Department of Adult Continuing Education and Extension towards Social Responsibility of the University

Abstract

Social responsibility is an ethical framework which suggests that organizations and individuals have obligations to act for the benefit of society at large. Social responsibility is the duty of every individual to maintain a balance between the economy and the human development. That is why University Grants Commission brought social responsibility a third dimension in its arena. The movement of Extension Education in Indian Universities thus started in eighties and since then Department of Adult Continuing Education and Extension (DACEE) was established practically in all the Indian Universities. University Grants Commission provided financial assistance and academic guidance for strengthening this department. Various approaches were identified and implemented during the due course of strengthening extension education in Indian Universities. In a changed scenario, research was made important in extension education for the study of impact of Information Communication Technology, growth of population, youth domination, peoples' awareness towards healthcare, universalisation of elementary education, and Right to Education Act. All these aspects are related with welfare of society and development of the Nation. DACEE is such Department which functions as a bridge between the University and Society. On this background, one has to think about the future strategies of this Department towards social responsibility . In this paper, therefore, the author envisaged social responsibility a part of university specific programmes, lifelong learning, skill development, outreach activities, universalisation of education, industry & NGO partnership, faculty improvement programmes, and institutional linkages.