Why IIT Kanpur is re-evaluating its teaching methods—and what it means for students

At a time when most universities are racing to introduce new courses in artificial intelligence, data science and emerging technologies, IIT Kanpur is attempting a quieter but potentially more transformative reform. Instead of focusing only on what students are taught, the institute is rethinking how they are taught.

According to IIT Kanpur Director Professor Manindra Agrawal, improving the quality of teaching, not merely revising curricula, is the next frontier in higher education. The institute has adopted an evidence-based approach to classroom learning through its Centre for Educational Research and Teaching Excellence (CERTEX), where teaching itself is studied, measured and continuously improved using research, student feedback and faculty development programmes.

“Teaching itself should be studied, measured and improved through evidence,” Agrawal said while outlining the institute's philosophy. Through CERTEX, IIT Kanpur conducts pedagogy research, faculty workshops, teaching assistant training and student-learning assessments to identify classroom practices that deliver better learning outcomes.

The initiative reflects a broader belief that engineering education needs deeper reform than simply introducing new subjects or aligning syllabi with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

“Curriculum changes can be approved quickly; changing classroom culture takes years,” Agrawal observed, arguing that lasting educational reform depends as much on faculty practices as on academic regulations.

The institute's thinking is shaped by the rapid rise of artificial intelligence. According to Agrawal, AI has fundamentally altered the purpose of higher education. If machines can instantly retrieve information and generate answers, universities must prepare students to ask better questions, think critically and solve problems that do not have predefined solutions. IIT Kanpur's reforms therefore focus on developing judgment, creativity and interdisciplinary thinking rather than rote learning alone.

This philosophy is reflected in the way the institute now trains its students. Rather than waiting until the final year to introduce research, IIT Kanpur exposes students to laboratories and open-ended scientific problems from the early stages of their academic journey through initiatives such as Labs Introduction, the Engineers' Conclave and the expanded SURGE undergraduate research programme.

The results, the institute believes, are already visible across its research and innovation ecosystem.

Among its flagship innovations is Analakshya, a metamaterial surface cloaking system developed to reduce the radar visibility of military platforms, strengthening indigenous defence technology. Another project, Bhu-Parikshak, is India's first portable AI-powered soil testing device capable of analysing soil health in about 90 seconds and providing fertiliser recommendations through a mobile application. In healthcare, researchers are developing Hridyantra, an affordable indigenous Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) designed to support patients suffering from end-stage heart failure at a fraction of the cost of imported devices. The institute has also developed BODH, a secure platform for validating medical AI models before deployment, and TacVibes, a haptic smartwatch that enables visually impaired users to receive information through touch-based feedback.

Student-led innovation has also become an important part of the institute's educational model. Students have designed a quadruped robot for complex terrain navigation, autonomous robots for substation inspections and compact vertical take-off and landing drones for surveillance applications. IIT Kanpur has complemented these efforts with programmes such as the Future Secure AI Innovation (FSAI) initiative, which provides grants to student teams developing deep-tech cybersecurity solutions, and the FinTech Spark programme that supports early-stage financial technology startups.

Agrawal believes these innovations are products of an educational ecosystem that encourages experimentation instead of memorisation. Over the past few years, the institute has introduced honours degrees, double majors, interdisciplinary schools and greater academic flexibility while integrating engineering with humanities, communication, economics and management through its SCHEME framework. Students are encouraged to explore disciplines beyond their core branches and tackle problems with broader social and economic perspectives.

The institute also argues that student feedback should be viewed as evidence rather than criticism. Instead of treating classroom feedback as a routine administrative exercise, IIT Kanpur analyses it to identify gaps between learning objectives and actual outcomes. This evidence-based approach, according to the Director, is central to improving teaching quality over time.

The broader objective, Agrawal says, is to prepare graduates who can define problems rather than simply solve those that are already known. IIT Kanpur increasingly emphasises curiosity, resilience and the ability to work across disciplines, believing these qualities will be more valuable than factual recall in an AI-driven world. The institute's academic reforms therefore aim to cultivate lifelong learners capable of adapting to technologies that continue to evolve throughout their careers.