Thriving coaching centers
With a market value of around Rs 58,000 crore, India’s thriving coaching sector now attracts crores of students from across the country. To bridge the gap in traditional education, these private institutes provide specialized test preparation to crack various competitive examinations.
The emergence of coaching centers has been witnessed since the past three to four decades. The institutions that have sprung up across the country claim to lead the students in their pursuit of success to join various professional courses.
However, there are concerns that their market-driven approach severely impacts the standards of formal education and places a heavy burden on students by increasing academic demands. Besides, the explosive growth of coaching centers has raised concerns about the formal education system in India and the welfare of students.
Ironically, coaching centers have diminished the influence of student well-being and formal education. It is being noted that students prioritize coaching sessions over their academic studies, thereby reducing the role of schools in providing comprehensive education.
This phenomenon is being witnessed in rural as well as urban centres in Kashmir Valley also where students prefer to join government owned schools and they prefer to remain available at the coaching centers and ignore their routine classwork at the schools.
Interestingly, many students attend school only to meet attendance requirements and use tuition facilities only to prepare for competitive exams. As a result students who compete hard by spending long hours at coaching centers experience stress, anxiety, and burnout.
Since the students as well as parents too are involved in promoting these coaching centers, they have as a result grown to witness huge business turnovers.
The need for coaching is driven by the emphasis on high-stakes entrance exams, such as the JEE and NEET and other examinations. Due to the limited number of IIT seats, students enrol in coaching centers to increase their chances of getting selected.
In today’s world the parents believe that coaching centers are essential for getting admission to prestigious universities. Because they feel it will improve their performance in competitive exams and as such many parents spend large sums on coaching fees.
The lack of advanced preparation for competitive exams in formal education often leaves a gap that coaching centers fill. State boards emphasize knowledge of state board and NCERT textbooks, while coaching centers provide specialized preparation for competitive exams.
As a result the coaching culture is growing rapidly as a result of peer and parental pressure on students to join coaching centers.
It is being witnessed that the entire family moves to places where coaching centers thrive. These centers lure students with rank-focused advertisements and success stories. In their advertisements, coaching centers showcase their best students creating the impression that success is assured.
This phenomenon is creating a huge divide between the students who can and who cannot afford the coaching facilities.
