To

Dean of Academic Affairs

IIIT Delhi

Subject: Complaint About Mismanagement of the Course ECE113: Basic Electronics (Winter
2023)

Sir,

I am writing to bring to your kind attention the grievances and inconveniences faced by students
in the course ECE113: Basic Electronics, headed by Dr RK Ghosh in the Winter 2023 semester.

The following is a collection of a few common complaints regarding the different course
components.

Lectures:

● There was a lack of synchronization between lectures and exams; while the professor
merely narrated theory in class (which was difficult to comprehend and easy to miss),
exams heavily emphasized numerical problem-solving.
● The professor did not teach problem-solving techniques in class, he just showed slides
with questions and solutions written on them.

Tutorials:

● [Obstacles in obtaining tutorial solutions]: Despite repeated requests, the professor and
TF refused to share solutions to tutorial problems, making it difficult for students to learn
the techniques to solve them. Due to quiz sheets being shown in tutorial slots, many TAs
did not solve problems in class either.
● [Lack of Guidance and Learning Difficulties]: Students were expected to solve tutorial
problems themselves, and TAs were instructed only to take doubts in tutorial slots. It
must be noted that the aforementioned happened even before we were taught how to solve
problems at all. The lack of necessary resources and guidance posed a significant
obstacle to the student’s ability to tackle assessments successfully.
● [Ineffectiveness of Tutorial Sessions]: The tutorial sessions were often unproductive,
with TAs wasting the entire hour without effectively imparting knowledge to the
students. Despite this, strict attendance policies were enforced to ensure students'
presence in the tutorials.
● [Unfair Attendance Policy: Penalizing Struggling Students]: TF Awanish Kumar Singh
attended tutorials and deducted attendance for students who could not attempt the
 questions. It's extremely concerning that they targeted the students who were already
struggling instead of helping them.
● [Incompetent TAs]: Many TAs possessed a limited understanding of the subject matter.
Their approach primarily revolved around memorizing the solutions and attempting to
replicate them during tutorial sessions. They did not accept alternative approaches
suggested by students. They also struggled to identify the underlying reasons for errors
made by students and failed to offer insightful explanations regarding the nature of
these mistakes. The TF (Awanish Kumar Singh) seemed out of touch with the content
being taught in class.
● The mandate of solving all tutorial questions before they took place was
counterproductive.

Tests and Assignments:

● [Inflexible Grading Policy]: TAs did not consider alternate solutions to questions if they
did not give the correct final answer (no partial marks were awarded).
● [Lack of Support from TAs]: Some TAs were unresponsive when asked to solve
discrepancies in assignment grading.
● [Insufficient Preparation Time for Assignment 4]: Assignment-4 had questions from
topics taught by the professor just a day before the deadline, which did not leave any
time for students to practice those concepts. Moreover most TAs did not conduct the
tutorial sessions related to those topics.

Labs/Lab Exam:

● [Inadequate Explanations]: The basics of circuit connections were not adequately

explained, leaving many students struggling to understand the lab requirements. Lab
incharges demonstrated a lack of clarity in their instructions, often failing to inform
students of important requirements, leading to unnecessary deductions in marks. A TA
once asked a student to use a DSO for the photodiode experiment, which did not, in fact,
require the use of DSO (an illustration of the cluelessness of the TAs).
● [Uncertainty in Evaluation]: End Semester Lab Exam was graded arbitrarily, without
consistent and fair evaluation criteria. TAs haphazardly conducted the viva, making it
difficult for students to defend their answers effectively. As a result, many students
remain uncertain whether the TA accurately evaluated their work, highlighting a lack of
transparency and fairness in the assessment process.
● [Disparity in Lab Exam Questions]: The difficulty level of End Semester Lab Exam slots
varied significantly, with some being extremely challenging while others being relatively
easy, creating an unfair assessment environment.
● [Hostile Lab Environment]: The labs were straightaway adjectivized as hostile due to
time pressure, no clear concept clarification, and condescending and rude TAs (Md Seraj,
in particular) and lab instructors.
Personal Accounts:

Apart from the aforementioned mismanagement of the course, there have been numerous
instances of TAs being demeaning and rude to the students and the TFs being inconsiderate to
students to the point where it affects their grades. I'm also sharing a non-exhaustive list of
personal anecdotes experienced by students.

I hope you understand that I'm bound to keep the anonymity of the accounts.

● TF Awanish Kumar Singh:

○ A student claims that Mr. Awanish singled them out in multiple tutorial slots and
canceled their attendance because they couldn’t solve a tutorial question (which
was never taught). Not understanding the meaning of attendance is a significant
oversight, but deliberately targeting specific students is profoundly unethical and
deplorable.
○ Due to medical leave, a student could not complete Assignment 1 and
Assignment 2. Initially, Mr. Awanish adamantly insisted on assigning a grade of
zero for Assignment 1, stating that the student should have completed it during
the first two days of its posting. Despite explaining the concurrent BE and DSA
quizzes during that period, Mr. Awanish disregarded the student's circumstances.
Seeking resolution, the student escalated the matter to the professor, expressing
their willingness to complete additional questions or write a research paper to
compensate for the missed work. In response, the professor assured the student
of a makeup assignment at the end of the course. However, when the student
approached Mr. Awanish regarding the makeup assignment at the end of the
course, he was informed that they would need to take an extra quiz instead.
Disappointingly, the quiz was never administered, and Mr. Awanish has been
unresponsive to the student's inquiries regarding the normalization of
Assignment 1 and Assignment 2 grades or confirmation of a zero grade.
○ Mr. Awanish, on multiple instances, admitted to making the assignments and
tests intentionally difficult and expressed disbelief when he heard that some
students were able to solve those questions.

● TA Md. Seraj:
○ He never instructed the students clearly. He was condescending, unhelpful, and
straight-up rude. He could not explain concepts satisfactorily, which is why
students in his lab struggled in and during many experiments.
○ He never explained the final requirements of lab assignments. For example,
■ He never instructed the students to paste the DSO screenshots in their lab
files but deducted marks for not doing so.
 ■ He never instructed the students to draw the graph of Lab 7 on graph
paper but deducted marks for not doing so.
○ He never taught the concept of summing amplifiers, “isme karane layak kya hai”.
○ Despite completing all experiments and submitting the required files, he
consistently awarded partial marks without clarifying this deduction in various
experiments.
○ I once again, would like to emphasize the single-handed damage caused by this
particular TA, Md Seraj.

● TF Khagendra Joshi
○ A student raised their concern regarding the lack of instructions provided by Md.
Seraj to Mr. Khagendra, specifically regarding the summing amplifier. Mr.
Khagendra assured the student that the summing amplifier would not be part of
the End Semester Lab Exam. Surprisingly, the same topic was included in their
End Semester Lab Exam. This apparent inconsistency and contradiction between
Mr. Khagendra's assurance and the actual lab assessment caused unnecessary
confusion and disadvantage for the student.
○ The issue of the TAs’ incompetency was brought to Mr. Khagendra’s attention,
who requested that students show understanding and patience, attributing the
inadequate performance to the TAs' purported best efforts.

I urge you to acknowledge the detrimental impact of these issues on our academic progress
and take immediate measures to rectify them. It is essential that the quality of education and
support provided by the course instructors and TAs align with our expectations and enable us to
develop a deep understanding of the subject matter.

I understand that not much can be done now that the semester is over. However, I do believe
some resolution must be possible. It is only fair to expect of an institution such as ours the
finest quality of relevant education and the means to address our grievances. Hence, I request
that you give due consideration to our concerns and take some action, whatever that may be, to
create a conducive learning environment that promotes fairness, transparency, and effective
teaching practices.

Hoping to hear from you soon.

Thanks and Regards

Sarthak Gupta
2022451
Student Senate Representative ‘26