There has been an increasing series of suicide cases among students living in Kota. Every few days, news comes up “A student died by suicide in Kota”. Recently a 17-year-old student died by suicide in Kota, Rajasthan, and in the last 24-hour it was the second case that has come forward. There are many questions that come to mind. What is the reason? Being a renowned center for entrance preparation, why have such cases become prevalent? What’s happening in Kota that brings students to such a point in life?
“Coordination between Students and Coaching Institute is important”
Dr Arvind Otta
Panel Discussion
Within the past six months of 2023, there have been fourteen such cases. It’s not a small number; it has to be dealt in urgent terms with immediate action. Thus, for action to take place, it’s necessary to analyze the problem in depth, knowing about its causes, reasons, and what can be done. The issues of rising cases were discussed on NDTV channel wherein the panel consisted of Dr. Arvind Otta (Senior Psychologist), Anand Kumar (Founder of Super 30), Dr Sushma Yadav (member of UGC), Saurabh Kumar (Chief academic officer Vidyamandir Classes), Harshit Bhutani (Faculty in Kota). Dr Arvind shared the psychological perspective concerning the growing graph of cases.
Dr. Arvind Otta pointed out that blaming parents, teachers, or society will make us caught in a loop of blame gaming. Instead than relying just on one individual or institution, parents, society, coaching centres, and even law enforcement organisations must share the burden. Each one has their share of helping students maintain their mental health. On the one hand, parents need to understand that scoring excellent marks in 12th doesn’t mean that their child has to go into the medical and engineering field. On the other hand, coaching centers also need to create a mechanism to assess students’ aptitude.
Parents sometimes sell their ancestors’ land or take loans so that their children can succeed in life by joining a renowned coaching center. Students travel across miles and here at the coaching center they face a huge pressure of studies, career, an expectation of teachers and parents, then competition among peers. Thus, it becomes the responsibility of the teaching institute to educate and inform parents about their child’s aptitude. For a student, it becomes a life that resembles a pressure cooker that can burst at any moment in time. Dr. Sushma also shared that with various pressures a student faces they are able to differentiate between a life of a pressure cooker and to end their life.
“Recognizing sudden behavioral change”
Dr Arvind Otta
Inside the coaching classroom
Zooming-in cameras inside the classrooms of the coaching center it a herd of students in hundreds taught by a single teacher; thus, the question of student-teacher relation and rapport becomes far beyond. Along with teacher-student rapport, parent-institute relationship also plays a vital role. The discussion brings in the misconception related to identification. We always think of talking to a student when we observe that they are sad. Teachers and parents think that there is a problem, and hence they try to talk about it.
Here, we need to adjust our perspective and concentrate our observation on looking for any sudden behavioural changes among the students. Someone expressed it using a simple example that we could all experience on a daily basis. Dr Arvind Otta emphasized that When parents call, their first question is, “How are you?” and an expected answer is “, yes, I am fine or doing well”. In this, we often forget that the answer is about their physical health, as in how they are feeling physically. Therefore, here the need is to understand “How are you?” It includes mental health as well. I should have been a part of their daily conversation since childhood.
Expert added, Creating an environment where students can talk and communicate is essential. One of the key problems here is how to handle the student-teacher ratio. Another is coordination among the institute, students and parents. It will help in monitoring each child. Anand Kumar added that we have put the word ‘Rank’ in students’ minds. Rather, the motivation should be to work hard and put in all effort. In case your exam doesn’t go well or you do not qualify, be scared. We should make them understand that no exam can prove their full potential. Studying hard, clearing IIT, or any other exam if not becoming a good human being is always a priority.
Beyond the Dream
Students from across the country come with a lot of faith and believe that joining coaching can help them fulfill their dream, be it engineering or medical. Parents also send their children with heavy hearts to stay alone in an unknown place so that they can make their careers and lives successful. However, recent cases showcase the total opposite of it. Viewing the scenario through a psychological lens makes us question the multidirectional pressure that students go through. The issues of student-teacher ratio, unbalanced coordination among teachers, students and institutions, and lack of awareness about mental health became the highlight of the discussion. Therefore, our role as a parent, teachers, institutions and law is to create a positive environment for students where education is a part of life and not a burden of life.
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