The Con Academy

 After hearing about the great success of the Khan Academy, I thought of this brilliant thing - The Con Academy.

It will be the ultimate con job.

It will promise to get you into an IIT, or IIM, or on the Moon if you prefer. Why, even the Sun, for that matter. 

The only exception- it won't find you a match.. we don't want to eat into the business of Dating Apps, as a policy.

All you have to do to achieve your dream is to deposit some money into a numbered account in Switzerland. Once the deposit is confirmed, you will receive detailed instruction on what you have to do to get there.

We will have tie-ups with NASA, Elon Musk for space Odesseys. And tie ups with Maths teachers and ex-IIM faculty (like the Founders) for cracking the JEE/CAT. But they will only offer Q and A on Zoom, after you have studied for 72 hours a week, for 72 weeks.. by the, we hope the Swiss bank account will swell like the Ganges or Bramhaputra in spate, and we will be at some corner of the globe that's difficult to reach.. and gyarah mulkon ki police will not be able to trace us.. nor will the Jamtara scammers.

How's that for a business idea?

Another Golf Outing

 This time it was with a newly-minted friend from Argentina, Veronica, who is a visiting faculty at Prestige University. Our ground is still not fully developed, but that did not stop us (never has) from playing. We tried both long shots and putting.

Pics from the outing-

Quality of the Learning Experience

 There needs to be a lot more flexibility in teaching-learning methods across higher ed. and perhaps other levels too. We need to give teachers the autonomy to innovate and experiment. Of course, subject to the recruitment of teachers being conscious of quality.

Right now, at school level, the battle seems to have been won by coaching classes. Entrance exams galore make that possible, in a way. Medical, Law, Engineering are the prime culprits. But more entrance exams are coming up each year or two.

Anyway, back to the classroom. Exploration, and exercises/projects are some under-utilised methods in my view. I am not talking of teaching coding for computers, but social sciences such as management, where dealing with people is the major skill that has to be a part of the learning goals. Too much emphasis on the 'knowing' part and not enough on the 'doing' or 'being' parts may make Jack a dull boy (and Jill a dull girl)..diversity in the class is a also a desirable goal, to help peer learning thrive.

If entrepreneurship can also be a small part of the curriculum, the job-hunting mentality among many grads may give way to a more exciting and satisfying journey for many. Of course, selecting students with a risk-taking ability may need a re-look at admission processes. Maybe we can talk about this another time.

Obsessions of Indians

 Americans are obsessed with 'football'- not as we know it. The foot is hardly used. Anyway, it's a national obsession. In India, we fret about cricket in the same way. Every run, each ball in every match big or small, is analysed by armchair pundits. Opinions about batsmen or bowlers see-saw faster than the stock market, or the dollar exchange rate.

But there is another obsession we have (not the fat wedding), which is not talked about as much. Education. From pre-primary play schools, to Kindergarten, and onwards, we obsess about schools, and grades-only we call them marks. It may sound crazy (it is? Ok), but every parent is obsessed about what his kid will study- at least in the middle class, which is infinitely larger than we assume based on statistics (which are dodgy at best). Whether it is the Board exams given by Super-bored students, or entrance exams that are cracked by the super-prepared ones, one thing stands out. The obsession about education, IITs, or IIMs, or the National Law Schools, that recently entered 'the league'. 

Coaching classes seem to be the largest industry in India, though fragmented into hundreds of brands in each town. Kota is a town known only for coaching classes, the way Hyderabad once was -or the whole of Andhra Pradesh. 

If we only cared as much about the outcomes of that education on society and its well-being..

New Careers

 I am half-serious, as always. Some careers that I have heard of- or maybe not.

Ghost-writing. You don't have to be a ghost to do this, though you can continue to inspire the living when you reach ghosthood.

Coaching. Not teaching people to bat, bowl, or field, but how to conduct their life- as a conductor! 

TV Debater. There are only 10 people appearing in TV debates on all Indian TV channels put together. This looks like an easy career, if you have strong vocal chords...strikes a chord?

Tele-caller. If you can start selling anything, from undergarments to credit cards to a stranger in under 10 seconds, this one is for you. Numbers to call are provided.

Management Guru. This is a tough one, because half of the U.S. is your competitor. Every Tom, Dick, and Mary has written a book too, so you are way behind. But still, you could give it a shot. 

Ok, you only get this much for free. For more careers, contact my bank..

Super 30 - Film Review

Disclaimer: As a general principle, I am against coaching classes of all kinds. But these are a way of life (like the internet based media) that you cannot wish away..

There are a few good things about this film. And a couple of questions that I had. First, the good things.

The acting is good. Hrithik Roshan, the kids, Pankaj Tripathi and whoever played the Excellent Coaching boss. The guy who played Hrithik's dad was very good too. Even the female love interest of Hrithik's, though she had little to do after the first twenty minutes.

The film makes a very good point for social justice in education, and the fact that the right kind of education can transform a family's future...logically, though, every university should strive to provide this transformational education, and not just a handful of IITs. Something to think about? Of course, State governments are responsible for the state universities. And promoters, for the private ones, which are yet to match the Central government institutions in quality (in India).

The villainy is over-dramatised, I thought, and the positives take a back-seat during those scenes.

Academicians and academics do get their due through the central character- education is the winner.

A question that I had- why was Hrithik looking unwashed in the second half of the film?

Worth seeing the film. Certainly beats the current alternatives by a few marks. :)