Geological education scenario in India and role of open educational resources in the light of COVID-19 pandemic

Geological education plays a major role in the social, economic, and cultural growth and development of any country. India is a vast diversified country with wide-ranging geological features, consisting of rocks of all geological ages with well-developed physiographic divisions. The Indian lithospheric plate is a storehouse of vast georesources and also serves as a natural field laboratory for developing and testing numerous geological principles. The exploration of Indian georesources began in the past; with the organized exploration began way back in the 1830s. The number of institutions offering geological education is, however, comparatively low. Thus, Geology as a science discipline is less popular in comparison with other science subjects such as Physics, Chemistry, Zoology, Botany, and Environmental science, based on enrolment data of the learners enrolled in academic sessions from 2011-2012 to 2018-2019 of the Master's degree programs. Analysis indicates that teaching-learning resources of foreign origin are dominantly being adopted as learning resources in the teaching-learning pedagogy of degree programs in Geology, and are over-riding those of Indian origin. The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting geological education in two ways namely, the disruption of conventional (face-to-face) teaching together with not allowing learners of Geology programs to complete their compulsory out-door geological fieldwork assignments. The analysis of data gathered by an online questionnaire survey shows that the use of indigenous open educational resources in Geology appears as a plausible solution to overcome the learning barriers created by the COVID-19 pandemic, and also to enrich teaching-learning resources of Indian origin. This article provides an up-to-date detailed account of the necessity and evolution of geological education, the current popularity of Geology as a science discipline, the nature of available geological teaching-learning resources, the impact of the COVID-19 on geological education, and the role of open educational resources in providing quality and equitable geological education, whilst removing educational barriers created by COVID-19 in India.