Recently I came across that September 10 is celebrated as World Suicide Prevention Day. Naturally my memory stuck to the recent event of a suicide attempt at my prestigious institution and the consequent awakening of the administration of appointing of a Psychiatrist to deal with stress problems. Well this is not the first time these types of suicide attempts are happening in premier engineering institutions especially IITs and allied organizations. I as a student tried to introspect about the problems of stresses and their causes which unfolded many major issues and reasons.
High Expectation
When I first entered the gates of my institution I had a lot of expectations especially when one clears exam like IIT-JEE and is ranked among top 1-2% of those who take this exam. A lot of students want to excel in their areas of expertise and try to come out with something original. They often see themselves on the forefront in their respective fields. Bur the mirage of IIT engulfs their dreams not fully but enough to force them into depression. Well I am amazed at this too but here are the reasons: Low quality of teaching and practical, restrained freedom from course structure for innovation, hectic schedule and often dictation type teaching, good professors are not having time to share on account of consultancy works and added responsibility of administration, financial strains for putting ideas into realities, etc.
Inability to change and adjust
Change is something you rarely see in a government organization and if you try either you will change or you will be out of the system. So, this leaves with the only option of adjusting and adapting. It feels great to join the common class ,passing the valuable four years without adding some value, underutilization of so many great brains who otherwise could have changed the picture of India and those who in spite are able to do justice by own self fly overseas thanks to brain drain. However there remains some countable persons who are not able to adjust or adapt and hence there builds up the stress monster. The feeling of guilt not to do justice to yours ability, not enough scope within the boundaries of institution and forced to follow a repetitive schedule of exam after exam without learning for four years.
Going inside the problem
A six or seven day of exams without a break that two twice within six months which tests not yours analytical skills but mug up ability and that in vey good handwriting. A whole of book is finished within no time by the professors and by the time exams come you are left with a huge demand of tasks to be done by your own. One must not be amazed by the quality of PhDs and research that are done under these conditions. Ultimately there is survival and that is through sustenance by building their own world of time pass through computer gaming, movies and serials, social networking sites and many other useless activities. But there may be some who are so much bored of this environment that they resort to smoking, alcoholism, etc. While some of them may generate tendencies of distress often when they think of their glorious past and their gloomy future. Suicide attempts are just an extreme outburst of these types of tendencies.
Where’s the solution
The solution is in the finding the root of problem which is not that the students are not able to cope with the demand of studies but the demand from students that is sought remains unfulfilled. We need quality education, quality professors, quality infrastructure, enough opportunities, and most of all enough freedom to invest our energies in our areas of interests. Until then we will be killing thousands of brilliant brains in the name of IIT each year.
High Expectation
When I first entered the gates of my institution I had a lot of expectations especially when one clears exam like IIT-JEE and is ranked among top 1-2% of those who take this exam. A lot of students want to excel in their areas of expertise and try to come out with something original. They often see themselves on the forefront in their respective fields. Bur the mirage of IIT engulfs their dreams not fully but enough to force them into depression. Well I am amazed at this too but here are the reasons: Low quality of teaching and practical, restrained freedom from course structure for innovation, hectic schedule and often dictation type teaching, good professors are not having time to share on account of consultancy works and added responsibility of administration, financial strains for putting ideas into realities, etc.
Inability to change and adjust
Change is something you rarely see in a government organization and if you try either you will change or you will be out of the system. So, this leaves with the only option of adjusting and adapting. It feels great to join the common class ,passing the valuable four years without adding some value, underutilization of so many great brains who otherwise could have changed the picture of India and those who in spite are able to do justice by own self fly overseas thanks to brain drain. However there remains some countable persons who are not able to adjust or adapt and hence there builds up the stress monster. The feeling of guilt not to do justice to yours ability, not enough scope within the boundaries of institution and forced to follow a repetitive schedule of exam after exam without learning for four years.
Going inside the problem
A six or seven day of exams without a break that two twice within six months which tests not yours analytical skills but mug up ability and that in vey good handwriting. A whole of book is finished within no time by the professors and by the time exams come you are left with a huge demand of tasks to be done by your own. One must not be amazed by the quality of PhDs and research that are done under these conditions. Ultimately there is survival and that is through sustenance by building their own world of time pass through computer gaming, movies and serials, social networking sites and many other useless activities. But there may be some who are so much bored of this environment that they resort to smoking, alcoholism, etc. While some of them may generate tendencies of distress often when they think of their glorious past and their gloomy future. Suicide attempts are just an extreme outburst of these types of tendencies.
Where’s the solution
The solution is in the finding the root of problem which is not that the students are not able to cope with the demand of studies but the demand from students that is sought remains unfulfilled. We need quality education, quality professors, quality infrastructure, enough opportunities, and most of all enough freedom to invest our energies in our areas of interests. Until then we will be killing thousands of brilliant brains in the name of IIT each year.
-ankur200610@rediffmail.com
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