Opinion: At IITs, 1-Cr Job Offers Are Hype, Ground Reality is Different

Anurag Mehra | Monday December 30, 2019

Bits and pieces of such situations are written about in the media but all of this is overshadowed by the "1 Cr +" salary hype.

Opinion: Indian Universities And The Problematic Race For Eminence

Anurag Mehra | Tuesday August 13, 2019

The penchant for "standing first in class" does not affect only students, it has infected academic institutions as well as they strive to be designated an "institution of eminence" by the government.

Opinion: 4 Things Need To Urgently Fix In India's Education System

Anurag Mehra | Wednesday July 10, 2019

We did not really need a policy document; what we need is an action document on strategy and implementation, one that identifies the few most significant issues and then details how these can be tackled.

Opinion: It’s JEE Season – Why IITs Still Rely On It For Admission

Anurag Mehra | Tuesday April 30, 2019

A more basic issue is whether board examinations are a good measure of the attributes needed for a specific type of study. When so much of our board examination testing dwells on memorizing, regurgitating specific points mentioned in texts (in that given order!), do they really assess analytical or "deep thinking" abilities?

Opinion: The IIT-JEE: Is It Really The "Toughest Exam In The World"?

Anurag Mehra | Monday January 14, 2019

As long as inadequate and bad schooling exists and the difference between the number of aspirants and available seats remains huge, coaching of the Kota sort will thrive. Ultimately, it is only good schooling that can make them irrelevant.

Opinion: Clear Kota, Get Into IIT - And Then It Can All Go Terribly Wrong

Anurag Mehra | Monday December 31, 2018

The happy picture of smiling toppers entering IITs in different parts of the country is quite deceptive - many of the 16-17-year-olds arrive with the baggage of total exhaustion, a fallout of the damage and trauma caused by the grind and slog of coaching classes.

Opinion: An IIT Teacher's Assessment Of Kota And Other Coaching Classes

Anurag Mehra | Wednesday December 19, 2018

We now have all varieties of fusion between regular schools and coaching classes, from being identical (pretending to be a school to the boards and faking attendance, while actually doing just coaching for competitive examinations), to sharing infrastructure and teachers, offering expensive "combo" deals (Rs 4 lakhs for Class 11/12 if only school is opted for, and Rs ...

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