New curriculum for diploma courses in Telangana

State Board of Technical Education and Training (SBTET) has undertaken the process of revising the diploma curriculum as it is due for the next academic year

Hyderabad: The curriculum for the diploma courses offered in the polytechnic colleges in the State will undergo major changes besides new programmes such as robotics and EV will be introduced in the next academic year, i.e. 2024-25. The EV as a subject is already being offered to electrical, mechanical and automobile engineering diploma students in their fifth semester.

The State Board of Technical Education and Training (SBTET) has undertaken the process of revising the diploma curriculum as it is due for the next academic year. Every three years, the Board undertakes such revision with the last revision done during the academic year 2020-21 and C-21 curriculum was launched. The new curriculum will be called C-24, which will be introduced to students joining the first-year diploma programmes in the next academic year.

To formulate and design the syllabus, the Board will constitute 20 to 25 committees comprising principals, heads of the department, subject lecturers, Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University (JNTU) – Hyderabad professors and industry experts. The curriculum will be designed in tune with the industry requirements and based on the committees’ reports, new syllabus and courses will be introduced.

In the last few academic years, programmes including Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning, Cyber Security, Internet of Things, Software Engineering, Networks, Computer Science and Business Systems, Embedded Systems, Cloud Computing, Big Data Analysis, and Cyber Physical Systems have received good responses from students.

Apart from bringing in curriculum changes, the SBTET introduced several reforms particularly in assessing students. An open book system was launched in the academic year 2021-22, allowing students to carry any of the two reference books out of five prescribed by the Board into the examination hall.

This system has drastically improved the pass percentage of students. During the last academic year, students clearing the Applied Engineering Mathematics subject in the open book exam system in the third semester increased by 24 per cent with 59 per cent passing the exam as against 35 per cent in closed book examination (regular exam) for the same subject.