by: Dr. Priyanka Saurabh
Nowadays, every day we hear of increasing cases of suicide by students taking coaching for exams. As student suicides rise, our governments blame the coaching mafia for the burden of education loans. The burden of educational loans on parents is one of the reasons for stress among students. And for this, the Center should make a policy so that parents do not have to borrow money for education. Coaching institutes are not cheap, and their fees can be a considerable financial burden on parents, especially from low-income families. Apart from the fees, there can be huge additional charges for study materials, transportation, and accommodation. Parents are also forced to take loans to cover coaching expenses. This financial burden can generate stress and anxiety and may not be realistic for many families. Coaching institutes are only interested in collecting money. Therefore, the government will have to take strict action against the coaching centers by declaring them mafia.
When we were children there was no coaching. Weren’t students becoming IAS and IPS then? Nowadays, mafias have emerged in the name of coaching and the government will have to take strict action against them. If seen deeply and analytically, it has become a pure misuse of national resources. Students who depend solely on coaching centers for academic achievement may fail to build the skills and knowledge required to succeed in the long term. They may depend too much on the controlled learning environment and personal attention given by the coaching center, which may lead to a lack of self-confidence and initiative.
Because the stated basic objectives of coaching for competitive examinations do not serve the selection of the best candidates. Even if there is no coaching center, the best students will be selected. Selection of the best students will be more realistic in the absence of coaching centers. Because it will be based on self-study and raw talent. Coaching centers are partly a product of the anti-social pattern of education in the country. Coaching centers often place more emphasis on rote learning and memorization, which can be detrimental to the long-term academic development of a student. The emphasis on exam-oriented learning and constant testing may lead to neglect of critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving abilities. Students who mainly depend on coaching centers do not acquire the skills to analyze, evaluate, and apply in real life what they have learned.
On the other hand, their external expenditure often breaks the backs of those poor families who have to participate in this race of fear. A limited number of seats in institutes and the increasing population make the competition tougher every year. Due to this, students become physically and mentally stressed. Many of them, unfortunately, failed to deal with this huge stress and end their precious lives. The coaching industry in India is not providing any net value addition to our student community and society at large. We have to assess the adverse impact of coaching centers on established formal schools and educational institutions. They are suffering because many of their regular teachers leave their jobs and take up part-time private tuition. Which prepares the students to prepare for the coaching center. Competition has increased as a result of the growth of coaching centers that encourage their students to compete with each other for top grades and admission into the best schools.
Because of this, many students have developed a “rat race mentality” in which they are willing to sacrifice their morals and principles to succeed. Academic dishonesty, including cheating and plagiarism, has increased as performance demands have increased. Our education industry should be productive, creative, innovative, and progressive for all sections of society. Industries that run parallel to existing established institutions are detrimental to them. Which is a curse for the society and nation at large. The coaching industry is one such industry that has caused innumerable losses to the existing sector institutions and has placed an economic burden on society by creating such useless competition. Which is manifesting in symptoms like suicide by frustrated students. With the rise of the for-profit education industry, some institutes have started demanding exorbitant rates for their coaching services. This has led to the commercialization of education, where profits are prioritized over the welfare of students.
As education has become more marketable, substandard coaching centers have also proliferated, most of which do more harm than good to learners. Our government should understand this harsh truth and take strict action against the coaching mafia that is playing with our society. Our society has traditionally maintained an economic environment of cooperation and balanced competition. But these coaching centers have only promoted fierce unhealthy competition which is slowly and surely killing the creative and entrepreneurial spirit among the large number of affected students. Our elite class should put pressure on the government to implement such laws. Which will eliminate all the coaching centers in the country. Needless to say, the government should establish good standard public institutions to meet the needs of the increasing population.
Encouraging startups and entrepreneurship on a large scale will also reduce the immense competition arising due to limited seats in educational institutions and limited money and posts in government organizations. Coaching centers are completely non-productive and should be abolished as soon as possible with strict action. All coaching centers should be banned in India.
Author is a Research Scholar in Political Science. He can be mailed at priyankasaurabh9416@outlook.com
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