GENERAL RULES & QUALITY MECHANISMS

INTRODUCTION: For St. Xavier’s College, like any other Jesuit Institution, discipline goes beyond the mere adherence to rules and regulations. Discipline is looked upon as a means to inculcate into one's being the spirit of integrity and academic honesty, respect for the dignity and rights of individuals and deference for public and personal property. The College Discipline Committee (CDC) along with every Staff member of the College is expected to contribute to the cultivation of such a discipline-spirit within the campus. Thus, staff members, on noticing disciplinary infringements, are authorized to intervene and take appropriate action in consultation the CDC and ultimately the Principal. To ensure such a discipline environment the College has put in place Rules & Regulations

GOVERNMENT REGULATIONS ON RAGGING AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE

1. Ragging, of whatever kind, is strictly forbidden and will result in the dismissal of the student who rags, even if the act is committed outside the college campus. As per Supreme Court order dated May 2007, the College authorities may also file an F.I.R. with the police, if a case of ragging is reported / detected.

2. The possession and / or consumption of drugs, cigarettes or alcohol on campus will lead to immediate suspension or dismissal of that student - at the discretion of the Principal. Physical violence also attracts the same penalty. In both cases the College may file an F.I.R. with the police.

COLLEGE IDENTITY CARD (IDC)

1. Every student of this College is required to display the College issued IDC at the point of entry and whenever in the college campus.

2. The Principal or any of the Vice-Principals will levy a fine of Rs. 100 (which will go towards the Students’ Beneficiary Fund - SBF) on any student who is found without the IDC being aptly displayed, when on the campus.

3. The use of the IDC of another student and the lending of an IDC to another are unacceptable and will attract suspension from College.

4. If the College issued IDC is lost, the student is expected to register the loss with the Mumbai Police. Only against the Police Certificate will the student be issued a temporary IDC (for 15 days). After the lapse of 15 days, a proper duplicate IDC will be issued (provided that there are more than 2 months of the concerned academic year still remaining). The student would have to pay to get the temporary IDC (Rs. 100) as well as the duplicate IDC (Rs. 500) – this money will go towards the SBF.

USE OF FACILITIES

Decorum in the Academic Environs

1. Students should not disturb ongoing lectures if they arrive early for their lecture or while walking in the corridors when lectures are on, or while they await the lecturer in the classroom.

2. Maintenance of classroom cleanliness is the responsibility of students who occupy those spaces. They are expected to inform the College Administrative Office if the classroom was untidy when they entered it.

3. Switching off the classroom lights and fans when not in use is a good green practice that all classroom users should follow.

4. In the College Laboratories students are expected to closely follow the instructions of the Staff-in-Charge. Strict action will be taken against those who flout the Laboratory Rules.

5. The Class Notice-Boards must be visited by every student on every working day to check for notices and updates. The onus of updating one’s self vis-à-vis the notices rests on the students.

6. In the Canteen, students are expected to return the used plates and cutlery into the basket kept for that purpose. Similarly, used paper cups and plates and empty packets and bottles should be dumped into the (Red coloured) bins kept for that purpose. Keeping the Canteen clean and tidy (and so hygienic) is also the responsibility of the students. Wasting of food should be absolutely avoided.

7. Spaces for the Consumption of Eatables and Beverages are limited to the Canteen, the ‘Woods’ and the Students’ Common Rooms. This is needed to ensure that ants, rats and other pests are not attracted into the academic and administrative spaces of the campus. This would not only render the campus safe and healthy but also clean and tidy.

8. The College Gym is available to all students during the time announced by the Sports Director. Those using the gym facilities are urged to use them properly. Eatables are prohibited in the gym. Students are encouraged to participate in the various sports tournaments that college organizes.

9. The College Library is a place of study and research. Refer to Section16.13, page 132 for the Library Rules.

10. Students’ Common Rooms must be kept tidy so as to be pleasant to be in.

The Students' Lockers have to be hired through the Treasurer's Office and then used appropriately and handled with care. The Common Rooms are kept closed on Sundays and holidays.

11. Toilets are expected to be used in a hygienic manner. Users are expected to shut the taps after use as well as if they find them left open or dripping. It would save an important natural resource if such leakages are reported to the College Infrastructure Committee or Administrative Office.

USE OF UNFAIR MEANS AT EXAMS

If a student is detected using unfair means or is found in possession of a mobile / electronic gadget or is found within reach of material pertaining to the test / exam, then he / she will have to face the Unfair Means Committee constituted by the College. If the Committee finds the individual guilty, he / she will be given zero marks for that specific course or for all the exams of the concerned semester. Even those found abetting such behaviour will be given a similar penalty.

MOBILE PHONE AND OTHER ELECTRONIC GADGETS

1. The use of mobile phones and other electronic gadgets for any purpose during lectures and practicals is not allowed, unless the lecturer has permitted the use of such gadgets for the lecture / discussion.

2. It is advisable that during lectures, such gadgets are kept in one’s bag / pocket and not on / in the desk - this would minimize the possibility of losing these gadgets. If a student is found using these gadgets during lectures his / her IDC is confiscated and given to the Principal / Vice- Principal for further action (including a fine of Rs.100 / infringement).

3. If a student reports the loss of such gadgets in the campus, that student would be advised to file a case of theft with the Police. However, if a lost gadget is found and given to the Principal, then the student would have to pay a fine (of Rs. 100) to get repossession of that item.

4. Students cannot wear smart watches during any examination. If a student is found with any electronic gadget (except a non-programmable calculator) during an examination, he / she will be immediately reported. However, he / she will be given a new answer booklet and permitted to continue with the said exam. Subsequently, he / she will be required to appear before the Unfair Means Committee of the College.

COLLEGE / DEPARTMENT FESTS / PROGRAMMES have to be organized and executed under the supervision of either the Staff Committee appointed by the Principal or a faculty from the concerned department. The Principal must be kept informed about the content of these activities.

WOMEN STUDENTS should not remain on the College premises after 9.00 p.m. unless they are attending evening courses in the Commerce Section or in the other Institutes on campus or have explicit permission of the Principal to do so.

The RIGHT TO DISSENT and the RIGHT TO RESOLVE CONFLICT through discussion and reason are acceptable means of protest. All protests should be routed through the Students’ Council and should be governed by the Constitution of that Council. It is the Principal who ultimately decides if a protest flouts the College discipline.

DRESS CODE: Students are expected to wear clothes that contribute to the academic atmosphere necessary on an Indian College Campus. Accordingly, sleeveless or short tops, as well as short dresses, shorts & ripped jeans are considered inappropriate.

CLASS PICNICS or outings are not permitted by the College at all. Parents are therefore warned that the College authorities do not assume any responsibility for picnics or outings organized by students on their own or by teachers in their personal capacity.

UNDERTAKINGS: At the time of admission, every student signs a declaration, on his / her Admission Form, that he /she will abide by all the Rules and Regulations of the College and will accept the decision of the Principal, in all matters, as final. He / She will also give an undertaking to accept the College Rules under Autonomy.

LIBRARY RULES

1. The College Library is open from 9.00 a.m. to 8.00 p.m. (Monday through Friday) and from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. (Saturday) during the term. Vacation timings are different.

2. While making use of the Library, students are required to wear their identity card on their person at all times.

3. All library services are provided only against valid Library Cards.

4. Students are required to report loss of a book immediately to the Librarian in writing.

5. No books or periodicals can be removed from the Library unless the loan has been registered at the Loan Counter.

6. Readers must, on receiving a book, examine it, and report to the Library Assistant any damage found therein. If they fail to do so, they will be held responsible for any damage that may be detected later by the Library authorities.

7. Books lost, damaged or defaced, must be paid for by the reader on whose ame they were issued. The value of the books will be determined by the Librarian.

8. All loans must be returned by the due date (or time). Overdue charges will be imposed on all books not returned in time. Students who repeatedly fail to return books on time may be denied the use of the Library’s Lending Facility.

9. All books must be returned on or before the last date of the academic year or the last date of the examination of the student, whichever is later.

10.Students, who fail to return books borrowed from the Library at least one week prior to the declaration of results, will be declared as 'Library Defaulters' and their results will be withheld until they get clearance from the Library.

11. The Librarian reserves the right to recall any book or periodical at any time.

12. To ensure that the Library is kept tidy all the time, furniture must not be re- arranged and must be used only for its proper purpose.

13. Eating and drinking of beverages is forbidden in the Library.

14. For library access as visitors, please contact the College Librarian.

15. Silence should be observed in the Library at all times.

16. Disregard of Library Rules, indiscipline and misbehaviour will render students liable to be refused access to the Library altogether.

QUALITY MECHANISMS AND BEST PRACTICES

1. St Xavier’s College, over the years and especially under autonomy, has developed and adopted certain quality mechanisms and best practices to enhance teaching-learning processes and bench-mark them to global academic standards. Following are highlights of the Best Practices of the College:

2. An annual syllabi review as well as the Question Papers (CIAs and ESE) is undertaken by the Department Faculty and its External Experts from the Board of Studies.

3. The use of ICT in the teaching-learning process with the use of LCD facilities in all classrooms is encouraged.

4. To make the lectures participative, the use of the Constructionist Ideology of Education and not the Banking Philosophy of Education is followed.

5. Special efforts are undertaken at Inclusive Education through the XRCVC, disabled-friendly campus, sensitization of faculty to the needs of slow learners and scholarships for the disadvantaged through the Student Beneficiary Fund.

6. Study packs of essential readings, drawn from different sources are created, to cover the syllabus along with guided and critical study of these and further reference work.

7. A 3-credit Cross Faculty Course is made obligatory for all students so as to encourage inter-disciplinary learning.

8. The use of Blooms Taxonomy to evaluate Learning Objectives for the Teaching – Learning Process and for Question Paper Setting is practiced.

9. To ensure objective criteria for assessment, pre-announced Presentation / Assignment Evaluation Grids are used.

10. To ensure fairness in assessment Bar Coding / Masking of Answer Papers before the assessment process begins is followed. Moderation of assessed papers through External Examiners or Double-Blind Evaluation is also practiced.

11. To offer feedback to students on their performance their assessed answer papers are displayed to them. Students are also allowed to have a photocopy of the assessed answer paper and / or challenge the evaluation of the assessed paper through the proper procedure.

12.To get regular student feedback about faculty on the teaching-learning process the Teacher Assessment Questionnaire (TAQ) is administered.

13. To enable new faculty to settle in-house orientation programmes for them are organized and they are also offered Faculty-Mentorship as well as sit-ins during their lectures by the HoD.

ENQUIRY AND PROJECT-BASED LEARNING PROCESSES

1. The Honours Programme (HP) is conducted for the academically better students. The HP consists of 7 extra credits, earned over the 3 years, including an introduction to research. Relevant courses are also conducted under the Learning for Life Programme.

2. Fieldtrips, industrial visits and guest lectures are organized to make academics more experiential and inquiry-based. Students are encouraged to take up Summer Internships / Projects so as to experience industry and corporate entities in the real world.

3. Annual Department Seminars (usually at the College Khandala Villa) are organized to help students build up their confidence and skills at making academic presentations.

4. Annual thematic Department Journals are published containing students’ articles. This helps in exposing students to writing research papers and even in handling editorial tasks.

5. Regular Faculty Seminars and Workshops are organized to upgrade the pedagogical skills of the Faculty and thus help them to evolve better methods and processes of teaching and learning.

6. To support research among Faculty, the College offers them help in applying for State, Central Government, UGC and University funding for Minor and Major Research Projects. Faculty members are also encouraged to participate in Conferences and to serve as Resource Persons in other institutions.

7. Infrastructural support in the form of research facilities like the Heras Institute, Blatter Herbarium, NSRL and Caius are made available to faculty members.

8. The practice of following Laboratory-Safety Guidelines as well as Biosafety Guidelines for Microbiological work in the College is obligatory. The latter Guidelines have been compiled by the Dept. of Microbiology and passed through the Bioscience Faculty involved in research and the members of the Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBSC) of the college.

9. The College publishes ‘Xplore’, the annual peer-reviewed Research Journal by the Faculty in order to promote the research culture among faculty members.

SOFT SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND COLLATERAL PROGRAMMES

1. The mandatory Social Involvement Programme exposes students to social realities hereby provoke in them a consciousness to serve society.

2. Language and Soft-Skills are developed through the Language Lab, the special communication skills courses, presentations as part of CIA and through participation in extra-curricular activities.

3. The College has a Counselling Centre for Aptitude Testing, Career Guidance and for Personal Counselling of students and parents.

4. Students are mentored by Faculty, in the groups assigned to each of the faculty members.

5. The Placement Cell of the College trains students in the soft skills needed for applications and interviews and to facilitate interaction with the corporate world for internships and final placements.

6. International programmes are offered to expand the horizons of the Faculty and Students. By admitting foreign students to courses on the Campus cultural diversity is enhanced.

7. Parent interactions are encouraged on a routine basis (through the internet or personally) or at the annual Parent-Teacher Meeting.

ANNUAL THEME

In the ongoing academic year, the College celebrates its 150^th year of being an academic savant. Along with this sesquicentennial celebration and the vision of the College, we have woven together the annual themes of 2017-18 (Inclusive Campus) and 2018-19 (Innovations for Community Gains) to culminate into the annual theme for 2019-20, viz., Holistic Integration. In doing so, we attempt to foster an integral educational culture involving head, heart and hands.