IIT Madras Director Shares his Journey From a Single-Digit Mark to JEE Chairmanship; Check Details Here

New Delhi: In “A Lesson from IIT”, the weekly column by an IIT faculty member that appears every Friday, IIT Madras Director, V Kamakoti, has penned down that there is no such thing as "failure" and how wise people throughout history have stated the same. He mentions the honourable Bharat Ratna Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, a former president of India, who also believed and taught that FAIL is indeed an acronym that stands for “First Attempt In Learning."

IIT Madras Director says that he can exemplify Dr Kalam's definition. In 1985, when he was a young JEE aspirant, he scored just 10 out of 100 marks in his Chemistry exam. He writes “I didn't perform well on that specific exam day and yet, years later, I was elected as IIT JEE Chairman, demonstrating that success is unrelated to test results, grades, or rankings.”

He says that frustration over unexpected or undesirable results might make failure seem genuine and larger than life to a young person. He also mentions that the root cause of the frustration is due to unrealistic expectations and a mismatch between their aptitudes, the field they are thrown into, and their competence. He thus advises that the only way to deal with such frustration is through a drastic change in the perspective of both students and their guardians.

He said that our perception of "failure" is influenced depending on what the action means to us. When we are working on something we enjoy and hit a snag, we see it as a chance to get better. He also mentioned his love for music and how he practised meticulously in order to avoid missing a note when performing the violin in front of an audience. 

In his column, he also advises how as parents, it is crucial to comprehend that if their children are engaged in and enthusiastic about their activities, they will be better able to handle challenges. Parents frequently have goals for their kids that, while well-intentioned, may not always reflect the goals of the kids themselves. 

He also says he is not advocating against parental guidance for kids. Parental support is essential in assisting kids in navigating the challenges of growing up since our culture is based on the hierarchy of Mata-Pita-Guru-Deivam, the mother, the father, the teacher, and then God. The most important lesson we can impart to our children is that anyone can achieve success and significance in any field by being passionate, persistent, and willing to see things through. The objectives, aptitudes, and abilities of the child must always be taken into account in any other direction we give them.

Parents need to understand that life is more complicated than just engineering and medicine. The contemporary world offers a variety of alternatives in numerous disciplines for children and young people. Yes, the IITs are exceptional academic institutions, but they are not the only ones in India that offer top-notch education to students. He mentioned how he recently had the honour of attending the 'Champions of Chennai' awards ceremony, where the young people who received accolades for their intelligence and labour of love weren't all IITians.

This is another component that calls for reflection. Children cannot be compared for good. Such comparisons can be harmful because every child is different, especially when youngsters are young and need parental acceptance and support. It is crucial that both parents and kids comprehend that grades, rankings, and scores on exams are merely numerical representations and do not indicate a student's level of intelligence as a whole. Success unquestionably requires perseverance, but becoming fixated on the numbers can cause excessive stress. Due to overwhelming pressure, there have been instances where pupils' emotions have abruptly and unexpectedly changed from joy to melancholy, sometimes with tragic and unfortunate results.

Children are under a lot of pressure to major in certain disciplines, like computer science, yet there is no superior discipline. People from various fields have made remarkable contributions to society. Ocean Engineering at IIT Madras generates the most money from industry consulting and sponsored research. He questions if we can overlook the achievements of aerospace engineers as we become the first nation to set foot on the South Pole of the Moon and if without the biological scientists' vaccines, could the world have escaped COVID-19, thus implying how each discipline has its own advantages.

It's possible that the child's difficulties aren't necessarily related to their academic performance. No family is without troubles, and problems inside the family, such as disagreements and financial concerns, may have an impact on the child. It is the responsibility of the adults to handle situations such that the child's emotional health is not significantly harmed. At that age, managing interpersonal connections can be challenging as well. It's important to be there for kids at difficult times. Parents should reply right away when schools or institutions show concern for a student's well-being. Children can overcome academic and personal obstacles if we maintain our connections with them and provide continuous emotional support.

A child reared in a joint family is more emotionally secure than one who has been cut off from the extended family, in my experience as a teacher over more than two decades. Grandparents and other family members' love and support might help kids develop positive traits. Despite the recent trend towards nuclear households, it is important to encourage kids to interact with their grandparents and other family members.

Life is bigger than school. Just being aware of this can help us teach our kids to be emotionally stable and optimistic. If our nation is to prevent our priceless youngsters from succumbing to disappointments brought on by perceived failures, it must be strong and upbeat.

The pursuit of happiness is a collective obligation.

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