Exploring the evolution of the test-preparation industry in India - historiographic analysis and public policy implications

Abstract

An increasing number of aspirants for a diverse range of competitive examinations, and a culture of ‘high-stakes’ examinations, has led the Indian test-preparation, or ‘test-prep’/coaching industry, to experience strong and sustained growth over the past several years (Sharma et al., 2022). Its rapid growth and growing influence has also led to various stakeholders raising concerns like equity of access to educational resources (Kishore & Sarin, 2022); stress on students and quality-of-life-related issues, including mental health (Chhapia, 2018; Sharma & Sidhu, 2011); impact on quality of school-level education, higher education and pedagogic practices (Barua, 2011; Misra et al., 2015); as well as issues of law and order (Chauhan, 2017; Saxena, 2015). In the Indian context, various dimensions of the issue have been brought under the lens of academic exploration, including, inter alia, life experiences of aspirants and role of the test-prep industry in influencing the technical higher education system in India (Ørberg, 2018); effects of test-prep pedagogic practices on school education and students’ approach to learning (Punjabi, 2020); test-prep industry and urban development in the context of popular engineering and medical entrance test-prep hub, Kota, Rajasthan (Rao, 2017); and representations of class and caste in the context of the portrayal of test-prep industry in popular culture (Salovaara, 2020). Aspects related to the historical evolution of the industry in India, and the nature of the policy responses by the Indian state to the issue of the presence, growth and functioning of the industry, however, remain unexplored in this tradition of academic exploration. This is important in the light of evidence which suggests that the Indian state’s policy responses to the issue have often been contradictory, across various state-led institutions, as well as over time. That is, while some state-led institutions have been critical of the presence, growth and functioning of the test-prep industry (Ministry of Human Resource Development, 2020), others have been supportive of it (“NITI Aayog Ties up with BYJU’S", 2021), and their positions on this issue have evolved over a considerable time period. Such contradiction in policy responses and positions of various state-led institutions has meant that the state has consistently evaded clarity in terms of its de-facto approach to the issue, which in turn has had an influence on the search for solutions of problems associated with it. This has also implied, that academic exploration of the issue in the Indian context has mostly taken place in a vacuum of a clear understanding of the Indian state’s role vis-à-vis the issue. In this context, the present thesis attempts an exploration of the issue of the presence, growth and functioning of the test-prep industry from historical and institutionalization perspectives, to contribute to the growing academic as well as policy debate focused on it. The thesis proceeds in two broad parts. The first part consists of a historiographic inquiry, a critical policy historiography (CPH) (Gale, 2001) of the Indian state’s policy responses to the issue of the presence, growth and functioning of the test-prep industry in the Indian context. The second part consists of a field-based investigation of the institutionalization (Scott, 2014) of the test-prep industry at a popular test-prep-hub city in north India- Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. While the first study is secondary data based, the second study primarily relies on in-depth interview data collected from the field. As conclusion and contribution to the growing literature on the topic, a synthesis of insights from both studies is presented. Implications for policy practice and directions for possible future research are also identified.