IQAC 2018-19

IIIrd Year

IInd Year

Ist Year

Title of the Practice:  Inclusivity in Education

Goal
The provision of equitable access to social opportunities within education is fundamental to the value system of LSR. Education at the institution is driven by a belief in equality, humanism and due respect for individual differences.

Context
Affirmative action has led to increased diversity within HEIs. Classrooms are now am amalgamation of Indians from very different walks of life. The LSR community views this as a positive development for the teachinglearning process. Diversity brings with it enhanced opportunities to learn from each other. In order to translate these opportunities into reality it is important to create inclusive teachinglearning spaces. The LSR REACH (Reaffirming Access, Equity, Capacity and Humanism) programme plays a critical role in this endeavour.

The Practice
REACH has been active throughout the year, working constantly towards making LSR a space of inclusivity. Swavalamban is a resource centre in college for differentlyabled students, particularly for those with visual disabilities. It provides access to  assistive technology and equipment including the Everest–D Braille Embosser, Screen Reading Software, LexTalk Scanner, Book Scanners, DAISY Recorders and Players and OCR software for English and Hindi. The resource centre also has ten computer systems that facilitate the work of both English and Hindi discipline students.  REACH works with the Equal Opportunity Cell of DU, to ensure that students have access to reading material, laptops and other recording devices provided by the University.

Evidence of Success
REACH has been organising various events for students with disabilities every year. Highlights of the last year include the following: 

• A walk was organized by REACH on to help students get acquainted with the college campus. All buddies were taken on a tour of the college to help familiarize them with the infrastructure and facilities. The walk enabled easier mobility for buddies in the campus.
• Various talks and interactive sessions were held, for example on topics such as Evolution of Disability as a Human Right (by Ms.Dorodi, United Nations Disability Rights specialist at UN Residents Coordinator Office) and ‘How can public policy aim for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth?’ (by Mr. Nipun Malhotra, founder of Nipman foundation).
• Parwaaz, the annual cultural fest of REACH is organized every year since 2012. Parwaaz stands for taking flight beyond the challenges of life. The theme of 201819’s Parwaaz was the idea of inclusivity thereby, allowing participation of nonPwD with PwD students.

Title of the Practice: At Home in the World

Goal
The college is conscious of the need to facilitate partnerships and collaborations with institutions of higher learning across the world. Concerted efforts are made through the academic year in this regard. Each international collaboration is viewed as a rich learning opportunity for all parties involved.

Context
Globalization, grounded in advances in technology has led to education undergoing a process of internationalisation. An increasing number of students are now receiving education in countries other than their country of origin. Classrooms with students of different nationalities offer a number of advantages in a highly interconnected world. LSR therefore seeks a greater number of global collaborations as part of its teachinglearning process.

The Practice
Lady Shri Ram College perceives the real challenge to be that of infusing in students a sensibility that can think globally and act locally. To this end students need to be equipped with appropriate skillsets and have exposure to the best practices from across the globe. The College has taken the lead in initiating international collaborations and creating opportunities for student mobility through short and long term student exchange programmes. In addition, the College has regularly organized summer and winter courses in collaboration with reputed Universities and has invited faculty from across the globe to interact with students. Students are encouraged to participate in international conferences and LSR has organized and hosted prestigious international seminars on the campus.The details have been presented below. 

Evidence of Success

• A group of students from the Faculty of Arts at Macquarie University, Australia along with Professor Andrew Alter visited Lady Shri Ram College for a shortterm course which was conceptualized and transacted by LSR faculty members. This week long course, held in September 2018, provided an overview on diverse aspects of Indian History, Geopolitics, Sociology, Gandhi and his relevance and Sustainable Environmental Practices in India.
• Dr. Kirsten Davies from Macquaries Department of Law visited LSR on October 03, 2018 to deliver a lecture titled “The Warming War: How Climate Change is Creating Threats to International Peace and Security”. This lecture highlighted the impact of greenhouse emissions in accelerating climate change, insidiously threatening the security of human life on earth.
• On 4th October, 2018 Dr. Peter Postle, HOD of Economics at the University of Bath gave a lecture on “Global responsibilities from the market to the individual”. This talk was an introduction to the theme of the Winter School that the University of Bath was planning to hold in LSR in December 2018.
• A delegation from Sciences Po visited the College in December 2018. It was led by Dr. Vanessa Scherrer, VicePresident, Sciences Po and included Mr. Enrico Letta, Dean of the Paris School of International Affairs and former Prime Minister of Italy and the representatives of Sciences Po in India, Ms. Sophie Collet and Ms. Neha Khanna.
• Mr. Enrico Letta gave an extremely thought provoking lecture on “Nation Building in Europe, a Comparison with Asia”which was followed by a stimulating discussion with students. The Sciences Po representatives engaged with the students on application processes, deadlines and post graduation prospects at Sciences Po, and cleared doubts regarding the same.
• Lady Shri Ram College for Women hosted an eight day long Winter School, organized by the University of Bath in December 2018. Titled Global Responsibilities from the Market to the Individual the course was open to all undergraduate students and was interdisciplinary in nature. Taught by faculty from the University of Bath, it included specialists from the disciplines of Economics, Philosophy, History and Political Science.
• Mr. Danny Pan, Associate Manager, Academic Partnerships, the Summer Institute at OrielCollege, Oxford and the Cambridge Summer Institutevisited the campus on 16th January, 2019 to inform students about summer courses at the universities of Oxford and Cambridge. He explained about the enrolment process, scholarships and fee discounts offered at the SummerInstitutes.
• Mr. Nilesh Gaikwad from the EDHEC Business School, Paris conducted a session in Lady Shri Ram College on 4th April, 2019. He explained about the process of admission to EDHEC, the fee concessions available to students from LSRand discussed possible help with accommodation for students from LSR who would like to study at the EDHEC Business School.
• It is a matter of great pride for the College, that two students from LSR, were selected as Schwarzman Scholars from India for 201920. This is a prestigious international global scholars programme located at Beijing with faculty from all over the world.
• Monash University signed an MoU with LSR for a special scholarship called the “Meenakshi Gopinath and Ann Tickner Scholarship”. This scholarship, is primarily meant for students from LSR wanting to do their Ph.D at Monash Univeristy, Faculty of Arts.
• Dr. Lia Roberts, Academic Director, Centre for Global Initiatives, Mount Saint Marys University also discussed possible areas of collaboration.
• Ms. Amanda Stuart and Ms. Cindy Chen from the Summer Institutes of Oxford and Cambridge visited LSR to discuss the possibilities for students from LSR participating in summer courses at these Universities.
• A number of visitors from La Trobe and Macquarie visited campus. These included Dr. Jacqueline Millner, Deputy Head of School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Prof. Kerry Krause, Deputy Vice Chancellor, Academics and Mr. Kelly Smith Pro Vice Chancellor, International Relations from La Trobe and Prof. Martina Mollering, Executive Dean, Faculty of Arts, Prof. David Wilkinson, Deputy Vice Chancellor and Ms. Nicole Brigg, Pro Vice Chancellor, Macquarie University.
• LSR College hosted a number of exchange students in the academic year 201819. These included six students from Middlebury College, Maya Norbu, Stephanie Castaneda, Miyo McGinn, Abbey Knight, Gabriella Willingham and Lucy Weiss, Margaret Elizabeth Kyle from the Ontario in India Programme and two students from the National University of Singapore (NUS), Kaushalaya Vijayan Kumaran and Vandhana Jeyaran. While some of the exchange students came for one semester others came on a yearlong exchange.
• A number of students from LSR have been nominated for collaborative programmes in Universities abroad.

A Building Committee at the college has been constituted to ensure that work is conducted in a timely fashion. All infrastructure are regularly maintained. Infrastructure is regularly checked and monitored and repairs are made to any aspect of the infrastructure that is found malfunctioning. Most lectures take place in classrooms with projectors, mics and speakers to ensure usage of new audiovisual pedagogical techniques during the teaching process. This has been done keeping in mind the increasing student strength of college. The college also has access to a 24×7 WiFi facility as provided by the University of Delhi.

It is also ensured that the available infrastructure is accessible. The college ensures timely maintenance and upkeep of ramps for wheel chair access, hand rails and elevators. Wash rooms for students with disability are available both in the college and the Hostel. Swavalamban is a resource centre in college for students with disabilities, particularly for those with visual disabilities. It provides access to assistive technology and equipment. The center is maintained in collaboration with KPMG.
Both the library and administration section of LSR have undergone computerization. The library is fully digitised. It has computer terminals with internet facility and reading cubicles. A regular update on new additions is provided by the library staff. A library committee oversees the functioning of the library and keeps it updated with the latest books needed by students. Students can use their own laptops in the college and may also use computers available in the library.

The campus also offers facilities such as cafeteria, medical room etc. The functioning of the cafe is looked into by the Cafe committee constituted by faculty members of college. Any complaints regarding cafe functioning are taken seriously and rectified as soon as possible.

The daily assembly, talks by guest speakers, intercollege competitions, and important functions including the annual College day, Independence Day and Teachers Day are held in the college auditorium . The auditorium can seat about 700 people and has a very advanced light and sound system. It is equipped with a large stage (40 × 60 ft), two green rooms, comfortable seating, carpeting, wall paneling for acoustic effects, airconditioners, washrooms, locker and podium. The sound system includes a 12channel mixer and a studio master. The light room can operate almost100 lights at the same time with the help of its electronic dimmer. There are also 16mm and digital video projectors, for screening films. All of these facilities are regularly checked and maintained by the college staff. Staff are also available to assist students and teachers in case there is some issues with the mics and projectors.

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