Too Many Kids, Too Few Schools…
When I took the decision to come back to India, my home country, the scale tipped down to touch the earth in support of my logic. Everything pointed Eastwards Ho. Here I am now – un-regretful and proud; only wishing, however, that I was not ignorant about a few things that would have prepared me better.
Have you ever heard about the “Point System”? I can imagine visions of a sport coming to your head. Well I only wish. This “system” does not relate to any fun activity whatsoever. Rather, and arm yourself for this one, it’s a system through which your child could get admission in a reasonably respectable school.
It’s the most dreaded term for any expat moving to India. It is even worse if you had left many years ago and lost any kind of claim to your roots or may I say relatives. I am not going to confuse you any further here. Following are a few points that stand you in good stead when you are in the midst of a raging war to get your child to school. Your address (to determine proximity to school and evaluate standard of living); Sibling quota (you are relatively safe if you have a sibling studying in your school of choice); alumni (if you are an alumni of the school you can take in that extra breath); there is more but the aforementioned are the most dreaded ones.
Indian Schools – The Back Door Entry
Most schools have points allotted against each condition. For instance for “alumni” you get 20 points (hence I will get none), for neighborhood they get 30 points (My choice of schools are not in my neighborhood so there goes another 30), one gets 5 points for being a child with special needs or if born of a single mother (whoosh whoosh). Where do I stand a chance?
Apart from the above there is a term called “back-door entry”. In this case, if your child has not made it through the perilous points, you have the option in some schools to pay an obscene amount of money to get admission in it. In my opinion that is nothing short of bribing the educational institution but I may still be a little unclear about the terms. Hence if you are an expat of ordinary means (they have never heard this term here before) whose ties have been kind of torn with India you are in deep trouble! Yes, it is a war and nothing else.
‘World Schools’ in India
Of course there are these new “World Schools”- mostly American. I did go to visit one of these and I must say I was very impressed but oh the deep deep holes the fee structure can burn in your pockets are abysmal! This school even has helicopters for children who needed immediate medical intervention in an emergency. I am in love with the curriculum it follows and the way it gives precedence to self development rather than rote academics but for most here it’s wishful to imagine leading a comfortable life with your child going to that school.
Just in case I am misleading you to think that this system is for higher studies or for courses that are competitive let me clarify here that I am talking about children of about three to three and half years who are just about starting school after nursery. One of my American friends thought it was all my fault for trying to get my daughter into a “private school”. How oh how would I explain to him the difference of a private school here compared to one in America! I wouldn’t even know where to begin.
My friend’s three-and -a -half year old daughter had to compete with 36 other children for a single seat in a school. She stood no chance with that kind of ratio even when her father was an alumnus of the school! Apparently the 20 points didn’t help her much!
Limited Seats, No Admission
Even though mothers like me are losing sleep over this situation, I somehow do not blame the schools. In a country with the 2nd largest population in the world there have to be preposterous systems of elimination. We must keep in mind that it is this same country that is producing some of the best brains in the world.
In the meantime, all I am seeking is a way to get my daughter to join that stream of screaming thousands for an academic certificate. An extremely ambitious dream to have in a country where expectations go beyond just the crazy procedure of admissions. These are just the entry tickets to an endless journey of prodding for things that have limited “seats”, like delightful careers or cushy lives. Or it may turn out to be an endless search for something one may not even want.
I go back to the day in the ultrasound room, where the doctor showed me a prune-sized cell and told me, “That thing will ask for your car keys one day!”
The future is a mammoth blank sheet of paper – I wonder what it will look like when the artist has finished the job.
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11 Comments
@Lisa it is very stressful indeed!Homeschooling is not an option that is accepted as much as in the US. Its extremely competitive in this part of the world! I guess that is what happens when you have an urban population with the sharpest of IQs wanting the best for their children. That means the eyeballs are on the same schools and certificates (if you know what you mean). Parents are either arm twisted to go to a school that is not really their choice or wait another year for another opportunity…
@Sulekha yes screening of parents is bad too but at least its a fairer option. That’s what I think though since I haven’t been through one yet.
WOW! Very Interesting! It seems so stressful, just to try to get your child into a school. Do they offer homeschooling in India? Just curious what parents do, if their child can’t get into a classroom? Thanks for sharing this!
A very relevant topic, am sure so many parents are reading this article and nodding their heads. Screening is equally traumatic for the parents and the kids.I am selfishly glad that my kids are past this stage and are in college but what awaits them in future is scary. Excellent post, Mitr.
Thanks Baldychaz – both for the advice and your sympathies – need them in cartloads : ))
@Tapas thank you for your encouraging words as always : )
@Azhar thanks for your comment! To be fair to schools – they need an elimination process to deal with the vast gap in supply VS demand! That said the present situation is totally unfair! There is no hope in hell for tons of parents around.
It’s a huge huge problem really. Commercialization of what used to be an extension of worshiping had eroded the system eons ago; education is now an extension of corruption; greed it’s backbone; parents are the victims. It’s high time parents should organize themselves in a single powerful body and shake up both the schools and the government. Thanks Kriti for raising your voice.
Liked your piece But i sincerely do not understand why do schools need to screen kids just for admissions? As long as the kid’s parents pay the fees on time, there should not be any problem. I do not have kids but i certainly think that getting rejected at schools must be hurting kids too as it does so adults. I might sound funny but i know I am very logical.
@Leena – your father could not have been more accurate! In India I do not think it is wise at all to have more than one child if you cannot afford a good upbringing for him/her… Thank you very much for coming by and reading my post
Great article Kriti! This article reminded me of what my father has been stressing to me for years, the global demand and competition for any type of resources is only going to get worse (whether in India or in the US).
The supply is far less than the demand and this can relate to competition for good schools to getting a good job. I am not sure I want more than one child at this point after I think about all this!