As per the announcement of Tamil Nadu School Education Department for the NEET crash course in all the districts in the State ahead of NEET on May 5, 490 students of government and government-aided schools in Madurai have opted for the crash course.
The crash course which started in Madurai on March 27 at three centres in the district – Madura College Higher Secondary School, PKN Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Tirumangalam and Y. Othakadai Government Girls Higher Secondary school - had two model exams till date - the second exam was held on Monday. The third and final model exam is scheduled for May 2.
“As government school students who studied in Class XII underwent a weekly NEET course at their respective schools in the last academic year, the crash course for 30 days at the verge of the NEET will be helpful to brush up what they studied over a year,” said S. Vennila Devi, a teacher and Madurai district Coordinator for NEET and JEE.
While many government and government-aided school students have applied for the entrance examination, those who could not afford coaching classes and those who found the training given by the government school teachers satisfactory have opted for the crash course, she added.
“As four subjects – Physics, Chemistry, Botany and Zoology - were taught in a day over the course of 30 days, the respective subject teachers from schools in the district took turn to take classes. Apart from this, six teachers were involved in teaching full-time during the crash course,” said Ms. Vennila Devi.
“In the previous years, due to various reasons, the crash course could be conducted online only. Now that the students are taking part in person, we expect better results this year,” she said.
“Even if most of the government school students could not score the pass marks in the entrance examination in their first attempt, the number of students clearing the examination in their second attempt is increasing every year. This instils confidence among parents to encourage their wards to pursue for the examination in their second and third attempts,” she added.
Though the enrolled strength was encouraging, it got gradually reduced to 250. Though the high day temperature, long commute between home and the centre, festival season and election could be cited as reasons for the dwindling numbers, teachers at the centre felt that had the students been provided breakfast and lunch along with the snacks provided during the course, the strength would have remained intact.
“As the whole district had only three centres, students from interior parts were required to pack breakfast and lunch before they embark on the long commute. So, it could have been difficult for many of the them to get them ready and still reach the centre on time. If this factor is taken into consideration in the next year, more students will join the crash course,” a teacher said.
