SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, Jan 2: A two-day Pedagogy Workshop (PWS) under the Capacity Building for Design and Entrepreneurship (CBDE) Programme began on Thursday at IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, with a focus on strengthening teaching practices and promoting innovation in higher education.
Workshop organised under Ministry of Education initiative
The workshop is being organised by the Malaviya Mission Teacher Training Centre (MMTTC), IIT (ISM) as part of the flagship CBDE initiative of the Ministry of Education, Government of India.
Prof. Sudhir Varadrajan, Programme Director of the CBDE Programme appointed by the Ministry of Education, attended the event as the chief guest. Prof. Sukumar Mishra, Director of IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, was present as the chief patron.
Addressing the participants, Prof. Varadrajan outlined the objectives of the CBDE Programme, stating that it seeks to foster innovation in higher education institutions by equipping faculty members and students with design thinking and entrepreneurial skills.
He informed that the programme currently covers 42 institutions across India, including IITs, IIITs, IIMs and select Central Universities, to transform students into startup promoters.
Teaching must go beyond information in AI era: IIT ISM Director
Speaking on the challenges of teaching in the digital age, Prof. Sukumar Mishra said that with students having easy access to electronic devices and AI tools such as ChatGPT, the role of teachers has become more demanding.
“The challenge is not the availability of information, but how to deliver education that goes beyond what is easily accessible,” he said.
“The solution lies not in penalising students for using AI, but in continuously upgrading faculty knowledge so that teachers can provide insights beyond what AI offers,” he added.
Over 5,000 teachers benefited under Malaviya Mission
Earlier, Prof. Mrinalini Pandey, Programme Director of MMTTC, welcomed the guests and shared an overview of the Malaviya Mission Teacher Training Programme. She said the programme has benefited over 5,000 participants from nearly 500 institutions across the country.
Faculty from leading institutes take part
Prof. Shikha Singh, Coordinator of the CBDE Programme, explained the objectives of the workshop and said that faculty members from institutions such as IIEST Shibpur, NIT Calicut, NIT Rourkela and GCET Bilaspur are participating in the two-day event.
She added that the workshop aims to equip teachers with practical, industry-relevant teaching methods and to collectively develop innovative pedagogical approaches for the benefit of students.
