Dynamics of Social Change
The course GS F231, Dynamics of Social Change (DySoc) is Sociology 101. It discusses how cultures are established and the dynamic nature of social structures. It involves an analysis of the effect of such structures on how interactions between the individual and society at different levels are perceived. The course develops fresh perspectives on political matters, opens one up to logical and pragmatic ways of approaching societal politics, and encourages heavy discussions amongst peers.
Up until recently, the course was taken by Prof. Madhurima Das. However, this semester, it is to be taken by Prof. Tanu Shukla. As such, not much can be opined about her teaching style for this course. Since very few students took this course last year (less than 50), the total marks were 100. Of these, 30 marks were from the Mid-Semester exams, 40 from the comprehensive, and the remaining 30 from two 15 marks assignments. These assignments are take-home, one taking place before the mid-sems and one afterwards.
The course is relatively heavy compared to the other HuEls as the professor gives research papers and conducts readings, with about 4-5 such readings conducted in a semester. Very few students receive an ‘A’ in the course, with most earning an ‘A-’ or a ‘B’. A ‘B’ grade was awarded for scores around av+5-6.
Attending lectures for this course is highly recommended, as they cover the majority of the material tested in the exams. The slides are useful for definitions but lack some of the important content. The textbook is useful for grasping the concepts and may be used as a supplement to the lectures.
Introductory Psychology
This course aims to comprehensively track the evolution of psychology, and to understand its development as a science. It seamlessly integrates core concepts in psychology with the biological sciences, and also introduces students to different research methodologies in the domain. By teaching students to develop a conceptual framework for understanding the human mind, the course aims to make students understand the applications of this domain in various spheres.
Evaluation components usually include surprise tests, and group discussions and/or assignments, apart from the mid-semester and comprehensive examinations. This course is readily available at all PR numbers as those who opt for it mainly do so out of interest. The grading in the course is standard, with a B- awarded at the average.
Public Policy
The objective of this course is to explore the development, implementation, supervision, and assessment of policy processes. It provides insights into the influence of policies on contemporary governance and their impact on individuals. Through this course, students will comprehend the significance of policies in shaping societal structures.
Evaluation includes a research paper, in addition to both comprehensive and mid-semester examinations. Typically, the evaluative questions remain relatively consistent across years, offering students a consistent framework for assessment.
Developmental Economics
This course discusses developmental economics, a branch of economics that deals with the development of middle-income countries. The course is fairly easy, with mostly basic economic concepts discussed, with a requirement of rote memorization over conceptual understanding.
Evaluations include quizzes and group projects, along with the usual mid-semester and comprehensive examinations. Classes are easy to understand and self-studying is emphasized to score well. Slides are usually more than enough to secure a good grade. Grading is lenient, with an emphasis on higher grades overall. Proper sequential answers will land one a good grade, as opposed to subjective answers.
Creative Writing
The Creative Writing course is a magnet for students with a deep fondness for diverse writing styles. The main goal is to familiarize learners with different creative writing styles, including shaping events and characters, crafting poetry, short stories, and creating concise one-act plays. Emphasis is placed on referencing contemporary works to enrich understanding and inspire creativity. Individuals already engrossed in any form of writing may discover immense value in enrolling in this course. Typically, students are given a B grade if they manage to get an average score in this course.
Current Affairs
The course content is related to how news works, what type of topics make it to the news, what type of news is relevant to the readers, and how to distinguish that. The course IC Dr. Sanjiv Choudhary also covers different pieces of news as examples to demonstrate. Attendance is highly recommended. The midsemester exam is a fully open book, with students bringing in newspapers from the last few weeks. Evaluative components are based on incidents discussed in class. Reading newspapers gives an upper edge. A high PR number is required to get into the course, as it fills quickly. The average grade is around A- and B, with the professor giving out quite a few As.
Reporting and Writing for Media
This course is designed to teach the fundamental skills needed to excel in journalism, with a focus on media writing. From learning diverse styles and structures of news writing across various media platforms to mastering the art of reading between the lines in news stories, the course imparts a comprehensive understanding of what it takes to be a successful journalist.
As part of the course, one will develop basic reporting techniques such as interviewing skills and feature article writing. The course teaches students to plan and produce newspapers and TV news bulletins, while submitting original articles and stories. The overall goal of the course is to help not only understand journalism but also to foster practical skills and encourage creativity in media production. On average, a B- is handed out, with generally lenient grading upwards.
Effective Public Speaking
The course on Effective Public Speaking proves highly advantageous for individuals aiming to enhance their speaking abilities. It delves into the fundamentals of public speaking, emphasizing effective listening, proficient use of body language, managing voice modulation, overcoming stage fright, fostering self-assurance, and tailoring speeches for specific occasions, among other aspects. According to student feedback, both lecture sessions and assignments are notably fruitful. Assignments typically revolve around group discussions, delivering speeches, engaging in debates, or conducting personal interviews. On average, students tend to achieve slightly above-average scores, often resulting in a B grade for their performance in this course.
Applied Philosophy
Applied Philosophy presents a progressive study of philosophies across ages. The pre-midsem portion deals with the evolution of philosophy, beginning from Greek philosophers like Plato and Socrates, up to the Renaissance and Reformation-era contemporaries (Kant, Kierkegaard, Sartre, etc). This equips a student with technically sound tools to understand and potentially answer ethical questions encountered in real-world situations. The post-midsem content involves case studies, wherein the previously learnt concepts are made clear through examples.
Performing well in the course relies on the student’s ability to retain information from in-class discussions that extend to varying depths. Hence, being regular in classes is recommended. Dr Kumar values class participation which generally reflects in the final grades as a resort to a subjective constraint on the subject matter. The grading system ensures ten per cent of the batch gets an A, with the average score usually receiving a B-.
Marxian Thoughts
This course aims to familiarise students with the fundamental principles of Marxist Theory. The reading material is considered to be slightly heavier than the average HuEl, including different interpretations of classic texts such as Das Kapital and The Communist Manifesto. The course also involves discussion of movies based on economic exploitation and social inequality — examples include Parasite and Modern Times.
The classes have been described as fun and engaging, with some class discussions exploring topics outside the syllabus as well. Nevertheless, attendance is important as it is sometimes included as an evaluative component. The grading is lenient, although the small class strength can mean rapid shifts in grades with each exam or assignment. The course is available across all PR Numbers. Usually, the only evaluative component in the course apart from the mid-semester and comprehensive examinations is an assignment. Open book evaluative components ensure that the course focuses more on creative interpretations of the literature taught rather than rote learning of Marxist literature.
Techniques in Social Research
The course is designed for students interested in designing and publishing research projects in the social sciences. It introduces research, outlining its general procedure, design and methodologies, and purpose. Students are introduced to methods of data collection, analysis, and validation. Some related topics like ethics in research, the politics of social research, and the value of conducting studies on demographics are also talked about.
Students are encouraged to read scientific papers and books to better understand academic writing and research procedures. There will be a report and presentation to submit, as the course is built around the concept of conducting independent research. While the course is not too popular, grading is generous, owing to its fairly easy nature and content. An average score is usually awarded B, while almost a quarter of the class receives an A.
Contemporary India
This course, taken by Dr Harikrishnan Nair, talks about the various events and factors that led to the development of India as it is now. It places emphasis on the events that occurred from the ’80s to now, with mentions of pre-’80s events that affected its condition then. The course is very multidisciplinary in nature, covering geography, economics, polity and foreign policy.
Dr Nair is a great instructor and is very flow-dependant. However, this course is more modular in nature, with each module not depending on the others. The evaluation, which is the same across all his courses, consists of three parts: a mid-semester exam, a comprehensive exam, and a self-study assignment (SSA). The mid-semester and comprehensive exams are written and closed-book, while the SSA is continuous and spans across the semester. The grading is relaxed and a B- is awarded at an average score. The course is usually open to all PR numbers.
Public Administration
This course primarily focuses on the different approaches to Public Administration. One would study the evolution of public administration along with numerous theories introduced by various personalities that deal with the understanding of public administration.
For the previous batches, the evaluation consisted of four components. There was a quiz (10%), one assignment and a group presentation (20%), and midsemester (30%) and comprehensive (40%) examinations. The midsemester and comprehensive exams were both subjective. The students’ answers were judged based on their ability to present the answers with proper examples and understanding. The grading has been described as moderate. Usually, one can get a B grade at an average score. The average seems to be around 55% of the total. The required PR number for this course closed at around 550 in the past.
Short Film and Video Production
This course, taken by Professor Sushila Shekhawat, explores video production and filming techniques. It is a very hands-on course and will require students to practice all the techniques taught in the classroom. According to the course structures of the previous years, assignments held a 55% weightage in the final grade. Course assignments include script writing, photography assignments, film analysis, and making short films and documentaries. The course does not require a textbook, and slides aren’t always provided, which makes it almost essential to attend the lectures. Overall, it is a competitive course, as only a small percentage of the students who take it are awarded an A grade. The course is usually open to all PR numbers.
Copywriting
This course prepares students to write and develop an advertisement copy for various media while selecting tone(s), style(s), and approach(es) for the same. The course begins by introducing the concepts of copywriting and advertising. The curriculum enables the students to write creative copies for saleable ideas while exposing them to various copy practices in different media.
The course difficulty is said to be fairly straightforward. Notably, it is one of the few HuEls worth two units. The grading for the course is moderate with a B- being awarded at an average score. An A grade is awarded at around av+20–25. The evaluation consists of the mid-semester and comprehensive examinations, along with two assignments.
Readings from Drama
Readings from Drama is a relatively less sought-out course as it is considered more demanding than other HuELs. Consequently, it remains open for all PR numbers. Professor Prateek—specialising in theatre studies, Indian literature, and comic studies—will be taking the course this semester in place of Professor Kumar Sankar Bhattacharya. The coursework entails analysing various Indian and Western dramas like Macbeth, Doctor Faustus, and Abhijnanashakuntalam (Shakuntala). This is accompanied by discussions on topics such as societal aspects influencing the dramas, their cultural impact and more.
The course requires high attendance as it may carry some weightage in the grade and the content is difficult to grasp in a short time. The grading in this course is good, with approximately 15–20% of students getting an A.
Appreciation of Indian Music
This course aims to help students gain an appreciation of music and understand it as a fine art. It deals with the history and development of music on the Indian subcontinent. Various taals and ragas of Hindustani and Carnatic origin are taught throughout the course. There are modules dealing with Thaat and Melakarta, musical compositions, musical instruments etc.
This course is easily available as not many people opt for it. However, those without any prior musical training might find the concepts unfamiliar and challenging. Regular attendance is recommended for this course. The evaluation components vary year-to-year, but in the past have consisted of quizzes, tests, assignments, and practical exams. The grading is relatively lenient, with the lowest grade awarded being C and the average B-.
Introductory Philosophy
Introductory Philosophy is a very neatly organised and segmented collection of some major Western and Indian philosophical theories, and how their lines of thinking may be interpreted in everyday context. The first few modules introduce the nature of philosophy and its various divisions. The course then proceeds to study ancient Greek philosophers, eventually introducing several philosophers from post-medieval Europe and their modes of thinking within the first half of the course. The second part of the course deals with Indian philosophical systems, primarily the Vedic schools of thought. It also covers Buddhism and Jainism in the final module.
Apart from the mid-semester and comprehensive examinations, evaluative components include two quizzes and one small assignment. These are all easy to do well in, given sufficient studying. Attending classes is beneficial due to the discussions that are had. These usually revolve around the points listed in the slides, which are brief and tricky to understand without the in-class context. Studying on one’s own is highly recommended—from internet sources or books. Grading is standard, with a B- on average, few A minuses, and several As.
Symbolic Logic
Symbolic Logic (SymLog) aims to develop basic analysis skills to understand the nature of and evaluate the status of deductive arguments using basic symbolic procedures. Students deal with boolean logic, truth tables, and proving and disproving fallacies. The course is much preferred by CS students as it closely mirrors one of their 2-1 CDCs, Logic in Computer Science.
Evaluative components may require some rote learning but are mainly quite logical and straightforward. The range for B is quite vast, awarded on average, while only a handful of students are granted an A in the course. There is no strict attendance requirement for the course. SymLog is one of the most sought-after HuEls on campus and closes at PR number 300-500.
Social Informatics
The course HSS F247, Social Informatics is a new HuEl that focuses on how society and information technology (IT) interact with each other. The prescribed textbook, Social Informatics: Past, Present and Future, is a collection of twelve papers providing a comprehensive review of the development of social informatics as a discipline. It primarily focuses on understanding how technology impacts social and cultural aspects of our lives, emphasizing on the way these factors shape the technology that we use.
The course will be taught by Prof. Virendra Singh Nirban, whose lectures generally serve as sufficient preparatory material for all the evaluation components which are also graded leniently. As the course is new, the course can be expected to be available at any PR number.
Introduction to Discourse and Conversational AnalysisÂ
This course has been introduced recently, and is taken by Professor Chintalapalli Vijaykumar. He also teaches Technical Report Writing to first year students and is known for his lenient grading. Limited information is available about what the course entails but one can expect to cover the structure and patterns of conversation and analysis of discourse. As a new course, it is likely to remain open to all PR numbers.
Introduction to Globalisation
Introduction to Globalisation is a relatively new humanities elective that has been offered only once before. The instructor-in-charge (IC) of the course, Eirini Anastasiadou, a visiting assistant professor, has recommended extensive use of both the main textbook and the reference material, to do well in the course. This course equips students with information about globalisation, problems with globalisation, and its future. The different facets of globalisation such as economic growth, sociocultural evolution, and political changes are discussed in this course. Topics such as the effect of globalisation on colonialism are also discussed in the duration of the course.
The course will consist of three evaluative componenets—mid-semester examination and comprehensive examination carry 30 percent of the grade each, and an assignment before the mid-semester examination carries the remaining 40 percent weightage. Being a relatively new course, it is expected to be available across all PR numbers.
Organisational Psychology
This course, handled by Dr. Rajneesh Choubisa, aims at understanding organisations and their various functions from a psychological viewpoint. It also aims at understanding the behavior of humans at different levels of hierarchy in an organisation, and relevant issues and processes imbuing them. The course focuses on topics such as productive and counter-productive behaviour in organisations, motivation, job satisfaction, organisational commitment as well as group effectiveness and inter-group behaviour.
Attendance is not mandatory for this course. It is not a very popular course and is relatively easier to obtain with any PR number. It is easy to obtain in substitution as well, not being in great demand. The grading is said to be tough, as a C would be awarded at average marks. The course usually has an enrollment of about 100 students. Reading the textbook is considered largely beneficial to performing well on the course.
Musicology — An Introduction
The Musicology course is designed to introduce students to fundamental musical concepts, their history, and their development through Indian classical music. The course has both theoretical and practical components. It begins with a study of musical notes and basic taals and then moves on to raags, note recognition, and taal recognition. Professor Anil Rai teaches this course and it has a lot of overlap with another one of his courses, Appreciation of Indian Music; however, it is comparatively more advanced.
The course is available throughout all PR numbers, though it is recommended to have a background in classical music prior to taking it. Additionally, the course is said to be competitive since the few enrolled students are primarily members of the campus’ various musical clubs who are already versed with the course content. Hence, the grade received depends more on the overall rank than how far above the average the score is. It is crucial to attend classes if one is unfamiliar with the course material, especially during practical classes, as Professor Rai does not share any slides.
Srimad Bhagavad Gita
Srimad Bhagavad Gita aims to help students understand the timeless wisdom spoken by Lord Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita. Beginning with fundamentals like the need to understand spirituality, the content includes the science of the soul, and a study of various types of yogic practices.
Regular attendance is recommended as the professor goes over key terms and verses in detail. It is also usually not necessary to remember the verses verbatim; only memorising the key terms is sufficient. Apart from the mid-semester and comprehensive examinations, other evaluative components are quizzes and after-class assignments. The grading system usually has a B awarded at around five marks over the average, and a B- at the average. This course is usually available till PR number 500–600.
Professional Ethics
The course provides one with an acquaintance with various codes and frameworks of ethics, along with their real-life applications in areas such as general professions, business, management, education, engineering, and technology. It also discusses case studies concerning job dismissals, discrimination, whistle-blowing, marketing, and occupational health.
A fairly popular course, it is usually available until PR numbers near 500. Slides are considered enough to get through the course, although rote learning and writing skills are needed to score well. With only two assignments of fifteen marks each, the 100 mark-course is relatively less demanding. However, above-average attendance is required if one is aiming to earn a good grade in the course. The B grade starts to be awarded at around av+8, and an A is given roughly to the top fifteen per cent.
International Relations
The course offers students a critical understanding of current global issues and events that have shaped the world order. The focus is on methods of approaching state relations and politics. Prof. Veena R incorporates contemporary events to relate the concepts learned. The curriculum explores geopolitical relations, realist, liberal and constructivist schools of thought, and influential thinkers such as Machiavelli and Rousseau.
Emphasizing general knowledge and clear, specific points in exam answers leads to good scores. Grading is fair, with a B grade awarded as the average score. Although attendance is not mandatory, it is highly recommended as in-class interactions prove to be valuable.
Introduction to Social Psychology
Introduction to Social Psychology is a humanities elective course introduced for the upcoming semester. The primary aim of the course is to introduce the fundamental theories, concepts, and research methods related to social psychology and applying these lessons in real life. The course is focused on cultivating and enhancing skills to understand and analyse social situations and relationships that students encounter in their daily lives.
It is to be taught by Dr. Rajneesh Choubsia, the Instructor in charge (IC), and Saumya Dhiman (RS). The evaluation components include announced quizzes apart from the mid semester and comprehensive exams. Dr. Rajneesh shall also be teaching the Organizational Psychology course this semester so a similar grading pattern can be expected with a B- grade awarded at the average. Since it is a new course and its information is limited, enrollment in the course may be relatively easy at any PR number.
Performance Studies
This course offers students a critical understanding of various aspects of performance—ritual, play, gender performativity, events, and repertoire. Building on these basic blocks of performance, the course moves on to discussions of folk culture, ethnography, painting analysis, etcetera, to study the range of behaviour in the form of performances from different parts of the world.
The course is taken by Prof. Prateek, who incorporates discussions on papers by social scientists and anthropologists to relate to the concepts learned. Apart from mid-semester and comprehensive exams, two assignments are given to the students. The grading is fairly lenient, with the average grade being B. Attendance is highly recommended owing to the professor’s interactive pedagogy. Partaking in class discussions and keeping up with the course notes generally leads to a good score. The course is available across all PR numbers.