Latest news with #TANSCHE
New Indian Express
14 hours ago
- Science
- New Indian Express
TN Government made AI accessible even to rural students: Higher Edu Min
CHENNAI: Generative AI is one of the most transformative technologies of the era and students should be trained on its correct usage, said experts at a discussion organised by Tamil Nadu State Council for Higher Education (TANSCHE) on the theme 'Impact of Generative AI on the Future of Education and Employment'. Speaking at the event, Higher Education Minister Govi Chezhiaan highlighted the importance of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and pointed out the government under the leadership of Chief Minister MK Stalin has managed to make it accessible even to school students in the state. 'AI was taught only in private institutions, and that too, it was a costly affair for the students. But in Tamil Nadu, we have managed to introduce AI in the government colleges so that rural students will also be benefited,' said Chezhiaan. The minister said that the Uyarkalvi Uraiyadalgal - Dialogues on Higher Education', organised by TANSCHE will bring various stakeholders together to find ways to improve higher education in the state. TANSCHE vice chairman, MP Vijayakumar, said the primary objective of the event was to examine how Generative AI is poised to transform the education ecosystem and reshape the landscape of future employment, both globally and within the state.
The Hindu
a day ago
- Science
- The Hindu
AI literacy must for teachers to ensure good use of tools by students: panel
While the deep penetration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools in India is a serious concern, it could be turned into an opportunity with structured sensitisation and training programmes for both teachers and users, speakers at a panel discussion said on Monday. A way forward would be AI literacy for teachers to ensure good use of AI in educational institutions, including schools. There need to be clear guidelines developed by academics on what these tools can be used for and these guidelines should be continuously monitored, the panelists stressed. The discussion was the first of a series of dialogues started by Tamil Nadu State Council for Higher Education (TANSCHE), titled Uyarkalvi Uraiyadalgal, and the topic was 'Impact of Generative AI on the Future of Education and Employment'. Gayathri Devi Jayan, Indian Chapter President, Applied AI Association, said that children in the education system should be thinking more laterally rather than following a pattern. 'AI follows patterns. We are not AI, we are humans. How do we bring that into the curriculum should be the point of discussion,' she stressed. B. Ravindran, Head, Department of Data Science and AI, and Head, Wadhwani School of Data Science and AI, IIT Madras, said that popular LLMs (Large Language Models) have recorded significant biases in their responses. For example, when prompted about higher education opportunities in India, 'almost 80 % of the recommendations are asking you to go to the US or to Europe; they don't recommend higher study institutions in India even though the student is asking [about] India'. There was a need to step back and think about what could be responsible use of AI in the Indian context. V. Ravindran, Director, Institute of Mathematical Sciences, said that AI was a sophisticated tool that mimics our brain and awareness on what it is and how it works should be brought to children at school level because, if used wrongly, their cognitive skills could be hampered and interpersonal relations and emotions can be affected. Industry, too, was incentivising the use of minimal resources to maximise output and, therefore, the right mix of human expertise and AI tools are required to optimise operations, said Dhinakaran Vinayagamurthy, Lead, Quantum Innovation Centre, IBM Quantum India. Data bias and quality of output in AI models, he added, was much more of a serious concern in the industry. Earlier, inaugurating the discussion series, Govi. Chezhiaan, Higher Education Minister, said that for the first time in decades, the State government this fiscal allocated Rs. 60 crore for refurbishing laboratories in higher education institutions strengthening the foundations for development of Tamil Nadu. Besides, two basic science research centres are coming in Chennai and Coimbatore at a cost of Rs. 100 crores. Delivering the keynote address, Lakshmi Narayanan, Managing Trustee, Chennai Mathematical Institute, said that based on the available data, there was a case to demand more investment in higher education from the State government. M.P. Vijayakumar, Vice-President, TANSCHE, said that in addition to the labs and the research centres, a science park would be built on East Coast Road at a cost of Rs. 100 crore and two STEM laboratories would be established in Madurai and Coimbatore at a cost of Rs. 10 crore each. P. Shankar, Higher Education Secretary, spoke. J. Innocent Divya, Commissioner, Directorate of Technical Education, and E. Sundaravalli, Commissioner, Directorate of Collegiate Education, were present.
Time of India
7 days ago
- Science
- Time of India
TN to help 180 students crack entrance tests of top colleges
Chennai: State govt is planning to train BSc and MSc students and help them crack the entrance tests conducted by top science institutions such as the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru. In the first batch, the Tamil Nadu State Council for Higher Education (TANSCHE) is planning to shortlist 180 students studying in the final year BSc and MSc and provide them with coaching to gain admission into PG and PhD programmes in top institutes. "We will select 60 students each in math, physics, and chemistry. They will be given residential training during winter and summer vacations," said M P Vijayakumar, vice-chairman of TANSCHE. You Can Also Check: Chennai AQI | Weather in Chennai | Bank Holidays in Chennai | Public Holidays in Chennai The council has identified resource trainers, and they will train the students on topics relevant to these entrance tests. "There are 34 prominent research institutes, including IISc, IISERs, and Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) across the country. These institutes admit students into PG and PhD programmes based on entrance tests, including the Joint Entrance Screening Test (JEST), Graduate Aptitude Test (GATE), and IISER aptitude test," he added. It also plans to train faculty members on teaching science subjects in an interesting manner. TANSCHE will equip 5,000 faculty members with modern, evidence-based pedagogical practices. "This initiative will focus on enhancing classroom engagement, promoting deeper learning, and fostering inquiry-led teaching environments. The council also plans to collaborate with IIT-M professors to develop the training module for the faculty members," Vijayakumar said. In the assembly budget session this year, Tamil Nadu govt had announced the establishment of basic sciences and math research centres in Chennai and Coimbatore at a cost of 100 crore.
The Hindu
17-06-2025
- Science
- The Hindu
TANSCHE to annually train 180 UG and PG students during vacations for national level entrance tests
The Tamil Nadu State Council for Higher Education (TANSCHE) will train 180 UG and PG students of basic sciences annually to get them ready for national level entrance examinations. According to a government order issued earlier this month, 30 students each from and programmes in Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics will be selected from government colleges through a merit-based screening test. During summer and winter vacations, they will be put through two five-day residential workshops 'aimed at enhancing the conceptual understanding and problem-solving skills'. This would help the students face national entrance examinations such as Joint Admission Test for Masters (JAM), Joint Entrance Screening Test (JEST), Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE), National Eligibility Test (NET) and Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) Graduate School. The government has allocated ₹28 lakh per annum for the two residential camps. The programme seeks to provide a level the playing field for students from poor and marginalised backgrounds and increase their enrollment into premier institutions such as Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT), Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Institute of Mathematical Sciences (IMSc), Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research (IISER) and National Institute of Science Education and Research (NISER). At the two camps, the students will be trained by qualified faculty members with proven expertise in problem-solving and examination coaching and will be provided with curated study materials free of cost. Academic support will also be extended to the students round the year through online session.
The Hindu
16-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
T.N. to establish new ranking list for higher education institutes
The Tamil Nadu government has provided in-principle approval for establishing a State Institutional Ranking Framework (SIRF) — a ranking list for higher education institutions in the State. According to a government order issued on Monday, the Tamil Nadu State Council for Higher Education (TANSCHE), which had in a letter to the government earlier this month proposed to develop indicators for performance assessment of higher education institutions, will be the implementing authority of the ranking. The government has agreed to sanction ₹75 lakh for implementing the SIRF, and ₹10 lakh to meet preliminary expenses such as forming an expert committee, stakeholder consultation, and software development. The ranking will seek to 'encapsulate holistic development of students in terms of skill acquisition, competency development, and professional readiness', besides ranking institutions on other metrics. In the first phase of implementation, an expert committee would be formed for consultation with stakeholders across academia and industry to finalise indicators and evaluation metrics. These will be tested in 20 diverse institutions across disciplines. The indicators will then be refined based on feedback before the project is rolled out in full. Such a move was necessitated as the current ranking frameworks, including the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF), largely focused on indicators such as research output, faculty-student ratios and publication metrics. There was insufficient focus on student learning outcomes, overemphasis on number of publications and citations, heavy reliance on institutional self-reporting without verification, limited stakeholder engagement and absence of a level playing field, the order said. A holistic outcome-based evaluation capturing aspects like problem solving, critical thinking, communication, teamwork and ethical reasoning would be a key feature of the SIRF. Institutional performance would be assessed through indicators such as internships, employability indices and alumni outcomes, besides seeking inputs from students, faculty, employers and alumni. All submitted data will undergo verification and TANSCHE will provide open access to its evaluation criteria. For this, the Council will set up a digital platform for data submission, analysis, visualisation and reporting, the order added.
