New Delhi: The Ministry of Education has set up a nine-member panel to examine issues relating to coaching, emergence of ‘dummy schools’ as well as effectiveness and fairness of entrance examinations, according to officials.
The panel headed by Higher Education Secretary Vineet Joshi will suggest measures to reduce the dependency of students on coaching centres for transition to higher education.
“The committee will examine the gaps in the current schooling system that contribute to students’ reliance on coaching centres, particularly the limited focus on critical thinking, logical reasoning, analytical skills and innovation and the prevalence of rote learning practices,” a senior Ministry of Education official told PTI.
Scores of students preparing for engineering and medical entrance exams prefer to take admission in dummy schools so that they can focus solely on their preparations for competitive exams. They do not attend classes and straightaway appear in the board exams.
Aspirants also choose dummy schools to take advantage of state-specific quotas for admissions to medical and engineering colleges. For example, candidates who complete their senior secondary education in Delhi become eligible for the Delhi state quota in medical colleges, giving them an additional incentive to enrol in dummy schools in the capital.
“The reasons behind the emergence of ‘dummy schools’ will be examined and the panel will study their role in encouraging full-time coaching at the cost of formal schooling and suggest ways to mitigate them,” the official added.
The panel will study the effectiveness and fairness of competitive entrance examinations in the context of the school education system and their influence on the growth of the coaching industry.
“The role and impact of formative assessments at school and higher education levels will be assessed and how their absence affects students’ conceptual understanding and preparedness for competitive examinations. The panel will also analyse the rising demand for quality higher education, limited availability of seats in premier institutions and how the imbalance drives students towards coaching institutes,” he said.
Evaluating the awareness levels among students and parents regarding multiple career pathways and the impact of this lack of awareness on the over-dependence on a few elite institutions; assessing the availability and effectiveness of career counselling services in schools and colleges and suggesting measures for strengthening career guidance frameworks, are among other terms of reference of the committee.
Other members of the panel include the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) chairman; joint secretaries from school education and higher education departments; representatives of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras, National Institute of Technology (NIT) Trichy, IIT Kanpur and National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT); and principals of schools (one each from Kendriya Vidyalaya, Navodaya Vidyalaya and a private school).
The coaching centres in the country have been at the centre of several controversies and the move comes following complaints received by the government about rising cases of student suicides, fire incidents, lack of facilities in coaching institutes as well as methodologies of teaching adopted by them.
