higher education
Vizag Institute of Technology Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh www.vit-vizag.ac.in
Chairman: G Siva Shankar Rao Coming from economically poor back ground, G Siva Shankar Rao was not able to have much formal education due to financial constraints of his family. Yet he was able to become a successful entrepreneur. He made a small beginning as a sweet vendor in 1962, and after learning from practical experience, he started his own sweet shop. From 1980 onwards he became active in political and charitable initiatives. He started Vizag Institute of Technology at Visakhapatnam in 2008 with the aim of grooming students their professional and social endeavours.
Teaching through digital tools No one can deny the fact that digital tools are immensely helpful in furthering the educational goals in modern society. Stu-
dents find it much easier to learn new concepts when they are taught through pictures, animations and videos. Even students who are from Telugu medium background have a lot to gain from digital tools.
Digital tools deployed Currently the institute has deployed systems like Learningware, NPTEL DELNET, INDUST and NITTR tools. In times to come, we are planning to encourage the usage of smart boards in classrooms. Many other kinds of advanced educational technology will also be implemented. The ratio of students to computers in the institute is quite healthy. Currently we are having one computer for every two students. Occasionally we make use of material available on the Internet and in the Cloud Space for teaching our students. The institute realises that the digital tools can be used not only for providing empirical knowledge to the students, but also for inculcating in them social sensibilities. Through digital mediums students can interact with knowledge from different parts of the globe. This will help students develop perspectives that are very broad based in outlook.
Vision Statement Our institute aims to train and nurture young minds so that they can grow into creative individuals, who can play valuable role in society 64
digitalLEARNING
february / 2012 www.digitallearning.in