Finally!! Classes, as it is meant to be.

Finally!! 

The offline classes for the final year students commenced yesterday 11 October 2021. Even though contact classes happened over the course of the last two semesters, never got the chance to deliver theory classes. It was great to be back. After the sudden closure on 13th of March of 2020 to complete shut down from 20th of March 2020, teaching has never been the same for me. 

Initially it was a big struggle delivering classes due to lack of hardware and poor internet connectivity. After the initial acclimatisation period to fully online classes, arranging of hardware, steady internet connection after the lockdown was eased, the life surrounded on online classes from the home environment.

It was enjoyable due to various reasons. But, class room delivery, that’s something else. Seeing the students fully clad in uniforms sitting across us answering to the questions posed, smiling, exchanging their ideas was something I missed a lot over the past one and half years. I got to enjoy that fully today. 😄

With the COVID protocol in place, I could not see their faces completely, but their enthusiasm and happiness was sufficient to get me going. It was difficult breathing while delivering the lecture and I was completely drained in under 30 minutes. But, the feeling of satisfaction I had during those thirty minutes was overwhelming. Hope the pandemic goes away with time and the new normal goes for a toss and teaching learning process in the classroom becomes normal in a few months. 

Excited for the new venture of hybrid teaching.

-- Jawahar Saud S

Conversation with a Chai ☕️

As part of World Mental Health Day, ASCE student chapter of our campus organised a "Conversation with a Chai ☕️" with Viswanath Saj, 

Mr. Viswanath Saj (https://viswanathsaj.com) is a developer and currently pursuing degree in economics and international business. The program was held in hybrid mode, a first trial after the pandemic has started. The resource person joined online and the students attended the session from the seminar hall. There were a few attendees online too. There were a few technical glitches, but was overcome by the volunteer team. The two hour long interaction mainly touched upon the importance of maintaining one's mental well being. Mr. Viswanath, during this talk took the audience through the various aspects of mental health and shared his experience of how "grinding - using work as an escape" can destroy mental health. 

Head of the department Dr. Jiji Antony congratulated the whole team for organising the event despite several challenges.

Civil House - Alphy Christo Thomas

The fourth edition of Civil House was held today 4:00 PM. Alphy Christo Thomas of 2014-2018 batch was the guest for the event. Alphy is currently working as Assistant Engineer, TATA Steels Ltd at Jamshedpur. Alphy shared her vivid experience during the training which she had undergone at TATA steel. She stressed on the importance of preparing on the entry test and interviews. In her words, everyone should research the different options available for future studies rather than going with the crowd. One should always connect with professionals, create a network using using websites like Linkedin and explore the various options before taking decisions about career and higher studies. 

Thank you Alphy for spending your time with us!

JUMANJI

"Engineering is complete only when you have proper interaction with your seniors" said my roomie when he was sitting beside me while attending Jumanji- an online fun event that aimed at blending student-teacher & senior-junior interactions.

The pandemic stole not only lives, but also the fun  of learning and blending with humans in real time. Things were getting back to normal and a sense of getting back to a pre-2020 life was gripping every Indian and the world around. 

Jumanji came at the right time, to get the much needed blend and the fun that came along. On 30th September 2021, first years (2020) batch was given the baton to conduct an online fun event in association with ASCE FISAT student chapter. The event kicked off at 7PM and went on for like 2.5 hours which was like a roller coaster ride for me personally. Being in a hostel, surrounded by people, it was quite a task to unmute and speak at free will. It was fun by the way.

Pre recorded songs, dance videos were played, fun games like guessing the movie name from the emojis as clues, then making up stories from the given pictures were all enjoyed by those who attended. 

Then came debate with the topic "Messi Vs Ronaldo'' which actually brought frowns to many faces as this topic didnt have the mileage to make a fiery and worthy argument but still it went on for like 15 minutes after which a topic change was unanimously asked for. Capital punishment "Right or wrong" was the new topic. This debate went well for more than 45 minutes which literally brought the curtains down for the day since it was getting late to have dinner for all those who attended. The event did total justice to the title "Unleash the madness" For me personally it was a stress buster after a hectic day at college, so I did enjoy it, and so did the others.

--Gokul Ajith (S4 CE A)