guides, hiring proxy writers and purchasing the projects from the market etc. are of concern. After submission of the projects at the Regional Centre, the students are asked to report for the viva-voce at the Regional Centre. The approved evaluators evaluate the project and conduct the viva voce. We have analyzed the comments given by approved evaluators in about 500 MCA projects out of a total of 1000 projects that were submitted at Patna Regional Centre within the specified time i.e. Sept.-Oct., 2006. We have observed that there is tremendous variations in making these comments vis-a-vis marks awarded by the evaluators. We have recommended some corrective measures to improve upon these issues for overall improvement in the quality of projects.