Centre sets up panel to review coaching culture, dummy schools, entrance exams

New Delhi: The Ministry of Education has constituted a nine-member committee to look into concerns surrounding the rising dependence on coaching institutes, the proliferation of ‘dummy schools’, and the structure and fairness of competitive entrance examinations.

The committee is chaired by Higher Education Secretary Vineet Joshi and comprises officials from the education ministry, senior representatives from premier technical institutions, and principals from central and private schools.

A senior official from the Ministry said, “The committee is expected to study the gaps in the existing school education system that drive students to rely heavily on coaching institutes. These include the limited focus on developing skills such as analytical thinking, problem-solving, and innovation, as well as the dominance of rote-based learning.”

Dummy schools, which allow students to skip regular classes while staying enrolled for examination purposes, will be a key focus. Many students opt for such arrangements to dedicate more time to preparing for engineering and medical entrance tests, often using these setups to secure eligibility for regional quotas in state-run colleges.

“The panel will study the reasons that have led to the emergence of dummy schools and how they affect formal education,” the official added. “They will also recommend solutions to reduce the push towards such informal arrangements.”

Another area the committee will explore is the effectiveness and fairness of national-level entrance exams like NEET and JEE. Officials said the panel would examine how these exams influence academic priorities in schools and drive the exponential growth of private coaching centres.

According to the ministry, the committee will assess how formative assessments—those aimed at evaluating students’ understanding throughout the year—can improve conceptual clarity and reduce the stress associated with high-stakes testing.

“There’s also a need to understand the limited availability of seats in premier institutions and the high demand for them, which fuels the coaching industry. The panel will look into how this imbalance can be addressed,” the official stated. In addition, the panel will evaluate the current level of career awareness among students and parents, and how this affects choices after school. It will also review the role and effectiveness of career counselling services in schools and colleges and propose steps to strengthen them.

The committee includes representatives from institutions such as IIT Madras, IIT Kanpur, NIT Trichy, CBSE, NCERT, as well as principals from Kendriya Vidyalaya, Navodaya Vidyalaya, and a private school.

The coaching centres in the country have been at the centre of several controversies and the move comes following complaints received by the government about rising cases of student suicides, fire incidents, lack of facilities in coaching institutes as well as methodologies of teaching adopted by them.