K12 Digest®️ – September-October 2020 – Indian Edition – Top 10 Promising IB Curriculum Schools in M

IB SCHOOLS MUMBAI SPECIAL

INDIA EDITION

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FEATURING INSIDE

Ashish Chaturvedi, Founder, School Diary

Kajal Gaba,

Children Spaces Design Consultant

Najam Jamal,

Principal, Billabong High International School

Neera Kohli,

Founder, The New Me

Rishabh Java,

CEO, Broccoli Brains

Rohan Parikh,

Managing Director, The Green Acres Academy

Dr. Varun Gupta,

Executive Vice President, OnSkyGlobal

FEATURING INSIDE

C P Goenka International School Don Bosco International School Kohinoor American School Mount Litera School International Nahar International School IB SPECIALIST IN FOCUS Stefanie Leong, Head of Development and Recognition, Asia Pacific, International Baccalaureate (IB)

THE CATHEDRAL VIDYA SCHOOL WHERE PREPARATION MEETS OPPORTUNITIES

SEPT-OCT 2020

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K12 Digest Sept-Oct 2020

K12 Digest Sept-Oct 2020

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Sept-Oct 2020

Vol - 1 Issue - 4

IB Schools Mumbai Special Editor in Chief

Dr. Manoj Varghese

Managing Editor Rose Mary

Consultant Editors

Dr. Johny Andrews Andrew Scott Joseph Alex

Naomi Wilson Stanly Lui Emma James

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Art and Design Charlie Jameson

Sales & Marketing

Jennifer Anderson Rachel Roy

Monica Davis Annie Smith

Enquiry: adim@k12digest.com

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K12 Higher Digest Education Digest May-June March 2019 2020

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MANAGING EDITOR’S NOTE

Making International the Norm

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umbai recently made headlines as several schools from the city was set to participate in Climate Action project in collaboration with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Jane Goodall Institute and UN. The schools were also to teach a sixweek-long curriculum in climate change. With several such small yet significant steps, the K12 environment in India is heralding a change. Young, environmentally conscious youngsters with a global outlook are making themselves known. They are here to make changes that will disrupt the archaic rules we have been following.

School curriculums play an important role in these changemakers to thrive. One very important, perhaps the one in the forefront of these next-generation thinking curriculum boards is the IB. International Baccalaureate is built on a cornerstone of creating a better world through education. The four

programs offered by the IB cover all stages of a student’s educational life from age 3 to 19. One important facet of IB education is encouraging students to think critically and challenge assumptions. Since 1976 there have been several IB schools peppering over the country. However, this issue is especially dedicated to the IB schools in Mumbai. Along with that, we are also featuring Stefanie Leong, Head of Development and Recognition, Asia Pacific, International Baccalaureate (IB).

We have also showcased several other stalwarts from the K12 industry to share their opinions and acumen with our readers.

We hope this issue gives you a proper insight into the different IB schools in Mumbai and help you take an informed decision.

Rose Mary

INTERNATIONAL ADVISORY BOARD Chris Wright

Maarit Rossi

Former International School Principal, Former Group Project Director at a World Class Learning Group, Education Consultant - Wright Solutions, United Kingdom

Founder & CEO - Paths to Math Ltd, Former Mathematics Teacher and Principal, Global Teacher Prize Finalist, Finland

Dr. Stuart Grant Colesky Principal, Rundle College, South Africa

Zeljana Radojicic Lukic Exceptional Educator from Serbia, Founder of Association of the Best Teachers of the Former Yugoslavia, Founder of Magical Intercultural Friendship Network, Founder of Creative Magic - Children’s International Festival, Founder of Magic Village, Serbia

Asst. Prof. Dr. Poonsri Vate-U-Lan Assistant Professor in Education, Ph.D. Supervisor and Researcher, Thailand

Stephen Cox

Elena Shramkova

Chief Education Officer, New Nordic School, Finland

English and Literature teacher, Owner of “The Smart Teens Studio of English” in Belgorod, Russia

Liljana Luani Senior Teacher ‘Pashko Vasa’ school Shkodra, Exceptional Volunteer, Albania

Ralph Valenzisi Chief of Digital Learning and Development, Norwalk Public Schools, Connecticut, United States

Servatius (Servee) Palmans Former Director School Administration & Business Operations (Large Education Group), Chief Operating Officer - BBD Education, Dr. Lilian Bacich Netherlands & UAE Senior Educationist, Author, Keynote Speaker, Co-founder Tríade Educacional, Brazil

Hidekazu Shoto

Dr. Venus M. Alboruto Angus Duthie

Master Teacher, Researcher, Innovator, Trainer, Philippines

Former Vice President Security (Large Education Group), Former British Army Officer (Airborne Forces), Senior Advisor – Resilience and Crisis Management (Emerald Solutions Group), United Kingdom & UAE

Innovative English and ICT Teacher, Author, Japan

Ian Deakin Deputy Head and Dean of Faculty, Dalton Academy, Beijing, China

Shady Elkassas

Rania Lampou Global Teacher Prize Finalist 2019, 15 International Awards on STEM, STEM Instructor, Educator, Neuroscience Researcher, Trainer & Author, Greece

Assistant Principal, Sharjah American International School, United Arab Emirates

Fethy Letaief Distinguished Senior EFL Teacher, ISA Coordinator with the British Council, Motivational Speaker, Tunisia

Herwin Hamid EdTech Specialist, Speaker and Teacher Trainer, Innovative ICT Educator, ICT learning multimedia developer, Indonesia

Ha Nga Revolutionary English Educator, Globally Connected English Studio - Hanoi, Vietnam

Dr. Leonilo Basas Capulso Master Teacher, Speaker and Researcher, Philippines

Kihyun Park Innovative Educator of Online Classroom, Pungsaeng Middle School, South Korea

Dr. Manoj Varghese Senior Director of Strategy & Partnerships – Connecta Education Ltd., Former Global Director - Technology & Risk Management - GEMS Education, Former Regional Committee Member – Varkey Foundation, UK, UAE & India.

Mr. Ngô Thành Nam Technology Academy Manager, Microsoft Learning Consultant, Global Trainer, Vietnam

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C P GOENKA INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

A Synonym for Holistic Education DON BOSCO INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

An Ideal Avenue to Learn, Play, Compete and Win!

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COVER STORY

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KOHINOOR AMERICAN SCHOOL

Masterfully Americanizing Gurukul Education

82 NAHAR INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

Gateway to Global Universities & Institutions

MOUNT LITERA SCHOOL INTERNATIONAL

Shaping Students into Professional Young-Adults

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THE CATHEDRAL VIDYA SCHOOL WHERE PREPARATION MEETS OPPORTUNITIES

MENTOR’S MANTRA

ACADEMIC VIEW 30 - 32

78 - 80

How Online Schooling Has Forced India To Confront The Digital Divide

90 - 92

Ashish Chaturvedi, Founder, School Diary

Why Career Counselling Cells Are Becoming Crucial In Schools Alka Kapur, Principal, Modern Public School, Shalimar Bagh

New Education Policy: Major Changes In Indian Education System Dr. Varun Gupta, Executive Vice President, OnSkyGlobal

100 - 10!

Emotional Intelligence-The Social Skills That You Weren’t Taught At School Neera Kohli, Founder, The New Me

58 - 60

Improving Teacher Retention Najam Jamal, Principal, Billabong High International School

INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE 44 - 48

Design Quotient In Learning Environments Kajal Gaba, Children Spaces Design Consultant, Maharashtra

IB SPECIALIST IN FOCUS 16 - 18

How Can Education Ensure That The Future Generation Is Resilient To Change?

Stefanie Leong, Head of Development and Recognition - Asia Pacific, International Baccalaureate (IB)

YOUNG ACHIEVERS 94 - 99 Rishabh Java- A Lesson In Ideas, Passion And Perseverance

62 - 63

Importance Of Inculcating Experiential Learning In Schools And How It Is Considered The Key To Sharper Minds Rohan Parikh, Managing Director, The Green Acres Academy

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A CURRICULUM SPECIALLY CRAFTED FOR TOMORROW’S YOUNG LEADERS

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rom slates and chalk pencils to zoom classes, Indian education has come a long way. The country welcomed International Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum as early as 1976, but it only recently got the attention of Indian parents. IB offers four educational programmes: the IB Diploma Programme and the IB Career-related Programme for students aged 15 to 19, the IB Middle Years Programme for students aged 11 to 16, and the IB Primary Years Programme for children aged 3 to 12.

So, what is so particular about IB education? Internationalmindedness and a ‘WE’ mindset instead of ‘I’. Even though you are in a quaint little town in a corner of India, as an IB student you must be aware of the current happenings around the world, have an opinion on it and actively voice it out. True, other curriculums and educational boards do stress on being tech- and info-savvy but none so much as IB does. This is why becoming an IB learner is like being chosen into an elite club.

Now that we know what IB education is, let’s tackle the next big question—how do we select which IB school to join? In the last few years, there has been a plethora of IB schools mushrooming around the country, most clustering around metropolitan cities. Of these cities, Mumbai has shown quite a few promising institutions. Even though most schools were struggling to meet the technological requirements of their students and teachers, especially during the pandemic, it threw light on those select few that proved they have what it takes to fully furnish an IB curriculum and meet their students’ varied needs.

Through K12 Digest’s September-October issue, ‘Top 10 Promising IB Schools in Mumbai’, we intend to bring these stellar academic institutions to the forefront, hoping they’ll stand as a beacon of transformation to it peers. The schools named in this issue have showcased an outstanding record of providing its students with a holistic education, avenues to upskill, and proper forums to chart out a roadmap for their future.

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Institute Name C P Goenka International School

Cathedral Vidya School

D Y Patil International School

Juhu, Mumbai

Lonavala, Mumbai

Worli, Mumbai

Don Bosco International School

Matunga, Mumbai

JBCN International School

Oshiwara, Mumbai

Kohinoor American School

Khandala, Old Mumbai – Pune Highway

Mount Litera School International

Bandra (East), Mumbai

Nahar International School

Andheri (East), Mumbai

Podar International School

Santacruz (West), Mumbai

Ryan Global School

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Place

K12 Digest Sept-Oct 2020

Andheri (West), Mumbai

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IB SPECIALIST IN FOCUS

How Can Education Ensure That The Future Generation is Resilient to Change?

Stefanie Leong, Head of Development and Recognition - Asia Pacific, International Baccalaureate (IB)

Stefanie has over 15 years of experience in education management. Before joining the IB in 2012, Stefanie worked for an international education provider of international qualifications for five to 19 year-olds, and prior to that, she taught Commerce and Information Technology in an Australian university. As the Head of Development and Recognition at the IB, Stefanie’s role is to develop and implement a regional strategy which sustains and advances the growth of IB programmes and services in identified and emerging markets. Regional Development is concerned with managing and nurturing key stakeholder relations with governments, higher education institutions, associations, corporate partnerships, large entities of schools and individual schools in the interested phase before application for candidacy.

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n 2020, the requirement for us all to be more adaptable, to think on our feet, and to be well-equipped to utilise the tools around us in the face of uncertainty, has never been more relevant.

As detailed by Joi Ito, the director of the MIT Media Lab, in his book Whiplash: How to Survive Our Fast Future, in a digital society full of complexity and uncertainty what we need (and what our students require) are less maps and more compasses.

For Ito, a map implies pre-defined, unchanging knowledge of the terrain around us as well as the existence of a single best route or pathway. But in a world and workforce that is constantly changing, static maps no longer apply.

The compass, on the other hand, “is a far more flexible tool that requires the user to employ creativity and autonomy in discovering his or her own path.”

For some time now we have been living in a rapidly accelerating digital world; and with the impact of COVID-19, the need for us to accept and incorporate technology into our everyday lives is more prominent than ever. From the smart devices in our pockets, to the endless streams on popular social media networks, we are now linked with one another and to all prior human data, information and knowledge in countless convergent ways. This situation has profound implications for the school students of today.

If the digital age is about interactions and systems rather than static, stable objects and “things”, we must ensure how we learn, teach and assess the outcomes of education is reflective of this change. In this new digital world, it no longer suffices for students to passively study pre-established unchanging content to be recalled or evidenced in archaic analogue formats. This isn’t education for a digital age, but a series of lost opportunities.

It is now the calling of educators to empower students to forge their own way through this data-immersed and media-rich landscape. The role of the teacher is to give students the compass – the skills they need – to effectively navigate the fourth industrial revolution which is already upon us.

As we look ahead to the future of education, we must consider the requirements of the future workplace. Indeed, the successful workers of both today and of the future need to be flexible and mobile, and more skilled than ever before in adaptability, reflection and self-direction.

The need for direct skills and knowledge is constantly diminishing; as we lose the ability to predict what the careers of the future will look like, it is in the development of inquiring, curious and critical learners that schools can best serve the workforce of the future.

In our increasingly interconnected world, the importance of being able to communicate across cultural bounda

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The need for direct skills and knowledge is constantly diminishing; as we lose the ability to predict what the careers of the future will look like, it is in the development of inquiring, curious and critical learners that schools can best serve the workforce of the future ries also comes to the fore. No longer are we limited to engaging with those inside of our local network; we have endless possibilities to connect with, to learn from, to trade between, and to develop relationships with individuals from all over the globe. We have an unmissable opportunity to build a global network of collaborators and colleagues, and, as such, international mindedness – a view of the world in which people see themselves as connected to the global community and assume a sense of responsibility to its members – is a characteristic that has never been more critical to success. In this modern world, schools can help foster this mindset by offering a curriculum that combines local and global contexts and reflects international and multi-cultural perspectives. Educators can encourage language learning as a tool to overcome cultural boundaries. And, they can foster global awareness by creating opportunities for students to explore their role and their understanding of global issues outside of the classroom context.

At the International Baccalaureate (IB) we have been foregrounding the value of conceptually rich, holistic, creative and collaborative approaches to education for over 50 years. Through a unique curriculum with high academic standards, we champion critical thinking and flexibility for learning by crossing disciplinary, cultural and national boundaries. Currently, more than 1.8 million IB students attend 5,284 schools across 158 countries.

Our internationally minded approach delivers learning through fostering empathy, neurolinguistic diversity and

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cultural respect.

This learning methodology moves past knowledge transfer, to knowledge use, analysis and innovation.

More than half of the world’s population is currently under the age of 30, making this the biggest generation of children and young people the planet has ever seen. These young people are inheriting a world which will challenge them in unprecedented ways, and it is the responsibility of school leaders, educators, parents and guardians to work together in empowering them to rise to these challenges. The discussion around what makes for an effective education has been debated for decades.

But, few would dispute that across the globe we need to develop young people who are well prepared for life in an inter-connected 21st century, able to contribute to a better, more peaceful world.

This is the driving principle behind everything that IB World Schools do: ‘education for a better world’. The IB’s innovative framework of education offers schools an opportunity to develop young people who not only have the capacity, but also the motivation, to rise to the challenges of the future and create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and, even more importantly, respect.

Now is our opportunity to tear up the map book and explore new pathways of education. By giving students their own toolkit of skills, their own compass in which to navigate, we can effectively prepare them to take on the unknowns of tomorrow as successful, global citizens, who are equipped to contribute to a better world.

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COVER STORY

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K12 Digest Sept-Oct 2020

THE CATHEDRAL VIDYA SCHOOL WHERE PREPARATION MEETS OPPORTUNITIES

By Navya V

K12 Digest Sept-Oct 2020

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he Fourth Industrial Revolution is the collective force behind many products and services that are fast becoming indispensable to modern life. Think GPS systems that suggest the fastest route to a destination, voice-activated virtual assistants such as Apple’s Siri, personalized Netflix recommendations, and Facebook’s ability to recognize your face and tag you in a friend’s photo. There are three reasons why today’s transformations represent not merely a prolongation of the Third Industrial Revolution but rather the arrival of a Fourth and distinct one: velocity, scope, and systems impact. The speed of current breakthroughs has no historical precedent. When compared with previous industrial revolutions, the Fourth is evolving at an exponential rather than a linear pace. Moreover, it is disrupting almost every industry in every country. And the breadth and depth of these changes herald the transformation of entire systems of production, management, and governance.

Standing on the brink of a technological revolution that will fundamentally alter the way we live, work, and relate to one another, the transformation will be unlike anything humankind has experienced before. “In the future, technological innovation will also lead to a supply-side miracle, with longterm gains in efficiency and productivity.

Through our school’s curriculum and learning practices, we shape students to be achievers in their academic endeavours and competent for the ever-changing industry ahead of them,” opines Dr. Pourushasp Farokh Karkaria, Head of School and Principal, The Cathedral Vidya School.

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Chiselling Competent Students The Cathedral Vidya School, Lonavala, aims to create proud Indians who are articulate, compassionate and rational individuals, with a humanistic and universal outlook. Offering an innovative program, delivered by caring educators, the school addresses the needs of the times and guides the children towards academic and human excellence. Aspiring to bring up Global Citizens utilizing International curriculum and principles of student-centered learning, he believes in imparting education that fosters excellence, physical fitness, psychological and spiritual health, a consciousness of social obligations and concern for the environment in each student. The school instils in students the value of cherishing their Indian culture and at the same time respect the culture of people from other parts of the world.

Dr. Pourushasp F Karkaria bears a rich experience of over 27 years in spearheading reputed educational institutions across India and the Middle East. As an acclaimed academician with multiple years of experience in successfully running IGCSE and IBDP Schools, his skills as a teacher and school administrator has been recognized and rewarded by the State/Central Governing Bodies time and again. Having spearheaded schools to success nationally and internationally, his commitment has earned him considerable respect amongst all the stakeholders. He espouses the ‘Never Stop Learning’ mantra and imbues the same spirit in others. He plans to set high expectations from himself and the staff as well as to provide support and encouragement to the students that would be central to the School’s pedagogy under his leadership

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The school firmly believes in the kind of education that teaches not only to make a living but how to live.

The principal deems that the ability to assume and discharge responsibilities is an essential life skill that needs to be taught from a very young age, and that the Cathedral Vidya School teaches its students to motivate themselves and others to accomplish a common goal through a united effort.

Offering Cambridge Lower Secondary (CS 1) to classes IV-VIII, IGCSE (CS-2) to classes IX & X, and IBDP curriculums to XI & XII, the school makes use of excellent textbooks, a well-resourced library, computer suite, music studio and a stellar assessment mechanism to impart education. “Our class sizes generally are limited to 20 students per division, with a student-to-teacher ratio of 12:1. We provide each child with an environment in which they can flourish, develop, and fulfil their potential. Our team of special educators will assess individual needs and

in consultation with the parents that includes Access to the Assistive Technology Centre (ATC), Extended borrowing services in the Library, Learning Support (one- on- one), Mentoring, Note-taking, Referral for extra assessments, and Examination adjustments (e.g. extra time),” adds the Principal.

Having a minimum of a Bachelor’s Degree or more along with a Certificate / Diploma in teacher Training or a Degree in Education, the school ensures that its teachers are qualified and experienced. Moreover, the school runs an in-house INSET Programme, twice a year, for all teaching staff, providing them with continued professional development opportunities. The school also sends teachers for Professional Development Workshops organized by the International Baccalaureate Organisation (IBO) and Cambridge Assessment International Education (CAIE).

Keeping the philosophy, ‘a partnership between teachers and families helps develop successful and well-

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rounded students’ in mind, the Cathedral Vidya School has suggested directives to all the parents for getting involved in their child’s education. It is through open communication and collaboration that parents and teachers can create important opportunities for teens to develop social, emotional, and academic skills.

Therefore, the school encourages parents to attend and volunteer at events and meetings organized at the school, be in constant touch with the teachers, encourage reading, help their children manage the homework process, and inform the groups, classes or guidance they would like the school to provide, so that active learning and education can be portrayed in a positive light for the students.

Encouraging Overall Development From 2012, the school’s Cathedral International Model United Nations (CIMUN) has provided a platform for young ardent debaters to voice out their perspectives on subjects that are of global importance. With ‘Here for Tomorrow’ as their motto, the CIMUN enables each individual participating to collectively, not only overcome his/her fear of public speaking but to also hone their skills of debating. From the last 8 years, CIMUN has progressed through the expansion of a new variety of notable committees. Taking an active part in CIMUN guarantees an overall enlightened perspective towards the United Natation’s and help show the profound impact the United Nation has on each of our lives.

Offering a wide variety of extra and cocurricular activities which include multiple small letters, such as, Tennis Courts, Swimming Pool, Cricket Field, Football Field, Basketball Courts, Squash Court, Indoor Games, as well as Arts, Music (Classical & Western Music) Theatre, the Cathedral Vidya School is also well-known for its excellent sporting activities and the opportunities it provides to its students.

For the past three years, the school has been participating in the School Games Federation of India in various sporting activities and has performed well each year. The students are encouraged to pursue their hobbies and all the support and opportunity is provided to represent the School in various States and National Competitions.

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Winning the ‘Best School for future-readiness’ at the Zamit International School Awards 2019-20, the Cathedral Vidya School has continuously ensured that students achieve to the best of their potential and receive admission offers and scholarships from universities of their choices. Towards the end of the two-year IB Diploma Programme batch of 2019 -20, students have received offers and scholarships.

“Our students have been awarded scholarships from various universities abroad like the University of Toronto, Northeast University, Michigan State University, Arizona University, University of Illinois, and Miami University, to name a few,” remarks Dr. Pourushasp. One of the school’s shining stars, Shriya Sekhsaria, has established a Start-Up in the first year of joining Princeton University and is currently engaged with the Lumha Foundation; she is the Founder and CEO of the organisation.

Guiding Students Towards Excellence One of the first steps towards college planning is to opt for the correct pre-requisite courses while at school. The college counseling department assists both students and parents in understanding the various requirements both in India and abroad for various career choices. Ideally, parents and students start planning as early as grade 8, however it is never too late to get the correct subject choice counseling.

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The College Counselling department helps students in preparing all required documents on time, every time. All the university-related documents are provided by the school. “Our students’ college acceptance rate is 85 % to 100 %. From attestation to giving Predicted Grades are done through school only. We do not give any documents to the outside agency or the student. All the documents processed through school are sent directly to the university by courier or through email or uploaded on university portals,” explains Dr. Pourushasp.

The adoption of technology in education has led to an unprecedented transformation from teacher-centric education towards student-centric education. Virtual classrooms and various online tools are helping to continue and enhance the engagement between the teacher and students as close to the classroom-type experience. Going forward, smart classrooms are

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making everything possible from teachers and parent meetings to staff/management meetings, providing the necessary interactivity. Connecting students and teachers through digital platforms and necessary software through the use of laptops or phones is the latest transition in education trying to eradicate the physical need of teachers or classrooms.

The use of technology in education is one of those methods that will help improve the quality of education in India. It is also altering the way education is provided in India. Many educational institutes are considering this as an ideal time to experiment and deploy new technology to make education delivery possible and meaningful. In a move to not let the crisis hamper the curriculum, digital transformation has become a new norm with educational institutes across the country. The Cathedral Vidya School has taken the opportunity to get into the bandwagon of adopting e-learning, and smart classrooms, revamping the traditional education system.

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ACADEMIC VIEW

Why Career Counselling Cells Are Becoming Crucial in Schools Alka Kapur, Principal, Modern Public School, Shalimar Bagh

An icon in the world of education, Alka has marched Modern Public School, Shalimar Bagh, New Delhi ahead in full stride. Thanks to her inspiring tutelage and leadership, she is not only the chief steward of MPS but the soul of this wonderful institution. Her novel thoughts and deep insights brought enormous laurels to MPS at national as well as international level. She joined MPS on 1st July 1998 as a Primary teacher and was promoted within a span of 2 years. Under her regime as the Head of the School, MPS made commendable progress and achieved various pre-set goals.

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W

hen a student realizes her/his true potential and chooses the right path to exploit it in a productive way, success comes closer and closer with every new step. But, except for a few, most students usually face difficulties in discovering their own hidden talent unless they receive the guidance of a career counselor.

Counseling plays an important role in various aspects of one’s life and especially in pursuing career goals.

There is a misconception in the society that the need for career counseling arises when completes his / her academic or professional qualifications. In today’s dynamic and pluralistic society where life is blessed with incredible options in almost every sphere of life, including education, counseling required right at the school level. For instance, after passing the Secondary School Certificate examination, many students face difficulties in choosing the right stream, and it is the counselor who empowered them with the right and futuristic decisions. But those who deprive of proper career counseling

often struggle throughout life. A proper assessment of the student to unearth his strengths as well as weaknesses helps the career counselor to recommend solutions which may ensure long-term benefits to the student.

Several reports stated that in India there is around 85 percent of students who are unable to decide which subject they should opt for; students in class 12th securing 98 percent marks still have to compromise with the subjects and college. Presently, the majority of youths in India are facing the challenge of choosing a career of their own choice.

According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report, every hour, one student commits suicide in India. In fact, India has witnessed one of the highest suicide rates among people of the age group of 15 to 29 years. Students from class 10 and 12 are the most vulnerable group, and the major reason for the suicide attempt is the pressure from board examination.

Unfortunately, depression in school and college students has become a grave issue, especially in metro cities. Moreover, it has become crucial for educational institutes to focus on academic stress seriously and provide remedial measures, including counseling for students who are facing stress and depression alone.

Amidst rising competition, the academic life of young talent has become very disturbed and stressful. They are

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It has become crucial for educational institutes to focus on academic stress and provide remedial measures, including counseling for students facing stress and depression alone.

deprived of emotional and moral support from family and teachers, and depression and drug addiction among students have become a new normal. In such adverse circumstances, some resort to end their lives.

Regular guidance and motivational programs need to be part and parcel of academic activities inside the school, and there should be qualified and experienced career counselors for students who may judge the caliber of every individual student and advise them accordingly.

Career counseling is just like a light in a dark tunnel that helps them to get through the confused state of mind.

The ‘Happiness Curriculum’ launched by the Chief Minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal, is adopted by many government schools in the Capital in 2018. After the implementation of the Happiness Class, it has been noticed that in schools, students have developed the relationship among peers which has marked the sense of helpfulness and cooperation. Following Happiness Class, student’s communication skills have improved significantly. Now, they talk freely and participate in class discussions very enthusiastically. With the main purpose of infusing emotional stability among students, the Happiness curriculum has increased its scope to manifolds inside the schools. This curriculum provides everything that improves the confidence level of children

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and helps them to take various challenges in life with undaunted courage, self-respect, and a positive mindset.

Apart from developing career counseling in schools, authorities should ensure that subject teachers are also making adequate efforts in resolving students’ queries and making them aware of various career opportunities if they select a particular subject in graduation and postgraduation courses. It is the responsibility of subject teachers to guide students about additional sources of knowledge acquisition for a particular field or subject in addition to the knowledge they receive in classrooms. In fact, all this support should not be limited to the classroom and school campus. The chemistry between teachers and students should be very harmonious, and a student should not be hesitant while taking any sort of counseling from the teacher.

An effective counseling session is one that is allinclusive and encourages maximum participation of all the three entities, i.e., students, teachers, and parents.

Career counselors have their own protocols along with different psychometric tests to identify the real potential of the students. Apart from evaluating the students through psychometric tests, they also investigate evidence in the form of facts and figures before reaching to any conclusion.

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C P GOENKA INTERNATIONAL

SCHOOL

A SYNONYM FOR HOLISTIC EDUCATION

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or quite a while now, education is seen as something that takes you from point A to point B, rather than something that will shape you to be citizens of the world. Nobody teaches us how to spot a scam, properly talk to a person from different background, build an organization, raise money, conserve the environment, talk someone out of a difficult phase of their life or figure out what is truly important to oneself. It is no secret that not knowing how to do these things is what challenges the next generation, and ours, not whether they know algebra or can analyze literature.

When Sandeep Goenka, founder trustee of the C P Goenka Group Schools, was then actively looking to diversify from his family business, which was into manufacturing, he looked around and realized that there was no real learning environment for young children, where they could be properly shaped to be holistic individuals. To realize his vision of a wholesome education plan for the youth of India, he endeavoured to offer children a learning cycle that begins and ends with his institutions. His wife, Archana Goenka resonated his thoughts, and they began researching and brainstorming with experts.

Starting off with 35 students in 2000, Goenka Group Schools has tremendously upscaled and, over the years, owns 7 high schools and 9 pre-schools under the names C P Goenka International Schools, C P Goenka’s Spring Buds International Preschools, and Swami Vivekananda International Schools, with locations in Juhu, Oshiwara, Kandivali, Borivali, Dombivli, Gorai, Lamington Road, Thane, and Pune. C P Goenka Group Schools offer a

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complete schooling program inclusive of a high school facility whereas the ECube Global College offers graduation and post-graduation programs with an international association.

Educating 20,000 young minds, the group offers ICSE, CBSE, CAIE and IB curriculums, effectively catering to the varied demands of parents and children. “We understand that there are parents who work in government sectors with frequent transfers.

During such instances, it takes a great toll on the child to get adjusted with different schools and different curriculums. Which is why we decided to accommodate students from all walks. However, we ensure that just because they opt for different curriculums, we don’t compromise on the values and education we impart. The biggest advantage of our schools is that no matter what curriculum the child opts for, we have a pedagogy that imbibes all the best practices from the rest of the curriculums to give the best possible education for them. We ensure that our students get the best of all worlds,” says Archana Goenka, Founder Trustee, C P Goenka Group of Schools.

Mix and Match for Better Results Archana reiterates her point on the best practices followed at Goenka Group Schools by pointing out the ‘Show and Tell’ program that is originally implemented for the PYP students but carried across all the schools under the Goenka umbrella. The program might seem a simple one, where young students come up to the stage and show any object of their choice and tell a few words about it. However, this activity is a huge confidence booster for young minds, not to mention the avalanche of information they get from their peers. Because it is coming from one of their own, it stays in their mind and they discuss it later. Similarly, ‘My Delightful Moment’ is yet another activity, where students must come up to the stage and showcase their talent. It can be anywhere from drawing, dancing, singing to solving a Rubix cube, cooking, and doing headstands and somersaults. Through this activity, the school drives home the thought that bookish knowledge is not the only parameter to label a person ‘talented’. This activity also successfully breaks stereotypes and age-old archaic gender rules.

The management understands that while these are small steps, several such small steps combine over the years to actualize their vision—Raise wellrounded individuals with a global outlook, inclusive

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Archana Goenka Archana Goenka is the Founder Trustee of C P Goenka Group of Schools.

Being a veteran in this industry, her understanding, creativity and endeavour to bring in a positive wave of transformation in the education system have been quite fruitful. She believes that schools are not just about textbooks and teachers but a world in itself. She has embraced opportunities to be innovative and entrepreneurial to ensure that her schools evolve into centres of excellence. Her schools balance the transmission of values from the past anticipating the needs of the future. She believes that there has been a quantum leap in the pattern of education, because of which educators are constantly on their toes to keep up with the modern-day academic mechanisms to serve the best to children. She has been an eminent speaker at various platforms like the Eldrok K-12 Summit and Global Triumph Foundation World Summit – Bangkok.

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of gender and communities. One testament to the inclusivity trait that its weaved into the school’s DNA is when the 9th-grade girls, taking part in the running race, broke all rules to help a specially-abled child compete with them, crossing the finishing line together. These girls upheld the school’s idea that it is not always about winning, but about the race and how we treat each other in the race.

Especially at C P Goenka International School, where the IB curriculum is followed, the management has in place a buddy system where a student weak in a particular subject but bright in another is paired with another student who is bright in the subject that their ‘buddy’ is weak in.

This not only gives room for healthy friendships but also stresses the idea that no one is bright in all facets of life, we need one another to advance as a team.

“Our classroom activities are carefully crafted to build a solid character in our students and drive home the thought that it is not always about the marks. Success has to be redefined, and we are teaching our students to redefine it their own way,” says Archana. The school also provides a forum where ex-army officers take training classes for students to increase their resilience and shape a positive mindset. Named ‘Valour’, this activity has hugely impacted young minds, with several students fearlessly owning stage activities and even showing an interest to join the Indian Army.

How to Effectively Chart a Career Roadmap?

As per IB requirement, C P Goenka International School has an inhouse counsellor for its students. The counsellor and the school discuss with its students and carefully evaluate their various career options and then go backwards, charting out a detailed plan on how to get there. This helps the students to build an impressive resume as they now have a clear road map on how to proceed. Because the school starts this assessment from Grade 8, the children have ample time to hone their skills and systematically work towards their goals.

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Commenting on the Industrial Revolution 4.0.

Archana is of the opinion that although changes were slowly creeping up within school in India, and their relationship with technology, the pandemic significantly increased the tempo. She opines that technology has made it possible for us to have some sort of normalcy, thanks to various social media apps. Having said so, C P Goenka International School has always been a forerunner in introducing technology into classrooms. In 2006, when interactive classrooms where just an idea, the school was already incorporating it into classrooms, along with tablets. “Everything has two sides. It all boils down to how

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and who wields it. Which is why it is imperative to raise young minds who know how to wield technology in the best possible way.

For instance, we once showed our 11th-grade psychology students a live brain surgery. At the end of it, the children were so thrilled that they needn’t have to memorize from a book which part of the brain controls what as they could clearly remember it from their live class,� states Archana. Ensuring that social distancing and isolation does not affect the teaching-learning process, the school has from its inception insisted its teachers to use tools, tech or otherwise, to aid their teachings.

Equipping children with 21st-century skills, the school houses an array of science laboratories and a 3 D Printer that they can utilize. The school also regularly holds a tech-fest for ‘coders’ as part of their learning program. Proud of the various independent activities that its students are engaging, the school takes special pride in Akshat, an IBDP student. He currently teaches ‘Coding’ to his school mates. While this goes into his resume as an extra-curricular activity, it also instils in him a sense of accountability and accomplishment.

A Step Above the Rest What sets Goenka Schools apart from its peers is that the school management knows every student’s names and their background. They also have in place an environment where parents can freely walk into the principal’s room and discuss matters about their child. This makes the parents feel that they are heard instead of being told what to do. A healthy discussion between teachers and parents is required for the overall development of the child. The school hosts a MUN and a Junior MUN for pre-schoolers as well. The school also

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has in place a mentorship program where 5 students are assigned to a mentor who becomes the mentees sounding board. The students can freely discuss personal and social issues with their mentor, giving the students a feeling that they are heard and acknowledged.

Another factor that truly sets the school a notch above the rest is that they have a life skills training class. “How many of us know how to change a car tyre? How many of us know how to properly read electricity bills? It may seem unimportant now, but only if you know how much units you are using and how much each unit cost will

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you get a true understanding of conserving resources. We teach our students basic banking and how to be financially sound. We teach them a plethora of such skill sets that may seem trivial and irrelevant to the curriculum at hand but is quite necessary to shape a well-rounded individual. From folding clothes properly to making the bed we teach our students to inculcate good habits. Habits shape a human.

Good habits effectively shape good humans. Isn’t a school where good humans with good habits must be raised?� asks Archana.

Armed with several note-worthy awards and an arsenal of creative programs that have proven to boost student success and a team of focused teachers, C P Goenka International School is treading surefooted on the road to provide the best education, uplifting the spirit of every child and not merely literacy through the best of the teachers.

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INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE

Design Quotient in Learning Environments Kajal Gaba, Children Spaces Design Consultant, Maharashtra

After graduating with a degree in Applied Arts and a specialization in child illustration from the UK, Kajal Gaba decided to dedicate her creative zest to create special happy spaces for small children.

In her 23 years of dedicated service in the Indian educational field, she has been a major part of the process of how preschool education & educational spaces have evolved over the years. The unique customized ambiances created by her in over 200 + centers across the country which include preschools, nurseries, play areas, pediatric wards of major hospitals, Corporate daycare centers & child care cum development centers, Kajal has won various accolades & prestigious awards for her contribution. Her indepth knowledge of the psychological effect of colors on the young minds and belief that designing for children is a science in itself, has got her many admirers from various leading national & international magazines who have been publishing her articles on her unique sense of selection of the color palette for young children

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earning extends beyond the curriculum to the very environment in which children learn. They influence development and learning results in multiple ways.

Over the decades, the school education system of India has undergone a vast-change.

When I look back at the progress, I reckon that though there has been a constant emphasis on the development of educational programs and curriculum, yet the environment in which these will be applied, has never been given much importance, until recently.

As a part of the evolving educational scenario in India, I have observed and learned a lot in my journey of over two decades of designing for children.

I have always emphasized on the importance of design in child-centric spaces and the positive results of an environment design customized to integrate into the learning program.

Unfortunately, the significance of the positive impact of a welldesigned learning or therapeutic environments is yet to get it’s due and is often an afterthought!

Children have a very creative imagination, yet a very myopic perspective and effective elements can work wonders in not only engaging them but also in retaining their attention span. Child development is only possible in a space that does not overpower the child and lets it take the lead with its versatility in design. Let the child be, we don’t need to teach a child how to play!

Children learn when they play. A child-safe environment that facilitates child-led play, sharpen their problem solving, social, motor and cognitive skills.

Let me briefly talk about the elements that form the soul of children spaces I design -, learning, play and therapeutic.

I call them the 5 Ps: PLAY, PERSPECTIVE, PROPORTION, PALETTE & PSYCHOLOGY PLAY- Children look for play in everything. From an infant to an older child, play forms the best way to attract their attention. The attention span of children is very short and here the essence of child space design is put to test. Is the design engaging enough to extend a child’s attention span?

Play need not just be about tools and toys. Children interact with the

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environment around them through their senses. Sometimes these sensory experiences become the criteria for their association with these spaces.

Addressing all aspects of explorative play and sensory integration is a very important part of the customized designing of any child environment. Engaging elements with sensory diversity, juxtaposed in a changeable set up along with customized elements, all packaged within the parameters of child perspective and aesthetics are the ideal setting for child-led play and holistic development.

PERSPECTIVE- Go down on your knees and visualize the space from that 3- 4 ft below your normal standing height. When a child looks at a space designed from an adult’s perspective, it can be very intimidating!

Perspective also refers to the viewpoint of a child, an aspect that can sometimes seem illogical to a designer. Understanding a child’s perspective requires an

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understanding of what a child wants, understanding the response quotient to the design elements and the emotional and psychological relevance. To be able to do that takes years of practice and nurturing to keep the mind and heart of a child alive inside you!

PROPORTION- A very wide aspect it does not only refer to the agronomical aspect of a design. Ergonomic charts and references are available for everyone to follow and child-related item fabricators adhere to the same very strictly.

Proportion, in my design also refers to the ratio of design elements, color, form, furniture, play elements and everything that can prevent overstimulation.

It also refers to the special theme and mural art I use in my design. The proportion of how much theming to render, so that it teases and motivates a child without becoming a distraction

PALETTE - Psychological effects of color on our mind is undeniable.

It affects children even deeper in the growing up years. Children become one of the colors in the palette I selected for the space I am designing. Natural light plays a very important role in defining the exact tonal value of the pigments to be applied.

Factors like the geographical location, weather patterns, and socioeconomic background defines the way children would respond to colors. If a particular shade of yellow is considered a happy color in a cold western country, it might cause overstimulation and irritability

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to a child in a warm part of India. Going deeper into this, one realizes that the intensity of the pigment and the tone of yellow used is equally important.

PSYCHOLOGY – The idea that the children are passive creatures and their minds can be compared with a blank CD is not accepted anymore. Now, it is believed that children have been somewhat programmed at the birth time to participate actively in their experiences of life.

To achieve this balance of engagement, the environment is critical to offer opportunities to think, construct and create for children. They interact with the environment around them and the reaction, positive or negative is a result of the psychological stimulation.

I have seen miraculously positive results in my experience of rendering customized designing for hospital therapeutic spaces like pediatric wards, physiotherapy

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areas, occupational therapy, multi-sensory zones for children with developmental challenges. Similarly, environmental psychology plays a vital role in enhancing the cognitive and sensory perception of children in ideally designed learning environments.

Designing for children is a science in itself and because it is so customized, it can sometimes defy all rules of stereotype design and aesthetics. The ability to be able to think, visualize and feel the impact of the design being created, from a child’s perspective takes years of training one’s heart and mind.

I look forward to enabling educational environments getting its due importance in the coming years. It will not only help the children in their developmental processes but also help facilitators and school management in achieving effective implementations and results of their learning programs.

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DON BOSCO INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL AN IDEAL AVENUE TO LEARN, PLAY, COMPETE AND WIN!

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his year’s Republic Day saw a young girl receive the National Bravery Award from the Prime Minister of India. 12-year-old Zen Sadavarte displayed exemplary courage during the fire that engulfed the 12th floor of Crystal Towers, Parel, in August 2018. A week later, while researching the problems with India’s midday meal scheme, she read up on the death of a four-month-old boy at a protest in Delhi.

Disturbed, she wrote a letter to Chief Justice of India, describing the participation of infants and children in protests as “torture and cruelty”, violative of “child rights and natural justice”. Her letter prompted the Supreme Court to turn her informal appeal into formal public interest litigation. Zen has also been granted permission to represent herself and speak in court at the next hearing.

Zen was raised to be strong and responsible. She knew when to react and how to react. She knew what it took to be the next leader of the world, and in her own words, “I want to be a lawyer representing India at the International Court of Justice”. For someone who is ferociously independent and focus driven, a casual environment cannot help her cause. Her current school, Don Bosco International School, Matunga, Mumbai, is the perfect place for determined youngsters like her to thrive.

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Don Bosco International School (DBIS) offers IB PYP for Jr Kg to Grade 5 students, CAIE for Grades 6 to Grade 10 students, and IBDP for Grades 11 and 12. Through this blended approach, DBIS provides the flexibility to students in their choice of higher education, which otherwise would have been a limiting factor in terms of national and global institution, as well as a financial burden.

Using self and peer assessment strategies along with reflection sheets and KWL (Know about the topic, what you Want to know, and what you’ve Learned) sheets, DBIS makes the students actively responsible for their own learning. The school’s peer mentoring provides an opportunity for senior students to meet their juniors, conduct webinars and also have one-on-one sessions with their juniors, with the issues discussed ranging from study skills to time management.

Instilling a Sportsperson Spirit The school, interestingly, do not encourage comparing or competing with others in academics. Instead, all the competition is brought on the sports ground. The school has a huge campus that includes 3 basketball courts, 3 football turfs, 1 International Hockey turf (one of its kind in the city of Mumbai), and 6 nets for cricket.

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This unique infrastructure and the training given is the secret behind the success of DBIS students who have done well at MSSA, DSO and at SFA. “The school has a compulsory sports program designed for every student in the school and our students undergo training for one hour every day because the school believes in the adage ‘A healthy mind lives in a healthy body’. We were ranked 2nd from over 700 schools in the city of Mumbai, yet we believe in setting our own benchmarks and bettering them along the way. We believe a balanced child approach will add to their overall development and our students will fare well when applying through competitive entrance tests including viva-voce for securing admission in top global universities. Access to the best of resources, including resources on demand is granted to the students, even though such expenses are not justified by the low tuition fees that a student pays. We have found this approach conducive to their academic growth as well as a pragmatic approach to life maturing with the responsibility of independent free thinkers,” says Meena Saldanha, Principal, Don Bosco International School.

The school’s strong focus on sports and physical fitness is reflected in the one-of-a-kind Sports Day held for the year 2019-2020. With ‘All-Inclusive’ as the

concept, the school provided an opportunity for the students to take part in at least 2 Sports activities.

The objective was to showcase skills learnt in the various sports being taught during the Sports Program, with the active participation of every student in the school. The traditional athletics races took a back seat, with students participating in only 1 race per category. The 6 Sports, all part of the schools Inclusive Sports Program, which students played, were Hockey, Football, Handball, Cricket, Basketball and Roll Ball.

Healthifying Body and Mind Paying equal attention to mental health, DBIS also hosts emotional wellbeing sessions for students, parents, teachers and ancillary staff. “In these tough times, our behaviour counsellors stepped in to help all the stakeholders in dealing and managing their emotions. The support extended by the counsellors have helped the community in navigating with anxiety and answer some unresolved questions for the students. DBIS presents holistic, well-balanced development of heart, mind, body and soul. We

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believe that our students after the culmination of their academic journey at DBIS, will be balanced and resilient inquirers ready for the challenges of life as participants and not as bystanders,” adds the Principal.

Although the school was going full steam ahead with respect to Industrial Revolution 4.0 since 2015, the pandemic and the consequent world lockdown only firmed up the path towards. The school understands that the disruption from the physical to the virtual world, though disturbing to young minds, is one of the most positive outcomes of a doomsday situation. DBIS was quick to adopt and adapt as early as March 2020, during the onset of the pandemic. DBIS also have several freeship students who were admitted based on the school’s freeship policy, which was in place for the first four years in the school. DBIS provided each of these students a device and network connections in the form of a dongle so that their learning was not affected. Thanks to the excellent rapport the school has with the parents, combined with an enthusiastic faculty and management, the step to remote learning was “just what the doctor ordered”. True, DBIS comprehended this leap of faith into an ethereal world of technology as petrifying at the onset, but through grit and determination, it soon turned gratifying.

With collaboration at the heart of DBIS’s teaching-learning experience, the teachers view themselves as lifelong learners and learn from one another. They also use digital Pineapple charts on slack, whereby teachers invite the peer teachers to observe their best teaching practices, creating an open and interactive environment. The teachers mentored each other, attending webinars, self-learning, slowly unravelling a mysterious digital world. This decoding was satisfying, and the school is poised to tutor young minds in the rudimentary of IR 4.0. DBIS firmly believe that young minds are like sponges, excellent at absorbing and comprehension, provided it is systematic and does not overload. With an inhouse ‘decadesold rubric’ for the academic development of the child, the school is positive that at the PYP stage the students would achieve levels that would be far higher, comparatively.

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Further explaining the school’s shift to remote online learning, the principal says that DBIS followed a blend of synchronous and asynchronous sessions for the pre-primary and the primary section. The Early Years timetable comprised of 3 synchronous sessions per day with each session lasting for 30 of 40 minutes per class.

While the Zoom platform, Wheel of names, Kahoot, Linoit, Nearpod, Jamboard, Toy Theatre etc. were used for the Synchronous sessions, the asynchronous sessions comprised of the assignments shared by the facilitator on Toddle, which include simple tasks which serve as a recapitulation of concepts done during the synchronous sessions. These assignments enable the facilitators to create a visual memory of their students learning journey through photos, videos, audionotes, empowering the students’ voice and choice to demonstrate and share learning. The tech-savvy school

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and students used tools such as Toddle, Google Suite, Padlet, Brain Pop, Flipgrid, whiteboards, orange slice, slideshow, podcasts, movie trailors, Quizzes, Gimlet, Wizer, and Quizlet while playing academic games and work on virtual science experiments and simulations.

What is Genius Hour?

The subjects taught at DBIS are English, Math, Inquiry Music, Speech and Drama, Visual Art, PSPE and Genius Hour. The Genius Hour celebrates the IB students’ journey of self-discovery, passion, curiosity, creation, research, purpose by showcasing it to an audience. Senior school students initiate, plan and organise school events; they have the liberty to work at their pace, some alone and some in pairs.

The aim of introducing Genius Hour was that the students independently learnt to create their own learning pathways and discover their passion.

DBIS, though in its fledgeling state, has gained recognition amongst the International School fraternity as very tough competitors, especially in the sports arena. At almost all events, the school has achieved either a gold or silver or bronze in team as well as individual sports. In academics front, the ASSET exams have benchmarked a majority of DBIS students at A and A star level. DBIS students have also been winners at the MISA science project competitions for the last three years which had students from most of the international schools in and around Mumbai participating. DBIS is also a part of Eumind, an International exchange programme with Europe and has partnered with a school in Helinium in the Netherlands. With this and several other bouquets of awards and recognition in its bag, Don Bosco International School is surging ahead setting milestones after milestones.

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ACADEMIC VIEWS

Improving Teacher Retention Najam Jamal, Principal, Billabong High International School

Najam Jamal was a businessman destined for greatness before he met his wife, Samina. Samina’s flair for teaching and her inclination to teach young children sowed the seeds of seeds of setting up an educational institution, which they could call their own in the minds of Najam and Samina. It was during the process of setting up the school,that he came acroos Ms. Lina Ashar, Founder and Chairperson, Kangaroo Kids Education Ltd. (KKEL).

Impressed and encouraged by the vision and philosophy of KKEL, the ed visionaries signed an MoU and the ‘Billabong High, Bhopal’ was born in 2005. In the thirteen years of well-designed administration and planned management, the school has come to stay and found its rightful place on the educational map of the country. Billabong High International School, Bhopal, is today hailed as a world class school, an ‘oasis of excellence’ in the otherwise arid field of quality education.

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o quote Napoleon Bonaparte, “Give me good mothers and I shall give you a great nation!”

I take the liberty of rephrasing it as, “Give schools good teachers and they shall give great citizens to build

a great nation!”

It is the dream and endeavor of every ‘Edupreneur’ to hire the best teachers and retain them for longer periods as frequent recruitment of new teachers means frequent initiation programs, probations, constant assessment and uncertainty that prove inimical to the school and its progressive policies. A team of teachers working for a decent number of years develops unspoken compatibility, for the team works hand in hand, year after year, complementing each other’s strengths and countering challenges together. As such, a newbie may need to add some rigorous years of experience before he/ she begins to roost with the flock to carry forward the vision and mission of the school!

As the professional growth of a teacher is dependent on the conducive environment and constant support provided by the school, the following strategies may be considered for implementation:

• There should be a two – way open conversation between teachers and administrators.

• Teachers should be allowed greater leeway in decision – making as ground zero reality is best known to them.

• Teachers should be given various leadership roles as planners and trainers to further empower them.

• Experienced teachers can be rewarded by asking them to hone the skills of the relatively less experienced ones. It not only ensures a strong bonding but also shows the trust endowed by administrators on the teachers who have served for a longer period.

• Ample support to be provided to the staff for keeping them abreast with the latest trends and technology to ensure professional development.

• The emotional and financial security of each teacher coupled with medical benefits should be given due consideration.

• Collaborative planning, learning and decision making needs to be promoted within the teaching fraternity to ensure the best practices are adopted across all departments.

• Frequent meetings, reports, responses and feedback from teachers, their mentors and learners must be taken to keep a track of any unforeseen issue which might crop up despite the best of planning and intent.

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Collaborative planning, learning and decision making needs to be promoted within the teaching fraternity to ensure the best practices are adopted across all departments

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• Appropriate work assignments must be given to new teachers. They must not be given the least desirable classes nor the most challenging students; either will prove detrimental and have an adverse impact on the growth of the teacher.

• Opportunities to interact with other professionals must be provided to improve teaching skills to make teachers compatible with the newer generation of students.

• Innovative approaches must be encouraged.

• Schools should explicitly and tacitly stand by its teachers at all times to support the stand taken by them for the cause of education.

• Schools should be learner-centered and assessment – centered where teachers can use tools and strategies to provide continuous feedback and monitor learning.

• The teacher-student ratio should be limited in order to support the building of a strong rapport between the mentor and mentees.

• Advanced technological support must be provided at all times in each classroom.

• Schools have an assortment of learners hailing from various races, religions, ethnic diversity, and lifestyle and so on. Programs/workshops should be conducted to orient teachers to address the needs, care and responsibilities such classrooms may demand.

• Opportunities may be provided so that the family at the workplace meets the actual families of the teaching fraternity.

• A school should be an extended family ready to help any member in calamitous situations.

• Even the smallest contribution must not go unnoticed and be appreciated in department and staff meetings.

• In a rare case, where a teacher must leave, there must be exit interviews where every aspect that made the teacher take the decision should be considered important so that there is lesser attrition.

• Interaction with alumni must be encouraged as teachers and taught both reminisce and live the dream days together thereby strengthening the bond with the school.

The heart and soul of a school reside within its teachers and acknowledgment of this vital aspect will translate to lower attrition and higher retention rates.

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INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE

Importance of Inculcating Experiential Learning in Schools And How it is Considered The Key to Sharper Minds Rohan Parikh, Managing Director, The Green Acres Academy

Rohan Parikh has attained a BSc in Economics from Wharton Business School, an MBA from INSEAD, and has more than 10 years of experience in the Real Estate and Hospitality industries. In 2013 Mr. Parikh entered the field of education by founding The Green Acres Academy in Chembur, and simultaneously pursuing a Master’s degree in Education through Johns Hopkins University. His aim is to provide affordable yet holistic, and well-rounded education by adapting the latest research in teaching and learning techniques within the Indian context. What started as one campus of The Green Acres Academy in Chembur, Mumbai, has grown to a total of 3 campuses across Mumbai and Pune, as well as the latest Seven Rivers International School (an IGCSE affiliate school).

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“P

lay is not a break from learning. It is endless, delightful, deep, engaging, practical learning.

It’s the doorway into a child’s heart,” said Vince Gowmon as he explained the beauty and importance of play, a method of experiential learning. Experiential learning or learning by doing is a powerful way to engage students and ensure deep learning. It gives students the opportunity to have real-world experience.

Learning is active, unlike one-directional, teacher-led classrooms where learning students are passive recipients of the information.

At the Green Acres Academy students participate in experiential learning in multiple ways. For instance, they are exposed to the very valuable, design thinking process.

One group of students has participated in City as Lab, a project that aims to give students the platform to study and find solutions to local problems, using their scientific knowledge. Not only does this immerse students in their context deeply, but it also builds a scientific temper.

Similarly, the school’s student council used design thinking to understand the student body they represent. With the data collected, the student council has found and will implement solutions to improve the student experience and represent student interest more clearly, to make school a place

all students are happy and comfortable at. Here, students collaborated, used their research and problem-solving skills, just as they would be expected to in the real world.

Such experiences are much like science experiments. While they are challenging, they provide incomparable exposure. Students have the opportunity to apply their learning, see it’s value first-hand, and find relevance in what they are doing. Experiential learning is most effective when students reflect on the experiences they have and build deep connections with conceptual classroom topics. Such deliberation makes abstract concepts and information learned in the classroom relevant and relatable.

Imagine for a second, the excitement on the faces of young students on a field trip. These students are at the zoo to see mammals and reptiles in their environments after having studied them in their science classes. Besides being a powerful learning experience, it is likely to be an experience students enjoy. Young learners look forward to the chance to be curious, investigate, test their hypothesis, and actively use their knowledge or gain new knowledge in authentic spaces.

In the contemporary world, successful people are positive and productive contributors. Those that do well in their workplaces, solve problems of society, and meet consumers’ unmet needs are great examples! Experiential learning is an effective method to prepare students to become sharp individuals who are ready to join and lead the workforce and take on the many challenges of adulthood!

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KOHINOOR AMERICAN SCHOOL MASTERFULLY AMERICANIZING GURUKUL EDUCATION

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A Gulpreet, KAS student

n excellent academic base lays the foundation of a successful future, and this is why IB board schools in India are gaining a lot of popularity these days. Due to its comprehensive and practical approach to studies, education from an accredited IB board school in India will significantly help students land admissions in stellar colleges for further studies.

Offering IB Middle Years Programme (Grade VI to X) and IB Diploma Programme for Grades XI and XII, Kohinoor American School (KAS) follows a curriculum that revolves around concept-based teaching and learning that helps the students to look at the disciplines in a more holistic manner where there are strong strands of interconnectedness between the disciplines. The students are constantly encouraged to look at the application aspect of learning and use it in different situations. They approach their learning through various tools and one such tool - Approaches to Learning (ATL) hones their skills in the classroom and prepares them as life long learners.

Providing young minds with an environment for optimal learning and growth in an international setting, KAS is situated in Khandala, Old Mumbai – Pune Highway, a two-hour drive from Mumbai to the Khandala Campus. KAS imbibes in their students humility, gratitude, and selfless service through participation in extra-curricular activities that sensitize them about socially relevant issues.

A Heavenly Abode for Education Aspiring to create a school that would not only offer a world-class academic program to its students but also ensure a strong foundation, rooted in human value and service to mankind and provide the students with conducive environment, the founders of KAS offer child-centric IB curriculum that emphasizes on developing critical thinking skills to make them ready for 21 st century. The four value pillars of the Kohinoor American School—Knowledge, Wellness, Peace and Service—have a special significance which defines the robust value-based academic and residential life program.

Kapil, KAS student

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Mallika Kotian, Director Schools, Kohinoor Education Trust (KET) Mallika Kotian is a Science post graduate with a degree in education. A prominent educationist, she is an efficient school administrator whose illustrious career spans over 17 years. She has served in the capacity of Principal and Operation Manager across various education sectors in the country.

Kotian has been part of some of the best schools in the country and has played a key role in setting up new ventures. Strategic management coupled with a humane approach is her biggest skill. Her deep knowledge and involvement in Early Childhood Education, Primary and Secondary Education has catalysed the growth of the schools she has worked with. Her vision to see every employee & student excel in their personal and professional lives has helped her create numerous success stories in the field of education.

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“We aim to personalize the educational experience of all our students, equipping them with the relevant knowledge and appropriate life skills which inspires and prepares them to innovate humane solutions to global issues. Through service, the school wishes for world peace in pursuit of a better world. KAS students become champions of their crafts by mastering relevant skills that are taught to them via personalized and holistic teaching-learning methodologies and exceptional pedagogy,” says Mallika Kotian, Director Schools, Kohinoor Education Trust (KET).

A perfect set-up ensuring the holistic development in a safe and secure environment, KAS not only focuses on academic and co-curricular activities but it also strongly ensures that the emotional needs of the children are met through various ways. The Dorm Parents, Family teacher, In-house School Counsellors contribute to the overall well-being of every student, which has a significant positive impact on them. Here, academics transcend normal methods of education.

Every child not only learns invaluable lessons from books but also critical life skills through interactive activities. “Apart from making our children confident, the school’s stimulating methods also empower them to make the right decisions in every sphere of life . Taking a holistic approach to the children’s growth in every aspect of their life, KAS provides a balanced mix of activities with the right academics that bring about the harmony of mind, body and soul,” adds the Director.

Imbibing Technology in Education KAS has always blended technology into its teachinglearning processes within the classroom as well as outside. The school is a Wi-Fi enabled campus with the MYP students using iPads and DP students using laptops for their classwork, online research and support materials. Transitioning into online classes was seamless for the students and teachers. Given the school’s healthy student-teacher ratio, the teachers were able to give one-on-one attention and even provide additional online support with extra classes.

Our teachers are registered for the subject-specific face-to-face and online workshops conducted by IBO. Along with IBO workshops, the school regularly conducts Professional Development sessions and in-school workshops for professional and personal development At KAS, the class sizes are maximum of 15 students in a classroom. The student-teacher ratio is 1:5. Individualised teaching is offered and a strong programme for the differentiated classroom is in place.

Students are made comfortable and a pace is set for them individually where they can learn in a non-threatening environment with minimum challenges.

KAS has a strong parent–school connect using various platforms of communication like emails, WhatsApp and telephone calls, wherein the parents are appraised on a weekly basis about the activities of the school. Parents are updated about the progress on their child quarterly and the school counselors reach out to the parents to guide and support with parenting concerns and emotional health and well-being.

Guiding them to Success Students develop attitudes, knowledge and skills that contribute to life-long learning. They complete school life with the academic preparation essential for their chosen tertiary education plans. At KAS, the students understand the relationship between their academic studies and the world outside the school. Students acquire the skills to investigate the world of work, concerning knowledge of self and to make informed career decisions. They learn to employ strategies to achieve future career success and satisfaction. Finally, they understand the relationship between personal qualities, education, training and the world of work.

KAS’s specialized guidance and counselling program leads the students to the University/College of their choice.

The students are guided through a multitude of options to achieve their preparation and application goals. They are helped with university processes of choosing and applying to colleges. The College Counsellor conducts group seminars, information sessions, personalised counselling

Steve, KAS student

and encourages students to understand courses, career options, to learn about colleges and universities on various parameters, invites representatives from colleges and universities and informs students about standardized tests.

It is no wonder that all KAS graduates have successfully been placed abroad and in India in the university/college of their choice.

The KAS alumni is very active and they support and interact with students, providing them with firsthand information on colleges, the application process, test-scores, scholarships. Cherishing her time at KAS, Gulpreet, an alumnus of KAS recalls all the great times she had at the school. She reminisces, “I can proudly call this place my home because I got to learn and experience independently. Staying with a diverse community made me understand the meaning of respect and empathy. The teachers in the school have moulded me into a confident individual who can make rational decisions. Their love never made me feel homesick. I used to look forward to meeting my teachers and take advice from them. I never had to worry about my academics because I knew I was in the BEST hands”.

KAS was awarded for excellence in Blended and Value Education Programs by ELDROK, India. This award was accepted by Mallika Kotian, Director Schools, Kohinoor Education Trust (KET) at the hands of Mr Manish Naidu – Founder Brainwonders at Eldrok, K – 12 Summit, Mumbai in the same year. The school has also been judged as the BEST International School of the Year Award, from ISA Dubai, celebrate excellence in education for achieving education outstanding contribution to innovation and leadership.

As KAS is a fully residential boarding school, extracurricular and co-curricular activities are an integral part of the student’s school life programme. There are various clubs under which students get an opportunity to hone their skills in music, dance, various sports- indoors and outdoors- and have experiential learning element. Having participated in a range of activities – academic and sports in inter-school competitions, the students of KAS have and will always continue to make the institute proud by either winning or just by putting in their best effort and having a healthy competitive spirit. Apart from this, the students are encouraged to do service component, where they go out in the community to offer their services- be it Home for the Aged, Blind home or school for the less privileged students.

The programme itself is designed on innovation. They are encouraged to find their solutions, look at any idea or concept from different perspectives and formulate their hypotheses, helping them become the leaders of tomorrow.

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MOUNT LITERA SCHOOL INTERNATIONAL SHAPING STUDENTS INTO PROFESSIONAL YOUNG-ADULTS

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n the last 10 years, the number of international schools in India has more than doubled. Indian education is rapidly involving international institutions for education at all levels, from preprimary to university. According to International Baccalaureate (IB) (IBO 2010), India is the 6th nation with the largest number of students enrolled in international schools under the IB curriculum. Offering Primary Years Program (PYP), Middle Years Program (MYP), and the Diploma Program (DP) from the IBO, Mount Litera School International (MLSI) is an IB school that is truly international in its perspective.

A school with great infrastructure and a big heart, education at MLSI is completely child-centred.

Committed and dedicated to the student’s growth and learning, the teachers at MLSI aspire to bring out the best versions of their students.

Running a network of Zeelearn schools across the country, the founders wanted MLSI to be their flagship school, particularly an IB School, as the IB philosophy resonated with their personality. A co-ed day school, MLSI provides an outstanding education through its holistic-based pedagogy. Envisioning to meet the emotional, physical, creative, and intellectual needs of all the students within an international community, the school provides a friendly and family-like atmosphere that helps the students nurture and grow.

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Educators at MLSI MLSI teachers own qualifications that comply with the Maharashtra state requirements. The school conducts various internal professional development sessions, covering a wide range of topics from well-being to how to teach, approaches to teaching and learning, etc.

The school also goes for official IB training, which is an essential factor, and also a part of its DNA, sharing the expertise within and across the school continuum.

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Receiving laurels and appreciation for their out-of-thebox teaching approach, MLSI’s Head, Mona Seervai was awarded the prestigious Iconic Leadership Award and felicitated by the Governor of Maharashtra at the virtual Teachers Day celebrations hosted by ISME in September 2020.

The student-teacher ratio at MLSI is 1:12, where they have larger classes to offer diversity in teaching and small classes that concentrate more on giving individual

attention. An inclusive school, MLSI also houses a counsellor and a learning-support teacher on board.

During the COVID 19 lockdown, the teachers at MLSI had explored various platforms and understood the technology themselves before they started online classes.

Having supported the teachers with technology and WiFi requirements to seamlessly integrate technology into the classrooms, MLSI regards COVID19 as a catalyst that pushed the school to bring out its best potential.

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Having an extremely active PTA, MLSI involves parents into its formal structure.

Hosting regular parent-teacher meetings, MLSI also invites parents as guest speakers to share their expertise in the classroom. Meanwhile, the class teachers remain in very close and constant touch with parents, making them involved in their child’s education.

Shaping Innovative Leaders of Tomorrow Bringing out the best in every child in terms of character and making them global citizens

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through its teaching and learning processes, MLSI concerns itself with the holistic development of the child and ensure that children are respectful and kind to their teacher and one another. Giving equal importance to learning and performance, the school ensures that they can bring out the best in their student’s potential. The student is at the centre and the heart of the school, making them the point of focus at all times.

Helping students be more creative, the student council at MLSI has taken many

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initiatives and organized events within the schools, like Open Mic Night, where the students get a chance to showcase their talents to the school, weekly workout sessions for the students, and a podcast, where topics like stress during lockdown and awareness about mental health are covered. Believing that all students are achievers, MLSI doesn’t like singling out any student or group of students at any time. The students at MLSI excel to the best of their abilities, and the lockdown due to the pandemic outbreak has given them the freedom to be who they are, along with the school’s teaching and learning, which is at pace with their students’. They are encouraged to take part in inter-school events not just for the prize, but for interacting with other schools and the ensuing experience. Believing in giving importance to educating the heart as well as the mind, MLSI has an atmosphere where the students support each other.

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MENTOR’S MANTRA

How Online Schooling Has Forced India to Confront The Digital Divide Ashish Chaturvedi, Founder, School Diary

IIM-Kolkata alumni, Ashish founded uFony, the parent company for School Dairy, in Pune. Prior to uFony, Ashish spent 9 years in a corporate role, working across technology, business development, and planning across sectors, including the IT services and CPG industry. He was also a part of the Global Program Management team, where he managed a 50+ MUSD transformational program comprising of 400+ resources distributed across Europe, the US, India, and China for P&G. Having worked with some of the leading Indian and International brands, including Infosys, AT&T, P&G, and Verizon(USA), Ashish gained immense insights into working with multicultural teams and acquiring hands-on expertise, across business domains. All of these learnings he carefully imbibed so as to eventually implement some of the world’s best practices, in his own business venture. His goal had always been to start his own venture one day and enable the creation of at least 10,000 jobs – a milestone he is very close to achieving!

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he pandemic has accelerated digital adoption across sectors, including education, which has witnessed one of the fastest disruptions in the teaching, assisted learning, and VR space. From virtual classrooms, online assessments, smart learning tools, and continuous learning options for professionals to skill up-gradation, hobby classes, online fee payments for schools, AI-powered edutainment solutions, and parent-teacher engagement, technology solutions for the education sector have evolved manifold! Especially during times of COVID, when physical classrooms have shut, technology solutions adopted by schools are ensuring education is uninterrupted, by using various online learning tools. However, in spite of the efforts, there has been a major disparity in access to online education, especially in the urban and rural areas, thanks to the digital divide that has now been laid bare because of COVID. Primary reasons for lack of access to online education due to the socio-economic standing of the parents or as part of the collective infrastructure challenge include: • Unstable Internet connectivity: though we are among some of the largest consumers of smartphones, as a country, and are the second largest in terms of internet penetration, the consistency of a strong broadband connection

remains one of the main reasons for lack of access to online learning. While there are already talks about a 5G network setup, the existing 4G and lower bandwidth connectivity continue to remain disturbed or inconsistent.

• Lack of access to a device: Although smartphones remain popular, and can be useful when accessing online education, it is not always easily available for the children/ entire family. In most cases, it is the father or both parents with a smartphone, who may or may not be able to regularly spare it for the children. They may also lack a common computer, like a desktop or laptop, for the house, making access to online learning a challenge for the children.

• Unstable electricity connection that is vital for charging devices and Wi-Fi: Although access to the internet and a valid device remain a challenge, one of the key drawbacks to digital learning is often lack of basics like stable electricity connection and a strong Wi-Fi network.

Not only charging but most town/rural homes lack backup power (inverter/Genset) and power cut usually happens in late mornings/afternoons in residential areas to provide supply to local industries and hence the most important period for classes is spent without stable power.

• Language barrier: Even as we work towards making the internet inclusive and accessible, the language as a mode of learning, remains a significant problem.

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web is in English, or to some extent, even in Hindi, other vernacular languages that form a major medium for learning across various parts of the country, are yet to make their presence felt in the digital space • Lack of trust in digital learning: While digital/ online learning is looked upon as an advanced feature, it still remains an additional tool to support classroom learning.

In the absence of traditional teacher-student interaction, most parents feel the online learning is not complete enough and lacks the ‘discipline’ brought about by the presence of a teacher. Additionally, parents also fear the access to vast non-learning and leisure information the child can have, when left to online learning methods, in an unsupervised environment. While parents would require to monitor and assist children during online classes, they cannot devote 100% time to the same. From watching YouTube videos and games to surfing websites (Even with the child lock/ child supervision), can not only be a massive waste of time but also expose children to content not meant to be consumed.

• Not so Tech friendly parents and teachers: A lot of parents and teachers are themselves at the stage of being well versed with new-age apps. Especially in rural or backward areas, the use of smartphones has been limited to entertainment, news, and communications. However, with digital learning, a lot of teachers are faced with the challenge to master the technology. Simultaneously, parents are also faced with the task of being better accustomed to technology and to learn the ropes so as to be able to teach/ supervise their child to gain from online learning – a task not many parents are up for.

While there has been a lot of government interest and support in digitizing education, with policies like ‘Digital India; that is helping create better access, the recent ‘National Education Policy’ that has made ‘digital learning’ an important part of education, and the ‘Digital up-skilling of India’, the onus continues to remain with schools. Schools and higher education institutes need to work with parents and teachers and upgrade and customize online learning for their students. This can be done through: • Cheaper/ discounted data packs: Schools in rural or backward areas can help economizing data for deserving students, and providing them free or subsidized data packs for accessing education apps/content/websites.

• Customized solutions: Indian education system currently operates multiple boards like CBSE, ICSE, IB, and then the local state boards. The curriculum and content and teaching styles etc. vary drastically.

Customization is the key for schools looking to create an integrated virtual learning experience for their

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students. Several Ed-tech start-ups are working closely with educational institutes to customize solutions that would meet the need of their teachers and students while ensuring cost-effective technology investments.

Additionally, curating content in vernacular language is also an important part of customizing education to suite the parents and children coming from varied socioeconomical backgrounds.

• Training of teachers: Ensuring teachers are at ease with the new format of digital classrooms, is extremely important to make virtual classrooms as a success. A shift from the chalk and board, presentational style teaching to a virtual or recorded teaching method is as difficult to adopt for teachers as it is for students. Adequate training and guidance for teachers can help them ease into the technology domain of teaching and can translate into effective learning for children.

• Investing in technology infrastructure: A functional and effective technology infrastructure is vital for schools or any education institute, to ensure the tools and training can be effectively leveraged. The best of ed-tech solutions can be rendered ineffective with the basic infrastructure like a strong broadband connection and relevant devices needed to host a virtual classroom.

• Technology solutions beyond learning tools: When one speaks of ed-tech, the most common understanding is that it is limited to learning technology. However, a lot of schools/ education institutes are waking up to the benefit of ‘digitization’ of school operations and administration tasks. From tools like Live streaming of a physical classroom for the benefit of students who are unable to attend in-person to offering facial recognition technology for attendance, installing CCTV cameras in class and school premises to monitor social distancing norms, using enhanced CRM and communication tools for engaging with parents, etc., can go a long way in ensuring a smooth, flawless and productive operations in schools. It also helps to take the load off the shoulders of teachers, who can then focus on their core qualities and not be bogged down by the additional tasks Even as most students, parents, and schools are coming to terms with the realities of virtual learning, Ed-tech solution providers are working tirelessly to create a more inclusive and adaptable digital learning ecosystem. In the post COVID era, much like in other sectors, education also will continue to integrate these new technology innovations for a seamless and effective education system. It is thus imperative for schools and educations institutions to work towards accelerated adoption of these solutions, so as to bridge the digital divide.

Wi-Fi powered digital learning.

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NAHAR INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL GATEWAY TO GLOBAL UNIVERSITIES & INSTITUTIONS

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nternational schools are becoming more and more popular in Mumbai and what makes them important in today’s scenario is the pursuit of global knowledge.

The biggest strengths of international schools are the continuous exposure to the international teaching environs to develop a mind-set to adapt quickly to international developments and become globally prepared. However, in this unending quest, especially during the pandemic scenario when the whole nation was battling Covid-19 by being at home under lockdown, Nahar International School management ensured the education to continue unhindered by immediately adapting to online mode.

Admittance to Global Institutions Nahar International School (NIS) ensured that the expert educators and staff at international schools underwent real-time training for online teaching model in order to introduce innovative and unique online curricula and programs keeping in mind the pandemic situation. NIS efforts were met with stellar achievements with school’s IBDP batch of 2018-2020 scoring a 100% pass out, a rare achievement for schools in their first five years of IB assessments with an average grade of 5.40, against a world average of 4:98 for English HL students, 6.0 against 5.09 for Global Politics HL students, 6.0 against 4.25 for Biology SL students, and 5.14 against 4.76 for Mathematics HL students. NIS students’ performance ensured successful placement in world renowned and prestigious institutions like the Kings College, London; University College London; University of Exeter, England; and The University of British Columbia, Canada, Virginia Tech, University of Massachusetts Amherstand, among others.

Mr. Sukhraj B Nahar, Founder and Managing Director of Nahar Group, established the school in 2014 to empower the new generation to shape them into Achievers of Tomorrow. NIS is affiliated to the Cambridge Board and follows the (CAIE) curriculum up to IGCSE level. The school also offers IBDP at the Grade 11 and 12, and A-Level from this year onwards.

NIS is situated inside a sprawling 125-acre township

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‘Nahar Amrit Shakti’ at Chandivali in Andheri East, he aimed at offering world-class education facilities to the children from the township and the neighbouring areas.

Mr. Nahar is a strong believer in creation of NextGen manifesting the right principals, right values and ethics to pursue their ambition worldwide. His vision is simple right education is like a seed to develop a generation to carry right values and principles for a lifetime. Education at NIS reflects the belief that ‘Every Child Is A Star’, where aspirations are nurtured by enhancing skills through value-based versatile education. The Group’s ideology for NIS has always been on the paradigm shift of ‘learning by doing’, however with the present pandemic scenario in a virtual environment, the schoolings at NIS School are currently being delivered interactively via a variety of online programmes, some of which are already a part of new and innovative approach to learning. “Each NIS

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student has a unique communication plan in place for family communities, staff and students,” adds Mr. Nahar.

“Even in the virtual study environment each student is given ample attention to cater to their diverse learning needs,’’ says Ms. Manju Yagnik, Vice Chairperson, Nahar Group. Parents have been provided with a clear understanding of expectations and direct lines of communication with teachers. Regular contact between students, teachers and classmates ensures high engagement and focus throughout the new style of school day.

NIS is working towards making the online learning experience as engaging and enriching as possible with a rapid switch to online learning at the end of academic year 2019-2020. Online teaching classes are on with the teaching fraternity conducting continuous collaborative meetings online to ensure homogenous lesson planning on student friendly e-learning platforms. NIS have identified

new ways of engaging students, designing interesting online learning activities for the coming academic year Ms. Manju Yagnik adds, “ In the present scenario each student is given ample attention to cater to their diverse learning needs. The challenge is to provide the student a learning experience through various online platforms based on the project-based model of learning.’’

Dealing with the pandemic, the school has turned heads by curtailing the length of screen time for students.

EYFS students will require a total of 1.5 hours a day, Primary students will need 3 hours, Middle School students will need 4 hours, and High school will need 6 hours of screen time. This will gradually be eased off once students begin to come to the school campus, twice a week. With the priority ensuring that students could finish out their academic year, teachers redesigned their syllabus for an online format and up-skilled themselves

Mr. Sukhraj B Nahar, Trustee, Nahar International School

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with regard to e-learning platforms, says Vandana Arora, Head of the School, Nahar International School. She added that the educators conducted continuous collaborative meetings online to ensure homogenous lesson planning, and have identified new ways of engaging students, designing interesting online learning activities for the coming academic year.

School Highlights (Normal School) NIS also boasts of German Waldner laboratories, an acoustically enhanced and performance-ready auditorium, and large turf-based sports ground. From offering global sports facilities like football and basketball coaching to horse riding, karate, archery and music and performing arts classes, NIS ensures the overall development of its students.

Mapping the expectations of todays educated and evolved parents and surpassing them on every parameter was the challenge because the goal was not to establish just another school. This not only meant diligence at every vital node and detailing at every step but also envisioning life a decade from today.

Flexible Teaching-Learning Methodologies With a student-teacher ratio of 8:1, NIS underlines the importance of individual attention. Moreover, the teachers are encouraged to take the class out of its traditional four walls and use natural spaces, experiential areas, go on field

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Ms. Manju Yagnik, Vice Chairperson, Nahar Group

trips, hence making learning more relatable. Subject teachers also collaborate across subjects and classes. Similarly, the school stresses on the use of audio-visual aids in the classroom to help children grasp complex concepts relatively easily— encouraging and training teachers to enmesh their instruction with digital education aids such as Google Classroom, Padlet and others; even for art, languages and other subjects. “The curriculum is carefully weaved such that it includes Life Skills, a pivotal requirement today to gear up for the eventualities of the future.

Housing a career counsellor, who provides full-time support, and a regular university fair, where top universities’ representatives come down to extend support, it is no wonder that NIS can achieve a 100% success in its college acceptance rate.

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NIS completely understands that collaboration is key to schools that teach international curriculums in India.

“It is essential to connect and discuss solutions for similar concerns, to understand what model practices work for schools with similar demographics as ours, to create networks across schools that our students can benefit from in terms of gaining a wider scope of the conversation, interaction and competition, and also to utilise the networks for teacher training possibilities, such as mutual use of (available) space and (experienced) staff. NIS do this in various ways—by being part of school associations such as MISA and SAIBSA, by making smaller associations for conducting subject-related workshops, and by hosting

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and participating in competitions, conferences, events and workshops for such aspects of learning that require a wider cohort and audience such as sport, art, music, theatre, MUN, etc.

Collaboration is Key As mentioned once before, NIS teach two international curriculums, the Cambridge programme across grades 1 to 10, and the IB curriculum, at the DP level. Therefore, NIS aims at collaborating at an international level to understand the policies and attitudes that support learning worldwide, and how they can be applied to one’s students and learning environment. Keeping in touch with educators

worldwide over multiple platforms keeps teachers abreast of curriculum updates and assessment changes; it allows them to reach out to a wider community of educators for help. Collaboration across the world also provides meaning to an educator’s experience by making it larger than being a lonely individualistic process to one that has meaning and implications worldwide, and whose goals and objectives are hugely significant to the larger scheme of things.

Thanks to the school’s vision and commitment, the students have been able to script personal records by getting admitted into New York - Princeton MUN (2016-2017) and into various summer camps conducted by Brown University, University of South London and the Singapore Science Camp.

Bagging several accolades and awards within a short span of time, Nahar International School is ferociously committed to the development of young minds into knowledgeable, confident, successful and responsible global citizens. Creating an environment that promotes creativity, curiosity and individual excellence through self-

discovery and thereby excellence, NIS is staying true to its mission— ‘Knowledge. Growth. Action’. “We can’t be in a continual race to make children master existing technology; there is no technological advancement that we can prepare them for because it is continually evolving. What is required is a balance.

We must acknowledge that we are now in a highly automated world, where machines communicate, where much action and interaction take place online, where reality itself is in danger of being augmented. We must balance this with human skills of design, negotiation and leadership; abilities such as imagination, risk-taking, resilience, values such as collaboration, empathy and similar others that make us human. It is these very skills and abilities that we nurture at school that ensures our children can navigate the uncertainties of their futures. Knowing ‘how to’ is going to serve them more than knowing ‘what to’, since it makes them adaptable creatures, and, as Darwin says, ‘It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change,” concludes Vandana Arora.

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MENTOR’S MANTRA

New Education Policy: Major Changes in Indian Education System Dr. Varun Gupta, Executive Vice President, OnSkyGlobal

Dr.

Varun Gupta, an Educationist, and Entrepreneur, poised to leverage educational qualification and experience towards steering a successful career as an Educator and Entrepreneur with higher learning institutions has offered immensely to the world of Education and Trade sector alike.

Currently, he is the Executive Vice President at On Sky Global and Chief Operating Officer, a USA and UK based institution respectively, engaged in imparting skillbased job-ready career programs in various capacities. Dr. Varun Gupta has touched upon the lives of more than 2,00,000 people and has traveled to more than 50 countries to spread the light of leadership, motivation, and guidance under the umbrella of education, skills training, public administration good governance, etc. by placing oneself as a renowned edupreneur in India.

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rue to say that the first and foremost aim of education is to develop a child/individual so that s/he may enjoy a quality life in terms of social, economic, and intellectual developments. Education not only improves one’s discerning abilities, but it also enables the person to utilize knowledge, skills, and other resources in a rational and productive manner for the self and society at large. The new education policy is the need of time as it has been planned with the aim of making “India a global knowledge superpower”.

New Education Policy announced by the Government of India on July 29, 2020, is welcomed and appreciated by many eminent academicians, educationists, and thought leaders and they believe, in the future, it will be considered as a landmark decision in the Indian Education System. Dr. Ramesh Pokhariyal Nishank, Union Minister for Human Resource Development, and Shri Prakash Javadekar, Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting (I&B) have critically studied the ongoing policy before making the desired changes. Besides, Honourable Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi had seen and discussed NEP 2020 with former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chief, K Kasturirangan.

3-Language Formula: The introduction of the 3-language formula is the best thing in NEP. Now, under the

new National Education Policy (NEP), all students will learn three languages in their schools. At least two of the three languages should be of Indian origin.

This decision is appreciable as it is important to focus on multilingualism right from the school level.

Regional language as a medium of instruction: Anywhere workable, the mode of instruction till at the minimum Class 5 but ideally till Class 8 and far off, will be the language either regional or mother tongue.

Complete utilization of school building and ICT: Second best thing in NEP is that all the school complexes will be used for adult education courses after school hours. This will be the full utilization of a school building. After school hours the building to be used as a public library meant for adult education courses which will be fully equipped with Information and Communications Technology (ICT). This step will help, increase, and optimize the transfer of information, as well as, will improve the learning & teaching methods.

Vocational studies and ensuring future employment opportunities: One more thing which is highly appreciable in NEP is to implement vocational studies in the school level during Grade 6 to 0. This includes painting, carpentry, electrical work, metalwork, gardening, pottery making, cooking, tailoring, etc.

This step will help students to be skilled and will provide good employment opportunities.

Besides, 10 days internship

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One more thing which is highly appreciable in NEP is to implement vocational studies in the school level during Grade 6 to 0

will be done with professional artists, painters, potters, carpenters, etc which will be beneficial for the students. This education will also be given through online modes. This way it will create earning opportunities for the professionals also.

Separate unit for digital and online learning: A separate unit for digital and online learning will be provided to ensure the e-education requirement at school and higher level. A complete set of advice for promoting online education resulting to the recent rise in epidemics and pandemics in order to make sure preparedness with different methods of quality education. This decision will help in planning study time around the rest of their day, instead of the other way around. Besides, students can study and work at their comfort.

Provisions for disabled children: One unique thing in NEP 2020 is that the policy has been designed considering the benefit of disabled children. Now such children will also participate in the regular schooling process from the starting stage to higher education with the support of educators with cross-disability experience and required technology.

No school bags: NEP 2020 will motivate bagless days throughout the year for different types of teaching methods including varied activities like craft, quiz, arts, music, sports, fun with science, etc. This will develop an interest in learning in students.

Experiential learning: NEP 2020 to encourage experiential learning through sports, story-telling, sports, etc. Classroom proceedings will convert to competency-

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based learning and education.

Curriculum content to be reduced: Syllabus will be less in every subject to its key necessity, and will allow room for evaluative intelligence and increased comprehensive, reasoning based, group discussion-based, and discovery-based learning.

Health check-ups and a balanced diet focused: NEP 2020 will focus on regular health check-ups and a balanced diet of children. This aims to ensure the overall development of a child other than studies.

Other changes according to NEP 2020 are as follows: • NEP to offer free boarding facilities matching the standard of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya’s particularly for students from poor underprivileged backgrounds. This will give a good atmosphere to the marginalized children and will help them in completing their education and knowing many other things.

• Pre-school sections with at least one year of early childhood care and education will be added to Kendriya Vidyalaya’s and other primary schools especially in disadvantaged areas. NEP 2020: NCC wings in secondary and higher secondary schools under Ministry of Defence Under the aegis of the Ministry of Defence, State Governments may encourage opening NCC wings in their secondary and higher secondary schools, including those located in tribal-dominated areas • BED will be of four years now and selection of teachers will be more strict • Indian education segment to get 6% of GDP, previously it was 1.7%

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YOUNG ACHIEVERS

Rishabh Java- A lesson in Ideas, Passion and Perseverance

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16-year-old boy with a love for making things, Rishabh Java started making things when he was 7 after being inspired by a Hindi movie on robots. A few projects he has worked on recently, which he is particularly proud of, include a low-cost 3D printed mind or voice-controlled bionic arm that is currently being used by an amputee in India, a six-feet tall humanoid robot, a range of mind-controlled toys intended as a futuristic method of treating ADHD and a virtual presence robot.

In 2017, he presented at the BETT Show in the UK and was later invited as a “Special Guest” to a Microsoft launch event in New York.

In 2018, he led an initiative called Hunger for Knowledge, where he worked with the Singex, a Singapore company, to create content for students in third world countries. Singex invited him to their exhibitions such as IoT Asia, iTap and FinTech, where he visited all exhibitors and listened to as many talks as he could to make short videos for kids in the third world countries to learn about new technologies such as Blockchain, machine learning, robotics, additive manufacturing, Fintech and IoT. He also used his self-made virtual presence robot to virtually give the children a tour of these international exhibitions

while they were physically thousands of miles away!

He founded, and is currently the CEO of, Broccoli Brains in 2019, which is the World’s First subscription-based mind-controlled gaming platform that also treats ADHD. His company Broccoli Brains with a team of 8 people working under him has had a successful round of crowd funding and has a patent under process.

Rishabh also conducted workshops on the basics of Arduino for school students and workshops on making mind-controlled toys for people of all ages. He was a speaker at Campus Party in Singapore, has given a TEDx talk about his project, has moderated multiple panel discussions at SMF 2019, IoT Asia 2018 and delivered the closing plenary at SMF 2019, one of the region’s biggest forums for the MICE industry about the above mentioned Hunger for Knowledge project.

Currently, Rishabh is designing a commercial power controller for a Swedish Gaming company and working on an aircraft parking tool as a special project for The Emirates Airline.

We got in touch with this young genius who brims with a passion for learning and building new things, sharing his lessons, and tinkering with new technology. We asked him a couple of questions and he answered them with the vision and poise that befits a young techpreneur.

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In one word, describe your life as an entrepreneur.

Opportunist I firmly believe in never missing out on opportunities.

When an opportunity presents itself to me, I strive to get the most out of it. As a youngster, to scale heights, be it in any field, it is imperative to utilize your opportunities to the maximum.

As an entrepreneur, what is it that motivates and drives you?

Making a better tomorrow, I passionately believe in the philosophy ‘If today were my last day, what would I want to be remembered for, what would I do and what change would I bring’. It is this thinking that drives me to do what I do as an Entrepreneur and the reason I build what I build.

The immense satisfaction you feel when something you have whole-heartedly and dedicatedly worked upon yields the result you expected is incomparable. Even when it does not, which is the case more often than not, the learning in the process more than compensates for the satisfaction I would have otherwise received and is often sufficient to keep me going.

with, and sometimes still do, but adopting a systematic approach towards this decision making is what changed a lot for me. I often list down the pros and cons of every choice, write them down if I have to, then practically weigh them against each other until I know which is the right one. I do follow my gut instinct occasionally, irrespective of what may seem its benefits, experience has taught doing so every time is not going to fly.

How do you handle adversity and doubt?

I am a practical person, having worked on multiple projects and having faced endless dilemmas. Apart from gaining experience, I have developed methods of taking tough decisions and helping me make the right choice.

Making up my mind was something I had always struggled

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How did you build your team? How do you motivate your team to be optimistic?

My team, currently consisting of individuals from 6 different countries, were pieced together member after member. Like any founder should, I am extremely proud of the team we have built, every member is special in their own way and brings something completely unique to the table. We all complement each other very well, making an incredibly positive work environment.

All members of my team are a part of the New York Academy of Sciences. The institution runs a highly selective program for young and upcoming innovators and problem solvers. Through the program, they unite these students to work together on challenges and find practical solutions to first-world problems. It was through this international collaboration on projects on the Academy’s

platform that we found each other and when I introduced my project idea to them, each one of them was more than excited to work with me on it as they believed in the purpose we were serving and believed in the need to solve the problem.

Keeping my team optimistic isn’t normally a challenge as each one of them is usually as energetic as driven by a motor. Although we do have our pitfalls, like when we don’t win the challenge we really worked, at such instances, just have to remind them what the big picture is.

But, if a certain member of our team is particularly caught up with something (which is often school or college as we all still young), that is something everyone on the team is extremely understanding about we know how to cover for each other.

What would you say are the key elements for starting and running a successful business?

Firstly, and most importantly, you should strongly believe in and work on whatever product or service you are building like it is the next big thing. You should have a clear vision and a strong passion for what you are trying to

do because if that is not the case you will not enjoy what you are doing and the quality of work and its outcome will show that lack of passion.

I cannot lay enough to the importance of a good team and a positive work environment. It is impossible for you to do it all and so it is absolutely essential that you surround yourself with people with whom you can.

Finally, it is important you have the right mentor. The guidance you get really influence what you do; not having any guidance is much worse.

What made you start Broccoli Brains? How did you know you had the right idea?

I started making things at 7, grew up teaching myself a lot from CAD modelling, building circuits to programming microcontrollers. Simply put, I have always had a passion for learning a new skill or about new technology and building things with them. In the past, I have worked on a 30$ mind-controlled prosthetic arm, built UAE’s First life-size 3D printed humanoid robot and often build small robots with various applications for fun or just for the heck of it even. It was in such one wandering on the internet,

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I passionately believe in the philosophy ‘If today were my last day, what would I want to be remembered for, what would I do and what change would I bring’. It is this thinking that drives me to do what I do as an Entrepreneur and the reason I build what I build

looking for something new, did I come across the technology known as EEG. To my surprise, EEG or Electroencephalography, which gives electronics the ability to read your brainwaves has been around for almost 100 years now (1931).

With it becoming commercially available since 2011. On learning about this, I just knew this was something I had to experiment with. This got me started with the technology, putting it to use came next.

Rather unconventional, with this project I had adopted a top down approach having worked on the device and technology itself before finding an application. I first developed the range of mind-controlled toys and while experimenting with them, I realized focusing on the toys while experimenting was changing how I would concentrate on things while doing schoolwork for example. This got me thinking and I realized it was possible, playing with the toys was getting me to practice my concentration, hence possibly improving my brain’s ability to focus. I discussed this with my school’s principal who is qualified at child psychology and helped me start testing these claims. While the device seemed promising and I had discovered improving concentration can help students with ADHD, next I had to make sure the impact was substantial and this required me incorporating into a company after almost 3 years of working on the device itself.

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As far as knowing if I had the right idea goes, honestly, I still do not. All I know is this is something I truly believe in, it has shown a lot of potential to work and am willing to put in what it takes to find out if this is it and I won’t stop until I know.

What is it that you do at Club NGN UAE? Next Generation Nations (“NGN”) is an international organization that addresses socio-economic global issues that challenge humanity. They do so by empowering the youth through student-led high schools clubs currently set up in 6 different countries. I am working with this organization as the national president for UAE, helping set up clubs and directing activities in various schools across the country.

What are some of the common misconceptions people have about young entrepreneurs?

How have you turned the non-believers into believers?

The most common misconception is that young entrepreneurs are not serious and are not dedicated. Often people tend to think whatever we are working on is just a school project or something for our college application.

They tend to not believe in us and underestimate the potential of what we are working on. This is quite a major problem and often difficult to overcome, but if you really want something any non-believer will be able to overlook you age and your hard work will shine through whatever is causing them to have reservations.

How do you think technology has redefined the boundaries of education?

Technology has redefined the boundaries of education in more ways than one. Be it content taught or how the content is delivered, technology has had a massive influence on all of it. It has allowed students to learn more than they ever could. It allows for a lot of self-driven learning. Whatever students wish to know or want to learn about they can do so immediately. I feel this has definitely increased the knowledge that these kids have and the learning opportunities they have access to. Next, technology has made classes much more effective, I say that because technology and smart devices in classrooms help accommodate all the different kind of learners. The classes have never been as interactive and teachers can track the progress of their students much more easily. I don’t think I need to mention the role technology is playing during the lockdown. It is the sole path for learning to continue during these times. Even the STEM classes I am conducting are only possible due to online conferencing platforms and the tons of STEM resources available online.

What is your advice to young entrepreneurs who are starting out?

Your age is just a number. Age does not matter as long as you are passionate about what you do. There will be challenges and as I mentioned earlier people tend to not take you seriously, but it is up to you to pursue what you believe in. You have lesser responsibilities than someone a lot older and so use that advantage to take the risks and trust me the results will reflect the efforts you have put in .

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MENTOR’S MANTRA

Emotional Intelligence-The Social Skills That You Weren’t Taught at School Neera Kohli, Founder, The New Me

A retired vice principal of a reputed school in Delhi.

Neera brings to the table 33+ years of academics and administrative responsibility. She is the brains behind the concept, “The New Me”, a personality development program for students. Today, she is a teacher trainer, conducting workshops for educators since 2014 and a resource person with CBSE. She also works closely with various publishers. She is also involved in preparing modules as per a particular school’s request to conduct workshops for both students and teachers. As a master trainer for “happy classrooms”, she aims to reach out to as many teachers & provide the insights to take back to classrooms.

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itting and chatting with another peer teacher the other day, we were discussing the teaching and learning processes of yesteryears. The teachers’ core competencies were subject-based and knowledge-oriented.

In an attempt to not compare with the present-day pedagogy, somehow the conversation delved more into the skills needed and what was learnt in the 21st century- both by the learners and the educators. Whilst we were enjoying and grasping the fact that many of these skills were not taught to us in schools- it was heartening to acknowledge that these skills are the heart and soul of our education forte.

While we were more focused on marks, subject, learning objectives earlier, today, the focus is on more humanistic education. The emotions play a vital role in our lives that are comprised of feelings, mental state, behaviour, reactions and coping skills- this highlights the importance of ‘Emotional intelligence’. This is done by not just managing one’s emotions, but of others too.

The very basis of emotional intelligence entails two competencies, personal and social competencies. The first would lead us to 1. Self-awareness, by accurately perceiving one’s own emotions 2. Self-management, where management of emotions and behaviour productively is focused.

Social competency would include 1. Social awareness, where one accurately understands and perceive emotions and behaviour of others

2. Relationship management, that includes impacting others and working effectively.

The corporates skills of ‘networking’ are in one way or other imbued in emotional intelligence, which was never taught in our schools nor did the educators understand it so Deeply.

In order to regulate the concept of Emotional Intelligence today’s educators need to prepare a handy toolkit, so that her/his classroom is lively and interesting.

At the same time, the students imbibe their skills of interpersonal relationships, moderating the emotions and other learning outcomes. There are plenty constructive strategies to manage both positive and negative emotions and some of these can prove to be beneficial in bringing out the best in our students. For example: • Writing a journal • Mindful activities • Exercising or walks • Role of healthy diet& sleep • Friends • Interesting worksheets • Green zone posters or any other art activity • Dance or any rhythmic activity • Questionnaires • Watching a movie • Visit a museum • Try a new hobby The above discussion led all my peers to believe in Maya Angelou’s words “I have learnt that I still have to learn”. We have not learnt many things in our younger days, but life’s experiences build us block by block and thereby enrich us.

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