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External Peer Review Final Report

Department of Botany

Jahangirnagar University, Savar

Dhaka, Bangladesh

By

External Peer Review Team

Jahangirnagar University, Savar, Dhaka,

Bangladesh

26thSeptember 2017

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Self-Assessment Committee (SAC)

Department of Botany

Jahangirnagar University,

Prof. Dr. Rasheda Yasmin Shilpi (Head, SAC)

Prof. Dr. Saleh Ahammad Khan (Member, SAC)

Prof. Dr. Mohammad Talim Hossain (Member, SAC)

External Peer Review Team (EPRT)

Prof. Dr. PS Roy Overseas QA Expert NASI Platinum Jubilee Fellow, University of Hyderabad Hyderabad, India

Prof. M. Khondker,

Subject Specialist Retd. from Department of Botany University of Dhaka-1000 Dhaka, Bangladesh

Prof. Dr. Ain-ul Huda

Department of Physics University of Dhaka Additional Director, IQAC Jagannath University, Dhaka-1100 Bangladesh

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SIGNATURE OF EXTERNAL PEER REVIEW TEAM

1. Prof. Dr. Parth Sarathi Roy

2. Prof. Dr. Moniruzzaman Khondker

3. Prof. Dr. Ain-ul Huda

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter Contents Page

Chapter 1 Principles of Programme Review

1.1 Background

1.2 Areas under Review

1.3 The External Peer Review Process

Chapter 2 Overview of the Programme

2.1 Overview of the University

2.2 Overview of the Department of Botany

2.3 Methodology of the Study

Chapter 3 Aims and Learning Outcomes of the Programme

3.1 Aims/Target of the Programme Offering Entity

3.2 Intended Learning Outcomes of the Programme

3.3 Teaching Methods

3.4 Technology Integration

3.5 Skill Development Mechanism

Chapter 4 Findings of the External Peer Review

4.1 Governance

4.2 Curriculum Design and Review

4.3 Student: Admission, Progress and Achievements

4.4 Teaching – Learning and Assessment

4.5 Staff and Facilities

4.6 Physical Facilities

4.7 Student Support Services

4.8 Research and Extension

4.9 Process Management for Continual Improvement

Chapter 5 Conclusions and Recommendations

5.1 Conclusion

5.2 Recommendation

5.3 Judgment

References

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BACKGROUND

About the university

Jahangirnagar University (JU) started with a modest beginning. The university was

established in 1970 with 150 students in four departments namely, Department of Economics,

Geography, Mathematics and Statistics. Since its inception, the university advanced a long

way and, in 2012 recognized as one of the leading universities of Bangladesh. The

Department of Botany under the Jahangirnagar University actually was sprouted in 1989 as a

full-fledged department from the then Institute of Life Sciences. Presently, JU accommodates

6 Faculties, 36 Departments, 5 Institutes and Centers, 800 teachers, and more than 14000

students. Number is, however, just one important feature to understand JU. The green campus

of the university is spread out over nearly 300 hectares of land, a major portion of which

form forests and lakes. JU is the first residential university in Bangladesh. It is also a haven

for exquisite range of flora and fauna, wildlife and butterflies, and, of course, migratory birds.

The green campus and natural setting encourages exciting academic, co-curricular and extra-

curricular activities. Jahangirnagar University, launched on 12 January 1970, was

reconstituted and reorganized under Act no. XXXIV of 1973, popularly known as the

Jahangirnagar University Act, 1973. It is an autonomous institution managed by the

executive authority and ratification body, known respectively as the syndicate and the senate.

The university is situated in sprawling arresting semi-natural area of Savar, 30 kilometers

away from Dhaka and stands on the west side of the Dhaka-Aricha Highway. It spreads over

an area of 697.56 acres (2.8 km²) of land. The topography of the land with its gentle rise and

plains and water features sprawled around the campus makes an excellent habitat for

numerous plants and animals. This university is comprised of 36 Departments under six

faculties, five institutes and a science research center. This is the only one public university in

Bangladesh which is fully residential. As the residential university it houses a total of 16

residential halls, eight for the male students and eight for the female students. It has more

than 16,781 students, 755 academic staffs, and 1,430 non-academic staffs. Each student hall

is governed by its own administration and provides facilities like playground, indoor and

outdoor games, and dining hall, etc. It has a big library consisted of 110,000 books, 14,000

hard bound journals, a cyber-center and 22,000 online journals and in-building study

facilities for more than 170 students. The university has a medical center, a teacher student

center (TSC), a center of cultural activities, a gymnasium, a well-equipped swimming pool

and a central cafeteria. In TSC complex, there is a fully furnished auditorium with the

arrangement of 1500 seats and a seminar hall that accommodates 250 persons. It has adequate

bus services between the campus and Dhaka city. The university has following faculties,

institute, student facilities and student and support facilities:

The Faculties

Faculty of Arts & Humanities

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Faculty of Biological Sciences

Faculty of Business Studies

Faculty of Mathematical & Physical Sciences

Faculty of Social Sciences

Faculty of Law

Institutes

Institute of Business Administration

Institute of Information Technology

Bangabandhu Institute of Comparative Literature and Culture

Institute of Remote Sensing

International Quality Assurance Center

Student Facilities:

Wazed Miah Science Research Center

Internet Management Centre

Students Counseling and Guidance Centre

Centre of Excellence in Teaching & Learning

The Language Centre

Support Facilities:

Registrar Office

Proctor Office

Comptroller Office

Medical Centre

Engineering Office

Planning and Development Office

Public Relation Office

Physical Training Office

Office of the Controller of Examinations

Internal Audit Office

Teacher-Student center

University Library

Science Workshop

Transport Office

Jahangirnagar University aims to build the university as centers of learning, teaching, and

research of excellence.

The Department of Botany is part of Faculty of Biological Sciences. Besides Department of

Botany other departments are: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology;

Department of Biotechnology & Genetic Engineering; Department of Microbiology;

Department of Pharmacy; Department of Public Health and Informatics; and Department

of Zoology.

The Department of Botany

History of the Department of Botany goes back to the decision of the Syndicate of

Jahangirnagar University (JU), taken in 1983, to establish the Institute of Life Sciences. As a

follow-up of that decision, the aims and objectives and the detail programs of the proposed

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Institute were finalized and in 1985 the Institute was inaugurated. From 1986, it had begun its

historical academic journey with admission of the students in B.Sc. (Honors) program of two

sections, viz., Botany and Zoology. In 1989, the Syndicate revised the Statute of the Institute

and the Sections were upgraded to full-fledged Departments. In 2001 the Institute had been

transformed into the Faculty of Biological Sciences. Thus, the Department of Botany was

established under the Faculty of Biological Sciences of Jahangirnagar University and as one

of the famous Departments of Botany in this country. At present, this Department has 24

qualified and experienced academic and 16 non-academic staffs (Table 1), seven well-

equipped laboratories, a common lab cum store room, four class rooms, one seminar library,

a botanical garden, a plant conservatory and more than 250 students.

Table 1. List of Academic Staffs of the Department of Botany, JU.

Name of Faculty

Members

Designation Higher Degree

obtained

Field of Specialization

Abul Khair

Professor M.Sc. (DU);

Ph.D. (Mysore

University,

India)

Mycology, Plant Pathology

and Crop Protection & Seed

Technology

Zahed Uddin

Mahmood Khan

Professor M.Sc. (DU);

Ph.D. (IARI,

India)

Microbiology

Shyamal Kumar

Roy

Professor M.Sc. (RU);

Ph.D. (Calcutta

University,

India)

Plant Tissue Culture &

Morphogenesis

Feroza Hossain

Professor M.Sc. (DU);

Ph.D. (Imperial

College,

London)

Plant Physiology &

Biochemistry, Enzyme

Technology

M. Mahfuzur

Rahman

Professor M.Sc. (CU);

Ph.D. (JU,

Bangladesh)

Plant Ecology, Ecosystem

Research, Biodiversity&

Nature Conservation

Nazmul Alam

Professor M.Sc. (CU);

Ph.D. (CU,

Bangladesh)

Plant Genetics, Plant

Breeding, Agronomy &

Horticulture

Mohd. Talim

Hossain

Professor

M.Sc. (JU);

Ph.D. (Osaka

City University,

Japan)

Environmental Plant

Physio-logy, Plant Tissue

Culture

Rasheda Yasmin

Shilpi

Professor M.Sc. (DU);

Ph.D. (St.John’s

University,

USA)

Microbiology, Virology &

Molecular Biology

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Md. Nuhu Alam

Professor M.Sc. (RU);

Ph.D. (Incheon

National

University,

South Korea)

Mycology, Plant Virology,

Mushroom Science, Plant

Pathology & Crop

Protection

Saleh Ahammad

Khan

Professor M.Sc. (JU);

Ph.D. (Dr. rer.

nat., Bayreuth

University,

Germany)

Plant Systematic, Evolution,

Phylogenetics & Plant

Biodiversity Conservation

Meher Nigar

(On Study Leave)

Professor M.Sc. (JU);

Ph.D.

(University of

Aberdeen, UK)

Plant Physiology &

Biochemistry

Gazi Mosharof

Hossain

Professor M.Sc. (JU);

Ph.D. (JU,

Bangladesh)

Plant Ecology &

Environment, Ecosystem

Health Assessment & Plant

Biodiversity Conservation

Nahid Akhtar Professor M.Sc. (JU); Ph.D.(Tokyo University of Agriculture & Technology, Japan)

Plant Physiology & Biochemistry

Sanzida Mubassara

Professor M.Sc. (JU); Ph.D. (Yamaguchi University, Japan)

Phytochemistry & Herbal Medicine

Md. Abdul Halim

Associate Professor

M.Sc. (JU); Ph.D. (JU, Bangladesh)

Plant Physiology & Biochemistry, Enzyme Technology

Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed

Associate Professor

M.Sc. (JU); Ph.D. (University of Tokushima, Japan)

Phytochemistry & Plant Pathology

Mohammed Kamal Hossain

Associate Professor

M.Sc. (JU); Ph.D. (JU, Bangladesh)

Plant Breeding & Plant Genetics

Md. ShahinurKabir

Associate Professor

M.Sc. (JU); Ph.D. (Tottori University, Japan)

Molecular Biology,

Microbiology &

Biotechnology

Aparna Shil

(On Study Leave)

Assistant Professor

M.Sc. (JU); MS (UK)

Microbiology & Biotechnology

Mahbubul Kabir Himel

Assistant Professor

M.Sc. (JU); MS (UK)

Mycology, Plant Pathology & Crop Protection and

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(On Study Leave)

Biotechnology

Shamima Nasrin Jolly

Assistant Professor

M.Sc. (JU) Phycology, Microbiology

Md. Maniruzzaman

Sikder

Assistant Professor

M.Sc. (JU); MS (Belgium)

Nematology, Plant Pathology & Crop Protection

Most. Fahima

Ahmed Anny

(On Study

Leave)

Assistant

Professor

M.Sc. (JU) Limnology,

Microbiology

Ashma Ahmed

Warasy

Assistant

Professor

M.Sc. (DU) Cytogenetics

Shayla

SharminShetu

Lecturer M.Sc. (JU) Plant Systematics & Plant

Biodiversity Conservation

Md. Raihan

Iqbal Raju

Lecturer M.Sc. (JU) Plant Tissue Culture and

Morphogenesis

A total of about 1000 papers have been published during this time by the researchers of this

Department in national and international journals. The teachers of the Department received

several grants from the Ministry of Science, Information and Communication Technology,

Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. Several academic staffs of the

Department have been recognized nationally and internationally for their diligence and

creativity in research work. The seminar library of the Department has a rich collection of

text books, research materials, journals and periodicals. All students of the Department have

free and direct access to the library.

The Department is maintaining a Botanical Garden and a Plant Conservatory in the university

campus. The botanical garden of this Department houses more than 300 indigenous and

exotic, including medicinal, ornamental, timber, edible fruit yielding, bamboo and rattan

plant species, some of which are threatened for Bangladesh. It harbors a living germplasm

reserve of 25 rose (Rosa sp.) cultivars/hybrids that was established by Professor Feroza

Hossain. A nursery wing, seedling house, some research plots are available there for field

experiments by the faculties and research students. Adjacent to the botanical garden, a plant

conservatory was established under the project ‘Establishment of Plant Conservatory for

Threatened Genetic Resources of Bangladesh through Exploitation and Regeneration’ funded

by the then Ministry of Science, Information and Communication Technology, Government

of the People's Republic of Bangladesh, which was implemented by Prof. A. B. M. Enayet

Hossain.

The PoE offers following programmes:

The Department offers undergraduate and post-graduate programs, respectively towards

Bachelor of Science (B.Sc. Honors) and Master of Science (MS) degree in Botany.

Additionally, the Department has been offering Master of Philosophy (M.Phil.) and Doctor of

Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees on different fields of Botany.

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B. Sc. (Hons.) Program

The four-year B. Sc. (Hons.) program in Botany is divided into four parts- Part I, Part II, Part

III and Part IV, comprised of 57 theoretical and practical courses including the viva-voce and

cover the major thematic areas of Botany. The total mark for these four years courses is 3500

equivalents to 140 credits.

Master of Science (MS) Program

The Master of Science (MS) program in Botany is for one academic year and the examination

of each course held at the end of the course. The program consisting of 750 marks, equivalent

to 30 credits, is divided into two groups, viz. General Group and Thesis Group.

M.Phil. and Ph.D. Programs

The Department offers both M.Phil. and Ph.D. programs in selected branches of Botany. A

student admitted into a regular M.Phil. or Ph.D. program has to complete respectively two or

three years’ full-time study and research at the Department of Botany under the guidance of

her/his supervisor/supervisors. The M.Phil. or Ph.D. program is consisted of two theory

courses, two seminar presentations, a thesis and an oral defense.

Areas of research and available facilities at Department of Botany

The faculties of the Department, most of which are trained in abroad, are involved in

different research projects on different branches of Botany and also engaged in collaborative

research with other universities and organizations. Different research projects have already

been carried out through collaboration of different Governmental and Non-Governmental

organizations/agencies including the Ministry of Science and Technology, University Grants

Commission, JU Research Grant, Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), DAAD

(Germany) and World Bank, etc. The research activities of the Department conducted in its

seven laboratories and research facilities are briefly described below.

Microbiology

Researchers of the Laboratory of Microbiology have been doing works on a few aspects of

Microbiology. So far, Microbiological quality of potable and surface water, soil

microorganisms and their activities including mitigation of arsenic, microorganisms of

food and biocontrol of plant pathogens are the broad aspects of research of this laboratory.

However, Biological Nitrogen Fixation by Azospirillum and Azotobacter has specifically

received much attention. The notable achievements are the findings of the pictures of

distributional pattern of different species of Azospirillum in various types of habitats in

Bangladesh and also of the nitrogen fixing potential and the activity of these species in

promoting growth and yield of rice and wheat. In this

laboratory, Azospirillumamazonense and Azospirillumhalopraeferens have been isolated for

the first time from Bangladesh soil.

Mycology, Plant Pathology and Crop Protection

The dimension of its activities ranges from viral, bacterial and fungal disease diagnosis to

identification of the pathogens with reference to crops and forest plants. Seed Pathology is a

major area of research in the laboratory. Disease management with special reference to

biological control and IPM is also included in the research objectives of the laboratory.

Taxonomy of higher fungi, identification, and characterization of mushroom and

improvement of mushroom culture technique has been developed. New research dimension

has been extended in the field of Plant Nematology, where identification and characterization

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of plant parasitic nematodes associated with soil and plant parts and their sustainable

management will be focused. Currently, laboratory is focusing on Fungal and Bacterial DNA

barcoding to identify fungi and bacteria.

Plant Systematics and Biodiversity

Floristic studies and assessment of plant diversity in different areas, reconstruction of

phylogeny and solving taxonomic problems of the Angiosperms of Bangladesh, development

of a local herbarium, plant conservation, and publication of local Floras are the main

objectives of this laboratory. The major achievements of this laboratory include the

development of a herbarium housing a huge plant samples of Angiosperms collected from

different areas of Bangladesh, floristic surveys and assessments of plant diversity in different

areas of the country including the Sundarbans Mangrove Forest, detail taxonomic study on

Asteraceae of Eastern and Central regions and Zingiberaceae of this country, Pteridophytes of

Mymensingh district, management and development of a Plant Conservatory and

implementation of green-belt project in JU campus etc. In course of further activities of this

lab, assessment of the prospects of biodiversity conservation in the homesteads, publication

of the Flora of Sundarbans, Flora of Narsingdi District and Flora of Savar-Ashulia region and

setting up the facilities for DNA data collection from higher plants and phylogenetic

reconstruction will be focused on.

Plant Tissue Culture

From the very inception of the development of Plant Tissue Culture laboratory in this

Department, researches have been carrying out not only on the theoretical aspects for

scientific paper publications but on the applied aspects also for agro-economic development.

From this laboratory protocols for micropropagation of various medicinal, spices, fruits,

timber and ornamental plants have been developed and published in different peer reviewed

journals and presented in different international symposia. The break-through of this

laboratory is the development of high frequency regeneration protocols for jackfruit,

pineapple, banana, Rauvolfia sp. and bamboos for commercial cultivation. Besides, the

release of somaclonal variants of Poisettia and blackpepper from this laboratory can be

mentionable.

Plant Physiology and Biochemistry

The Laboratory is equipped with modern instruments with the fund provided by Ministry of

Science and Technology. The research areas cover Crop Physiology, Environmental Plant

Physiology and Enzyme technology. Enzyme technology is the main laboratory based area of

research. Isolation, extraction and purification techniques of different enzymes from

Mushroom and other plant sources have been developed in this laboratory. Researches on

sodium chloride salinity stress on different crops, effect of different growth regulators as well

as macro- and micronutrients on growth and yield of different crops are carried out in this the

laboratory in MS and Ph.D. level. Effect of Arsenic on Plant’s growth and development is

also investigated in this laboratory.

Plant Ecology and Environment

Main objective of this laboratory is to conduct research on Plant Ecology and Environment.

Fundamental and applied ecological research works have been running on in this laboratory

mainly, focusing on different natural, homestead, and mangrove forest and aquatic

ecosystems of Bangladesh. Remarkable research output of this laboratory include, detailed

study on Phytosociological and soil nutritional assessment of Sal forests and Sitakunda Eco-

park, aquatic phytodiversity and water quality assessment of Kaptai Lake, Sundarban

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Mangrove forest health status assessment etc. Research on environmental pollution of

riverine ecosystems is also a recent emphasis of this laboratory. In depth research will be

prioritized on of country’s important ecosystem health and environmental impact assessment

in the days to come.

Plant Breeding and Crop Improvement

This laboratory focuses on the research highlighting various crop improvement programs,

through conventional as well as advanced methods, including development of desirable

variety, conservation of diverse germplasm, performance of crossing in a suitable fashion and

introgression of promising traits inside the local varieties for transferring resistant gene and

so on.

Photochemistry and Herbal Medicine

Photochemistry and Herbal medicine laboratory initiated as a research facility in the

department procuring the research grants from the Ministry of Science and Technology. Till

now, quite a good number of MS thesis work and research projects have been successfully

completed from this laboratory. The laboratory offers extraction, phytochemical screening,

isolation, purification and structure elucidation of pure compounds from plant source. The

laboratory work also includes ethnomedicinal survey on medicinal plants as well as to

investigate the bioactivities namely, cytotoxicity, antibacterial and antioxidant activity of the

plant/plant-part extract.

Cytogenetics

Cytogenetics is a comparatively young research field of this Department where pre-fixation

methods, fixation method, karyotype analysis, karyomorphological analysis etc. of several

plant materials have been developed. Future plan is to establish the DNA based specific

chromosome banding technique, fluorescent chromosome banding technique, RAPD

analysis, and FISH technique.

Molecular Biology

Molecular biology is a comparatively new research field of this department. Present research

focus of this field is antibiotic resistance, quality assessment of food and agricultural

products, biocontrol and environmental pollution control by molecular and conventional

techniques.

External Peer Review Bangladesh government has undertaken the Higher Education Quality Enhancement Project

(HEQEP) with support of the International Development Association (IDA); implemented by University Grants Commission (UGC) of Bangladesh. Under the project the Bangladesh Agricultural University has established Institutional Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC). As an essential part of the process, the External Peer Review Team (EPRT) has been formed to evaluate the Self-Assessment (SA) report (physically understand the reporting) of B.Sc. Botany program offered by the Faculty of Mathematics and Physical Sciences Jahangirnagar University, Savar, Dhaka. The EPRT is consisting of a quality assessment expert from overseas, a local quality assessment expert and a local subject expert. The team has undertaken the task during September 24-26, 2017. Before, leaving JU the EPRT submitted

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“Exit Report” to the Director, IQAC, Jahangirnagar University, Savar, Dhaka. The EPRT is also obliged to submit the detailed report by the three-member team. It is heartening to note that the project will be soon internalized by the nation. It is also believed that Bangladesh Assessment and Accreditation Council (BAAC) have been formed to make the self-assessment and accreditation process as continuous process. Vision of BAAC should be to make quality element of higher education through a combination of self and external quality evaluation, promotion and sustenance initiatives and it should align its programs with international standards. It should develop a framework based on certain core values; a) contribution to national development and social needs; b) fostering global competence among students; c) include value system among students; d) promoting the use of technology and e) quest of excellence.

The SAC team, led by Prof. Dr. Md. Abdul Alim (Head, PSAC)and the members have

carried out these activities and prepared a detailed Self-Assessment Report (SAR), Self-

Assessment Report (SAR) ofB.Sc. Botany program offered by the Faculty of Biological

Sciences. It also includes SWOT of PES and improvement plan for its future development.

The SAR of MSS/BSS (H)/BSS in Botany program offered by the Faculty of Biological

Sciences, has prepared based on the evaluation of different stakeholders. It is expected that

the implementation of the improvement plan will enhance the quality of education and

research of MSS/BSS (H)/BSS in Botany program offered by the Faculty of Biological

Sciences, with an overall goal offering quality education.

The main objectives of the Department of Botany are:

Better understanding of the ongoing program under assessment; Revisit the program objectives and goals; Readdress the intended learning outcomes of the program;

Assess the adequacy of student support services for effective teaching and learning; Identify the areas of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats (SWOT) and emerging

changes to make the program updated and need based; Assess the progress of improvement desired; and Develop strategic plan with commitment and priorities for further improvement.

EXTERNAL PEER REVIEW TEAM (EPRT)

An external peer review team (EPRT) was appointed to study the SAR, visit the Faculty to

make their own assessments and prepare a report containing suitable suggestions and

recommendations. It is expected that the SAR and the external review report together would

provide a sound basis for the faculty to prepare their improvement plan. This peer review is

based on the SAR prepared by the Self-Assessment Committee (SAC), MSS/BSS (H)/BSS in

Botany program offered by the Faculty of Biological Sciences, Savar, Dhaka and

documentary evidences had made available to the external review team during the site visit

and face-to-face discussions had with different stakeholders. The notable observation of the

EPRT has been that the SAC has made the Self-Assessment Report (SAR) in a most

comprehensive manner. The document contains all the necessary required documentation by

the EPRT.

Key features of the peer review process include:

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❖ The critical analysis of the Self-Assessment Report (SAR) which is

produced by POE;

❖ Observation of teaching-learning practices of the department;

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

question papers and answer scripts, students' profile and 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 and university administrations

and top management of the university;

❖ Identified the strengths and weaknesses of the department;

❖ Observation ofavailable physical facilities of the department and the university;

❖ Identified the areas need for further improvement for quality enhancement in

education.

In preparing this review reports following areas of quality assurance were critically reviewed

at the program level in accordance of SA manual (Version 1) provided by the UGC:

o Governance

o Curriculum design and review

o Student: admission, progress and achievements

o Physical Facilities

o Teaching Leaning and Assessment

o Student Support Services

o Staff and Facilities

o Research and Extension

o Process Management and Continuous Improvement

Phases Duties and responsibilities

1. Before site visit 1. IQAC sends PDF files on legal documents, i.e. agreements and

responsibilities of reviewers on the assignment, Self-Assessment Manual.

Two weeks before the visit IQAC sends SAR of the program under

review, site-visit work plan for consideration. During this time, the main

contact point is IQAC.

2. Each external reviewer studies Self-Assessment Manual prepared by

UGC to understand the prescribed guidelines of practices and expected

outcomes and follow accordingly.

3. Each external reviewer studies and analyzes the SAR and Curriculum of

program under review and identifies points that required evidences and

clarification during site visit.

4. IQAC introduces EPR team members to get in touch online before site

visit

5. Online communications among members of external peer review team

and IQAC about transportation and accommodation besides the

academic matters.

2.During site visit Follow the work plan prepared by IQAC in consultation with EPRs.

Selection of team leader by EPRs themselves. IQAC briefs on activities

during the three days:

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Phases Duties and responsibilities

1. Courtesy call to Vice Chancellor (VC), Dean of School of Business, Head

of Department.

2. Interview five groups of stakeholders: students, non-academic staff,

academic staff, and alumni, employers, using items in survey

questionnaire as guideline as well as to confirm and validate information

on SAR.

3. Site visit to physical facilities, central library, Seminar library, etc.

4. Observe classroom teaching of different years.

5. Check documents with SAC what the department has

6. Meeting of external peer reviewers at the end of day 1 and 2. Draft an exit

report following categories in the checklist for external peer reviewer in

the Manual. Plan to collect more information the last day to complete the

exit report, and the final EPR Report.

7. Complete the draft of exit report. Check the accuracy of data on program

performance in question with SAC.

8. At the end of third day, present exit Discussion containing preliminary

findings to the faculty members of the Program, SAC, IQAC orally for

feedback, if any.

9. Finalize exit report by EPR team, printout, sign, and submit to IQAC,

before departure of external peer reviewers.

3. After site visit 1. Team leader collects notes from team members and draft the final report

following the guideline in SA manual.

2. Share the draft report with team members for addition, subtraction, and

modification to complete the report before submitting Final EPR Report

to Director, IQAC and Head, SAC.

Visiting Sites of the External Peer Review Team

The SAC of the MSS/BSS (H)/BSS in Botany program offered by the Faculty of Biological

Sciences, Jahangirnagar University, Savar, Dhaka, organized various activities during the

site visits from 24-26th September 2017. The proceedings are itemized and listed in the final

peer review report. The site visits included of a number of meetings with various stakeholders

across the University, including the Dean of the Faculty, Chairman of the Department, SAC,

medical officer, student counselor, academic and non-academic staff, students, and

employers, alumni. All the meetings included open discussions, 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.

However, SAC team has been provided documents as per the requirements of self-assessment

manual of UGC, that are very essential for final conclusions of the SAR comments and

therefore EPR team has to depend on face to face discussions with the stakeholders such as

administration of the POE, academic staff, students, alumni, employers, and non-academic

staff. SAC has sincere efforts to write the SAR and EPR team highly appreciated their

commitment and effort. Although opinion of employers, qualitative part of each stakeholder

and criteria & standard wise documents are absent, these are integral part of the report. The

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external peer review team appreciates the help and initiative taken by the MSS/BSS (H)/BSS

in Botany for quality assurance activities. The team is also thankful to the Director and

Additional Directors of the IQAC of Jahangirnagar University for the validation of SAR.

EPRT extends their appreciation to the Head of the Department and the SAC and other

faculty members for their efforts and continuous support in this regard.

Following process was followed by the team:

1. Identification of team leader of EPRT by consensus decision;

2. Briefing by IQAC;

3. Discussion and presentation by SAC Team and faculty members;

Discussion/meeting and review in the area of Governance with Vice- Chancellor, Dean-

Faculty of sciences, Registrar, Director of Accounts, Administrator, Chairperson-POE,

Controller of examination, SAC members and IQAC team;

4. Presentation of Survey results by SAC members;

5. Discussion/meeting and review of curriculum design, research and extension, teaching-

learning and assessment with SAC, Dean-faculty of Science and faculty members;

6. Discussion/meeting and review of student support services, admission process,

7. Discussion/meeting and review with administrative staffs;

8. Visit to the department/university facilities like, classrooms, ongoing class, laboratory,

common room, seminar library, central library, medical centre and hostels (girls &

boys);

9. Briefing the main highlights of the EPRT impressions and review the process ,

Dean-Faculty of Agricultural Engineering and Technology and Chairman POE, SAC

and IQAC team.

10. Submission of “Exit Report” to the Director IQAC.

The detailed programme (implemented after minor changes based on mutual concurrence)

and signature of attendees of each meeting is with Head, SAC team and IQAC.

The EPRT had opportunity to engage in a long and interesting discussion with SAC team.

Subsequently, the EPRT informally discussed their observation with the SAC. This meeting

was followed by a session with exit meeting where IQAC Director and Additional directors

were present. We are thankful to the University for making all the arrangements to facilitate

our visit and all the members in the Department of Botany studies for their active

participation in the sessions and for the spirit in which sometimes contentious issues were

debated.

THE DEPARTMENT INTENDS FOLLOWING LEARNING OUT COMES:

❖ Knowledge and understanding of most fundamental principles and competence in the

application of these principles to diverse areas. It aims to develop ability to solve

problems using appropriate analytical tools;

❖ Develop ability to execute and analyse critically the results of an experimental

investigation or theoretical modelling and to draw valid conclusions with statistical

processing. It also develops ability to compare results with the predictions obtained

from the relevant theories;

❖ To innovate new knowledge, technologies through research activities and their

applications for the well-being of the people and nature; and

❖ To arrange and manage education and research facilities.

17

FINDINGS OF EPRT ARE FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF BOTANY PROGRAMS:

Governance:

Governance is the key issues for maintaining quality, develop infrastructure and policies of

the institution. The university was established in 1970. The apex management has

comprehensive view on vision and mission of the university. It was assured that

documentation process is on the way. The vision and mission of the department is not clearly

defined in the display in the student’s handbooks.The goals and objectives of the degree

programmes of POE are not clearly defined. The graduate profile of the degree programme is

yet to emerge. However, the department has structured, operating framework and processes.

The department gets bright students due to the extensive screening through the standard

central admission test. The brilliant students are provided scholarship during the degree

program. Some of them are also encouraged with enhanced scholarship. The department has

very qualified teachers. Academic decision is taken participatory manner at faculty level. It is

observed that examination results are released within the stipulated time. Thus, the academic

calendar is followed properly.The programme management is done and carried out through

three committees viz., academic, planning and decision making by the Chairman of the

Department. The records as proceedings of the departmental committees are properly

maintained. The conduct rules for the students and administrative staffs are defined and

included in the university calendar and instructions respectively which is duly approved by

the syndicate of JU. The UGC research funds are allotted by the Dean’s committee. The

funds are generally small and thus highly competitive. However, POEs are free to generate

their own funds.

There is no process to obtain from feedback from the students and stakeholders for

improvement with reference to teaching, learning, research and extension. SAC could not

provide details of formal training program offered to the newly appointed academic faculty

members. The documentation process is up to the required standards. Although the

department has webpage, it is not maintained properly and not regularly updated and

information given is inadequate. The job opportunities for the graduates of this department

are very few. No serious effort is made by the faculty for organizing placement on the regular

basis. There is no program in the department for development of soft skills of the students

and make them competitive in “job market”. SAC could not provide details of formal training

program offered to the newly appointed academic faculty members. But verbally it was

informed that it is organized. The peer review or student feedback is absent in any forms.

The positive feedback which is reported is only based on the one-time inputs during the

stakeholders for SAR preparation. The sample numbers to conclude the review process is

very small and cannot be justified statistically.

The vision of the university does not aspire for “Quest of excellence”. It is evident from the

records; quality of academics (curriculum revision process) is not regular. The research need

to be pursued in more focussed manner. It is suggested to form “research advisory board”

inviting eminent botanists. The number of research papers and their impact factor are also in

decline. There is lack of keenness of including publications (impact factors, citations and h-

index) as important criteria in selection of faculty. The selection process of the faculty for the

department is not transparent while screening and final selection/interview and University

Grant Regulations for recruitment procedure is not implemented.

18

EPRT recommends:

• PoE needs to formulate goals, objectives and strategic plan. It is important to

articulate graduate profile of the students and ensure they are placed in relevant area;

• The Dean’s role should be academic and administration head in practice;

• The research need to be pursued in more focussed manner. It is suggested to form

“research advisory board” inviting eminent botanists.Nationally relevant research

carried out in Bangladesh should be given due importance.

• Course outline should be provided by PoE to the students at the beginning of the

courses. Intended Learning Outcomes should be clearly reflecting the mission and

objectives of the PoE. Students are keen to study the Botany but they are unaware of

their future. Intended Learning outcomes should be clearly defined as per the mission and

objectives of the PoE;

• Documentation of the department needs to be upgraded into the required standards of

the university and UGC;

• Soft skills are not defined and the development programs need to be introduced for

effective placement. Alignment among learning outcomes delivery of

teaching/learning and assessment methods need to be designed for effective

development of knowledge and soft skills. Such a value addition, improvement of

communication and the soft skills development will improve placements and career

growth;

• Transparent feedback from the stakeholders such as employers, alumni and students is

necessary for improvement of the departmental governance. There seem to be weak

linkage with the industry and employers;

• Documentation need to be upgraded into the required standards of the university and

UGC. Website of the department should be updated and make it more informative and

user friendly.

Curriculum design and Review:

The courses offered are relevant and fulfill the required standards as degree program. The

department provides course outline to the students at the time of commencement of the

courses. The course syllabus is contemporary. The curriculum does not exist. The students

are not aware of teaching and learning outcomes. They are not aware of graduate profile. It is

reported in the SAR that course has a presentation and assignment, field work, tutorial, etc.

Its existence and implementation could not be authenticated by discussion with stakeholders.

There are optional subjects and the students have the option to choose the course units. New

subjects like landscape ecology, remote sensing, climate science and its impact on plant

physiology, biogeochemical cycle, etc. should be appropriately included in the syllabus.

The syllabus revision takes place at regularly. The course development has not been aligned

to the learning objectives, gaps, repetition and non-sequential learning. The syllabus is not

need based because there are no intending learning outcomes (ILOs) and KPI. Curriculum

does not address adequately the soft skills development of the students such as English

language knowledge, ICT, personality development, etc. ILOs of the course units are not

defined. The stakeholders such as employers, alumni feedback is not accommodated duly in

designing the course. Absence of incorporation of market demand based syllabus. The

students are not aware of lesson plan. The programme implementation process is loosely

aligned to university statute. With emergence of highly competitive national and global

19

scenario, emphasis should be given to develop core competence, skilled human resources of a

high calibre. Innovation, creative and entrepreneurial skills emphasis should be evident in the

curriculum. The self-learning tools are missing, assignment is not part of knowledge building

process.

EPRT recommends:

• The curriculum need to be further revised and strengthened to reflect the objectives of

each subjects/units in the program and the PoE. It must be tuned with intended

learning outcomes of the course units (ILO). New subjects like Big data, data analytics

and data mining should be appropriately included in the syllabus. Representatives from

employers, alumni and students need to be consulted in curriculum preparation.

• The department should immediately consider forming a committee for “revision of

course, designing of curriculum and academic program” with leading educationists

and scientists of Bangladesh. The ccurriculum need to be redesigned to reflect the

objectives of the program and the POE. It must be tuned with intended learning

outcomes of the course units (ILO). Representatives from employers, alumni and

students need to be consulted in curriculum preparation.

• The process should be repeated every three years as per the statute henceforth regularly

to remain competitive in the corporate world. There should be serious effort to reduce

overlapping topics in the syllabus. Adequate time allocation should be included to the

curriculum to accommodate the soft skills development of the students such as

English speaking (communicating English), ICT, personality development.

• Course contents need to be upgraded according to the changes of the global, regional

and national aspects to address peace, prosperity and resilience of the society.

• The rules and regulations for internship should be made effective and formal. There

should be effective role of the teachers in internship and master thesis. The students

need more interactive guidance at regular interval while carrying out internship/thesis

preparation. When the students are deputed at corporate offices, there should be

proper attachment with an individual and they should also be involved in the

internship/thesis evaluation process.

Student admission, progress and achievement:

The university maintains a fair and transparent system of admission. The admission policy is

well defined and approved by the appropriate authorities. The students have positive attitude

on the degree program offered by the department. The university practices the teachers’

evaluation by the student. There is no alumni contact procedure.

EPRT recommends:

• The student and their employment in relevant field is matter of concern. There is need

to have proper direction regarding the students’ career development and their ultimate

destination. One can plan:

o Frequent visits to the NGOs will help the students.

20

o There should be some classes by the practicing/NGOs people; and

o Emphasis should be on practical, less on theoretical aspects.

• Need to introduce teacher evaluation systems as early as possible. Student should rate

the teachers confidentially.

• The seminar library should increase the number of books. The intake of students

should be reviewed and should be limited to the manageable size. Focus should be on

the quality of education.

• The faculty should be open to improvement and take interest in academics. Routine

feedback from the students and alumni will benefit the course designing and

upgradation. Their regular interaction with IQAC will help them to improve quality of

education.

• Washroom facilities in the department for both male and female should be separated.

• ICT should be comprehensively used for communication with on campus like,

curriculum, syllabus, programme implementation plan, weakly programmes, results,

scholarship announcements, student feedbacks and all other miscellaneous

communication.

Physical facilities:

Physical infrastructural facilities in terms of classrooms, laboratories, office spaces for

academic staff and free spaces for teachers and students of the department are inadequate.

The medical and physiotherapy are very good. The Central library and reading room

infrastructure are good. The good common rooms, cafeteria and recreational facilities for

students are very good. Indoor sports and cultural activity facilities have been created for the

students.

The library has fairly good number of books on Botany. Library has not yet subscribed e-

journals and the digitisation of library books have not taken up. The students participate

regularly in the debate, sports activities and win trophies/awards. The faculty rooms and their

basic facilities are good. Availability of facilities for research is fair. It is desirable that the

laboratories of the department are upgraded with modern equipments.

EPRT recommends:

• Hostel facilities for students (girls and boys) need to be improved in terms of number,

hygiene and facilities.

• Need to upgrade the laboratories and add sufficient number of computers in computer

laboratory,

• The canteen should be developed and kitchen environment should be hygienic.

Teaching, learning and assessment of student performance:

The faculty is very well qualified and blends of young and experienced. Sufficient number

of faculty members for teaching mostly with postgraduate qualifications and covering wide

21

specialization. The teaching load is optimum and equally distributed. The continuous

assessment results are provided to the students. Existing setup of the department is favorable

for teaching-learning. Theoretical classes are interactive. The students are convinced that the

course will benefit them in future. The answer scripts of the mid-term examination are given

back to students so that they can understand their deficiency. Teachers also explain and help

the weak students.

The team however could not see research environment at all. The teachers do not follow

course plans and lesson plans. The POE is not following Bloom’s taxonomy in conducting

the class and preparation of examination questions. Thus, evaluation system needs

improvement. There are some good practices like, continuous assessment results are

provided to the students. It was noticed that the student-teacher relation is very formal. They

do not get courage to seek clarification on their doubts.

The course assessment system is clearly defined in the ordinance. SAR provides complete

details of grading system, curriculum (theory and practical), degree award, evaluation

process, promotions, attendance and dropping out. The process is getting standardised and

established.

The class load including theory and practical (master routine) for each faculty with

comparative load is missing. There should be effort of the department to serve students of

different backgrounds and abilities through effective teaching-learning experiences. There

should be enough tutorial assignments to improve and widen learning methods. In honours

degree and masters courses, assignments should be based on research publications (review

articles and research) published in journals with high impact factors. SAR agrees to the

importance of self-learning ability and skill development. Presently the focus is only on class

room learning.

The student performance systemically and gradually improves after entering in the university

(from 1st year to 4th year). The reason of lower grades of the students in Part 1 & 2 needs to

be analysed and addressed. During the visit it became apparent that there is no internal

quality assurance unit at the program level to detect and address exact areas where effort

could be applied. The teachers may also need to identify and develop some key performance

indicators (KPI) that are easily measurable so that the overall performance can be regularly

assessed.

EPRT recommends:

• The students are informed about the aims, objectives, learning outcomes and

method of assessment of the programmes. It can be further improved by making

the document more comprehensive like informing about the grading system

course and academic calendar. The continuous assessment process and

components are needed to be redesigned.

• There is need to develop interactive instructional techniques that engage students in

higher order “thinking” and investigation, presentations, experiments, practicum,

internship and application of ICT resources.

• Rubrics should be used for the assessment of written examination; more emphasis

need to be given on presentation and case based study and case based exam

questions; and the answer sheet has been evaluated for all five questions and their

marks have been counted.

22

• Teachers should be encouraged to use English in the classroom. Sample check of

the answer sheet in the examination section revealed that all five questions are

answered in Bengali despite instruction that at least one question should be

answered in English.

• The curriculum is absent. The team was informed that it is being evolved under

Different project. It has been found that many teachers are unaware of this

development. It should be discussed openly and may be evolved in most transparent

manner by involving all the teachers, industrialists, alumni, employers and external

subject specialists.

• The classes are theoretical and less effective practical. This affects the chances of

getting good skilled based jobs. It should be made necessary that teachers complete

the courses as per the syllabus and number of hours allotted.

• Stakeholder’s opinions need to be considered for the academic development. The

department should interact with industry for enlarging the scope of research areas. It

will help the university to embark on programmes of contemporary science and

contribute in national development.

• There is no documental evidence of inviting visiting/guest faculty or meetings with

stake holders. SA reports that organisation of such workshops/seminars/conferences

require corporate funding. Such restrictions have resulted in poor peer interaction.

• Assignments and tutorials should be part of self-learning with proper credit linked

marks. The answer sheets should be shown to students by all the teachers

immediately after the internal test.

• For promoting research career growth should be linked to nationally relevant

research. The impact factor and citations should be sole criteria to evaluate

research.

Student support services:

Having completed their school education successfully, students are admitted to the university,

they face a different teaching learning experience, together with an environment that is

different from their earlier experiences. Academic guidance and counselling should be

integrated with a system of learning progress monitoring. There is no tradition of mentoring

the students. The department of Botany provide very poor support to the students for their

future career growth.

The central library infrastructure is satisfactory. Sports and medical facilities are available at

the university level. Special reward policy exits for the meritorious students. There are

facilities for extra-curricular activities. Academic guidance and counseling are present.

Co-curricular or community service activities are adequately encouraged. Academic guidance

and counseling are formalized with proper documentations. Presence of the alumni

association could not be verified. Female students have separate common rooms which is

small and poorly managed. We observed very poor hygiene in the residential halls both for

boys and girls. Furthermore, the rooms are not overcrowded. The boys’ halls are inadequate.

The traditional relationship between students and staff at the department is good. The

23

students feel the necessity of academic guidance and counselling particularly in the early

years. Such mentoring arrangements are best combined with career guidance and exposure to

entrepreneurship. As evident from the responses there is no evidence of faculty and student

formal linkage during the course and after the course (with alumni).

EPRT recommendations:

• The medical and health facility to the students is provided. It should be made more

effective. The medical centre should have more diagnostics equipment. The sports

and gymnasium facilities are good.

• For the teaching/learning process student and teacher interaction (formal or

informal) is widely recognized as a "good practice" to improve performance and

quality. The review team felt that it is practiced in the department regularly. There

is no grievance cell in the department.

• There is need to strengthen the bond between the alumni, NGOs and industries.

Alumni association should be formed. The department should facilitate this process

and support annual meetings.

• The university canteen needs to be modern and redesigned for healthy and hygienic

environment.

Academic Staff and facilities:

The teaching staff is very well-qualified teaching supportive staff, technical staff, and other

non-academic staff. Academic staffs are provided training on updated teaching methods and

pedagogy. There is good relationship between academic and non-academic staffs. The office

space and the facilities for the staff are sufficient.

There is no well-defined recruitment policy; however its implementation has been mattering

great concern. There are diverse views on the faculty recruitment procedure. If it requires

changes in the statute, the University Grants Commission should implement “transparent”

recruitment is required to be made in this university. The fresh entrants are not provided any

training in pedagogy or teaching methods. They are straight put to the teaching job. The

office space and the facilities for the staff are not sufficient. No peer observation exists; some

teachers are reluctant regarding the rules and regulations of the department. This was evident

during discussion with the teachers. The faculty at the early stage keep looking for

opportunities to go abroad. Many of them do not return back.

EPRT recommends:

• Recruitments and excellence in academics (merit) should be entirely based on the

attainments in research with teaching experience (through measurable criterion like

impact factor, citations and h–index). Those should be the sole criteria of recruitment

and further promotion. Thus, recruited teachers can only bring excellence in academics.

• There is a need to standardize the remuneration for university academic and nonacademic

staff. The salary and promotion opportunities should be as per the public universities.

• Monitoring and accountability should be strengthened at all levels.

• Academic staff should have formal and informal (online based) contacts with the

24

students.

• The training programme for academic staff on teaching methods should be introduced by

POE or the university.

Non-Academic Staff:

There is well defined recruitment policy in practice. The non-academic staffs are provided

proper career growth plan. EPRT could not verify standardised well documented procedure to

recruit of non-academic staff. There is no initiative or procedure of staff development

programme. Key performance indicators for personnel performance evaluation are not in

practice.

EPRT recommends:

• There should be regular efforts to improve skills of non-academic staff. The non-

academic staff should be directly attached with department and reporting to the Head of

the department. The future recruitment of the non-academic staff should be based on

proper qualification. Merit and sincerity should be the sole criteria for selection of the

non-academic staff.

Research and Extension:

Though the university has research and development policy and allocate good amount of

funds to the interested faculty members. Faculty is well qualified though very less emphasis

on research. There seems to be less emphasis on research publications in high impact factor

journals. Though moderate there are enough opportunities to carry out research in the

department or under networking framework.

EPRT recommendations:

• The Research Advisory Board (RAB) should be formed including learned/well

accomplished scientists, industry and other stake holders. It should monitor the research

accomplishments annually. The career growth should be linked to quality research,

publication in reputed journals.

• At the same time the scholarship to the research students and university funding support

for research project will provide impetus to the well qualified faculty. The teachers

should tap also ‘tap’ other sources like, international and national funding agencies.

• Excellence in research through internationally measurable methods should be only

criterion for their future career growth of the teachers. The publications made with the

research work carried out in Bangladesh should be given higher weight age. Annual

report of the department should include these parameters for the assessment of

individual teachers; and

• The department should host workshop or seminar or conferences by recognised

professional bodies. There should be at least one event every third year.

Process Management and Continuous improvements:

25

There are evidences to believe that apex management is committed to provide conducive

learning environment for students and faculty members. The self-assessment of the

departments must be integral part of internal quality assurance and it should be coordinated

by the University IQAC (at least once in three years). One of the biggest lacunae in the

process management is the absence of experienced teachers and quality students. The IQAC

has just started formal academic feedback system in the degree program. IQAC is well

organized and very dynamic to arrange required quality development programs.

The university may consider developing implementation plan and appointing monitoring

committees for the implementation. The student, faculty and alumni feedback should be

made mandatory in every session of the department. ICT based transparent system should be

implemented as soon as possible. Enhanced emphasis may be considered for practical and

self-learning credits courses in graduate degree programmes. University may consider

constituting Research Advisory Board (RAB) consisting of leading national experts, to

annually monitor the faculty research.

The department may consider defining learning outcomes of all courses. It should be ensured

that graduate profiles and desired skills are consistent; faculty improvement programmes may

be considered to expose the faculty with newer teaching methods, skills to develop research

proposal, team building exercises and enhance motivation/commitment for the overall

development of the department. Involvement of younger faculty in course programme

management may be considered to inculcate sense of involvement and commitment.

EPRT recommendations:

• Introduce students’ feedback including peer observation on teaching and learning;

• Need to appoint coordinator for establishing liaison between PoE and IQAC regarding

maintaining the quality indicators;

• Need to have scope for utilizing specialized guest speakers for motivating younger

faculty;

• Specific action plan need to be designed and implemented to achieve the goals. The

department should practice formal feedback system from students through transparent

system at various stages of their stay in the campus. IQAC will be surely come

forward for support such much needed efforts. At the moment no interaction of PoE is

visible with IQAC;

• Students should be involved in community based social services, moral education and

community commitments.

The analysis of strength, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) of the

Department of Botany are as below:

SWOT Analysis

Areas Strengths and Weaknesses Opportunities Threats

26

Reviewed good practices

Governance Vision and

mission

documents at the

department level

are explained.

The department

gets fairly good

students due to

the extensive

screening

through the

standard central

admission test;

Bright poor

students are

encouraged with

scholarship;

Department has

very qualified

teachers; Many

of them are

educated in best

of the

institutions;

Academic

decision is taken

participatory

manner at

faculty level;

Examination

results are

released within

the stipulated

time.

The organogram

of the university

does not exist in

the website or any

university

documents;

Mission of the

department is

defined but not

approved by the

academic

committee and

also it is not

displayed in the

student’s

handbooks.

Goals and

objectives of the

Department of

Botany are

mentioned, but it

is not still

approved by the

academic

committee and

also its

effectiveness in

the curriculum is

not properly done.

No graduate

profile of the

degree programs

are in written

form;

Providing of

details course

outlines to the

students is not in

practice;

Lack of a system

for receiving

feedback from the

students,

stakeholders for

PoE needs to

formulate goals,

objectives and

strategic plan in

written form. It

should be included in

department booklet.

The booklet should

include course plan,

curriculum and

learning outcome.

The same should be

made available to

students at the time

of session opening;

Intended Learning

outcomes should be

clearly reflecting the

mission and

objectives of the

PoE;

Feedback from the

stakeholders such as

students, employers

and alumni and is

necessary for

improvement of the

departmental

governance. The

students should also

provide blinded

feedback on teachers

on aspects like

quality and teaching

methods;

The University has

website but lacks

contents of the

department. Hence,

the department of

Botany should have

its own website make

it informative and

user friendly;

Soft skills

If the faculty

recruitment

process is not

based on merit

and measurable

academic

achievement, it

will have

irreversible long-

term negative

impact. It is

necessary to

correct this

process with

highest priority;

This part of the

Bangladesh has

cultural mixes. If

the youth does

not get good

opportunities of

education and

skill based

employment there

could be social

unrest and

community

disharmony.

27

improvement with

reference to

teaching, learning,

research and

extension;

Documentation is

not up to the

required

standards; The

detailed report

will enlist the

documents which

could not be

produced for

validation;

Although the

University has

website, it is not

maintained

properly and not

regularly updated

and information of

the Department

given in the

website is

inadequate;

The job

opportunities for

the graduates and

Masters of this

department are

very few. No

serious effort is

made by the

faculty for

organizing

placement on the

regular basis;

There is no

program in the

department for

development of

soft skills of the

students;

SAC could not

development

programs for the

students need to be

introduced for

effective placement;

Alumni association

should have annual

activity. Students

who have done well

should give

motivational talk;

The apex

management should

implement existing

policy to take

teaching assignment

outside university

campus. The

procedure should be

established to fix

maximum number of

hours of classes in

private universities

and institutions.

28

provide details of

formal training

program offered to

the newly

appointed

academic faculty

members. But

verbally it was

informed that it is

organized;

Peer observation

not in practice;

The teachers take

classes outside the

JU without any

information and

permission of the

department

chairman. This

has seriously

affected research

motivation and

student mentoring. Curriculum

Design and

Review

The Department

has a procedure

for preparation

and review of

the courses and

syllabus.

The courses are

relevant and

fulfill the

required

national

standards degree

program;

The program has

great promise to

provide

employment on

completion of

the course;

In the honors

level study, a

student has to

The syllabus is

moderately up to

date, more

theoretical, lacks

practical

orientation. There

is large gap

between the

industry,

economic growth

and present day

social needs of the

subject like, data

science, data

analytics, data

mining;

There are 140 and

30 credits for

fulfilling the

requirements of

Bachelor of

Science degree

(Hons.) and

Masters

Curriculum (course

outline) need to be

redesigned to reflect

the objectives of the

PoE programs. It

must be tuned with

intended learning

outcomes of the

course units (ILO);

Representatives from

employers, alumni

and students need to

be consulted in

curriculum

preparation;

Adequate time

allocation should be

included to the

curriculum to

accommodate the

Lack of skill

development,

stakeholders’

linkage,

knowledge

building

opportunities and

self-learning

methods will

result in poor

placements.

Absence of state

of art topics in

curriculum will

bring down the

standard of

education and

employability of

the students.

29

appear in

midterm

examination,

field work and

tutorial.

Students have

the option to

choose the

course units in

M.Sc.

respectively;

The credit hours

are towards higher

side in theoretical

subjects,

Emphasis on

applied and

practical based

courses should

have more credits

hours;

The syllabus is not

need based

because there is

no ILOs and KPI;

Curriculum does

not address

adequately the soft

skills development

of the students

such as English

language

knowledge, ICT,

personality

development etc.;

Intended Learning

Outcomes of the

course units are

not defined;

Stakeholders such

as employers,

alumni feedback

are not

accommodated

duly in designing

the curriculum,

Absence of

incorporation of

market demand

based syllabus.

soft skills

development of the

students such as

English language

knowledge,

Mathematics,

Statistics, ICT,

personality

development;

Course contents need

to be upgraded

according to the

changes of the global

geographical aspects

and field and secure

employability;

There should be a

specific timeline for

conducting

curriculum design

where employers,

alumni, present

students may be

invited;

There should be a

method of preparing

cases studies by the

students and

discussion;

In order to build

communication skill

of the students, some

credits can be

allocated for the

presentation.

Student:

Admission,

Progress and

Achievements

The University

maintains a fair

and transparent

system of

admission. The

admission

policy is well

Admission

process delays the

session in the first

year by 4-6

months.

Students are not

Computer based

application process

has improved some

extent. The

centralized test

should be conducted

University to

attract students

from different

backgrounds

(local,

international,

under-privileged,

ethnic groups,

30

defined and

approved by the

appropriate

authorities

Competent

students are

admitted into the

department

Students have

positive attitude

on the programs

offered by the

department.

aware regarding

their career

development as

most are unaware

where the course

will lead to;

There is no

departmental

policy towards the

students who

show poor

progress as no

counseling system

exits.

Teachers’

evaluation by the

student is absent;

Even though

students’

theoretical

competence is

good. They lack

practical

knowledge;

so that students need

not give multiple

tests;

Students should be

guided on career

development and

their ultimate

destination;

Frequent visits to the

industry and related

hubs will help the

students;

There should be

some classes by the

practicing/industry

people with real

world data;

Need to introduce

teacher evaluation

systems as early as

possible Student

intake needs to be

limited to

manageable size.

disabled, etc).

Unless it is done,

there will be

absence of

harmony in

varied cultural,

communities and

social

background

people.

Physical

facilities

Medical center

is well equipped

and is up to the

required

standards.

Facilities for

Extracurricular

activities are

sufficient;

There are

separate male

and female

student’s toilets

at faculty level;

Number of class

Human resources

of the medical

center such as

physicians,

nurses/compounde

rs and helping

hands are not

sufficient; Key

diagnostic

equipment like X-

ray machine,

Pathological Lab.

There is serious

requirement of an

Ambulance;

Gradually the

number of

The medical center

needs upgradation

with increase of

facilities, man power

and ambulance.

Students and faculty

members should be

issued card for the

actual dependent

beneficiaries;

Specific action plan

need to be designed

and implemented to

achieve the objective

of the program. This

can be done easily if

all teachers interact

Most of the

problems are due

to top down

management. It

prohibits

department to

take initiatives.

Decentralization

of decision

making process

may be viable

solution.

31

rooms are

coming up and

will be sufficient

for the running

students in near

future;

Central library

facilities are

managed

efficiently. They

are positive to

strengthening

the quality

education;

Very good

common rooms,

cafeteria and

recreational

facilities for

students;

Department has

conference hall,

meeting rooms,

etc.;

There are ample

opportunities

provided to

students for

sports and

cultural

activities;

Internet

facilities are

available.

It was

heartening to see

students using

the central

library facilities

for studies

needed for them

otherwise

students has

increased. Hence

physical facilities

in terms of

classrooms,

laboratories, office

spaces for

academic staff and

free spaces

(common rooms)

for the students

are not adequate;

Modern teaching

aids are not used

in the class rooms;

Conditions of both

male and female

toilets for the

students in the

halls are terrible

and very

unhygienic;

Unavailability of

sufficient

computer

laboratory

facilities;

Seminar library is

under renovation

but number of text

books and

reference books

are insufficient,

Insufficient

accommodation in

the hostels for

girls and boys.

They are forced to

live in dormitory.

with IQAC members;

Routine feedback

from the students and

alumni will benefit

the course designing

and upgradation;

Need to improve

sports facilities for

the students further;

Hostel facilities for

students (girls and

boys) need to be

improved in terms of

number, hygiene and

maintenance. The

kitchen (private)

environment and the

facilities should be

more hygienic;

Washroom, dining

room, kitchen of the

student halls must be

cleaned and certain

level of hygiene

should be

maintained;

Washroom facilities

in the department for

both male and female

should be much

bigger. The common

room for girls in the

department should be

separated from

toilets; A prayer

room should be there

for female students.

Need to provide

sufficient number of

computers in

computer laboratory

with larger RAM,

storage and

processing

32

capabilities.

Establishment of

High Performance

Computing facility

will increase the

research

opportunities;

The faculty library

should increase the

number of books of

test books. The

library should be

computerized. Online

journals will enhance

research capabilities;

More laboratory

space and more

equipments for

practical and

research are needed

which should be

provided by the

appropriate authority.

For the activity of the

whole department,

more physical space

is highly essential.

Teaching,

Learning and

Assessment

Sufficient

number of

faculty

members are

with PhD and

higher degree

A good number

of faculties are

available in the

department

with

postgraduate

qualifications;

Continuous

assessment

Course outlines

and lesson plans

are not used;

PoE is not

following

Bloom’s

Taxonomy in

conducting the

class and

preparation of

examination

questions;

The prescribed

and written

guidelines of

Curriculum need to

be developed. A

special workshop

needs to be organized

to develop course

curriculum. Course

outlines and lesson

plans should be given

at the beginning of

the semester for all

the course units;

Continuous

assessment process

Lack of skill

development

results in poor

placements and

job opportunities; There are visible

signs of lack of

transparency in

evaluation/assess

ment system. It

will affect the

reputation of the

department.

33

results are

informed to the

students;

Student teacher

relation is good.

Existing setup

of the

department is

favorable for

teaching

learning;

There are

limited modern

teaching and

learning

facilities in the

class rooms;

Theoretical

classes are

interactive;

The poor

students are

provided

guidance. They

are given books

and relevant

literature for

additional

learning;

teaching method is

English but

teachers have been

found to deliver

lectures mostly in

Bengali;

It is observed that

beyond class

classroom

contacts are

missing;

The teachers

are never

exposed to

modern

pedagogy

techniques;

and components are

needed to be re-

designed;

Student-teacher

relation can be

further improved by

increasing student

teacher contact

hours;

Continuous

assessment

evaluation results

need to be published

on time;

Follow Bloom’s

Taxonomy in

preparation of

examination

questions;

More emphasis

should be given on

presentation and case

based study and case

based exam

questions;

Teachers should be

encouraged to use

English in the

classroom;

Peer review of the

teachers is essential

for improving the

quality of teaching.

Answer scripts of the

mid-term

examination should

34

be given back to

students so that they

can at least

understand their

lacking in writing

and presentations.

Student

Support

Services

The Central

library has good

repository of

test, reference

books and

journals.

Sports facilities

and Medical

facilities at the

university level

are available;

Academic

guidance and

counseling are

formalized with

proper

documentations.

Library and

seminar

facilities are

moderately

satisfactory for

quality

education.

Special reward

policy exits

(scholarships

and dean’s

award) for the

meritorious

students.

There are

facilities for

extra-curricular

activities;

Hall facilities

Career counseling

absent in the PoE;

There seems to be

an alumni

association which

is almost

nonfunctional;

Absence of co-

curricular

activities.

Academic and social

counseling need to be

introduced;

Extra and Co-

curricular activities

could be

incorporated within

the academic

calendar;

Need to strengthen

the bond of current

students with the

alumni and industry;

The department

should facilitate and

support annual

meetings;

A female counselor

should be appointed

for the female

students.

Social harmony

elements can

minimize

harassment of

girl’s students in

the campus; Students are not

found aware of

the process and

procedure of

central Sexual

Harassment

Prevention

Committee.

35

are available.

Staff and

their

Facilities

Well-defined

recruitment

policy is in

practice;

Well-qualified

teaching staff

and teaching

supportive staff,

technical staff,

and other non-

academic staff;

Academic staff

are not provided

training on

updated

teaching

methods and

pedagogy;

There is good

relationship

between

academic and

non-academic

staffs;

Department does

not maintain a list

of publication of

the academic staff

on a regular basis;

Staff development

programs do not

exist

Research grants

for academic staff

is not sufficient;

Insufficient fund

from the

faculty/University

for running

research works

discourage faculty

members doing

research work;

No proper career

growth plan;

The selection of

teaching faculty from

the same department

should be

discouraged; This

leads to inbreeding of

knowledge;

Non-academic staff

career development

should be introduced

for skill development

of the staffs.

The office space,

laboratories and the

facilities for

academic and

nonacademic staffs

are insufficient;

Senior teachers

should provide

mentoring in

regarding academic

development;

improving research

and teaching aptitude

of the junior

colleagues;

Monitoring and

accountability should

be strengthened in all

levels;

Training program for

newly appointed

academic staffs need

to be introduced

either by the PoE or

by the University;

Peer observation

need to be

introduced;

Young teachers

should be supported

with research funds

There will be

discontent in

lower staff and it

will affect

smooth

functioning

36

for following PhD

degree either from

home or abroad;

Promotions should

give preference to

research carried out

in Bangladesh;

Research and

Extension

There are

moderate

opportunities

and physical

facilities to

carryout

research

Documental

evidences for

policy and

program on

research and

development are

not available;

Funding for

research projects

led by faculty

members are not

adequate;

Faculty members

are rarely bid for

external research

funding;

There are few

active researchers

in the

departments;

Less involvement

of the teachers in

community

services;

No updated

database for

research work is

presented;

Faculty members

should be motivated

to enhance the

research activities.

Faculties should be

encouraged to

publish their research

findings in indexed

journals through a

reward system;

Research grants may

be explored as

network

collaboration with

other faculty

members and

corporate sector;

University should

encourage and

support faculty

members and

students to

participate actively in

conducting

workshops and

research conferences;

Need formal training

on research planning

and fund seeking for

newly recruited

academic staffs;

Teachers should

devote their major

time for academic

and research

development.

Evidence for

Research is

backbone of the

academics. The

declining trend in

quality of

education will

affect the

academics.

37

publications of

research outputs in

indexed journals is

need to be available;

An annual report

should be published

by the department

which will record all

the academic

achievements,

publication (with

impact factor).

Process

Management

for Continual

Improvement

The department

practices

informal

academic

feedback system

in the degree

program;

IQAC is well

organized and

very dynamic to

arrange required

quality

development

programs;

University

administration is

committed to

provide

conducive

learning

environment for

students and

faculty members

No formal

feedback system is

implemented in

regarding teaching

in the department;

IQAC hierarchy is

found to be only

on paper;

The linkage

between PoE and

IQAC in regarding

maintaining the

quality indicators

properly. PoE

need to be more

proactive and

positive to

understand the

quality assurance

requirements;

Faculty is not

responsive to self-

assessment.

Feedback systems

from different

stakeholders are

not sought.

Formal evaluation

of teaching and

learning

mechanism does

not exist;

Introduce students’

feedback including

peer observation on

teaching and

learning;

Need to appoint of

coordinator from the

department to

establish liaison

between PoE and

IQAC in regarding

maintaining the

quality indicators;

Need to have scope

for utilizing

specialized guest

speakers from

industry;

Specific action plan

need to be designed

and implemented to

achieve the goals;

Feedback from

relevant stakeholders

need to be obtained

to identify the

potential areas for

improvement;

Lack of efficient

and excellence

centric process

will affect the

reputation of the

university.

38

Conclusion

The EPRT visited the Department of Botany of the university to initiate the review process

during 24-26th September, 2017. Over the years, Department of Botany has developed its

infrastructure, facilities, and academic staff, in addition to undergraduate and post-graduate

degree and research programs. At the outset it should be mentioned that EPRT worked on

curricular aspects, teaching, learning and evaluation, research, consultancy and extension,

infrastructure and learning resources, student support and progress, organization and

management and healthy practices. The self-study report of the department at times missed to

detail its operational performance. Many of the assessments are part of future plans.

However, the efforts of Department of Botany deserve appreciation for having undertaken a

critical analysis of all the aspects of its undergraduate and post graduate programs.

In conclusion, it is felt that the current governance system is top-down and unaccountable. In

general, the department functions through university rules and regulation and carry out the

education programs. The department and teachers are hesitant in taking initiatives and

changes. There is need of quality assurance, contemporary teaching methods, optimum use of

facilities and emphasis on skill development to increase employability, transparent feedback

mechanism and involvement of the teacher in the contemporary research. The team observed

significant good practices led by some of the individual faculty members in the

department.Emphasis should be given on soft skills development of the students (e.g.

leadership quality, team building, honesty, IT and language skills, better adaptability with

new environments, creativity, communication, and strong personality through curricula/extra

curricula/co-curricular activities. Existing good practices could be continued in collaboration

with IQAC for quality education for teaching and learning purposes. Review team is

confident that implementing the recommendations outlined in the report can benefit the

department as well as the university to promote their image in national and international

arena. While maintaining the existing departmental structure at the graduate, post-graduate

and research; the department should consider self-sponsored skill development programmes.

The recommendation provided can help in making future plan for the department. The core

values of the education should be:

1. Defining element of higher education through a combination of self and external

quality evaluation, quest for excellence, promotion and sustenance initiatives;

2. Strive for excellence in fundamental and applied research which benefits the society

and the nation; and

3. Evolve transparent process of knowledge transfer through education including self-

learning capabilities.

Coordination among

the faculty members,

with the

management, and

with IQAC is needed

for effective process

management

39

Department of Botany, Jahangirnagar University, Savar, Dhaka Self-Assessment Report

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 Given

Numerical Weight

Governance 3.5 5

Curriculum Design and Review 3 5

Physical Facilities 3 5

Student: Admission Progress and Achievements 3.5 5

Teaching and Learning 3 5

Assessment of Student Performance 3.5 5

Student Support Services 3.5 5

Staff and Facilities 3.5 5

Research and Extension 3.5 5

Process Management for Continual Improvement 3 5

Total 33 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 for Department of Botany, Jahangirnagar University,

Savar, and Dhaka, Bangladesh

Signatures:

40

Prof P S Roy Overseas Expert NASI Senior Scientist University of Hyderabad Hyderabad, India

Prof. Moniruzzaman Khondker Retd. From Department of Botany,

Subject Matter Specialist

University of Dhaka

Dhaka, Bangladesh

Prof. Dr. Ain-ul Huda Department of Physics, Additional Director IQAC, Jahangirnagar University, Sarvar, Dhaka, Bangladesh