(Story) The iconic iit-jee coach, with a 100% success rate
The iconic iit-jee coach, with a 100% success rate
It was his own struggle against poverty that helped Anand Kumar to get
where he is today – the iconic maths coach, with a 100% success rate in
helping his students crack the tough IIT Joint Entrance Exams. His Patna-based
Super 30 educational programme, which scouts out 30 students from
economically challenged families and coaches them for the IIT-JEE – now has
a 30 out of 30 hit rate for three years in a row.
“We look for very bright students and then do rigorous background checks to
find out if they are really from poor families. A large part of the students
who we coach come from very modest background. We’ve had children of poor
farmers and autorickshaw drivers. For us caste, religion, gender etc are no
bar in selecting our students. Most of them drop out for a year after their
Class 12 to prepare for the exam,” says Kumar, who was forced to give up an
opportunity to study at Cambridge University after graduating from Patna
University because of his father’s untimely death and his family’s poverty.
In the end, he firmly believes, it’s grit and hard work that gets his
students through to India’s premier technology schools.
“They don’t have the advantage of English medium education and unlimited
resources, but they work really hard – often for 14 hours a day. And that’s
the secret behind their success in the IIT-JEE,” he says.
His deep interest in numbers translated into setting up maths camps for high
school children around Patna in 1997, even though the family was struggling
to keep its head above water through a small business venture in making and
selling papads.
“That was the beginning, the maths camps were very successful and attracted
thousands of children. So, along with a few friends, I decided to start the
Ramanujan School of Mathematics from which the Super 30 programme has
evolved,” says Kumar. The programme now provides free board and lodging for
the students besides the tuition. And despite the humble origin, Kumar has
not accepted financial support from any government or private agencies or
individuals so far.
“We have received offers of support from various high profile people
including Mahindra & Mahindra chief Anand Mahindra and US-based investor
Mohnish Pabrai. However, we do not accept any help and sustain our venture
through our evening classes for intermediate level students who are
preparing for various engineering tests,” he says.
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Courtesy: Economictimes.indiatimes.com
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