The Falling Standards of our Education System - Part 4 - Conclusion

In the first three parts under this topic, we have seen in detail, how engineering, medical and the arts & science courses have deteriorated in standards over the last decade - in terms of admissions in the engineering stream, quantity and high cost of seats in the medical stream and the serious lack of even mere passion among the students of arts and science.

In the final part, the one topic that remains to be discussed is the Tamil Nadu government's recent decision to not abide by All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) norms for the minimum required percentage for engineering admissions. Here's the story:

In 2010, the former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Mr.M.Karunandhi announced that, "the state government, in order to make available engineering course to all sections of the student community, has laid down the minimum qualifying marks as 50 percent for general category, 45 percent for backward classes, 40 percent for most backward classes and 35 percent for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes."[1]. In late January, the AICTE had laid down minimum eligibility for general category students at 50 percent and 45 percent for all other categories from the academic year 2011-2012[2]. In May 5, 2011 - barely a week before its humiliating defeat in the state legislature elections - Mr.Karunanidhi made it clear that the Tamil Nadu government will not abide by the AICTE regulations and has decided to continue its own norms formulated last year. [1]

This decision is shocking because by doing this, the Tamil Nadu government opposes the highest body for technical education in the nation. And the decision comes in the backdrop where the number of engineering seats have increased by 15 to 20 thousand seats since last year to 1,50,000 seats in the state. More than 51,000 BE/B.Tech seats were lying vacant for want of students in the academic year 2009-10[3]. Less than 10 students were admitted in three private colleges! It is very clear that parents and students did not have faith in the quality of education provided in many private institutions and they could have also stayed away due to prohibitive costs of engineering education.This scenario raises many questions regarding the above-mentioned decision of the Karunanidhi government:

1. If the seats had not been filled properly in 2009, should not the Karunanidhi government been more worried about how to improve the quality of education and minimizing the cost levied by the private engineering colleges so that the poor scheduled castes and tribes are benefited, rather than blindly decreasing the eligible percentage?

2. If an ST student could not score even a 35% in his 12th exams, in what reality could we expect her/him to score the required 50% (to clear the subjects) in an even more testing and tougher stream such as engineering?


3. On what basis did the Karunanidhi government arrive on the figures of 45%, 40%, 35% and 30% for BCs, MBCs, SCs and STs respectively, which seems more like a numerical series than numbers with any intelligent basis of assignment?

4. By reducing the eligible percentage, the number of eligible students increase. Is this move more indicative of the view of the previous government that it is more imperative to fill seats rather than do anything to improve the quality of education?

My point is, to emphasize that the last ruling party in Tamil Nadu did nothing much to improve the standards of education in the state; in fact, I would say that they only contributed to decrease it unbelievable lows. With a new government in place, if the following changes occur, it would help improving the standards of education:

1. Bring back the Tamil Nadu Professional Courses Entrance Exam (TNPCEE).

2. Follow the AICTE norms of minimum percentage for entrance exams.

3. Make the twelfth standard question papers more challenging and the corrections, more strict.

4. Enable career counseling and planning facilities to students in the final year of their schooling or if possible, during their 10th standard itself, to make students decide which path they would like to choose.

5. Appoint teachers to specifically train students in rural areas for exams like TNPCEE and AIEEE. This would stop the complaints from rural section that the presence of entrance exams favors only the urban students.

Let us hope for the best...


References:

[1]."TN rejects AICTE norms for engineering studies",
http://www.facenfacts.com/NewsDetails/8980/tn-rejects-aicte-norms-for-engineering-studies.htm

[2]. "Score 50% For Engineering: AICTE",
http://www.fullhyderabad.com/hyderabad-news/aicte-fixes-50-percent-marks-at-intermediate-to-study-engineering-3408

[3]. "Over 51,000 seats vacant in TN engineering colleges"
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-02-04/chennai/28133299_1_engineering-colleges-btech-seats-student-intake-strength

The Falling Standards of our Education System - Part 3 - The Sudden Rush for Arts & Science

There was a time, in the 1990s when people were proud to say that they are engineers; admissions in any engineering college was prided as an achievement and Civil and Mechanical engineering were the most sought after course. And now, there is nothing proud in being an engineer - almost every street seems to have more than 15 to 20 engineers - and some people are too shy to tell the name of the engineering colleges they've got into and Civil or Mechanical are the least preferred courses.

Smart people have realised that the significant advantage of doing B.E has been effectively nullified by the fact that IT companies are recruiting students of Arts & Science as well, in the recent days. Moreover, it costs less and is also not as complicated as B.E to study (true, some pure science courses are a headache, but I am speaking in a general sense).

It is an established fact that the number of applications for these streams have increased manifold in the last few years [1]. B.Com remains the most sought after course. While a certain section of people do B.Com for the sake of having a degree behind their name, many others pursue it with another career in mind - such as those who want to crack IAS or IPS or CAT, etc.

While the fact that there is a change in mindset of people that engineering is not the only UG course to study, the sad news is that Arts and Science courses are not pursued for their intended purpose. Students doing pure science courses in their UG very rarely end up doing research and only a small fraction of those pursuing B.Com seem to study M.Com.

What can be done?

•  Students must be encouraged to pursue their dreams; parents must let them to! That is the biggest problem in our society: People are not clear of what they want to do and even among those who are clear of what they want to do, are not presented with an opportunity to do so.
  
• Between the time of 12th and joining a college, students must be allowed to consider an educational expert or a career counselor or at least someone with an open mind, like the principals of their respective schools to help counsel students to determine what course would be ideal for the students.
  
• The University of Madras recently announced a four year UG honours course scheme, which also has generated a considerable interest in students. Such innovations are long due in the field of Arts & Science.

 One can only hope that with the suggestions mentioned above and with the right emphasis from the media, teachers and parents, Arts  & Science courses could get their due respect in the near future.

Reference:

[1]. http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Chennai/article2021872.ece

The Falling Standards of our Education System - Part 2 - Admissions in The Medical Stream

As a society, we - the people of Tamil Nadu, have always followed the results of 12th standard very keenly. The name of the person who gets the state first each year is remembered by almost everyone with no exception. While, we can say that it is a proud fact, this year sprung a lot of surprises, even to the general observer. The cut off of 200/200 is the dream cut off for any medical student. The number of students with 200/200 were only 9 in the year 2009 and 14 in 2010, whereas, in the current academic year, it is 65! Yes, almost an astonishing six fold increase since 2009. [1]



In Part 1 of this topic, the problems with engineering admissions was discussed in length. The way engineering and medical admissions differ are that there are 1,50,000 seats available for engineering, whereas, for medicine, there are only 1,653 government seats and 635 seats from self financing colleges are available. Also, to be noted is that for a middle class student, it is all the more preferable to aim to get a government college than a self financing one because the former charges 10,000 per year as tution fees whereas the latter charges about 2,50,000! Including hostel, mess and bus charges, this could be as high as 3 and a half lakhs per year, making the total cost of studying MBBS in a private medical college as high as 20 lakhs! Phew!

From the table [1], it can be seen that, in 2010, to get a seat in a government medical college one needed a cut off around 195. But in 2011, even a cut off of 197 does not guarantee a medical seat under a government medical college. Even seats of private medical colleges threaten to be filled up even before the cut off of 196, but due to the high cost of studying in private colleges for medicine, not many may opt for it and it could be available till a cut off of 190.


Thankfully, unlike engineering colleges which have sprouted all over the state in the last few years, the central government has been strict to grant permission for new medical colleges and hence, the standard of medical education is not as spoilt. But, the biggest problem concerning medical admissions this year is the increase of cut offs as much as 2.5 marks. This obviously resulted from the fact that the correction had not been tough. Else, how can you possibly explian almost a doubling in the number of students for a cut off of more than 195 from the last year?

In sum, medical education is not as spoiled as engineering is. But a variety of factors from easy question papers to canellation of entrance exams to easy correction has lead to a crowding of students in the cut-off 195 to 200 range.

The discomforting factor is that if a hardworking student had scored 195 and could still not get a medical college, how dejected would he/she be? For this precise reason, the government should bring back the medical entrance at least. Let us hope that it does!

References:

[1]. "Cut-off marks for medicine courses in the Tamil Nadu up by 1.5 to 2 marks"
http://www.thehindu.com/education/article2004505.ece

The Falling Standards of our Education System - Part 1 - The Pathetic Engineering Admissions

This morning I saw something in paper, that compelled me to write this post. In The Hindu, there was, "88,744 engineering application forms sold in State on first day" [1] and in the Times of India, there was "Over 2 lakh forms for engineering admissions will be sold (this year)" [2]. As an engineering student doing his final year, I believe there are some things that parents and students need to be aware of regarding engineering admissions.


In 2007, I joined Electronics & Communication Engineering in what is considered to be a good engineering college in Chennai - if not Tamil Nadu. At that time, my cut off was 190.75 and my rank was 6990. My batch was the first batch without an entrance exam for engineering admissions - the then newly formed Karunanidhi government thought that there was no need for entrance exams and that marks in 12th standard was more than sufficient to prove one's candidature for Engineering admissions. People were already telling me how unfortunate I was, because they thought that if I had written the entrance exams I could have got a much more competitive cut off and that in turn, I would have got into a top 5 college in Chennai.


Nevertheless, the engineering counselling got over and I managed to get a decent college in Chennai. But I was still very unhappy thinking over how much better it could have been had I managed to get a better college. But, as soon as the 12th standard results were out the next year, i.e, 2008, I realized how lucky I had been. Because, for the same cut off that I had scored, the ranks were in the range of 9000. Whether that is because the papers were easy that year or students were getting smarter, is debatable. But what I didn't know at that time was that the trend was to continue.

If one can look at the table on the left [3], one would realize how still the competition has grown in the last three years. Certainly, I was very lucky to have managed to get into the college that I did because to enter the same course that I did in my college, in the last year, students had to score a cut off of nearly 196 - almost a 5 mark increase in four years.


It does not need a genius to realize how stressful and demanding the course of one year can be on the poor 17 year olds doing 12th standard every year. The situation is so pathetic that

• Even a cut off of 199 is not sufficient to guarantee a seat in Anna  University for the candidates attending the counselling in 2011.
  

• Almost all the top 10 private engineering colleges see a 1 to 2 mark increase in cut off every passing year.

What caused these problems?

• An almost frightening craze for engineering seats, which has been the trend ever since early 2000s when the IT job boom started.
  
• The abolition of entrance exams in the year 2007 contributed a great deal to this tragic dependence on 12th standard marks alone, in turn leading to a very tight competition for the top marks.
  
• Alright, if the engineering entrance exams have been cancelled, then at least the 12th standard exam question papers should be made tougher. Was that at least done? Nope! In fact, by what I hear from my juniors, the biggest problem was the fact that the question papers were very easy.
  
• If the papers are easy, at least, should the correction of the same not be strict? Alas, seeing the number of centums increasing in Maths, Physics and Chemistry every passing year, one would be forced to believe that the corrections are also not getting any tougher.

What is the solution to this problem?

Either start conducting the engineering entrance exams once again or, if that is too much, at least make the questions papers for 12th exams tougher or if even that is too much, at least make the corrections tougher. It is the only way to save our system from becoming a completely hopeless one which rewards students for their memorizing and presentation skills rather than their techincal skills.

The engineering scenario is just an example and a variety of other factors cause the same problems to exist in Medical and even Arts & Science admissions. We will see them in parts 2 & 3 in this blog under the same title. Moreover, the government has done something very cheap to plummet the standards of education to new lows. We will discuss it in the final part of this title and conclude it.


References:
[1]. "Craze for engineering courses continues"
http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/tamil-nadu/article2024141.ece


[2]. "Over 2 lakh forms for engineering admissions will be sold"
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Over-2-lakh-forms-for-engineering-admissions-will-be-sold/articleshow/8377225.cms


[3]. "Tough competition for engineering seats"
http://www.thehindu.com/education/college-and-university/article2004518.ece

Movie Mush: Engeyum Kadhal

I was about to go to theater and watch this movie, but since my friends told me that it is 'mokkai', I decided to merely download and watch it. And, surprisingly, I found it good. Whether it is because I watched it with very low expectations or maybe because the movie is actually good, I am not sure.


The movie is about a young Indian business man Kamal ('Jeyam' Ravi) - a playboy - who falls for an NRI girl Kayal (Hanssika Motwaani) with good cultural values. The whole movie is shot in Paris, which, in itself adds a refreshing tone to the movie. The cinematography is excellent and all the songs are beautifully shot. Especially, the 'Engeyum Kaadhal' and 'Nangai' songs are well choreographed. Jeyam Ravi plays a rich young businessman perfectly and Hansika seems to be the new chubby girl of Kollywood. Together, they make a cute couple and I didn't get bored of watching them, as many of my friends said they did. Most of the songs are intelligently placed throughout the movie except perhaps the 'Nenjil Nenjil' number.

Now coming to the minuses, one doesn't understand why Prakashraj has been wasted in the movie with just two unnecessary scenes. And, a few sequences are copied from Bollywood movies of the past - like the scene where Raju Sundaram gets robbed by a woman and he is left gagged in his room sans all his clothes is an outright copy of a similar scene in Dil Chahta Hai and the song 'Dhimu Dhimu' reminds you of the popular 'Ye Dooriyan' song. In fact, the whole movie seems to be inspired by the new generation Bollywood movies where the whole story happens in a foreign country. It started with 'Kabhi Kushi Kabhi Ghum' back in 2001. Now, kollywood seems to be catching up as well.


All in all, if you can digest a few loop holes and suspend your disbelief in the climax where a dove united the two lovers, you will certainly not find this movie boring.


Go without expectations and enjoy 'Engeyum Kaadhal'.

I give it a decent 6/10.

A List of Great Time Travel Movies

Time travel is my most favorite movie genre, so much so that if I'd get a chance to make only one movie, then it'll definitely be in this genre. What is incredible about this genre is that it taps into the desire of people who wonder how great it would be if it were possible for them to change just one event in their past and how rosy their future could be, as a result. In fact, this general thought is the central theme of most of the movies described below.

1. The Butterfly Effect (2004)

An incredible movie, to say the least. The first time I saw it, I cried at one point. I have never, ever cried watching a movie before, so, in a way, this movie is very close to my heart. The film follows the life of a Evan (Ashton Kutcher), who blocks out harmful memories of significant events of his life. As he grows up, he finds a way to remember these lost memories and a supernatural way to alter his life. The central theme of this movie is how by altering one event of his past, the entire future of Evan changes. He keeps changing events of his past hoping that he can attain a perfect future. But, to his dismay, he realizes that no matter how hard he tries, things only get worse. Ashton Kutcher, as Evan, plays his career-best role in this movie.The story has brilliant screenplay and direction ad every scene is important and contributes to the central theme of the movie. The movie needs 2 viewings, at least to be appreciated of its beauty. If you haven't watched it yet, go get ready for a mind blowing experience.

P.S.: The Director's Cut has a better climax than the original, so watch that version, if possible.

2. Back to the Future (Series)

Who doesn't love this movie?Among the best comedies of Steven Speilberg, this movie - in fact, the entire series - is one that has stood the test of time and it doesn't bore you, how many ever times you watch it. Neat casting, crisp dialogues and an entertaining screenplay makes 'Back to the Future' a super movie-watching experience. In my view, the third part is the best - in terms of entertainment quotient - closely followed by the first and second parts in that order. I am sure everyone is aware of the story and it needs no mentioning. Watch it for its rollicking screenplay!

3. 12 Monkeys (1995)

You can be excused for getting shocked at watching Brad Pitt playing second fiddle to Bruce Willis in this awesome time travel flick. Because I was, too! But I guess Brad Pitt playing such a role was essential in maintaining the suspense and the twist in the climax.For those who haven't watched this movie yet, the story is set in a futuristic world, where a deadly virus has has almost caused an extinction of the human race and whatever humans are left are forced to take refuge underground. Using a time machine, they send Bruce Willis back in time to that period when the virus first broke out to find out a possible solution to find a cure for the virus. You keep guessing and wondering the reason for his periodic flashes but only at the end is the true reason revealed and you are like 'Oh, why didn't I think of that!'. This movie is of that type of time travel movies that stress that it is impossible to change what has happened in the past, no matter how hard you try. Anyways, behold an interesting experience!

 

4. Triangle (2009)

It is difficult to explain this movie, really. And the end of the movie, you are so immersed into it that you want a sequel, explaining the loose ends and finally showing you the fate of  Jess (Melissa George) and her son. The story revolves around the passengers of a yachting trip in the Atlantic Ocean who, when struck by mysterious weather conditions, jump to another ship only to experience greater havoc on the open seas.How it is different from all other time travel stories is that this story is that of a loop in time - a loop with three cycles that keep repeating. Jess gets on a ship with her co passengers and must kill all of them to make the cycle repeat. Only if the cycle repeats can she try and warn their co passengers in the yacht (from her past) to again not get back to that ship. The movie needs 2 or 3 viewings to be understood completely but it is interesting enough to keep you hooked even for the second or third time. Watch it for a whirlwind experience!

5. Groundhog Day (1993)

The thing about Groundhog Day is that it has its heart in the right place. A weatherman is sent to a small town in Pennsylvenia to cover a famous event where the 'rat' predicts whether there will be an early spring that year, where he experiences the same day again and again till he finally spends a perfect day, helping others and thus helping himself stop the cycle. Phil (Bill Murray), as the reluctant weatherman, delivers a splendid performance. This is one movie you can watch with your family, laugh and cry and fall in love with, instantly. The striking thing about this movie is its honesty in characterization. Each character is very well etched and they stay true to their selves. Even thee transformation in Phil is shown in a very believable way. What are you waiting for! Go watch it, if you haven't yet!

6. Timecrimes (Los cronocrímenes) (2007)

I only recently saw this movie after becoming a (self-proclaimed) expert in time travel movies. So, most of the twists were predictable to me, but, could still surprise an amateur to this genre. But what was most impressive about this movie was that its climax had a shocking revalation - unlike any other time travel movie that I have come across. I was as shocked as I was surprised with the climax, which also explains the title of the film. Watch it for an entertaining experience!

7. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

I didn't like the first part as much and the third part was just okay. But its the second part that steals the 7th place hands down. The cyborg (Arnold Schwarzenegger) who once tried to kill Sarah Connor in the first installment must now protect her teenage son, John Connor, from an even more powerful and advanced Terminator.The master stroke in this movie was when the villain was made the good guy. This is one of the rare set of movies where the second part is even better than the first (only Munnabhai and Night at the Museum comes to my mind). Most people would have watched it already. But its such a classic that another viewing will still entertain..!

8. Frequency (2000)

 Thankfully, in this movie, unlike many other time travel movies with the 'past can never be altered' rigidness, the past can be altered but with certain consequences. An accidental cross-time radio link connects father and son across 30 years. The son tries to save his father's life, but then must fix the consequences. Whether he manages to fix those or not then forms the rest of the story.  The movie mixes time travel with a serial killer case and moves at a frantic pace. The story has a decent suspense maintained through out its run length, and the tension towards the end is unbearable. If you are game for a decent suspense drama, watch this one..!

9. Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel (2009)

Comedy in time travel is a very under explored genre. Other than the 'Back to the Future' series, it is difficult to think of any other full fledged time travel comedy.In comes 'Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel' to fill the void. It is almost a more sensible remake of 'Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure', where people from future (here, it is Anna Faris of 'Scary Movie' fame) come to the present to help to-be-famous geeks reach their destiny. But, this movie is certainly more fun than the Bill and Ted movies and has a more logical (I mean the time-travel logic) and plausible story. If you wanna laugh with your friends and laugh hard, this is the movie to watch!

10. The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)

I am not a big fan of romantic movies, but time travel combined with romance somehow seems to get me on a high! The story is a romantic drama about a Chicago librarian Henry DeTamble (Eric Bana), with a gene that causes him to involuntarily time travel, and the complications it creates for his marriage with his wife Claire (Rachel McAdams).Perfect casting is the main plus of this movie. Whether it is his early 20s or late 30s, Eric Bana looks and plays his role perfectly. The love affair between the two is brilliantly portrayed. Guess Rachel McAdams is an expert at these kind of roles (remember 'Notebook'?). Based on a novel of the same name, the movie evokes a lot of emotions, that only a time travel movie can. If you are a romantic, make sure you catch this flick!

Coming soon: Movies 11 to 20 in this list!