Mathematics classes by Sapana madam
If any of you thought that entering a premier institution like MIT was in itself the result of punniyams done in previous jenmams, then you are sadly mistaken. The result of - in IIT/IIM lingo - "hazzaaar punniyams in hazzaaar previous jenmams", was in being taught Methematics by somebody like our Sapana madam. We at Instrumentation had the privilege of being taught by her for two semesters.
Before the arrival of Sapana madam, Mathematics used to be like just another subject. First, we were taught by Dr. C. Srihari Nagore or 'CSN'. Her style of teaching consisted of rattling out words at the speed of 300 words per minute, stopping occasionally to catch her breath. People who had only heard about the speed of the Japanese Bullet train, but were unwilling to believe that it was a real concept, changed their beliefs immediately after attending her first class.
She made way for Dr. Ponnammal Natarajan or 'PN'. If you had read Harry Potter, you can easily visualise Professor McGonagall to be our PN. Once during the first year MitaFest, we got so excited in being a part of a college festival for the first time and we misbehaved a little by shooting paper planes at girls, and she gave us such a telling off the next day that I have nearly forgotten how to fold paper any more.
Then Sapana madam happened. She was like an angel who came down to earth with the sole mission of inculcating a scientific approach to learning mathematics into all our minds. (And she looked like an angel, too..) Being a product of IIT Madras, (M.Sc.) she tried to increase our intellect to those lofted levels. Her approach to mathematics instruction was completely different. She would write down the problem on the board and wait for one of us to suggest the next step in the way to the solution. Tirelessly she would discuss each of the steps suggested by several students and finally make us understand what the right approach must be. Today, all this appears very nice and sensible and logical, but at that time, many of the students were not happy with this kind of teaching, being used to taking down the solution and mugging it up and reproducing the same during the exams. Mostly, Anbu Smiles and Sujeet Shetty would be talking in the class (me too sometimes) offering step after step of solution. Others would be watching with emotions ranging from awe (how are these guys able to talk properly in front of such a beautiful lady??) to anger (Hello..! Excuse me..!! Have we all become invisible suddenly?? We also belong to this class..!!) to desperation (Machaan, what is the minimum marks required for passing this course? I heard it is a 4 credit course.. Doomed, I think.!!) to frustration (!@#$% ^%#@# ^&$@@!#)
The third semester mathematics course was one of the best courses I have ever attended. We started with Laplace transforms which was quite okay, but afterwards the course went off-tangent with Z-transforms, Fourier transforms and all that. However, I can completely vouch for the phenomenal efforts our Sapana madam took to make us proficient in the thories of those subjects. It was an absolute treat to be sitting in her class trying to follow her reason of thought on why the Region of Convergence for a particular Z-transform would always tend to zero. She was a brilliant mathematician, but may be her approach to teaching didn't gel with the students' expectations properly. Personally, I was more than happy with her approach.
During the second semester I also achieved the distinction of scoring centum in the end-semester exam and Sapana madam was delighted and used to remember this fact about me. In the third semester when I was not performing properly, she castigated me for not putting my best efforts into scoring good marks. During the end-semester exam, she tip-toed to many of her favourite students and said "All the best" which I found to be a very touching and moving gesture.
We heard that she is married and settled in Canada now. We wish her all happiness in life.
On behalf of Anbu Smiles and myself and others, I take this blog to record our sincerest thanks and appreciation to Sapana madam for her kindness, for her illuminating presence in our Mathematics classes, for her mere presence in our campus when we were not attending Mathematics classes, for wearing sarees to classes on rare occasions, and for being as cute and lovely as she only can be. Thanks ma'am..!!
(Posted on 21-Oct-2003)
Before the arrival of Sapana madam, Mathematics used to be like just another subject. First, we were taught by Dr. C. Srihari Nagore or 'CSN'. Her style of teaching consisted of rattling out words at the speed of 300 words per minute, stopping occasionally to catch her breath. People who had only heard about the speed of the Japanese Bullet train, but were unwilling to believe that it was a real concept, changed their beliefs immediately after attending her first class.
She made way for Dr. Ponnammal Natarajan or 'PN'. If you had read Harry Potter, you can easily visualise Professor McGonagall to be our PN. Once during the first year MitaFest, we got so excited in being a part of a college festival for the first time and we misbehaved a little by shooting paper planes at girls, and she gave us such a telling off the next day that I have nearly forgotten how to fold paper any more.
Then Sapana madam happened. She was like an angel who came down to earth with the sole mission of inculcating a scientific approach to learning mathematics into all our minds. (And she looked like an angel, too..) Being a product of IIT Madras, (M.Sc.) she tried to increase our intellect to those lofted levels. Her approach to mathematics instruction was completely different. She would write down the problem on the board and wait for one of us to suggest the next step in the way to the solution. Tirelessly she would discuss each of the steps suggested by several students and finally make us understand what the right approach must be. Today, all this appears very nice and sensible and logical, but at that time, many of the students were not happy with this kind of teaching, being used to taking down the solution and mugging it up and reproducing the same during the exams. Mostly, Anbu Smiles and Sujeet Shetty would be talking in the class (me too sometimes) offering step after step of solution. Others would be watching with emotions ranging from awe (how are these guys able to talk properly in front of such a beautiful lady??) to anger (Hello..! Excuse me..!! Have we all become invisible suddenly?? We also belong to this class..!!) to desperation (Machaan, what is the minimum marks required for passing this course? I heard it is a 4 credit course.. Doomed, I think.!!) to frustration (!@#$% ^%#@# ^&$@@!#)
The third semester mathematics course was one of the best courses I have ever attended. We started with Laplace transforms which was quite okay, but afterwards the course went off-tangent with Z-transforms, Fourier transforms and all that. However, I can completely vouch for the phenomenal efforts our Sapana madam took to make us proficient in the thories of those subjects. It was an absolute treat to be sitting in her class trying to follow her reason of thought on why the Region of Convergence for a particular Z-transform would always tend to zero. She was a brilliant mathematician, but may be her approach to teaching didn't gel with the students' expectations properly. Personally, I was more than happy with her approach.
During the second semester I also achieved the distinction of scoring centum in the end-semester exam and Sapana madam was delighted and used to remember this fact about me. In the third semester when I was not performing properly, she castigated me for not putting my best efforts into scoring good marks. During the end-semester exam, she tip-toed to many of her favourite students and said "All the best" which I found to be a very touching and moving gesture.
We heard that she is married and settled in Canada now. We wish her all happiness in life.
On behalf of Anbu Smiles and myself and others, I take this blog to record our sincerest thanks and appreciation to Sapana madam for her kindness, for her illuminating presence in our Mathematics classes, for her mere presence in our campus when we were not attending Mathematics classes, for wearing sarees to classes on rare occasions, and for being as cute and lovely as she only can be. Thanks ma'am..!!
(Posted on 21-Oct-2003)
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