Well, at least not the kind of education many of the coaching institutes in Kota and Hyderabad have to offer.Having visited both places in the recent months,the spectacle outside and inside of the coaching centres is beyond belief. The scramble for admission forms, crowds thronging the reception desks and the harried expressions of both, the parents and students is what surrounds one. Given this, it is quite a braintwister how and why so many survive the scathing grub-work, popularly called coaching.

Kota caters to over a lakh of aspirants and Hyderabad (and places like Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam) under a lakh.Students enroll in coaching sessions that last anything from a few months to as much as 7 years.

Where do these go, if IITs and NITs don’t happen? IITs or some other engineering college in all probability. And after all that a sizeable chunk of these end up doing their MBA and a good number of them end up in marketing.

Faculty at coaching institutes in both, Kota and Hyderabad who dared to speak against the coaching techniques say that there is little of ‘real learning.’ “The good students need little coaching and the not-so-good make it to either the very new IITs, NITs, and other engineering colleges so things are quite set,” said one on condition of anonymity.

It is not that coaching institutes make wonders of a boilerplate student or get a non-performer into an IIT with overnight of coaching. Whichever category of students, rote learning is the buzzword since there is only one harbor in sight – IIT.

“Over the years, all coaching institutes have gained a fair idea of what is expected in the exams and a good dose of it over and over again ensures basic success,” said another faculty.

Fuelling this mania for the IITs are parents who think it is a medallion their child should sport. “And why not,” replied a parent spotted outside a coaching institute in Talwandi, Kota. “It is not easy getting into an IIT. When I search for a girl for my son later, I will have an edge.”

Faculty members, who think contrary to the grain say that to get into an IIT or an NIT, every other growth is stunted. More often this true in places that encourage integrated coaching. “There is no skill or hobby development. No time to play sports or follow a talent, just coaching day in and day out – how does one develop a personality ready to take on the world,” the professor adds.

He cited the example of a boy in a local school in Jaipur who always stood first in class. He did well at the Olympiad and coaching classes tried to win him over to nurture him to be a topper. He did not yield, more importantly, his parents did not give in.

About to complete school, this child has taken part in all the sports events and curricular activities within and outside school. “And this boy, if ever he decides to become an engineer and take up coaching, would have at least more of life experience,” the professor concluded. Many coaching institutes work like factories, with a time-table chalked out to the last minute in the day with little ‘recess’ time.

Which IIT one gets through to is also imperative. Agreed that the sprint is always, for IIT Bombay and then the rest but there is quite a cultural divide even within the IITs. Having visited only four of the 17 IITs, I am not in a position to speak for all. But, boy, there is a huge variation in the sensibilities in the IITs. And that reflects in the mindtrips of the students. In some IITs, students do not freely associate themselves with the outside world till an external PR team says so.

Pramod Maheshwari, of Career Point adds that while the IIT as an institution is sacred, not
many are doing what they set out to
do. “How many have incubation centres where students are allowed to chase their
dreams. Placements and that too often not in one’s stream of study should not
be considered success by the IITs
like the thinking these days.”

So, then, what is this crusade for?

For the small number of those who make it big, this is all
worth it but for the vast number

-who do not get into the coaching institutes (they have entrance tests too)

-those who get through the
coaching classes and do not get into the IITs,

-those who get into the IITs and don’t do
anything worthwhile in life.

Wouldn’t it have been better then that children were just allowed to play in the garden and chase rainbows and feel good about life.

Deepak Agarwal, an IITian who has gone through the grind thinks similar. Below is an excerpt from his article titled Story of an Indian engineer in which he has explained, from first-hand knowledge why he does not think too much of the IIT JEE.  

‘Less than 2% make it to get an admission through JEE to one of the prestigious IITs or NITs. 98% get beaten and are those who could not live upto system’s criteria and parental expectation. Precious years lost in learning what they won’t need. Precious years lost in not being good in social skills, communication skills, teamwork and self-awareness. They go back into oblivion to fight another battle of finding a job with their soul crushed. Net outcome, a nation full of so called losers and opportunity for another set of private coaching classes to polish students for bank exams, government jobs, B. Ed exams, soft-skills and so on. These 98% who have put in sweat, blood and money to become IITians then crank up the private engineering school business, who gleefully exploit the opportunity. Even those who make it to NITs more often than not carry a sense of inadequacy of having not made it to IITs. It breaks my heart.’

Read Agarwal’s full article here.