Generally around this time of the year parents start looking for schools, for the next academic year. With growing number of schools, offering different curriculum, it is not easy to decide which one is best for our children. So, in this article we have come up with 5 important things to keep in mind for finalizing the school.
1. Board/ Syllabus
From past few years different boards are gaining popularity in India. Do your homework to understand each of them and then decide which is best suited for your child.
Popular boards in India are CBSE, CISCE, IB and different State Boards. You can read our article to know more about these boards here.
Generally parents who want international standard of education incline towards IB. Those who wants more emphasis on language skills along with science and math will prefer CISCE/ICSE board. Parents who want their children to appear for Indian National level entrance exams in future, will choose CBSE board.
Having said that, New Education Policy 2020 is expected to give broader scope to National boards to make it on par with International standards. So, don’t forget to consider this while choosing the syllabus.
You can read what to expect in NEP 2020 here.
2. Commutation
a. Commutation Time
Proximity matters! Research says that long school commutes have adverse effect on child’s overall well being. If your child has to spend 1 hour in the morning to commute to school, then it means something very essential for his healthy growth (like sleep, exercise, fresh healthy breakfast ) is compromised.
From safety and emergency point of view also it is advisable to choose the schools which are in close proximity to your place.
b. Commutation Options
Most of the schools provide ‘Bus’ facility but that comes with additional charges. Some schools are flexible enough to accommodate and charge for only one side commutation.
Usually fee structure for commutation is generalized like 0 to 5km certain amount, 5 to 10 km slightly higher amount, etc. So have a look at these things and also talk to School administration about the flexible options provided. This helps you to decide as per your convenience and budget.
3. School Reputation
While choosing school make sure the decision is not influenced by your “Prestige Factor”. Sometimes the perceived quality is not actually what you get!
What we mean by reputation here is checking certain basic things like
- Presence of hygienic child friendly infrastructure.
- All the mandatory facilities like Play ground, labs, library, Sports equipment, etc. should be available. Trained staff and proper mechanism to make best use of these things should be in place.
- Teacher to Student ratio should be as per the norms.
- Child safety environment and medical care.
4. Children and Parents Satisfaction Quotient
Not just the standard of education but the environment in which child receives it also matters. So it is important to know what parents and students are saying.
Take feedback from parents who are sending their kids to the school you are looking for. They can tell you more about teaching methodologies, quality of teaching and the care given to child, school’s stand on moral values and discipline, how open are they for the feedback, etc.
You can also speak to the older children of the school and ask how happy and connected they feel.
5. Budget
Your budget and the school fees. There are additional charges along with tuition fees like commutation, food, uniform, books, school trips, extra curricular activities, competitive exams etc. In some cases, hidden charges as well.
So, collect information about all possible kind of charges and every year fees hike policies. This will help you to make informed decision on whether you can sustain the fee hikes in the long run.
We hope with the above information you will be able to make best school choice for your child.
