The Indian Institutes Of Technology, or the IITs as they are more famously known, are the country’s most elite educational institutions. In terms of the brand value they carry in the western world obsessed with the same, they rank way above the equally estimated Indian Institutes of Management. The Joint Entrance Exam (JEE) is undoubtedly one of the most rigorous competitive examinations anywhere. It is this hard nut that the many engineering aspirants have to crack to get a seat in this highest portal of pedagogy. All that though is about to change come 2013.
Next year onwards there will be a common aptitude-cum-advanced knowledge test, that is, a single entrance examination for the teeming technology institutes in India including the numero uno IITs. This exam will have a 60 % weightage along with the board examination results which will contribute the remaining 40 %. This is a very welcome move indeed as it will make the field of competition largely level playing. That is because the coaching corporation that has flourished in the name of cracking the IIT code will be dealt a bad blow indeed. Earlier students used to pay princely amounts to these prep classes only to be disappointed as the exam has a very small success rate. So at least with the reengineering in the pattern the student will focus on the all important class 12th examinations which are a crucial link to a student’s long-term career.
It is most important for all the stake-holders in the education system to realize that no one exam is worth putting all your eggs in. This includes the parents, teachers and, of course, the student herself. Hopefully this promising proposal will lead to a more equitable education process.
