The Human Values Cell at IIIT Hyderabad conducted the first of its kind Training of Teachers (ToT) for Student Induction Programme (SIP) from 16-18 May under aegis of UGC Quality Mandate.
Prof. Bhushan Patwardhan, Vice‐Chairman, UGC, New Delhi was the chief guest at the inauguration of the programme at IIITH campus. Dr. Renu Batra, Additional Secretary of UGC, and several others were present on the occasion.
University Grants Commission (UGC)’s Student Induction Programme is a well-planned event to educate new entrants about the environment in a particular institution, and connect them with the people in it. It has been designed to help new students adjust and feel comfortable in their new environment, inculcate the ethos and culture of their institution, help them build bonds with other students and faculty, and expose them to a sense of larger purpose and self-exploration.
Around 225 faculty and teachers from leading institutes across Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Tamil Nadu attended the program that included workshops, interactive sessions, and talks by Prof. Rajeev Sangal, former director of IIITH and IIT-BHU and Prof. Ramancharla Pradeep Kumar, Registrar, IIIT-H. Some of the topics explored were the role of education in building integrity, understanding human aspirations and needs, dealing with peer pressure and understanding relationships.
According to Prof P J Narayanan, IIIT Hyderabad started a compulsory, 2-semester long Value Education scheme for all UG students in 2005. High competition, coaching culture, and tons of distractions do not allow our children to reflect on the larger issues in life. They are easily driven by superficial goals as they have had no opportunity to understand their true goals! Outsiders cannot give answers to individual students, college education must provide them the opportunity to understand themselves. Students should be set on a path of deep thinking and introspection about matters concerning themselves, their family, their profession, the country, etc. Educational institutions shouldn’t stick to teaching students about how to do things; students should also be enabled to think about what to do with their skills and why!
That was the objective of starting the HV courses in 2005. Several other institutions have also started efforts in this direction. PTU and UPTU adapted our program and included in their technical syllabus. The degree colleges of Telangana and AP have adopted a similar value education component into their curriculum, reaching several lakhs of students each year. Most IITs have a 2-week or 3-week induction program for starting BTech students to enable them to see the larger world. UGC and AICTE have also decided to include an induction component into all degree programmes.
The experience of IIIT Hyderabad has played a key role in each case. Our faculty members — Prof Pradeep Kumar Ramancharla and Prof Rajeev Sangal in particular — have been actively involved in training the trainers or even training the trainers of trainers! This 3-day event is the first of 4 or 5 such events UGC organizes across the country in the coming months.
More details on Human Values Cell at https://humanvalues.iiit.ac.in/index.htmlProf Ramancharla will be conducting similar ToT programmes in Bangalore and Pune later in the month. Speaking on the program, he said, “SIP will get students to reflect on their own goals and inculcate understanding and responsibility toward national and larger human goals.”
