Under the aegis of the Ministry of Education’s Samagra Shiksha Assam (SSA) program, the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati is working to transform the education landscape of Assam by providing support to government bodies and startups in identifying and addressing the challenges faced by the education sector. In a recent stride to achieve this collective goal, the Institute organised the Transforming Education. The event was graced by the esteemed presence of Dr. Ranoj Pegu, Minister of Education, Government of Assam, as the Chief Guest, along with Dr. Om Prakash, Mission Director, SSA, and Prof. Parameswar K. Iyer, Officiating Director, IIT Guwahati, as the Guests of Honor. Dr. Ranoj Pegu, Minister of Education, Government of Assam, virtually inaugurated the 69 Tinkering Labs sanctioned last year and said, “I thank the Director and faculties of IIT Guwahati for their support and execution of various educational schemes to transform the education system of Assam. IIT Guwahati, as the big brother, is handholding other educational institutes in the region for successful implementation of various RAA activities and the Arohan scheme. Teachers and parents should encourage students to ask more questions and actively participate in the tinkering process.”
The event aimed at showcasing the innovative products developed by the students of state-run schools as part of the Tinkering Lab programme, an initiative of Samagra Shiksha Assam. As many as 230 students from 10 government and 15 private schools from all over Assam participated in this event. The event also focused on recognising the achievements of the Education Department in promoting Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education in the state and shed light on the importance of 21st st skills programmes. A STEM workshop was also hosted at the event, where 230+ students from various schools made their very own robots. The event concluded with a panel discussion where professors from IIT Guwahati and other STEM experts interacted with school principals and teachers to discuss the need for and challenges of implementing STEM education in schools. Speaking about the institute’s contribution to the education sector in Assam, Prof. Parameswar K. Iyer, Officiating Director, IIT Guwahati, said, ‘Our mission has always been to enhance the quality of education and make hands-on education accessible to all. We are glad to be partnering with the government and startups in Assam to make this a reality. We are committed to continuing our efforts in this direction and to creating a more inclusive and equitable education system for the people of Assam.’
Under this collaboration, IIT Guwahati has carried out multiple activities. These include: residential teachers’; training programmes for 500+ school teachers. The institute’s faculty had designed and conducted residential teachers’ training programmes for 500+ school teachers in Assam to revamp teaching pedagogy and bring in quality education at the school level. During the programme, the teachers were trained in electronics, coding, robotics, AI, and 3D printing, as well as how to teach the students and further operate the tinkering labs in the state. Quiz competitions, math, and science Olympiads for 10,000+ students. To induce a competitive temperament in 10,000+ students from across Assam, IIT Guwahati organised quiz competitions and math and science Olympiads. In accordance with the NEP 2020 policy, the institute has established STEM clubs and conducted workshops in 330 government schools to stimulate creative thinking and improve technical and scientific skills. Science Meet was conducted by 60+ research scholars and MTech students from IIT Guwahati in 33 districts of Assam. Research scholars and MTech students have physically visited and conducted science meets and exhibitions in all 33 districts of Assam to popularise science and logic in our daily lives. Such theme-specific meetings motivate students to question, work on their creations, construct experimental designs, solve problems through the intervention of science and technology, and also get feedback on their innovations. In another initiative under the AROHAN scheme, a flagship programme of the Govt. of Assam, IIT Guwahati is going to host meritorious students (mentees) and their guide teachers or officers from 10 districts of Assam, namely Nagaon, Hojai, Udalguri, Darrang, Biswanath, Sonitpur, Jorhat, Dima Hasao, Baksa, and W W.K. Anglong. In the first phase of 2023, IIT Guwahati will host around 1200 students. Apart from visiting higher educational institutions in Guwahati, these students will also interact with the faculty of IIT Guwahati during their visit to the institutional facilities at IIT Guwahati.
