Discussions on 'Excellence in Research' in Faculty Development Program by IIM Raipur

Excellence in research was the theme for the fourth day of the FDP program which is being organized by IIM Raipur under TEQIP (Technical Education Quality Improvement Program)-II. The days’ events centred around two sessions by Prof.Sumeet Gupta and one by Prof. M Kannadhasan followed by a visit to Sirpur by the participants.

 

The day started with Prof.Kannnadasan’s session on Information Literacy. He defined information literacy as the ability to identify, locate, evaluate and effectively use that information for the issue or problem at hand. He elaborated on how other educational goals, including traditional literacy, computer literacy, library skills, and critical thinking skills are related to information literacy. He elucidated upon various components of information literacy viz. locating, selecting, analysing, organizing, synthesizing, creating, presenting and evaluating.

 

He also stressed upon information literacy, independent learning and social responsibility in this context. “Instruction in information literacy skills must be integrated into the curriculum and reinforced both within and outside of the educational setting.” said Prof.Kannadasan. 

This was followed by another session on ‘Research Proposal and Managing Research Grants’ by Prof.Sumeet Gupta. He centred the discussion around the relevant themes of ‘Why to apply for research funding’,‘Elements of a research proposal’, ‘Getting the proposal right’ and ‘Managing research grants’.

 

Prof. Gupta explained about the positive impact of research performed under grant. He further stressed upon the positive effects this has on one’s academic career, knowledge and resources in the areas of one’s interest. He also enlightened the attendees about the two kinds of Research Funding done at IIM Raipur; namely Institute research fund and externally funded research projects.

 

Prof Gupta then explained about the elements of an effective “Research proposal”. He informed the audience about the major subtopics and delved deeper into each, explaining the best practices that can be adopted.

 

He put a lot of stress on “Getting the Proposal Right” in the next part of his address. The major stakeholders were identified as Society, Applicant and Granting Agency. He gave the attendees an insight into the criteria for awarding the grant. The ways and means of preparing a proposal was dealt with in detail. The address ended with a case study to reinforce the insights shared by Prof Gupta.

 

The theme for the fifth day of the session will be ‘People Management’. The highlight of the day will be anexclusive session on ‘Managing Academic Resources’ by Prof.SajalDasgupta, Director-Technical Education, West Bengal. The other sessions scheduled to be conducted are ‘Working Together in a Team’, ‘Legal Aspects in Academic Environment’ and ‘Building Networks with Industry’ followed by the workshops on the projects.