VIGNAN'S INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY FOR WOMEN

Best Prctice - I : An Integrated Advance Teaching Learning

An advance integrated approach in teaching and learning allows the student to explore, gather, process, refine and present information about topics they want to learn without the constraints imposed by traditional subject barriers. The institution is much concerned with advance integration in the field of professional education and professional training of the students. The institution is in the co ordination of different teaching activities to make sure the harmonious functioning of the educational process for a more effective advance teaching and learning process.

1. Objectives of the Practice

An advance integrated approach in teaching and learning allows students to engage in purposeful and relevant learning.
An advance Integrated learning encourages students to see the inter connectedness and inter relationships between the curriculum areas rather than focusing on learning in isolated curriculum areas.
An advance teaching and learning program is based on skill development around a particular theme that is relevant to the student in the class.
This practice helps students to explore multiple perspectives of concepts that they study in their curriculum. It helps the students to develop a bridge between the subjects they study.
It helps to understand multi-disciplinary subjects and concepts and to carry out inter- disciplinary projects to find a methodological approach for the problem and to find different possibilities of the solution to the problem.

2. The Context

The model of an advance integrated teaching and learning is an inquiry approach. Inquiry approaches allow for students to construct meaning by using their prior knowledge on a Subject and new knowledge gained during the learning process.

Integrated teaching and learning incorporates multiple subjects, which are usually taught separately, in an Interdisciplinary method of teaching. The goal is to help students remain engaged and draw from multiple sets of skills, experiences, and sources to aid and accelerate the learning process. Through this practice, expectations were met by the constant engagement of faculty members and students in online discussions through webinars, seminars, technical talks, and guest lectures. In this practice, clear and measurable objectives were set and activities are carried out to match the objectives. Inline interactive sessions were conducted to emphasize active learning. Students were given assignments and evaluated in front of students for clarity on how assessments were applied and specific measures available in the evaluation process. Frequent specific feedbacks were taken from students for improvisation.

3. The Practices

The following practices are adopted at our VMTW institution to implement an Advance Integrated Teaching and Learning:

Add on Courses with Industry Experts
Interaction with Industry Experts
Innovative Project Implementation
ICT Enabled Teaching and Learning

Add on Courses with Industry Experts

Learning add-on courses with industry experts is a good way to get extra credits.
In case an existing subject is not your forte then you can compensate for your grades by taking up the add-on assignment.
This way you won't lose on grades, moreover improve on something that you are already good at.

Interaction with Industry Experts

During the industrial visits, students get to learn how Industry Experts and professionals perform at work and they implement certain industry-specific concepts such as benchmarking, quality analysis, just-in-time production, etc.
Industrial visits are usually the first point of interaction between a student and a live working industry.
The students learn about the latest technology trend and make up their minds about their future job or area of interest.

Innovative Project Implementation

The main idea behind Innovative projects work and its implementation is to make sure that the learner does their own research and comes up with practical solutions to the concept they are trying to learn or the problem that they are trying to solve.
In this context, project work enhances and helps improve a person's cognitive abilities and making them sharper and more profound over time.
Project work essentially accentuates a person's inner hidden abilities and makes them better learners.

ICT Enabled Teaching and Learning

ICT Enabled Teaching and Learning helps pupils to develop new skills and become more creative. ICT stimulates the development of imagination as well as initiative.
It is a valuable tool for producing work, both in terms of content and form.
It improves pupils' academic performance as their classroom experience also improves substantially.
Virtual Labs have been designed to provide remote access to labs in various disciplines of Science and Engineering

Innovative teaching facilities like Smart Class-Rooms, LCD projectors, Seminar hall, Internet facility, and Wi-Fi facilities enable the teachers to teach uniquely and innovatively and make the students inculcate in the proper learning process.

Interactive techniques like quizzes, group discussions, projects, internships, industrial visits, and applications of ICT resources enrich the integrated teaching-learning experience and engage students in higher-order thinking and investigation.

VMTW Institute inspires students learning and creativity by developing Centre of Excellence in the department level in the area of thrust. Institute facilitates digital-age learning experiences by creating smart classrooms, seminar halls, and audiovisual lecturing, and through virtual laboratories.

Specific models (Virtual Labs) were exposed to students to support student learning. Online teaching mode is promoted with students to engage students during pandemic situations. Constant placement training is engaged with students to support their professional growth and leadership skills.

4. Evidence of Success

Students stated that integrated teaching prepared them to learn at ease and helped them to understand the subject in an improved way. Moreover, the methodology helped them to establish relationships among the subjects they had undergone.
Virtual labs have the advantages of unlimited time, immediate feedback, experiment repetition, safety for students and the subjects of the experiment.
Through this practice, the average score obtained by the students in the end-semester examinations was increased. Although the difference in the scores was small, it was statistically significant.
The number of the students responded well during their placement interviews to the questionnaires raised by the on/off-campus placement drives.
Analysis of the feedback collected through the questionnaire showed that, for all items, the majority of the students had given positive answers.
Although the data analysis of passed out students to present students showed that an increase in deep learning it also showed an increase in knowledge of the student in the area of preference.

5. Problems Encountered and Resources Required

The implementation of an advance integrated teaching and learning had challenges. There were initial problems in creating an integrating teaching process.
One challenge was identifying faculty compatibility. Another major problem revolved around creating a system for sharing advanced teaching skills among other faculty in the department.
There were also instances where departments faced problems scheduling classes in the room where the mode of teaching was supported.
Basic resources required for teaching like teaching aids, software tools, audio, video systems are incorporated.
The implementation of integrated teaching and learning had challenges. The planning of integrated teaching across departments was time-consuming and involved negotiation with the faculty members.
Moreover, a lot of time was invested in the development of the integrated models as well as virtual labs; it required inputs from all the departments participating in the process.

Best Prctice - II : An Eco-Friendly Green Campus

The idea of an "Eco-Friendly Green Campus" aims to establish environmentally friendly, sustainable living practices in educational establishments all over the world. Supportable climate in college campus influences students' lives emphatically consistently also. Students who attend campus with active green spaces have been shown to have better capacity for knowledge retention, environmental behaviors, community solidarity, and other traits.

VMTW College has its own aesthetic beauty. The college welcomes every individual who enters the gateway with its concealed lush green surroundings. Endeavors are being made to foster the grounds on green concept, particularly focusing on water conservation, use of alternative sources of energy, solid waste management, vermin composting, green belt development and sustainable architectural designs of buildings.

1. Objectives of the practice

To protect and conserve ecological systems and resources within the campus
Encourage and promote green building practices.
Reduce waste generation and promote the reuse and recycling of waste products
Enabling college and communities to make a meaningful environmental impact
Defined construction methods relating to site conditions (NO to cut a tree).
Inspiring students to adopt sustainable values within their own live
Reduce air toxics emissions and greenhouse gas production
Water conservation, Minimum energy use, Recycling, Lush green trees and indoor environment, which promote the health and well-being of Students and Personnel.
Minimize material use and waste production
To constantly improve our contribution to environment protection, climate change adaptation, and resource conservation within the campus.
Conserve natural resources and energy

2. The Context

An Eco-Friendly Green Campus is a place where environmental friendly practices and education combine to promote sustainable and eco-friendly practices in the campus. A green campus is a clean, Safe and Healthier place to Live and Work and also a place where environment friendly practices and education combine to endorse sustainable and eco-friendly practices. The following are the few green practices that are initiated on the campus to promote eco-friendly practices in the campus:

Restricted Entry of Automobiles.
Pedestrian Friendly Pathways.
Ban on Use of Plastics.
Landscaping with Trees and Plants. Other Green Initiatives
The Environmental Science (ES) course is introduced to address the issues relevant to Environment and Sustainability.
This course focuses on the natural resources conservation measures to create awareness about the various environmental problems, environmental sustainability, and conservation of biodiversity.

The VMTW College collects rainwater and uses solar energy. Another of the most efficient and environmentally friendly methods to minimize trash and benefit the environment is recycling. A nearby garden uses food compost. Change to LED bulbs to save more energy and extend their lifespan. When no one is around, VMTW uses an automatic on/off mechanism (Infrared/Sensors) to avoid using the light. Water collection is done for the reprocessing. Recycling of sewage water for the Garden is another innovation. Reusable bags are permitted on campus, and plastic is not allowed. Steel utensils are kept in the canteen. Reverse osmosis (RO) wastewater is channeled to the restrooms and to the trees. VMTW has both an ISO 50001-2018 and an ISO 14001-2015 certification for environmental protection.

"An eco-friendly green campus" is a location where sustainable and eco-friendly practices are promoted through education and environmental friendly practices by establishing sustainable solutions to the environment, social and economical requirements of the humanity. The green campus concept gives an institution the chance to take the lead in reinventing its environmental culture and generating new paradigms.

VMTW took part in the effort to promote a green campus. The college launched a green campus initiative. The primary goals of the green campus program are to encourage environmentally friendly and protractible behaviors on campus.

3. The Practice:

The VMTW College uses solar energy and practices rain water harvesting. Recycling is another one of the most effective and sustainable practice to reduce waste and help the environment. Food compost is used in a local garden. Switch to LED bulbs that save more energy and last longer. VMTW practices an automatic on/off system (Infrared/Sensors) so the light is not used when there is no one around. Water harvesting is practiced for the reprocess. Another breakthrough is sewage water recycling to the Garden.

Campus is plastic free and recyclable bags are allowed. Canteen maintains steel crockery. Waste water from Reverse Osmosis (RO) channelize to the washrooms and to the trees. VMTW boasts an ISO 14001-2015 certification for Environment protection and an ISO 50001-2018 certification for energy conservation. Campus observes restricted entry for the automobiles and upholds Pedestrian-Friendly pathways.

The educational institutions are crucial in addressing environmental problems. The drive to promote a green campus was supported by the faculty, staff, and students. VMTW observes a number of programs and events. The following are the actions planned for this Practice:

Plastic free campus: This campus-wide initiative strives to lessen plastic pollution on college campuses, with a focus on reducing and doing away with plastic bottles, straws, and other utensils, as well as plastic food packaging. The college put together a number of initiatives, including a plastic-free campus initiative program for recycling plastic. Educational sessions observed for World Environment Day, World Wildlife Week, and World Ozone Day.
Waste reduction: The College has programs in place for composting and recycling. For the purpose of recycling their solid waste, colleges installed biogas generators. Garbage was collected in separate dust bins for biodegradable and non biodegradable materials.
Sapling trees on college campuses: As part of this program, sapling are planted on every occasion of the college with guest.
Water use: Facilities for collecting rainwater were built.

4. Evidence of success:

The institution VMTW and its students have joined the program towards an ecosystem and green grounds. This served to reduce ecological issues. The college turned into a plastic free climate because of a campus reusing effort. The concept of the green campus program and environmentally friendly campus practices led to the creation of a clean and green campus. Power utilization decreased by using LED bulbs and tubes in place of CFL bulbs and tubes.

Recharge and other water-related purposes benefited by collecting rainwater and rerouting waste. Separating garbage into dust bins for non-biodegradable and biodegradable materials simplified waste management. The use of conventional electricity was reduced, solar panels to produce green energy. The evaluation of green audits provided feedback on the green campus program and suggested remedial measures to deal with any problems that surfaced throughout the program's activities.

VMTW initiated Sewage to convert into water.
Solar water heaters produce 6000 Liter water per day.
Solar energy generates 50KW of power to support the electricity needs.
VMTW boasts an ISO 14001-2015 certification for Environment protection and an ISO 50001-2018 certification for energy conservation.
Reverse Osmosis (RO) waste water properly used for trees, gardens & for washrooms.
Water Harvesting bears direct collection of rainwater from the catchments to be stored for direct use or to be recharged into the groundwater.
Restricted entry to the automobiles ensured pollution free campus.
Sign-Boards and Roads are well maintained for the Pedestrian-Friendly pathways.

5. Problems Encountered and Resources Required

Several obstacles prevented the green campus program from being implemented. The entire prohibition on plastic on campus was a laborious task. Faculty and students' attitudes towards making the campus a plastic-free zone were not entirely favorable. The process of recycling non-biodegradable garbage is very time - and money - consuming. Climatic conditions adversely affected the survival of tree saplings planted by green campus volunteers. Maintenance of solar panel is very expensive.

Insufficient solar power production, need more solar energy.
Scarce supply of plastic alternatives.
Man power lacked to up hold lush green campus particularly at the Pandemic time.
Students and Staff need motivation to maintain the Eco-Friendly Green Campus.