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Yesterday, @crossjacktar asked me how come India produces so many great engineers and I gave a half-formed answer. Now that I've thought about it, here's a somewhat nuanced answer: (1/n)
Newly -independent India produced mostly science graduates, http://B.Sc ( Bachelor of Science) being the most preferred amongst the "smart" kids. Doctors and engineers were truly few in number.
Then came the boom of the 60s. Suddenly, a lot more roads and cities were being built. The green revolution upped the demand for farm equipment. Government hospitals required doctors. Suddenly, a BSc no longer got you the highest paid middle class job ( teaching/research)..(2/n)
The middle class that saw food shortages post China war had found a way to a better life. Students were encouraged to take up professional courses. By the mid-60s, the original Indian Institutes of Technology were established by the government. (3/n)
By the late 70s, it was already established that the engineers got high-ranking government jobs : civil engineers who constructed the cities, electrical engineers in the new hydroelectric projects and so forth. More kids were encouraged to take it up. (4/n)
The Indian curriculum began to reflect it. Higher math and science were introduced to the syllabus. Commerce and arts were looked down upon. Now, it was a matter of prestige. If you were a middle class parent, your kids HAD to take up STEM or you were failing as a parent. (5/n)
The late 80s introduced the IT boom. Suddenly, computer science engineers were earning unprecedented amounts. It became *the* thing that would keep you out of poverty. By the late 90s/early 2000s, every kid who did not outright hate math was pushed into engineering.(6/n)
The devaluation of arts continued. The entrance exams have become so competitive that the pass rate is less than 5% . There's an entire side-industry of exam coaching classes that has mushroomed. There is an low quality private engineering college at every turn. (7/n)
The labs and the practical aspect of it died. It has become an exam-passing factory. There's a running joke that Indian kids can become whatever they want to, after they've become engineers. I know- I'm a teacher and I have two degrees in engineering. (8/n)
MHRD says that 22% of Indian engineers are actually good. With our numbers, 22% is still a lot. With the rigour that's drummed into our brain, the ones that are successful abroad have likely handled competition far worse than their counterparts. (9/9) <end rant>
