A study on Anand Kumar’s Super 30 model done by Mini Narayan of Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) has got the best research award.

The Super 30 initiative of Anand has helped hundreds of students from underprivileged families successfully realise their IIT dreams. The research has been carried out on the origin and functioning of Super 30, teaching style of Anand, a mathematician, success of students fighting against odds and the socio-economic background of the IIT aspirants.

TISS declared it the best research work of the year as the entire study has been drafted with every detail. Anand said: “It is great moment for Super 30 and for me as our entire teaching-learning process has been assessed by the research scholar showing how students enrolled to Super 30 despite having odds create a mark for themselves.”

Narayan termed it a “big milestone and guide for future research on quality inclusive education”. She said the topic of research was “Construction of academic resilience in adolescence from the lower socio-economic strata”.

Narayan added: “I selected Super 30 for this and visited Patna. I was at Super 30 and spent time with the current batch and those of earlier batches, visited their homes and tried to understand the way it shapes students from poor families for IIT and I was really amazed by their inspiring, stories of how they fight odds to script one success after another.”

She also worked on Anand’s model to understand what transforms the students academically as well as psychologically.

On the research, Anand said it was a success of Narayan as well as those Super 30 students, who made it through hard work, devotion and commitment. “But yes, such developments do come as big encouragement and make me work with greater commitment,” he added.

Earlier, the University of East London and Japan's STB Research Institute had also done their studies on Super 30, while various international channels, newspapers and magazines carried our big reviews. Discovery Channel made an hour-long documentary on the life and success behind Super 30 founder mentor Anand, Al Jazeera, France 24 made documentary on Super 30 and Anand.

Last month, officials from University of Tokyo visited Super 30 asking Anand to make arrangements so that students from Super 30 can study at the university.