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[Excerpts from the Progress Report of IIT Kanpur for the period

September 1, 1967 to August 31,1968 ]

What distinguishes a first rate institution from an indifferent one is the climate, academic, administrative and social that exists in the institution. This is something which can not be brought from outside. It has to be generated within the institution through conscious efforts. In general, no high level activity can be sustained or brought into existence without adequate financial and high level support. Financial support by itself does not enable one to transform an indifferent institution into a first rate one, nor does it guarantee that a newly established institution will be a quality one. There are other much more important and positive aspects which have a far more decisive role to play in deciding the quality and character of an institution. The most difficult and yet the most necessary aspect of an educational institution is to create and nourish faculty and student attitudes of enthusiasm and commitment to the task at hand.

At IIT Kanpur, we are engaged in a promising experiment in the education of engineers, technologists, and scientists involving a combination of concepts and techniques which has been rewarding. A few of the more obvious elements in our experiment are extensive self study with modern text books and library facilities to develop habits of scholarship; subjectwise promotion as against yearwise passing; a well coordinated science, engineering science and technical arts programme in the undergraduate core curriculum; a close relationship of postgraduate education to current research; an intimate liaison with industry in consultative and collaborative development work; continuing educational practices; . . . a substantial effort in text book writing for schools and colleges and for higher education; prototype equipment development for educational institutions; holding of conferences, seminars, intensive courses etc.

. . . To meet the challenge of faculty obsolescence in educational institutions,rowing emphasis on continuing education is stressed, with more pragmatic and more practical emphasis on curricula to meet the challenges of change. Competent and qualified faculty strength can be built primarily on the basis of strong postgraduate education and research and developmental work programmes. A faculty with strong interest in research and developmental work makes exciting and stimulating impact on the scope of teaching and training of students at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Basic assumption in the planning of faculty growth at IIT Kanpur is to reach 1:8 and 1:5 faculty student ratio at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels respectively, to keep traditional faculty student contacts and interactions . . . About 5 per cent of additional faculty is considered essential to promote faculty development in educational institutions in the country by participating in sequential courses, curricular development, production of text books, teaching aids, prototype equipment production, design and development work, interaction with industry and so on.

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