4 Reasons why there are few Navodayans in IITs

The education level in Navodaya schools is good as compared to many private and government schools. Students mostly from rural areas are given free education from 6th to 12th class. But to crack exams like IIT-JEE you really need to be very hardworking and creative. Sometimes talent works, and yet many times patience and hard work are required to solve tough JEE problems.

Sure, you hear the news about Navodaya students getting into IITs but those are students who took coaching from different centres after leaving navodaya in 11th. The % of students getting in IITs directly from navodayas is still less. These are the major factors which I think is the reason why Navodayan students are few in numbers in IITs.

1.Sources

To study for competitive exams, we need sources like books, magazines, internet through which we gain knowledge. Navodaya provides NCERT books which are not sufficient. Students don’t have the necessary books required for these exams. Without these books how on earth will you study?

Also, these books are expensive. Many students parents are poor. They visit their kids just once in a month or two. Students are restricted to go outside the campus and Navodayas are located at some distance from the city. They might not get the chance to buy books by themselves.

2.Ignorance

Up to 10th class, there are around 80 students studying from 6th to 10th. After 10th, only 40–45 top students are permitted to take science in 11th&12th. Now, after they come in 11th standard, most of the students don’t study much, because marks of 11th standard don’t count. They have only one exam which counts- 12th board exam, which is taken in march month of the final year.

11th is the basics of science and you’re supposed to learn it very well if you actually want to master everything. Students have a tendency not to study much in 11th. They only give importance to academics in 12th class. Throughout this process, some will find it difficult to complete even 12th board exam(getting pass). There are very few Navodayas who get 100% result in 12th. After 12th students will choose Bsc,B.E,M.B.B.S etc. Few students pass JEE mains that too with marks within the range of 80–120. It’s difficult for them to crack JEE as they didn’t give any test papers, and didn’t have exposure to reading materials.

3. Teaching

I have been fortunate that I got a good education till 10th because of which I got selected in Dakshana. But, coming to education in 11th & 12th, it is not up to the mark.

Consider the syllabus, till 10th syllabus was very short. Like 4 chapters in chemistry,4–5 in physics and same in Biology. But 11th,12th is different. There is a huge jump. There are two books of for a subject(NCERT) like Chemistry & Physics and some 20–25 chapters in Biology. Students have problems in understanding the concept and large syllabus makes it more difficult. Teachers find it difficult to complete the syllabus. They will skip some parts & change questions from those parts in the exam. Also, some teachers are on contracts so when they leave it takes some time for students to adjust with the new teacher when they come and it affects the study of students. Overall, there is a lot to improve when it comes to teaching in higher classes.

4.Satisfaction

Me getting chance for the coaching of IIT-JEE had some luck factor. I didn’t want to give the exam of Dakshana(GDST). Many seniors told me that it’s a tough exam and only one student passed it from our school in the last four years. But still, I gave because there was nothing to lose. I haven’t heard of IITs back then. I got complete details only after I got selected for Dakshana two year program at JNV Pune.

The point here is students are not very aspirant for IIT, AIPMT exams. Either they haven’t heard of it or maybe reasons listed above prevents them. They are satisfied with their careers in other local colleges.

That was talk about students studying 11th,12th in Navodayas. However, Dakshana students are very intelligent. Generally, they are the toppers from Navodayas, who passed the GDST(Grand Dakshana Selection Test) exam. Many Dakshana students have graduated from IITs and NITs. You can visit Dakshana Foundation for more details. The number of students joining IITs is increasing every year. I think if someone(in Navodaya), who is interested in cracking JEE advance must first aim to join Dakshana. Because they provide everything required to crack JEE. Books, motivation, time(2 years away from home) and most importantly the right teachers who will guide you on the right path.

I hope that in future, more & more students of Navodayas will be aspired to crack JEE and AIPMT and will continue to make their schools and families proud of them.