Behavioral Changes of Students in higher educational institutions: Issues and Trends

Behavioral Changes of Students in higher educational institutions: Issues and Trends Given the fact that the system of imparting knowledge as well as the operational norms in higher educational institutes have gone through tremendous change over the past few decades, it is only natural that the students will respond to this by showing changes in their behavior and attitude towards the entire system. The term “massification” of education has become synonymous with the modern educational scenario, what with all the emphasis on production of knowledge rather than on the creation of knowledge, and the shortage of adequately qualified teaching staff. As the students leave the protected cocoon of their schools and step into the complex world of ultra-modernized colleges and/or universities, they come face to face with a great many technological, circumstantial, situational and environmental realities. The biggest threat at this point is perhaps the one that lurks in the vicinity but does not present itself clearly enough – an internal struggle with the value systems and ideologies, which they have absorbed during their basic stages of formal education and training in school. They become aware of the requirement to unlearn the characteristics of the behavior that they had picked up earlier, in order to, as they say, ‘go with the flow’. At this stage the students stand vulnerable to negative behavioral patterns as they may fail to differentiate or draw the line at the right place or time. Moreover, the demands of the contemporary campus life may also drain them out, physically as well as emotionally. Participating in extracurricular activities is no longer a matter of choice and relaxation for the adolescent students. It has rather become an accomplice to the entire system that urges the students to keep competing in order to get recognized by the authorities. At this point, counseling by the parents and teachers play a significant role in guiding them through. In this light, a few important issues and trends related to the behavioral changes of students in the higher educational institutes have been discussed in the following sections. CONTEMPORARY SCENARIO IN HIGHER EDUCATION As against the age old value systems followed by the universities since they came into existence, today is more about private good than public good – as a direct result of massification of education. While a handpicked few higher education institutes strive to remain the “conscience of the society”, most, or rather the maximum has kneeled to the demand of time and given way to a less than prepared and an inadequate teaching system. According to recent studies, the average qualification of the professors has gone down from what it was a few decades back. Privatization of the academics has become a common phenomenon as the states declare themselves incapable of meeting the demands for higher educational courses or professional courses. As a result students no longer look up to the teachers as their authority. For them the managers and bureaucrats are better positioned to look into their matters. All these factors contribute to what a recently published report on the higher education trends points out – the “academic revolution”. Though these aspects have been explored before but in light of the topic at hand, which is the affect of the trends on the behavioral changes of the students, they gain a greater importance. Another significant development in the higher educational institutes is the increased access to information and communication services. While the argument continues on the limits to the access of such devices, the influence seems to engrave itself deeper by broadening their horizons and at the same time, exposing them to the dangers of isolated existence, thereby giving rise to multiple physiological issues. IMPACT OF GLOBALIZATION OF BEHAVIORAL CHANGES OF STUDENTS The biggest impact of globalization on the students is perhaps, the requirements and at times, demands, of studying in a culturally diverse campus environment. While they have been brought up with certain social values and cultural norms aligning to a particular social strata or cast, their higher educational pursuits bring them to an entirely new world. They suddenly face issues such as religious and cultural tolerance and try to learn the ways to adopt an open mind in order to take in all that is happening new around them. What this means is that the adolescent students can no longer relate to the known behavioral patterns and they consequently enter the troubled waters territory. At this point they need to get trained on various aspects of living and studying in culturally diverse environments. Another face of globalization is the increase in mobility of international students, which, according to recent studies, is reflective of a ‘South-North Phenomenon’. There is a need for international standards and a common procedure to compare, which is in its nascent stage of development. Then there is the issue of the comparability of the international qualifications, which is not yet fully resolved. These grey areas continue to exist and result in becoming detrimental to the confidence level of the international students who are unsure of the value of their degrees. CLASS MANAGEMENT IN THE CHANGED CONTEXT OF ROLE OF TEACHERS If there ever was a time when the teachers need to don on the role of a true friend, philosopher and guide, then it is now. Though the changes have been gradual in their stages of development the situation remains new for the students, as every year a different batch of students take admission to these higher educational institutes after clearing their school level examinations. So, the role of the teachers has gained immense importance, as the torch bearers of a new age educational system with the responsibility of managing the classroom in innovative and participative ways so as to encourage positive behavioral characteristics. Teachers are now less of an instructor and more of a guide. ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY AND LIBRARY SERVICE IN SHAPING THE BEHAVIORAL CHANGES OF STUDENTS IN THE HIGHER EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS The issue of access to information and communication services and the limitations that needs to be imposed on the same, has been a matter of debate over the years, with no tangible results seen yet. The pattern of behavior demonstrated by the students while searching for information has undergone massive change from the time modern technological search tools have been made accessible to these students. They have become aware of the possibilities that are open in front of them in terms of searching for a wide range of information and also the scope that they have to check the reliability of the information. Recent studies have also hinted at the aspect of the increased information literacy and this is a direct result of the liberty that the students have to use technologically aided communication devices such as internet capable phones, which have a number of advantageous features capable of being used for a number of purposes. The information seeking behavior of the students, their research patterns and their usage of information can also be studied by from their utilization of the library and research facilities offered in the higher educational institutes. In such cases, it has been observed that the students with their first language as English are better equipped to use the library services than the others. ROLE OF ADMINISTRATION TOWARDS THE BEHAVIORAL CHANGES OF STUDENTS The administration has an important role to play in instigating as well as warding off the negative behavior patterns of the students who enroll for courses in higher educational institutes. While in some cases it has been seen that the students often show some disruptive behaviors that can only be dealt with the help of professional guidance, in others instances of provocative remarks, stiffening rules and regulations and absence of proper counseling channels have also led to development of unwanted behavior patterns. However, the silver lining on the cloud is the role of teachers. The line demarcating the teacher from the student is no longer as thick as it used to be earlier. They are both the educators and counselors, with an open minded attitude that strives for tolerance towards change – change in the levels of understanding, change in the behaviors and reactions of the students and change in the socio-cultural contexts. A proper analysis of the behavioral change along with the possible resolutions to neutralize the negative behavioral changes has proven to be immensely relevant in cementing the desired behavior. PARENTS AND THE BEHAVIORAL CHANGES OF STUDENTS It is a well known and accepted fact that if the bonding between the students and their families or parents is on the correct lines then it becomes easier to bring about positive behavioral changes in the adolescent students. In the presence of appropriate communication and open minded interaction between the both the parties the chances of encouraging the students to get rid of their negative behavioral patterns are higher than what could have been otherwise. CAMPUS ENVIRONMENT - EMPHASIS ON EXTRA-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES A healthy campus environment paves a path for an emotionally strong and capable adolescent who can be a leader of the future. It has been observed that students who regularly take part in extracurricular activities also show better overall development in terms of academic results, health and mental stamina to deal with tougher situations. NEED FOR COUNSELING In conclusion, it must be pointed out that counseling plays an important role in encouraging and cementing positive behavior patterns in the students belonging to higher educational institutes. Teachers have an extremely pertinent role to play in the entire scenario as they are in the situation to offer first hand counseling and advice to the students who need it. Considering the fact that the students spend most of their time in the educational institutes, parents have a lesser role to play, though not less important. In case of residential international students this is even more applicable. (Feedback: www.conantinstitute.org.in.). 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