Journalism of Courage
Technical competitions at college fests are fast replacing the conventional song and dance events
Though the surface shows that the Indian education system has remained book oriented as yet,the on-campus news bulletins narrate different stories altogether. Following the government guidelines of providing study material and reference books to their students,colleges do realise that only text-oriented study will not prepare the students for a tough practical-world scenario. And hence the concept of using extra-curricular activities to do the needful is being used. College fests being an important part of every institute,not only provide a platform to bring out the creative talent of students,but also test their organisational skills,teamwork attitudes,managerial skills and even stress handling skills.
Cynnics might argue that the actual advantages of these college festivals might be far overhyped,but it cannot be denied that these festivals do help to improve teamwork and bonding,and working towards a common goal. Gantavya Sharma,head of the publicity team for Mindspark,an inter-collegiate event hosted by College of Engineering Pune (COEP),says,While most of the events at Mindspark are the usual fun and cultural events,we also have events like Matrix,in which students had to create something out of the junk. This not only tested their creativity,but also made them apply their knowledge. In another event Encrypto,they were asked to design a security system. A paper presentation entitled- Save the World,had students presenting a paper with practical solutions for problems plaguing our surroundings. We also had events related to businesses where students had to prepare business plans.
It is interesting to note however,the fact that even organising an event like this brings out the best of managerial,organisational and persuasive skills of the organisers themselves. Akhilesh Abhyankar,in-charge,student activities Vishwakarma Institute of Technology (VIT),says,”College fests do require a lot of precision planning to ensure that the event goes off perfectly. This year we have combined our three annual fests Vitality (technical fest),Epiphany (cultural fest) and Agon (sports fest) and merged them all into a new festival Melange. While the cultural aspect of Melange will bring out the hidden art of the students,the technical events will enable them to put their studies into practical use. Besides as the students are going to be organsing the whole event their managerial skills will also be tested.”
