Campus Blog Category

Managing the New Student Cadre in a Post-Pandemic Era

Campus Life, IILM University

After a long hiatus, students are back to the campus. These are a new cadre of young students, just out from the confines of their homes, after spending nearly two years ‘studying’ in their comfort zones. These are the students who have got used to their phones, laptops and I-pads to attend classes, read e-books, and their gadget addiction is so massive that their concentration levels are almost zilch now.

They have forgotten time management, have learned to procrastinate and get immensely restless in the physical classroom. The library is an alien concept, and the labs are entered without the earlier enthusiasm. Right now, all their attention is directed towards the campus crowd and getting to know their batchmates better. They are even fine with attending online classes on the lawns of the campus!! Selfie time is back in full swing; Instagram reels and stories are doing the rounds, announcing their grand arrival on their campus. Most of them are seen hanging around in the cafeteria and the sports facilities. On top of it, the warm weather makes it difficult for the students to wear masks all day through.

The pyjama parties are finally over, and it is time for upping the wardrobes and donning attires they had hanging in their closets for two years. Their animated conversations go on unending throughout the day, and the whole campus is abuzz with their chit-chats. The students who could not do much antics earlier in Zoom and Teams are back in action, and as a result, the studious ones are complaining that they were better off in the virtual classrooms, where the disturbances were lesser, and they could concentrate a lot more! The same teacher with whom they had ‘anonymously’ chatted in the virtual classroom – anonymous because they refused to switch on their videos most of the time – is unable to recognize them, and their ego does not accept this rejection!

On their part, University campuses like IILM are going out of their way to restore the pre-pandemic campus life, ambience and environment, whether it is by way of creating highly engaging classrooms, or organizing events and celebrating festivals. The involvement of students in these efforts is being given impetus.  The otherwise dormant Clubs and Societies are suddenly enthused with life, and the campus is slowly limping back to the ‘old’ normal. Industry experts and alumni are being invited to physically interact with the students, an aspect which the latter missed a lot in the pandemic.

These times are also physically exhausting for the faculty, as they had got used to comfortably sitting while conducting the online classes. They are also trying their best to adjust to the old routines. With a majority of the students distracted and not focusing on the learning in the class, it is difficult for the faculty to hold their attention for a long time.

As of now, the experience of both the students and the faculty in the physical classroom is mixed – both as trying to adapt themselves and change themselves back to the earlier times. Hoping for the earlier ‘normalcy’ to return soon!!

 

 

BARRIERS IN THE ACCESS TO JUSTICE IN INDIA

IILM University, ,

Access to Justice means approach or admittance to justice. It means existence of an effective system where rights are provided and remedied in case of breach. The preamble of the Constitution of India begins with “We the People” signifying the source of power lies in the hands of common people. Access to justice to everyone is a vital responsibility mandated upon the State. Justice encompasses recognition of rule of law and resolution of conflicts.The Supreme Court has always tried to interpret the fundamental rights along with directive principles to make access to justice easier for the poor and underprivileged. However the real experiences show that access to justice has become cumbersome and discouraging. The cases pending before the courts, high costs, complicated procedure, paucity of awareness etc. have decelerated the legal system.

We can classify the reasons for the barriers in the following ways.

  1. Societal & cultural barriers –including literacy, education, Poverty & discrimination.
  2. Institutional barriers such as insufficient governmental resources to guarantee or facilitate access to justice, inadequate organizational structure of justice institutions, limited legal assistance & lack of enforcement of decisions.
  3. Intersectional barriers-. This includes lack of trust in lawyers & judges. Most importantly it leads to corruption.

      The measures that can help people overcome these barriers can  be classified as following:

  • ADR is an alternative solution for geographically inaccessible formal court services. As with literacy, education, & awareness, barriers stand in the way of solutions.
  • To be able to access justice, parties must be provided with the opportunity to present their case effectively, procedures ought to be fair & parties ought to know the case against them, submit relevant evidence & pursue judicial inquiries within judicial time limits to eliminate the gap of irregularities in access to justice.
  • Under the Legal Service Authority Act of 1987, India has a non-adversarial “lok Adalat” or people’s court. In these cases, retired judges & government officials facilitate mediation & try to reach a compromise between the parties. The procedure is much faster than the formal process, parties present their cases themselves & no fees are charged.
  • The National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) offers legal aid programs as those for the rescue & rehabilitation of child laborers, seasonal workers outside of the organized sector.
  • A gender desk at police stations will enable more sensitive & timely treatment of complaints by women.

India does not lack laws to ensure justice; it only lacks the dedication to enforce and implement laws. A country cannot be adjudged developed until it secures justice for everyone. There is a need to widen the ambit of Judiciary and focus on developing infrastructure of judicial institutions, filling vacancies, awareness and empowerment of legal aid, initiating reforms in the police and the prison systems. We must educate people and make them aware of their basic legal rights. We must encourage literacy camps and advertisements in villages, adopt legal aid as chapter in educational institutes, and engage paralegals to ensure the efficiency of affordable legal aid. Legislature must enact new laws to ensure timely disposal of case. Accountability must be ascertained of police and prison systems so that they do not infringe the rights of victims, undertrials and accused.

Moving towards Inclusivity in the classroom

Faculty, IILM University, Uncategorized, ,

 

 

 

For the effectiveness of successful learning of the students, a faculty needs to ensure that the student feel accepted, motivated , & continuously guided & supported by their teachers & classmates. In a class room you will always find a very diverse group coming from various cultural backgrounds with high disparity in the class. It becomes crucially important as a mentor & guide to bring to class, equality, inclusion, belongingness and most importantly purpose to learning. Diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in the classroom are more important than ever as students return to their campuses; it’s imperative that educators show they are committed to helping every student feel valued, represented, and heard.

From my experience , would like to share some personal observations on how to ensure that you’re creating an inclusive and welcoming learning environment for all your students—on the first day and every day.

Make students feel accepted & inclusive

How much are you prepared as an educator to approach students and ready to discuss topics, that might make them uncomfortable. If faculties are on edge talking about social or economic disparity, it’s going to ensure, students don’t feel to drag away from there is the first encounters with the professors and would feel positive that the semester will go successful.

Talking about differences is important, acceptance is important

Its important for the educator to share an understanding and comfort about subjects that require open conversations. Practical exposure is the best way for an educator to feel comfortable about conversations about diversity & inclusion. For example, if educators find themselves strongly opinionated about subjects like “Black and brown people” or “LGBTQ+”, then they need to do the work outside of the classroom to normalise it for themselves.
Try joining a book club, debate club, talking with colleagues about these topics, and attending workshops devoted to building cultural competence and cultural responsiveness. It’s important to expose ourselves to difference in order to be comfortable with that difference.

Don’t let biases built in your module

To achieve true inclusivity, educators need to identify with our own biases and be aware of what they are. It’s important to carefully reflect on self, as yourself about the barriers that pervert you form being fully engaged with your students and accept the biases to be able to deliver the content is class that gives student the freedom to make a choice, make their own opinion, speak out your mind and be able to question, once’s beliefs and biases. Knowing the answers to these questions and realising what may cause some difficulty for students is a big part of fixing the problem.

Disparity in Online & hybrid teaching needs to be accepted & acknowledged

The disparity of access of technology among students has really hit home during this pandemic. Students going to their local internet café , shops to learn from your class is true and has to be accepted by the educators.
Educators teaching online should take a moment to acknowledge the challenges faced by your students in online learning and let them know that you have made sure such issues are incorporated in your module teachings these challenges and connectivity issues. The technical resources to be shared and challenges accepted in these learning environments. Let students know you understand there will be connectivity problems or times when students have to share technical resources with others. This will show students that you’re aware of the trials and tribulations students are facing and that you’re concerned about students and their well-being


Prof. Nidhi Gupta
Design Department

IILM University

Digital-Transformation-in-Design-Education

Digital Transformation in Design Education

Faculty, IILM University, ,

The current scenario we are in, change has become the only constant. Designers have always been known as early adaptors and change makers. The sudden paradigm shift in the way lifestyle, health and economic scenarios are building, designers require to evaluate the current health situation is bringing to light problems, changes and opportunities for the industries that make us wonder what is truly important and what is needed to readjust to the new normal. The need to have more designers in the industry to bring out the change has made many educational institutions put more emphasis on design integrated thinking. Management uses fields of design with tools like critical & design thinking, whereas technology is ready to embed and explore design experiences which incorporate the new normal.

Today’s ‘New Normal’ reality is set in motion by the age of global consumption, data mapping and artificial intelligence. As a result, designers needed with updated toolkits to respond to these new conditions. IILM University sees education as a responsibility to equip students with set of tools to understand the contemporary condition and allow for the emergence of new types of multidisciplinary design practices. Speculative design understanding is not supplemental to the serious work of remaking the society, but essential to its responsibilities in a moment of change and uncertainty.

The impact on global wellness and the economy has forced organizations in every industry to flex and evolve, both in real-time and in the long-term. The curriculum we design is a  collection of ideas, thoughts, and strategies, to explore how design can play a role in making the world a healthier place, a successful and forward looking careers that are purposeful and immune to the changing world.

Image Credit: Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

Let’s talk about how design education can build an optimistic & equitable Future.

Crisis give birth to creative problem solving. Education has reacted in real-time to the pandemic, addressing tactical challenges of shifting entire campuses online overnight, with innovation and sonic speed. In the process, however, systemic challenges and disparities have been exacerbated. By its nature, learning from home depends on access to technology and Wi-Fi, but on home environment, family situations, and emotional stability for learning.

Keeping in view, Design education at IILM focus on creating learning spaces, whether physical or virtual, that empower every student & faculty equally to create new ventures to exchange the power of knowledge and know-how. National Education Policy is navigating the strategy of varying degrees, exit points developing an infinite number of scenarios that students can design through, resources, socio-economic landscape, infrastructure, and purpose.

How can we take what we have learned during this time to impart positive change on our future to ultimately shape healthier, wiser, and more equitable communities?

Pandemic is not a change agent, but an accelerant for addressing some fundamental issues for education.

Image: Photo by Gaberiel Benois on Unsplash

A vision for a adaptable & equitable future

The core to the future of learning is learner-centred design, which implies a major repositioning of the learner, the role of the educator, and the environments we design.

Blended Learning is the key

We have been slow at adoption of alternative technologies and pedagogies as human resistance to change. The immediate shift to virtual learning that schools and universities across the world had to make, nearly overnight, has granted us an enlightened perspective. Educational Institutions need to find new ways to address the needs of every student. The demand for more engaged learning will accelerate new digital platforms, better equipping students to craft their own learning map and future.

Our each program combines hybrid and remote instruction using real world and social emotional learning. The program combines hybrid learning, real world learning, and social-emotional learning to “learning with a purpose.”

Gensler reports that Scott Galloway predicts that online learning and digital platforms will only continue to expand as universities navigate the indirect financial impacts of the pandemic. A focus on the student experience will double-down on the interplay between virtual and physical space. But it’s also critical to address inequities in remote learning, such as disparate access to technology, in order to ensure that digital and physical classroom environments are accessible for all learners.

Learning with a purpose, community & place development

During this pandemic big question has raised on online learning, called into question the need for a physical campus and generated much speculation as to whether the campus would cease to exist. While transitioning to virtual learning has proven successful for some students and for some types of course material, hands-on learning, soft skills, and connection to classmates and course material have been more difficult to translate to learning  online. Many schools and institutions saw the pandemic actually elevate the importance of human interaction, further underscoring place and community as a core value proposition.

Essential to campus experience, the value-add of space and community will evolve in near future. Just as creative environments will employ hybrid solutions for learning, so will student life, dining, housing, and recreation as they seek to engender culture and community. The campus here derives student experience increasingly combining digital platforms with physical space, also reprioritize on-campus activities for “highest and best” use of social and interactive space.

Encourage interdisciplinary approaches.

For nearly a decade, culture of innovation has held its place of importance — both inside and outside of the classroom. This urgency to transcend silos has changed the way departments solve problems both academically and administratively, and the pandemic has only heightened that trajectory.

Now campus assembles core planning teams, championed by senior leadership, that cut across disciplines to produce comprehensive solutions for immediate and near-term plans. The ability to solve challenges that have emerged from the pandemic will foster a lasting interdisciplinary mindset.

Our Campus develops enhanced infrastructures of technology and services Additionally, new career paths continue to emerge out of this need to collaborate in uncharted ways. To support the integrated thinking process and spur intrinsically-driven motivation in students, the spaces we design continue to provide a level of diversity, multimodality, and flexibility.

Turning campus into synergy spaces to build new processes

Connections made beyond the campus through partnerships with local business, government, and community makes learning resonant. With the pandemic, such connections are identified as essential for operations survival. As public and civic entities form new alliances between industry, technology, and education as a way of plotting the course to reopening, imagine what could happen if these alliances stayed together to solve problems going forward.

IILMUniversity-Fee

COLLEGE FEES, NO LONGER A BURDEN DURING PANDEMIC

IILM University, ,

Living in the age of competition makes everyone choose the best. While choosing the best, we also need to protect our financial pockets, especially during the pandemic when it is in the most vulnerable situation. During this time getting admission, for a professional course like Law in a good college will scar the pockets a little more. A college that caters to this need of the people is the need of the hour. To fulfil this need, IILM takes a step forward and offers numerous scholarships. It offers specific scholarships to meritorious students who have obtained good results in CLAT or LSAT. A scholarship of 20% is awarded if a student scores 100 and above in CLAT, and a scholarship of 30% is awarded if a score of 455 and above is obtained in LSAT. In addition to this IILM, understands payment of fees in one go will be difficult during this time, therefore relaxes the payment of fees for the Law programmes, including BA LLB and BBA LLB. The Registration fees, which most candidates see as a huge burden on their pockets, is relaxed from Rs. 90000 to Rs. 25000, and the fee payment of the first year is divided into three instalments. These steps are taken to ensure that higher education is not compromised during the pandemic.

Experiential-Learning-Through-Summer-Internships

Experiential Learning Through Summer Internships

Blog Catgeory, General Blog, IILM University, ,

Summer Internships are an admirable way to start building a sturdy foundation for a successful career path. IILM University provides students with numerous such opportunities to work with NGOs and Corporates in order to enhance their experiential learning experience. Students get a chance to have an incredible experience by working directly with the companies.

Below mentioned is one of such experiences felt by our undergraduate student named Harshit Sultania, BBA 2019 Batch, when he got an opportunity to work with an NGO called Seva Bharti Foundation to fulfill his role as a responsible citizen. We all think of doing something good for society and hope for that little opportunity that would create a little difference in someone’s life.

That opportunity was given to the students by IILM University through an internship initiative to work with the Seva Bharti Foundation. This program gave students a chance to help the unprivileged group of students. The program was for six weeks and every week they used to spend at least two hours with our buddy via telephonic or video calls.

In Harshit’s words – “I was very much excited about the concept of helping and guiding students. Because obviously! it’s the student who knows best about the student. They know what and how to talk and what exactly to work on. All of us were allocated one student each from Seva Bharti Foundation with whom we talked about their career and other concerns as their buddy mentors.

I was lucky to get the opportunity to be the student coordinator for the program where my job was to ensure the smooth coordination between the students and their buddies. And similarly, a few other students were also made student coordinators and each coordinator got ten students to supervise and help in the smooth functioning of the program. With much enthusiasm, I started with week one by getting connected with my students. I explained every detail about the whole program to everyone individually. Initially, it was difficult to motivate the underprivileged students to continue the program, but with little more effort, I started getting the result.

As from week two, things finally started to move in the right direction and students started talking about their career goals, living conditions, and other areas of interest. I tried my best to mentor and guide them in the right direction making them aware of the kind of additional online courses they can do to enhance their learning. I managed to listen to their concerns patiently and help them in whatever way I could.

Students also were coordinating well with their buddies and started to share their awesome experiences with us. And at the end of every week, I had to send a weekly report covering all the aspects discussed. Time flies really quickly just like those six weeks. But yes, I have to accept that I learned a lot from the student coordinator job. I learned how to talk to people and motivate them to come forward with their concerns in a professional way. I learned how to solve issues in a proficient manner and most importantly I learned how to manage things in an efficient way”.

“I would like to take this opportunity to express my thankfulness to the IILM University, without them this whole journey would not have existed in the first place. It helped me in knowing more about the lives of underprivileged students and gave me a platform to help them in whatever little way I was able to manage. I am pleased to share that it certainly added value to my learnings and my journey with Seva Bharti Foundation concluded with a happy ending” – Harshit Sultania.


Dr. Rachna Madaan

An-Ideal-Law-School

An Ideal Law School

Campus Life, Career Development (Placement), Center for Teaching Research and Learning, General Blog, IILM University, ,

The question that most frequently crosses our mind while selecting a college to pursue our higher education in law is what we need and what they offer? An ideal Law college should be a paradise land offering a mock of the entire life ahead of every budding lawyer. It is paramount to understand that a lawyer is not only the one who practices the law. Instead, a lawyer is expected to preach its values and propagate them in society. This brings us to the foremost value every budding lawyer searches for in a law school, the quality of being able to be good. Law school should focus on the speaking abilities of every law student, even of the ones sitting in the corner of the class. To polish this skill, law school should regularly engage their students in moot court competitions, panel discussions, debates, and classroom interactions. The use of these practices makes the students confident to face the world with much ease.

The second virtue a law college should offer is the opportunity to let the young minds speak, write and publish. An ideal law school is the one that pushes all its students to contribute towards the law journals of the college and also help them build up their research skills to enable them to publish their works in other journals. The next essential trait a law student looks for in a law college is its ability to offer internships and placement opportunities. Law school should also focus on co-curricular activities apart from the regular law classes, which will ensure the student’s overall growth. For the overall growth of students, the students should be able to stay in touch with their teachers even beyond the classroom and college years. The professors and mentors should establish healthy relations with the students or a system that offers continuous mentoring of the students by following some unique mentor-mentee system. In addition to this, any law school that follows the Socratic method of teaching will raise the more analytical and intellectual lawyers. That involves complete participation of the student in the learning process, whereby he gets the freedom to ask questions and the confidence to raise his voice.

So an ideal law school should follow a student-centric approach, keeping in mind that a law student is not made a lawyer only by reading the books, instead what he experiences throughout the law school. A student becomes a lawyer with all the experiences he/she shares with his/her fellow students and mentors at the law school.

The Challenges faced by Finance Industry

General Blog, IILM Institute for Higher Education, IILM University, , , ,

The Finance Industry features a huge role to play when it involves making business purposeful. This sector currently faces multiple challenges, but the two most prominent ones are information asymmetry and financial illiteracy. The cutthroat competition within the industry has led to several institutions flouting norms. Wells Fargo may be a case in point wherein the culture and unsustainable targets led to employees committing fraud and the senior management turning a blind eye, therefore, enabling the act. Another even more potent example is that the concealment by HSBC in Mexico and Colombia for Drug Cartels. In both these cases, the institutions were excused by just paying fines, which was nothing more than seven days of profits for them. These institutions know that they are too big and influential to be jailed because they are too big to fail and thus can escape perhaps with the foremost notorious and irresponsible behaviours.

Definitely, the planet is ill-equipped to handle another Lehman Brothers, but that does not mean that the planet should need to see thousands of people being killed by the drug cartels that these institutions use to move their money. To prevent these and bring justice to already what has been done wrong, these firms should be held accountable, and therefore the CEO should be held liable for the actions of the institution.

As we steel ourselves against a post-Covid-19 economy, the long term of the finance industry looks drastically different. Additionally, to the changes within the way banking would be conducted, which is about to become highly digitized, monetary institutions’ role is also going to change. The whole world is looking ahead at an enormous recession. These institutions would need to be the first source of liquidity to the firms, which might stimulate demand within the economy

https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/five-ways-that-esg-creates-value
https://www.ceres.org/sites/default/files/reports/2019-04/Investor_Influence_report.pdf
Edmans, A. (2011). Does the stock market fully value intangibles? Employee satisfaction and equity prices. Journal of Financial Economics.
Edmans, A. (2015). The social responsibility of business. TEDx London Business School. Available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5KZhm19EO0.
Gartenberg, C. (2018). Corporate Purpose and Financial Performance. Organization Science, Forthcoming.
Edmans, A. (2019). How great companies deliver both purpose and profit. London Business School. Available at https://www.london.edu/think/how-great-companies-deliver-both-purpose-and-profit.
Edmans, A. (2020). Does Pieconomics Work?: from ‘Grow the Pie: How Great Companies Deliver Both Purpose and Profit (pp. 77-96).
https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/five-ways-that-esg-creates-value
https://www.fintechmagazine.com/fintech/deloitte-how-financial-services-responding-covid-19
Robert J. Rhee (2017). A Legal Theory of Shareholder Primacy

Being an Ally to the LGBTQ+ People

Faculty, IILM University

The 21st century has brought a lot of changes in the world, ranging from technology and science to reformation in societal norms and stigmas. The LGBTQ+ has been one such aspect that has created some stir worldwide. However, the LGBTQ+ community needs more and more allies to feel accepted and comfortable. Such allies can be instrumental in raising the effective and powerful voices for LGBTQ+ equality and aid them in coming out in their respective society and help others realize the vitality of equality and unbiased behavior for everyone regardless of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity.

Most of the LGBTQ+ community members decide to come out for the first time when they are in high school or university. There is no full-proof or single way to be a perfect ally, but one can practice the multiple ways to be a more supportive teacher, mentor, friend, parent, or colleague. You can start by being open to learn, listen and educate yourself, which involves knowing the difference between sex and gender and keep yourself updated on LGBTQ+-related news and issues. Secondly, you need to start speaking up or confronting people when you hear offensive or anti-LGBTQ+ comments and let your friends, family, and co-workers know that you find them offensive and degrading.

Thirdly, stop making assumptions that all your friends, co-workers, or relatives are straight as someone you know could be looking for some support in their coming-out process, and such assumptions can meddle with space and comfort they might have anticipated. Fourthly, understand that language matters, and if you’re not sure of someone’s pronoun or label, just ask them respectfully. And, lastly don’t hesitate to apologize when you mess up or assume someone’s sexual orientation and ask for guidance which will be appreciated.

In addition, being a good queer ally begins with taking a step back and listening to the people you want to help. The LGBTQ+ people are well aware of how to liberate themselves. Therefore, by truly centering their voices, the non-queer folks can provide an allyship that will have the power to promote real and lasting change.

LUXURY REDEFINED – Making Sustainability Fashionable

Faculty, General Blog, IILM University

Luxury has always been synonymous with the terms expensive, status, power and exclusivity. While the luxury consumer of the past was the extremely wealthy and still represents an important segment, they are no longer the only audience in town. There are younger consumers, especially millennials that are making up an increasingly large share of the luxury market.

Would this segment of consumers be interested in sustainable or ethical fashion?

Sustainability is a concept with many definitions and its application in fashion involves diverse outlooks, covering environmental impact of materials, social justice and issues concerning labor rights. A topic that is so widely covered in conferences & creative interventions around the world and yet remains a mystery to most.

It is mostly since there is a lack of knowledge of sustainable fashion and the destruction caused by the fashion world to the environment. The perception of products and their accessibility, availability and pricing also play a big role in a sort of ignorance towards sustainability.

The consumer’s mindset in a developing country like India is most interesting and different age groups and social strata of society reveal the complexities of contemporary consumption behavior.

While the discovery is slow, it is steady. This movement is gaining momentum with celebrities endorsing the cause of responsible consumer behaviour via digital media and popular brands promoting it via ad campaigns.

Even though the majority of society does not really understand or worry about the repercussions of their actions, there is a growing number that would be happier to choose products wisely. Knowledge is key to the growth of the sustainability movement to empower consumers and future designers in society. 

The more endorsements and popularity that this wave of ethical fashion gains the more people would want to adopt it and luxury would have a whole new meaning – sustainable and responsible. The design courses at IILM are geared towards inculcating these very ideas in our students.