The University Grants Commission National Eligibility Test 2018 (UGC NET) is scheduled to start from December 19 across the country.
UGC NET is conducted for determining the eligibility of Indian nationals for the post of Assistant Professor or Junior Research Fellowship in Indian universities and colleges.
This year, the examination will be conducted as a Computer Based Test (CBT). The entire test will consist of two papers. Both the papers will consist of only objective type questions and will have to be attempted with a break of 30 minutes between them.
To be conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA), on the behalf of UGC, the whole procedure of (UGC NET) is expected to last five days.
Across the country, examinations centres in 94 cities have been set up.
The mission ‘Inspiring Excellence’, the motto of Ajanta Public School, is a reflection of its ethos and a desire to usher a new era of knowledge, says Vaibhav Kapoor, Principal, Ajanta Public School, Gurugram, in conversation with Elets News Network (ENN).
Tell us a bit about Ajanta Public School’s initial journey and its guiding mission.
Vaibhav Kapoor, Principal, Ajanta Public School, Gurugram
Ajanta Public School was established in 1999, with a dream to enlighten the torch of education in the lives of children in Gurugram and to empower them with the power of knowledge. As we provide quality education to all the students, our focus revolves around imparting value based learning, we want to create good leaders and digital citizens for a digitalised nation.
The Mission ‘INSPIRING EXCELLENCE’, the motto of APS, is a reflection of its ethos and a desire to usher a new era of knowledge wherein every child, however different, has the right to education.A mission to give equal opportunities to each and every child for personal growth through ‘value added’ education.
Tell us something about the industry best practices being followed at Ajanta public School (APS) to nurture students’ inherent talent and potential.
Our school aims to help children develop their physical, mental, emotional, psychic, and spiritual facets through learning by exploration and discovery. To nurture student’s inherent talent and potential we, at Ajanta, enforce certain practices ,which are as follows:
We are a MASP school, with innovative and latest technology. Teachers at Ajanta share their notes online and teach the students using Bloom’s Taxonomy, core skills, critical thinking through ONE-NOTE.
We provide access of different clubs to our students so that they can become efficient professionals. HACT club, English Language lab, Yammer and Minecraftare to support our students for actively working in a competitive way, to solve problems and challenges. Teachers use this as an opportunity to build digital citizenship skills among students. Another skill we seek to develop in students is using appropriate tools in a strategic way.
Scholarship is provided to our sports enthusiast students along with the guidance and coaching by professional and well learned coaches during morning and evening hours.
Tell us about the assessment methods being followed at APS and how they give a holistic idea of a candidate’s performance?
Today’s students need to know not only the basic reading and arithmetic skills, but also skills that will allow them to face a world that is continually changing. They must be able to think critically, to analyse, and to make inferences. Changes in the skills base and knowledge that our students need, require new learning goals; these new learning goals change the relationship between assessment and instruction. Entire syllabus is divided in such a way where learning becomes natural for the students. Formative, Summative, Class-test and oral assessments are conducted to validate the learning outcome of each student.
What are the IT-based solutions being adopted by APS for students?
A Digitalised nation requires more educated youth who can be enabled in many fields including education and will adopt IT based solutions for holistic development of students. Ajanta being a MASP school provide a platform to its students with the various tools available through Microsoft to get a better hand on knowledge about technology in coming future.
Going forward, what are the key priorities of APS?
We aspire to become one of the “Green democratic and participatory school “, that provides an excellent opportunity to its students to become global citizens who march forward to create this world a better place to live in. We want to create awareness and use of council recycling facilities to improve district recycling rate. Saving Environment is the top most priority of our institution. We have adopted and inculcated “SDG-GOALS” to bring an ecofriendly change in society with its 17 projects
St. Teresa School intends to make its students full of optimism so that they develop positive traits and thus enrich their skills consistently, says R R Khanna, Director, St. Teresa School, and Vijay Kumar Gulati, Director, St. Teresa School, Ghaziabad, in an interview with Elets News Network (ENN).
What is the vision and mission of the school?
R R Khanna, Director, St. Teresa School, GhaziabadVijay Kumar Gulati, Director, St. Teresa School, Ghaziabad
St. Teresa, with its motto of trust, serve and love, focus on value education so that the students are reinforced with the conviction to achieve their maximum potential. St. Teresa aspires to enable each child to handle the vicissitudes of the life boldly by providing an amalgamation of ethics and values. Such a blend of embellished and ethical education empowers students to deal effectively with their environment, and successfully discerning available opportunities for a balanced, humanitarian and empathetic approach.
Education for us is not just the knowledge from books and learning about morals and values, rather it is more about infusing moral principles in a child. The prime focus of the school is to transform the tedium of classroom teaching into a creative and experiential learning process through our rigorous student centric approach.
What practices does St. Teresa School follow to boost students’ innate talent and potential?
We are committed to nurturing our students as the ones who can serve the society. To fulfil the learning needs of every student, we have adopted a diagnostic approach and allotted first 50 minutes of each day for the same. During this time, teachers assess weak areas of students to work upon, resulting into transformation of an individual as a confident graduate than being a dependent individual. It also helps us to connect with the students individually and assess their learning levels.
Our prime focus is on self-driven learning of different topics. It is done by stimulating curiosity among students. The research done by students to understand a topic helps them to resolve their queries automatically and learn a concept in the best possible way.
Peer instruction, group discussions, and collaborative problem solving is actively taken upon by involving all the students of a class directly. Such activities provide students a platform that recognises their approach towards any challenge or problem.
St. Teresa, with its motto of trust, serve, and love, focuses on value education so that the students are reinforced with the conviction to achieve their maximum potential.
What sort of Information Technology (IT) based solutions have been adapted by St. Teresa School to improvise learning experience for students?
As being committed to groom the students with all possible aids, Information Technology is included in school curriculum not only as a subject but as medium of imparting education and active learning. Our school is equipped with smart boards, projectors, language and computer labs. Technology is very helpful for students to learn languages, concepts of science, mathematics and social sciences. In our 3D Science Theatre, we have adapted flip learn technique.
Our teachers are connected with parent through Edumagix App for online exchange of student related information. In addition to that, comprehensive CCTV surveillance of campus, GPS & CCTV enabled buses ensure safety of enrolled students.
What measures have been undertaken by the St. Teresa School to keep its teachers abreast with the latest methodologies and teaching paradigms for students’ grooming as future leaders?
To nurture confident personalities, a school requires efficient and well trained mentors. For this, the school organises in-house seminars for teachers with renowned guides to train them. The school also ensures participation of teachers in seminars and workshops organised by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). It helps teachers to upgrade their skills and provide them an edge over others.
How is St. Teresa School working on nurturing life skills s they are being encouraged across the globe along with studies?
For holistic development of students, it is important to inculcate life skills among students along with academics. We have a wide array of curricular and extracurricular programmes to develop students with multi-faceted personalities.
Our physical education programme is designed to inculcate the true sportsman spirit and discipline. We support students to nurture their hidden talents, making them a global citizen aiming at providing international exposure to our students.
Our collaboration with Ghana, Nigeria, Jordan, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Malaysia is an opportunity for the students to imbibe best global practices. As we are resolute to shape out globally competitive students, our approach includes diverse ways of improvement and perfection. We have also collaborated with The International Award for Young People (IAYP) and Ted-Ed for the same.
SchoolHandy is a unique platform for real-time communication and exchanging information that enables real-time and seamless communication between schools, teachers and parents, says Chirag Palande, Founder and CEO, SchoolHandy, in conversation with Elets News Network (ENN).
It looks SchoolHandy comes very handy in case of parents missing any education-related useful information. What inspired you to introduce such a useful app?
Chirag Palande, Founder and CEO, SchoolHandy
The thought of introducing SchoolHandy came over a dinner table discussion. We as a parent were conversing about the communication gap between schools, teachers and parents and the possible solution for bridging the existing gap to get more involved in our daughters’ academic progress.
Today, in spite of the advent of internet, social media, apps and smartphones have revolutionised the way we communicate, there still is a large gap while communicating between schools and parents. Hence, we came up with an idea of bridging this gap by introducing SchoolHandy.
SchoolHandy is a unique platform for real-time communication and exchanging information. It has cutting-edge technology that enables real-time and seamless communication between schools, teachers and parents.
How would you describe SchoolHandy app? Do you feel such an innovative approach is the need of the hour?
SchoolHandy is a comprehensive cloud-based application. The app helps you stay connected via digital communications and real-time chat forums. It is designed as a perfect tool because kids do not always relay important messages and parents do not always remember every notice that schools issues.
It is vital to address the growing concern over the safety of kids and the quest for increased interaction between parents and teachers regarding knowledge on the kid’s development at school. That was the motivation for developing SchoolHandy.
What are the prominent features of this app?
Being home to a gamut of services, this online school ERP system enables users to access multiple functionalities available on the App once they register. It helps teachers in recording attendance in a hassle-free manner with its online attendance management system. It also helps parents in receiving important notices that schools send from time to time which the children may fail to notice. This enables parents to monitor school activities resulting in better preparation of children, avoiding the last-minute rush. Most importantly, SchoolHandy has a “Live School Bus Tracking” feature. It means both parents and school authorities would be in a position to track the movement of children on their way to school and on their trip back home.
This unique App also provides one-to-one chat platform and real-time update on forum discussions. This feature results in quicker resolution of queries. SchoolHandy also comes with the option of paying fee online.
Please share your vision with regards to SchoolHandy app.
Our vision is to grow SchoolHandy as a No.1 technology platform in the country to aid the quality of education, embracing changing technologies and leaning latest developments orbiting around the needs of students, parents and teachers.
With the concept of Mobile Kids gaining currency, do you think apps can be an ultimate game changer in education?
It is an undeniable fact that parents’ expectations vis-à-vis society has been having a peaking effect on children. We often come across reports about children crumbling under pressure and fear. So, it is time we find out innovative solutions for making learning exciting and smarter for children.
It is important for children to understand their real self. They should choose the right path as per their innate talents. While treading such a path, they may face a lot of troubles. But their grit and dedication hold the key to overcome challenges and be successful, writes Smita Dhawan, Head, The Chintels School, Kalyanpur, Kanpur, for Elets News Network (ENN).
Smita Dhawan, Head, The Chintels School, Kalyanpur, Kanpur
Children should always remember — You are loved and loved a lot by your parents, by your teachers, your siblings (even if you fight a lot), your true friends and the Almighty. You are a masterpiece, with some flaws which every human has and even Gods who incarnated as humans had.
You are born unique. There is no one on this planet like you. No one has exactly the same talents, likes, dislikes or a personality like you have. Respect others’ individuality without losing yours. Never be afraid to be yourself, and keep improving towards being a better human being.
Stand up for what’s right, even when it seems hard. Crowd of ordinary people follows the easiest route to rise. The difficult route is followed by real heroes of life. Be strong and courageous. Don’t be afraid to choose the right thing, even when your friends are choosing the wrong one.
Don’t let others define you. Take criticism from the ones who love you in a positive manner. There will always be people who will say and do mean things. They will want you to be like them. They will try to take away your self-confidence. Don’t let them. Be what God created you to be, not who someone else tells you to be.
Be a judge of truth by yourself. The world is going to feed you all sorts of lies about strength, money, self-worth and relationships. Do not blindly believe them. Seek your parents or God when you are confused about worldly matters.
On your roller coaster journey of life, you will make many mistakes, and it’s OK. No one is an embodiment of perfection. When you mess up, pick yourself up and get back in the game. Learn from your mistakes and move forward.
Always remember! Everyone is gifted some unique talent. You are one of them. Never give up.
With an idea, a vision, a dream to impart quality education to children, the Chintels School was established in the year 1989. The school defines a child’s first decision, the first feel of the sense of responsibility, his/her first achievement, the first failure and the first lesson of perseverance.
Nandita Basak, Principal, The Chintels School
At Chintels, with the motto of “Always More, Always Better” of Jyoti (Light), Preeti (Love), Shanti (Peace) and Neeti (Justice), we strive to make this journey of our children a valuable learning experience. With hard work, grit and courage, we are continuously progressing with achievements, laurels and new feathers being added to our cap with every passing day—and there is no looking back! Our children are putting their best foot forward and moving ahead in all spheres, their wings are taking flight yet they are grounded. No matter how high we as an institute or our children as individuals soar high, our hearts and minds will be rooted and humility will never over power success.
At The Chintels School, Our approach is fully child-centric. By child centric we do not believe in information being spoon-fed but making learning a lifetime experience, making the children think on their own and make their own wise choices. Below is a motivating poem on how adults can be a support but at the end it’s the child who has to lead his own life.
YOUR DECISION
‘We care, we teach you to share, we even tell you to dare, for your bright future we prepare’.
Dear children, your family, your school, your well wishers can show you the path but how you trot on it would be YOUR DECISION.
We can teach you the difference between virtue and vice but making the choice would be YOUR DECISION.
We can give you liberty but protecting it, would be YOUR DECISION.
We can teach you to respect but will you work with dignity to get that respect would be YOUR DECISION.
We can counsel you about your friends, but choosing your true friend would be YOUR DECISION.
We can teach you about charity but been generous would be YOUR DECISION.
We can guide you through the journey of thorns but will you walk or quit would be YOUR DECISION.
We can warn you against intoxication but to act responsibly would be YOUR DECISION.
Ryan group focuses on developing the student’s capabilities from a global perspective by instilling self-confidence in order to be able to contribute to community life, says Grace Pinto, Managing Director, Ryan International Group of Institutions, in an interview with Elets News Network (ENN).
From its first school in Mumbai in 1976, today, Ryan Group of Institutions is now a renowned name in the education sector, how is the journey so far?
Grace Pinto, Managing Director, Ryan International Group of Institutions
Establishing India’s premier education brand at par with the global standards was not easy. It involved a vision that has taken the Ryan Group from its fledgling beginnings to soar like an eagle across the globe. By the grace of God who empowered and enabled us to impart value based holistic education, we are able to nurture socially responsible humane leaders.
We are also grateful to every stakeholder that includes our dear students, the staff, parents’ community and all our well-wishers who have been our strong support right from the beginning. Every challenge we faced, presented an opportunity to learn and grow and march forward with greater commitment and determination. Ensuring that all our schools are fine-tuned with the latest trends in education has greatly helped us grow and remain ahead of the curve.
What are the industry-best practices followed at Ryan Group of Institution to nurture students’ innate talent and potential?
Besides being spiritual and value-based, our commitment is to ensure an effective teaching-learning process largely based on holistic development through a relevant child-centered pedagogy. Our objective is to nurture children who not only excel academically, but also beyond academics to become empowered citizens.
With the help of pedagogical experts, our curriculum has enrichment activities that not only focus on enhancing academic capabilities of students but also provide them a stimulating environment that addresses their cognitive, physical, emotional, and social needs. We are helping the students to grow holistically. Our teaching methodologies nurture traits like decision-making, critical thinking and collaboration among students. We help students enhancing their knowledge and skills through hands on and practical learning. The same is ensured through interactive sessions with professionals from different industries. Technology is transforming the practices in education sector.
Our approach is to provide a holistic education to our students. Our journey of four decades has been marked with innovation and pioneering of several significant events to develop leadership and excellence amongst students.
How Ryan group is leveraging the technology for holistic development of its students?
The Ryan Group was the first group of schools to include computer education in the curriculum, way back in the early 90’s. This came from the school’s philosophy of embedding technology into schools. We believe in embracing change and leveraging it to make education more engaging and meaningful. We have partnered with leading edu-tech players like Google, Microsoft in order to support our vision to nurture future ready students.
Also, many of our schools have established NITI Aayog’s Atal Tinkering Labs (ATL) to foster curiosity, creativity and imagination among students. Tech driven teaching methodologies like Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) and flipped classrooms make learning student-driven. Further, the Ryan Parent App plays a key role in teacherparent communication.
We have also developed our Learning Management System (LMS) called Personalised Learning and Assessment Tool (PLATO) which is used in many schools. This tool has been developed in collaboration with a leading ed-tech company and gives Ryanites a definitive cuttingedge for board and competitive exams.
How do the schools under Ryan’s umbrella inculcate global citizenship, appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture’s contribution to sustainable development in its students?
In order to provide a holistic global exposure to our students, we have in place various national and international events that stimulate interest among them to learn beyond the classroom walls. At Ryan, there are structured student exchange programmes as part of the learning process such as Thames Valley Summer School, London; Swiss Exchange; and Theater Werkstatt Zitronengelb, Brixen, Italy.
Ryan Pennhub Partnership allows students a global platform to explore opportunities in higher education as well as summer internships and study programmes. As of now, the Ryan Group sends the largest number of students annually to NASA for their in-house study programme on areas like rocketry and space studies.
We also invite students from various countries to come and spend time with ours to encourage global cultural understanding. Recently performing arts groups from various countries like Czech Republic, Spain, UK, Swaziland, Ethiopia and Zimbabwe camped in our school campuses and spent time with the students helping each other to know about various art forms.
We have created these opportunities for exchange programmes with our international affiliations to encourage Ryanites to travel and be up to date on global ideologies and academic culture.
What are the measures taken by the Ryan Group of Institutions to keep its teachers abreast with the latest methodologies?
The process of learning is not monotonous in our schools. This is mainly because we have adequately focused on the aspect of “train the trainer”. It is true that the role of a teacher has radically changed over the years. We believe that a teacher’s role is not relegated to the sidelines or substituted by the technology instead the role has become even more critical in the current scenario.
At Ryan, we have invested heavily in the professional development of our teachers (both in-house and external) and also work with leading pedagogical experts from all over the world. This is to ensure that our teaching-learning process remains relevant keeping up with the current trends. It guides our students to absorb the “Future Ready Skills” such as collaboration, critical thinking, communication and research.
The process of learning is not monotonous in our schools. This is mainly because we have adequately focused on the aspect of “train the trainer”. It is true that the role of a teacher has radically changed over the years.
How Ryan Group of Institutions is focussing on nurturing life skills along with academics among its students?
Our approach is to provide a holistic education to our students. Our journey of four decades has been marked with innovation and pioneering of several significant events to develop leadership and excellence amongst students. It includes:
International Children’s Festival of Performing Arts (ICFPA) – India’s largest performing art platform with participation from over 20,000 children and 25 countries
Indian Model United Nations (INMUN) – India’s first and largest UN simulation and Ryan TV – where children are provided programmes to learn about media studies, TV journalism, film making and camera handling.
In the field of sports, the group has collaborated with the best in the industry like Mahesh Bhupathy, Baichung Bhutia, Anil Kumble among others, to bring world class coaching to children. Music, art, drama, debates and competitions are a regular feature in our school calendar. Through various events and activities, we identify the unique talents of the children early and ensure these students are provided with right training, support, motivation to develop their talents and skills appropriately.
What is the vision and mission of the school?
Enduring our legacy of shaping lives and developing global citizens, we will continue to live our vision and provide education that prepares our youth to face life’s realities and challenges, while continuing to be lifelong learners, in order to reach one’s rightful place in the modern world. It is our vision to extend Ryan Group’s educational reach to international frontiers as well as to introduce learning opportunities in all corners of the nation. We make every possible effort to reach towns and cities we are not present and also to make education accessible in every nook and corner of the country. We want to remain the “School of Choice” for parents everywhere in the country.
Springdale High School, Jorhat (Assam) believes in instilling lifelong skills in children and helping them to succeed in all spheres of life, says Shahnaz Ahmed, Founder-Chairperson, Springdale High School, Jorhat, in conversation with Elets News Network (ENN).
How do you see the use of technology for improving the learning outcomes for students and how your school employs technology for this cause?
Shahnaz Ahmed, Founder-Chairperson, Springdale High School, Jorhat
Today, technology is the need of the day as it guides teachers and students with great resources, new opportunities for learning, ways to create and collaborate on newer paradigms and cut costs too. Definitely, it is a very powerful tool for education. Usage of technology enhances a child to stay engaged and have quicker and faster access to information. Students remember the idea of content for a longer time through illustrations. Flow of knowledge is enhanced at every level with video-conferencing and use of digital devices.
Our school uses the smart classes of Xtra marks and it has definitely helped our students to be active learners and quick participators. For instance, while reading a short story they can choose between just reading or simultaneously listen to a story. They can create a traditional story or create a website or make a video or a PPT presentation. While teaching lessons on each topic it is very important to provide background information and showing it to the students and then delivering a lecture. Trying these methods I have realised that instead of giving and showing PPT lectures, it is best to make a blend of both for an effective outcome-based education. It aptly confirms to the maxim, “I hear and I forget. I see I remember.”
A good school must have good student-teacher coordination, what methods do you follow to maintain a healthy coordination between teachers and students?
Our teachers get to know the students by their names as quickly as possible. Knowing students by their names, likes-dislikes, hobbies, goals etc. not only increases the relationship between a teacher and a student but also helps a student to value his/her importance. Providing positive comments or appreciations when appropriate also helps the student to become frank with the teacher.
As the teachers demonstrate their interest and joy in the teaching, it shows that the students enjoy being in the classroom and implies enjoying being with the students. We avoid the use of threats and punishments. We use a time-out procedure rather than punishments when students do something that is disruptive. Sometimes, the teacher becomes the student and asks one of the students to become the teacher for that particular day.
In order to maintain a good learning environment at schools, what activities along with studies are conducted at your school?
Co-Scholastic activities are given equal importance for the holistic development of the children. Exhibitions, sports and observing important days are a part of the school curriculum. A balance of work and play is taken care of in the school as the school believes that “All work and no play make Jack a dull boy”.
Instead of explaining students draw a story. Teachers draw out ideas with images or symbols which enhances the students to help the brain work faster. Brainstorming session with students also help them to unleash their thinking capabilities.
Maths in the lower classes is taught in a very innovative way with the help of self –prepared rhymes which go like this:
Teacher: Where is the tens and where is the ones?”
Students: I don’t know, I don’t know.
Teacher: The tens is on the left side. The ones is on the right side.
Our mission is providing not only good but great education & striving towards academic excellence
With ever-changing dynamics of the education sector, how do you think, teachers are changing their way of imparting knowledge?
Today, teachers are encouraged to use a lot of social networking sites which help them to initiate critical discussions. The 21st-century education framework emphasises on establishing Professional Learning Communities (PLC). Teachers share visions, do collective learning, collaboration, peer-observation and are research-oriented.
In my elementary and middle schools, all same grade level teachers have a common preparation time each day. At high school, all teachers within a single department share the same prep time which allows teachers to work closely with colleagues and encourage them to engage in ongoing discussions about their curriculum and how to meet the needs of each learner.
What is your vision and mission for upcoming years?
Learning literally means knowledge acquired by studying. The years of a child in school are very critical for growth and development of an individual.
We, at Springdale intend and strive to ignite this fire in the minds and hearts of our children right from an early stage and consequently move ahead on the path of enlightenment of the entire world through education which comprises a series of achievements and accomplishments, each raising the individuals to a higher level of awareness, understanding and kinship with everything around them. Springdale education, guided by the school’s vision, mission and values was conceptualised by me and aims to prepare each student to be successful, engaged and informed citizens in the 21st century who are caring, knowledgeable, imaginative, innovative, hardworking and productive. To achieve that, we act on the principles of education upholding the school motto, “Truth”…”Determination”…and “Perseverance”, which are categorised into Head, Heart, Skills and Feet to better reflect the holistic development of each student in our care: Responsible, disciplined and dynamic learners (Head); Compassionate individuals with the passion to serve (Heart); Confident, adaptable and innovative individuals prepared for the challenges ahead (Skills); Resilient Citizens with Integrity (Feet).
Our main aim is to teach our ‘Springdalites’ to realise and take on their dreams…. That dreams are achievable!
Our mission is focused on many more years of providing not only good but great education & striving towards academic excellence. Going forward, we shall continue in our endeavours towards building a better future for our students.
A school is actually a home away from home for any student. During student life most of the waking hours of any student are spent at school, learning anything and everything in various dimensions from books, teachers, peers and even school environs, writes Ahmad Shariq Khan of Elets News Network (ENN).
There is no denying how significant a school is in shaping up a student’s personality and holistic learning process. Like an experienced teacher and teaching pedagogy play a critical role in shaping students’ academic lives, infrastructure is also vital. It creates a favourable environment for students’ holistic development. It’s a common knowledge that every parent wants to spend money where their kids feel safe and secure while learning and enjoying their student life. They wish to ensure the schools have ample safety standards and facilities to make learning a joy.
There are studies suggesting students in schools with poor infrastructure can have lower scores than those with access to better infrastructure facilities. This makes school infrastructure a key element in a child’s academic as well as holistic growth.
Besides, an overcrowded classroom and stressful environment also affect students’ learning capabilities. That’s why school-teacher ratio is also a key parameter for parents before they admit their wards to any specific school.
What Comprises School Infrastructure?
Some of the key components which should feature in an ideal checklist while assessing any school infrastructure are as follows:
Spacious and well- ventilated classrooms
Libraries
Playgrounds
Well-equipped labs
Facilities study tables, chairs, furniture and basic utilities such as water, electricity etc.
Study halls
Games equipment
Assembly area
Well-maintained sanitation facilities
Poor School Infrastructure, A Demotivator for Students
Going by the state-wise analysis of the National Achievement Survey 2017 for Class III, V and VIII, one can infer that across government and government-aided schools spread across the country, not only do school buildings need significant repair but they lack basic amenities. Worth noting is, as per the above–stated survey, 58% of the schools in Arunachal Pradesh, 43% in Assam, 35% in Uttar Pradesh, 30% in Bihar and Madhya Pradesh require significant building repairing.
Infrastructure Essentials for Schools
Besides basic amenities, here are a few important components that schools across India are trying to provide:
Libraries
A well-equipped library housing a wealth of useful books or informative and interesting video facilities, coupled with a motivating or mood-lifting ambiance not only attracts students but also develops a liking to study. It encourages exploring interesting things among students, especially in their formative years when the curiosity to know is intense among curious minds of children. Such places also serve as holding interactive sessions and exchanging knowledge among students, thereby enhancing students’ writing and reading skills.
These are the times of innovations which call for scientific temperament to be nurtured among students in their formative years. Thus, fully equipped and suitably-designed laboratories for various subjects be it physics, chemistry, biology or home science are very much the need of the hour. For is reason, this component has also gained prominence as a key component in any modern–age school infrastructure’s checklist.
Auditorium
In any school, an auditorium equipped with the latest multimedia technology can serve as an ideal platform to showcase not only students’ various performances but also be a good utility for conducting various educational programmes.
Sports Facilities
A school without having a scope to play and develop sporting skills can make or mar a school’s reputation in modern times. For, every child today views some or the other sports personality as his/ her ideal. Be it martial arts, swimming, cricket or skating, students wish to learn something at school itself to be better than their friends in the neighbourhood. Thus, availability of sports facilities, basketball courts, tennis courts, cricket pitch, skating rink, volleyball courts and an indoor gym are currently considered to be essential parts of any modern-day School’s infrastructure.
Certainly it’s an established fact that that a school with good infrastructure goes a long way in improving the interest of both – students and teachers alike in learning. It plays a role in improving the attendance of students too. For this same reason, it can be said that investments in school infrastructure play an enabling role in solving many access-related problems of students to the school system, thereby giving boost to their academic performance too.
While a school’s physical infrastructure holds an all-important role in providing a conducive environment in a student’s academic journey, another key facet is Digital Infrastructure, a key differentiator among schools that has truly transformed the delivery of educational content in schools, writes Ahmad Shariq Khan of Elets News Network (ENN).
If world over, online education is gaining popularity, so is the idea of IT-enabled learning in schools. In the last few years, across India, digital classrooms have gained prominence. These technology-enabled classrooms foster opportunities for teaching and learning by integrating learning technology, such as computers, specialised software, audience response technology, assistive listening devices, networking, and audio/visual capabilities are said to have met great success. And the trend is poised to gain further strength in the times to come.
Unlike traditional chalk and board methods, digital classrooms as medium of providing education are proving quite effective and visually attractive. While attracting audio-visual senses of students, digital classrooms have a better appeal among students.
Use of digital technology in education is steadily transforming whole concept of education delivery, making the very concept of ‘Show me and I understand’ a reality.
Following are the other important modes in which digital technology has been transforming the delivery of educational content in Indian schools in recent times.
ICT Labs/Multimedia Centre
State-of-the-art ICT laboratories/multimedia labs can play an enabling role in harnessing the use of technology for improving the learning outcomes for students. These also serve to create opportunities for latest styles of learning, and ways to create and collaborate on cutting-edge IT-backed paradigms.
Interactive Whiteboard
With the use of interactive whiteboards, a teacher can now project any subject on the touch-sensitive whiteboard surface with the help of a projector and a computer, they can conduct lessons using their finger or with a pen or stylus. Thus, whiteboards have replaced the whole idea of a traditional blackboard nowadays.
Interactive Projector
The interactive projector, which is a portable solution, helps to convert any surface (existing projector screens, whiteboards, or wall surface) into an interactive surface. Along with it, an interactive pen which can be used to draw, point or click just by touching the screen directly is now becoming popular in many schools across the country.
Big Interactive LED/LCD Panels
These days many schools are implementing big Interactive LED/LCD Panels to help enhance the digital learning endeavours of their students. Since digital learning often involves audio and video presentations, 2D and 3D animations, graphics etc. a smart classroom that is digitally equipped with big interactive LED or LCD panels come very handy for this specific cause.
Digital Podium
A digital podium is a modern-day lecture stand that comes equipped with various media components/devices that enable an uninterrupted learning session. Some of its sub-components are a public addressing system fitted with amplifier, speaker and mic etc.
Digital Library and Automation of Libraries
Digital libraries and e-books have facilitated access to a wealth of knowledge available online that can now be accessed with the help of a mobile phone, tablet or laptop, anywhere, anytime, with an Internet connection.
E-diary: Connecting Parents and School
Such an online portal which is available 24 hours a day, keeps parents up-to-date with their children’s activities and progress, and also in touch with the teachers concerned.
Educational Games
In many instances, games as a means of teaching, especially video games have been found to help develop students’ creative thinking, their ability to deal with complex situations and their successful resolution, as well as help enhance their critical thinking. These days, a number of schools are using such tools to enhance students’ learning capabilities.
Classroom Activity Management Software
Introduction of such software facilitates the teacher-student communication, because it makes it easy for the teachers to see on their computers what the students are doing on their devices, or share their screen with them and vice versa. Along with this, an SMS notification system, usually connected to the e-diary, provides the parents with the possibility of receiving timely information on their children’s performance, activities. This bolsters the communication process between parents, students and teachers too.
Homework Submission and Review Software
This software makes it easy for teachers to assign tasks, keep a record on them and of each student’s performance, while at the same time enabling students to organise their activities, do their assignments and submit them to the teachers – all of this can now be carried out via internet.
Wi-Fi Campus
To increase the access of digital content among students, a number of educational institutions these days are transforming their campuses into Wi-Fi Campuses that not only enhances the e-learning habits in students but also gives them an option to access Massive open online courses (MOOCs).
Cloud-based E-learning Initiatives
To expand the horizon of sharing knowledge with students and teachers on the same online education platform, cloud-based systems offer the perfect environment for a digital/virtual classroom as they offer seamless access to information, easily shareable data and foster a means for tracking multi-user collaborations. Besides, there are a host of benefits that a cloud based system offers. Firstly, since cloud based applications run on web browsers and are compatible with most mobile devices, there is no need for expensive hardware and schools and students need not own specific computers or laptops to access material. Even a cheap smartphone can allow students to access relevant academic applications. Furthermore, there is no need to invest in external storage devices since there are several platforms available that offer free cloud-based storage services.
Bio-metric Attendance System
Thanks to a bio-metric attendance system being implemented across many modern-day schools, much ease and transparency in the attendance system of not only students but also teaching and non-teaching staff is now being achieved. Given the very important role being played by digital technology in speeding up learning in schools and in transforming the delivery of educational content across schools and the phenomenon’s subsequent growth and acceptance across schools, it could certainly be said that schools that successfully join the bandwagon now and harness the technology for their advantage, hold a greater chance of enjoying the early-mover advantage in this segment.
In order to provide a holistic global exposure to our students, we have in place various national and international events that stimulate interest among them to learn beyond the classroom walls. At Ryan, there are structured student exchange programmes as part of the learning process such as Thames Valley Summer School, London; Swiss Exchange; and Theater Werkstatt Zitronengelb, Brixen, Italy.
Learning literally means knowledge acquired by studying. The years of a child in school are very critical for growth and development of an individual.
