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L.S.Shashidhara | 07 OCT 2009 | filed under : Education
Integrating research with under-graduate
teaching: a personal recount
L. S. Shashidhara
Faculty, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research
Pune
Indian education system, like many other aspects of our society, is at the cross-roads trying to find a way to enhance the number and quality of future academic as well as industrial researchers of the country, while still maintaining a socialist approach to educate large masses of relatively underprivileged people.
Purely from the academic point of view, I have always been inclined to spend more and more time in undergraduate teaching. As research and teaching feed each other, I strongly believed in the notion that researchers benefit as much as students when they are directly involved in undergraduate teaching. Of course, a fine balance of time sharing between the two activities is must for the success of this model. My attempts at CCMB in this regard were very superficial: periodically giving lectures in different colleges and organizing lecture workshops for college students.
In 2006, Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research (IISERs) were established up by the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Govt. of India. IISERs, set up as autonomous research institutes, aim to integrate high quality research with undergraduate teaching to improve science education in India. I received an invitation from IISER Pune to head the biology division. It took less than 24h for me to make up my mind. Fortunately, my family stood by me and strongly supported to pursue this challenge, although this meant their uprooting from Hyderabad. Director, CCMB too was more than supportive and within two months, I was deeply involved in the IISER experiment. The two years since have been here constitute one of the best times I have had in my academic life. Interacting with undergraduate students, freshly come out of the school, keeps us always on our toes. The energy levels of the students are so high, it is a different world compared to a research institute with mostly PhD students and/or post-doctoral research associates.
A good learning process should be concept-based and inquiry-driven, as opposed to the more traditional content-based models. There is a strong emphasis on the interdisciplinary nature of today’s science, and recognition of the importance of research experience during the process of learning science. A most important feature of modern undergraduate education is curriculum-free learning process. This makes undergraduate teaching most enjoyable. The learning becomes more interactive, concept based and we teachers and students together explore “unknown” domains of knowledge rather than we imparting on students the “facts” that are known and (anyway) available in all text-books and internet. It is so much fun to discuss with students the unsolved problems in biology: be it protein folding or membrane biology or cognitive neuroscience. My first lesson at IISER was that we always underestimate the learning and thinking capabilities of our undergraduate students. With little motivation and encouragement, it is very easy to make students speak their mind: more often than not, students are logical and original in thinking.
A good undergraduate teaching would also employ research-based learning techniques such as small open-ended experiments during lab hours, summer projects etc. Students would learn more in a laboratory than in a classroom. In addition to facilitating the learning process, undergraduate research excites and motivates students and make them hungry for exploring unknown domains of science. A good feature of undergraduate research is its ability to pursue daring and challenging paths.
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RESEARCH IN INSTITUTES, JRFs, SRFs and SCIENTISTS
Hello Everybody,
I think the route problem of INDIAN education system lies in the INDIAN SOCIETY as a whole. One of my friends says that our society is Power Based Society and we have the so called Slave Attitude or "Ghulaam Manasikta". Clearly any person in any field whether it is science or arts or anything else, first thinks of gathering power. He does not want to share also He also thinks that he is inferior to his senior in this field and he also thinks that he is superior to his subordinates. In PhD for example. we are more person oriented rather than Idea or Subject oriented. We do discuss persons, rather than ideas as such. Our policies are also person oriented, in social life also and also in political viewpoint. we vote to person or a group of persons (party), without ever thinking of the idea of change, or ideology, or without reading the Manifesto. When it comes to lab, we do not discuss about the question we are asking in science, or the way to achieve the answer of our hypothesis. Students discuss about guides and guides discuss about Dean or Director or VC or a politician.
May be in higher education and in research we enter with enthusiasm but soon we loose it, as we think that primary aim is not to do research but to get degree and awards, so as to get a position in some lab and live a comparatively peaceful, struggle free life. When we become scientists our aim is to keep JRFs and SRFs who will work for us. We just give them a vague idea or sometimes just a subject to work on. Some smart PIs provide money and a little bit freedom and get papers in few years. The more the number of JRFs , the more paper they get. Some incapable PIs who can not provide money and freedom, cant publish and say that they are not in the race of publication!, they are just doing science!. Basically every scientist keeps a skilled laborer, to somehow get publication. They are more concerned about the outcome and bulk of data, rather than providing right environment to get quality data. They do not want them to be called "Sir" or "Madam", want to be called by their names, but do not actually like it. Actually like to daily see their subordinate's face in morning, expect them to work in night also, and see their face again next morning. No periodical discussion of the project, no troubleshooting, no effort. In the name of meetings they just listen to subordinate, to know what he is working and how much, rather than how is he working and what next to be done. Whoever presents more bulk of data, is the best worker, whoever thinks more and presents less data, is LAZY. We name them JUNIOR RESEARCH FELLOW or SENIOR RESEARCH FELLOW, but never treat them as fellows, because they are subordinates, the are JUNIOR RESEARCH SLAVE or SENIOR RESEARCH SLAVE. The same Ghulaam manasikta. When in some cases we discuss some paper, we first see the Author, the Journal, talk about their lab, and see some photos or legends and just keep the paper aside. We never discuss the introduction and Discussion, future prospects. We at the most discuss about the techniques. "I don't believe him" is the most common phrase. In most of the research labs there is no discussion with annual reviews, no discussion in the subject areas other than their area of interest.
In almost all research institutes there is no regular Faculty Assessment. No orientation program to new JRFs and SRFs and no training to faculties, how to guide your fellows, etc, etc. There are course program for bioscience researchers in some institutes, but I think there is no course like "LAB MANAGEMENT", "PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT", "SPEAKING SKILLS", "HOW TO GIVE SEMINARS", "SCIENTIFIC ATTITUDE AND THE REAL WORLD" etc etc. In almost all the institutes there is no guidelines for JRFs and SRFs for PhD. No written clear rules and no guidelines for their Mentors.There are no DOs and DONTs and no MINIMUM or MAXIMUM. All depends on the individual discretion,ability and attitude of group head.
I think if we have to succceed in science and compete with developed world CSIR and HRD ministry should ask every institute periodically, how much HUMAN RESOURCE they are developing per lab, per institute, per crore of money used, per year, etc. First there should be rigorous training of Directors,like IAS officers!, then group heads should be trained and then researchers. In INDIA career of a scientist stops as soon as he settles as a scientist. I think every ten years after PhD degree, every scientist should be assessed, again for PhD. The assessment committee should consist of all retired persons not actively involved in any governing body. The idea and quality should be given more weightage over the numbers.
I think all the subordinates should make a forum or a group, and yearly they should rate all scientists and give awards such as Best Guide, Best Faculty and the award may be given multiple times to the same individual. Process should be democratic and should be kept online. Surveys should be conducted every year for scientist, best publishers, by the scientific community of INDIA, and awards like worst student and worst researcher award should also be given, every thing should be on net, online free to be viewed by all.
Lets bring democracy to INDIAN Science, bury deep the attitude of slavery and autocracy, bring scientific attitude and we will flourish.
Thanks
Arvind
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