The Way Education Is Marketed in India: Why It’s An Issue
And why it shouldn’t be one.
I think right now almost everyone is waking up to memes on a certain EduTech company in the country. Let’s call it TopiBaazSr.
I see people not just from India but also from other countries jumping on the bandwagon to roast this organisation and earn a few quick views on youtube.
Do I think the company deserves it?
Yes.
Do I disagree with their methods?
Absolutely.
Do I enjoy these memes?
Very much.
Do I also think trolling is the only way to deal with this issue?
Hell no!
And what exactly am I rambling about?
Let me walk you through it.
So, why is the country mad at TopiBaazSr?
Short answer: Their questionable advertising gimmicks and their below-average teaching methodology.
Long answer: These people have been blatantly promising the middle-class Indian parent that their child will become the next Mark Zuckerberg after a few coding classes with TopiBaazSr.
So what, right? Everyone exaggerates while advertising.
Here’s why it’s not okay:
- Their target customer base is the middle-class Indian parent who, quite frankly, has only one mission in life: to watch their children become an ATM, in this case; through software engineering.
(Not because they are greedy but because they don’t want their children to suffer as they have and also because they don't know any better.)
2. TopiBaazSr is well aware of the extent a desperate Indian parent can go to make this happen. Hence, they are promoting FALSE stories of seven-year-olds making it to Silicon Valley, earning in millions, after taking classes with them. A bait for non-technical parents to pay for these magical courses.
3. The average person of the preceding generation is fond of Indian Cinema. Hence, several Bollywood celebrities are being paid to sell these empty promises and TopiBaazSr has successfully created an empire. Except, their courses are a joke.
4. The teachers don’t know anything about coding. They memorise study-material provided by the company and are merrily making a fool out of the child, the parents, and their hard-earned money.
5. Fortunately, India is brimming with software engineers currently so it did not take long for actual coders to expose these teachers. However, TopibaazSr is using its empire to banish these people from the face of the internet. That’s another story.
The point is, this organisation needs to understand that if you’re only about minting money and misguiding little children with no conscience whatsoever maybe you should consider keeping your butts off the Education Sector.
Well, enough about TopiBaazSr and their unethical business model.
I hope you get the idea.
What is the main issue here?
TopibaazSr, I’m afraid, is just the tip of the iceberg.
We already know how middle-class parents are financially affected by such vicious schemes — India is embracing the digital way of life wholeheartedly right now, hence it's natural for e-scamsters in the education business to feed on their insecurities.
But this isn’t just about money or parents or companies.
Amongst all this circus, we’re forgetting our main victims: the kids.
It is absolutely toxic, what they are being put through, at this age!
Six-years-old Chintu should be playing with his friends and not worrying about the deadlines of a bunch of irrelevant coding projects!
Chintu shouldn't be robbed of the opportunity to explore his interests by himself!
Chintu shouldn’t have parents who glorify coding and only coding!
Chintu shouldn’t be expected to be a child, develop an app, and be a millionaire — all at once!
It’s not wrong to familiarize Chintu with the amazing world of coding. But, that’s just it: an INTRODUCTION.
Just like Chintu should be introduced to Arts or Music or Sports?
It’s saddening how adults think it’s essential to raise a child according to silly ‘trends’. Trends are for clueless adults with no sense of self whatsoever. People need to keep the children out of it.
It’s beautiful— a child’s relationship with learning. The whole process is supposed to be magical enough to last a lifetime.
Everyone deserves a chance to develop their own special relationship with education in peace.
India, sadly, is just watching as coachings, companies and scamsters waltz in and destroy the very foundation of this sacred relationship.
Why such marketing ‘shouldn’t be a problem’?
I believe by this age we must be smart enough to pay no heed to such advertising.
Although, this isn’t the case. I’ve watched parents jump at newspapers with flashy advertisements of AIRs (All India Ranks) certain coaching institutes produce with their XYZ courses.
On a side note, I honestly feel bad while criticising ‘adults’ in almost all my articles but they leave me no choice.
Chintu’s parents are clearly burdening him with the weight of their own unaccomplished dreams.
It is high time parents stop being so madly insecure about their child’s future.
Because, let’s not forget, scamsters only target markets where gullible people shop.
What do I propose instead?
I think instead of getting caught up in these silly schemes if one really wants to get help for their child, how about a proper career counselling session?
Most parents aren’t interested to pay fees for career counselling because — that’s right— they obviously know better.
Except, they don’t.
It is heartbreaking how many possibly great entrepreneurs, chefs or journalists sit with me, dozing off, in our Engineering classes.
I know I know it’s about the money, in the end.
But, even then, an excellent chef will earn a lot more than a depressed and below-average engineer.
Hence, I think we should put an end to this misery once and for all, for both children and their parents.
Let’s invest in more practical solutions.
Let’s ditch TopiBaazSr and give that money to a proper career counsellor.
I rest my case.
