CHENNAI:
Afew decades ago, home science was considered the course for a girl to do. Why, it taught potential brides to cook, sew, garden and look after children, grooming them to be perfect wives.
Today, things have changed considerably on the home front. Home science department heads say there are fewer takers for the course and some colleges are finding it difficult to fill classrooms.
“There are various reasons why girls do not want to take up the course. Home science is perceived as a finishing school kind of course. While that used to make it a popular choice, today girls want to take up courses that will help them get jobs,” says Dr Vinitha Narula, former vice president of the Home Science Association of India.
As a result, the profile of students is changing . “Now the subject is not the first preference of most applicants. Sometimes we only get students who have not got admission for other courses,” she adds.
Professors say the course curriculum has been revamped to attract more applicants. “We are constantly adding more specialisations and focussing on vocational training so that women get jobs. It is not a home economics course that caters to the potential homemaker,” says Dr Narula. From merely focussing on cooking, the course has started focussing on food service management and catering, teaching students to set up food-based businesses. Today, the curriculum deals with human development and not just focus on children as it used to. “We have also started looking atspecial education as it is a specialisation that is in demand these days,” says Dr Narula.
Dr Shiela John, head of the department of home science, Women’s Christian College (WCC), says the name of the course is misleading. “We requested the authorities to change the nomenclature from home science to nutrition or human science as that is now the focus but the suggestion was turned down,” says Dr John.
In an attempt to up the numbers and profile of students, WCC has over the last few years revamped its course to make it more job-oriented . A few years ago, the college scrapped one of the practical exams which focussed on girls running a household and retained it as just a theory paper. “Instead, we teach them to run a business,” says Dr John.
Two years ago, WCC introduced sports nutrition into its home science syllabus at the undergraduate level and performance nutrition at the MSc level. “The encouraging news is that companies are now aware of the new subjects and so the number of students getting jobs has gone up after the course was revamped,” says Dr John.
According to her, the course was always full in the 1990s. But, a few years later, the course strength fell to just 28 students in a class that had a sanctioned strength of 40. “With the curriculum change we are up to 35 students,” she says.
Sharmile T, who did home science more than 20 years ago, admits that the course did not teach her anything more than running a house well. “At that time I enjoyed it but now, when I see what my batchmates, who studied other subjects, have achieved, I wonder if it was the right decision,” says Sharmile, homemaker and mother of two.
Nandita Anna George, who is pursing an MSc in food service management after a degree in home science, says she loves the course because it is extremely practical. “We learn everything from microbiology and biotechnology to running a business,” says Nandita. “You get exposure to other subjects and career prospects are good as you can find employment in various fields ranging from food service and catering to education,” she says.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / by KaminiMathai / TNN/ November 20th, 2011