Save Parinav
Save Parinav
Save Parinav
Jan 25, 2024
12-year-old Parinav who went missing from Bangalore was found days later in Hyderabad. He was found trying to sell his Parker pens to scrounge up some money.
12-year-old Parinav who went missing from Bangalore was found days later in Hyderabad. He was found trying to sell his Parker pens to scrounge up some money. He fled home after “cheating in exams” said one dramatic headline. Turns out this 12-year-old was enrolled in a coaching institute to get into IIT. He was at the coaching class on a Sunday afternoon when he decided to make his run for freedom.
A 12-year-old. Being coached in a class for a competitive exam that is 4 years away. On a Sunday.
Parinav is a hero in our books, not a cheat. He refused to take his imprisonment in a rotten system sitting down and went out to explore the world – as kids are supposed to! How can you not applaud that?
Doubly concerning in this story is the fact that his parents seem to be well-educated technologists. If parents with such backgrounds are willing to push their young children into this pipeline, what hope do others have?
Far too many parents think that what sort of seems to work with what passes for education is not horribly flawed. They are willing to imprison their children in coaching coops. We need collective realization that there are many many paths to success. We live in a world of abundance. We live in a world where millions can participate in non-zero-sum games and win – together.
The first step towards fixing this is to realize there are alternatives with rich history. Alternatives that will become far more mainstream thanks to recent technological advances. The greatest teachers are available for free on YouTube. We must now equip children with the curiosity to learn, the autonomy to take charge of their learning, and the enterprise to explore different paths in the world. And guess what? Parinav showed exactly these qualities!
Parents, let us end this cradle to coaching-institute pipeline.
Schooling need not mean imprisonment. Schooling need not mean sacrificing childhood. Schooling need not be so unbearable that our children take grave risks to escape it. There are much better, enlightened alternatives!
Please help us spread the word and kick the legs out from under the rotten system we have inherited.
We need to save the Parinavs of this world. There might be one right at home
12-year-old Parinav who went missing from Bangalore was found days later in Hyderabad. He was found trying to sell his Parker pens to scrounge up some money. He fled home after “cheating in exams” said one dramatic headline. Turns out this 12-year-old was enrolled in a coaching institute to get into IIT. He was at the coaching class on a Sunday afternoon when he decided to make his run for freedom.
A 12-year-old. Being coached in a class for a competitive exam that is 4 years away. On a Sunday.
Parinav is a hero in our books, not a cheat. He refused to take his imprisonment in a rotten system sitting down and went out to explore the world – as kids are supposed to! How can you not applaud that?
Doubly concerning in this story is the fact that his parents seem to be well-educated technologists. If parents with such backgrounds are willing to push their young children into this pipeline, what hope do others have?
Far too many parents think that what sort of seems to work with what passes for education is not horribly flawed. They are willing to imprison their children in coaching coops. We need collective realization that there are many many paths to success. We live in a world of abundance. We live in a world where millions can participate in non-zero-sum games and win – together.
The first step towards fixing this is to realize there are alternatives with rich history. Alternatives that will become far more mainstream thanks to recent technological advances. The greatest teachers are available for free on YouTube. We must now equip children with the curiosity to learn, the autonomy to take charge of their learning, and the enterprise to explore different paths in the world. And guess what? Parinav showed exactly these qualities!
Parents, let us end this cradle to coaching-institute pipeline.
Schooling need not mean imprisonment. Schooling need not mean sacrificing childhood. Schooling need not be so unbearable that our children take grave risks to escape it. There are much better, enlightened alternatives!
Please help us spread the word and kick the legs out from under the rotten system we have inherited.
We need to save the Parinavs of this world. There might be one right at home
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BetterSchooling is a resource for Indian families to learn more about alternative schooling and alternative learning tools and resources.
