This week, the standoff between the Education Ministry and the IIT's on the IIT entrance exam came to an end. On the surface it may seem like yet another turf war between Kapil Sibal and India's elite educational institutions, but at a deeper level, it has opened up a Pandora's Box of questions. Is the IIT entrance test, as Mr Sibal claims, damaging the school system? Are children falling prey to coaching factories? Are the IITs to blame for setting one of the toughest exams in the world? Or is the real problem a malfunctioning school system and a mindset amongst parents that want to push their kids, regardless of their level of ability, into becoming 'geniuses'? Parents, children, teachers, coaches and IIT faculty from across the country open up with rare candour on the risks and rewards that come in the quest for academic brilliance.
