Curriculum

Teaching

The Principle

At the nursery level, the child should be gradually made aware of the world outside him, so that he may by slow degrees stop being concerned with only his own needs and start thinking of other living beings and things around him, like his family and friends, plants, flowers, animals, and birds. This process of growing out of oneself must be made happy and pleasant through an abundance of colour, play, music, rhyme, and rhythm.
At the primary level, the imparting of knowledge in various forms has to begin through the study of languages, literature and other subjects. This acquisition of knowledge will obviously grow in volume and substance as the pupil begins his ascent up the steps of the secondary and higher secondary stages. What must not be lost sight of is that as the input of knowledge increases, so must the emphasis on the training of the mind – the power to think and judge for oneself. A responsible school or teacher must never forget that there is no necessary correlation between knowledge and wisdom, and that without wisdom one cannot be emancipated, i.e. freed from the bondage of the here and the now.
So, pupils should be encouraged to ask questions, voice their doubts, verify what they are told and taught. They must not be urged to accept at face value whatever they read or hear. They should be gently led to evaluate things in the light of their own experience, but at the same time be made aware of how these same things have been assessed by mankind over the centuries. Teachers must try to instil in the pupils a sense of perspective, a sense of right and wrong, and to make the pupils think of others more than of themselves, for that way lies wisdom which instils in man an urge to try and break out of the shell of a mundane self-centred existence into a more glorious world of awareness and sympathy with all that makes up this universe.

The Method

The method that was being followed before the outbreak of the pandemic compelled the substitution of normal with online classes is reproduced below from a previous Prospectus (2019–20) to make it easier to understand what this School is trying to do in the present changed circumstances and why: Since formal education must start with knowledge, this School takes all possible steps to ensure that knowledge at all levels is imparted with care. Uniformity and accuracy are ensured through drawing up of lesson plans. Each teacher has to make sure that a pupil has not only understood but also assimilated what he has read and heard. Depending on the subject concerned, the first stage of such assessment may consist of oral and/or blackboard work. Before a pupil is asked to do any written work, answers to probable questions are discussed wherever possible. This is followed by class assignments which are corrected in detail, corrections of serious errors being entered in the body of the exercise itself. The corrected assignments are then sent to parents for scrutiny and signature. Very little homework is set, and it consists mostly of handwriting, correction of errors, revision of work done in class, and learning specified lines of a poem by heart, etc. In the case of slow learners, specific tasks may be set by the teachers concerned. Guardians are earnestly requested not to help pupils with these tasks, for the errors committed help a teacher to understand the actual progress made by the pupil. All that a guardian needs to do is to supervise: see to it that the pupil does the work that he has been asked to do.
(The pandemic (Covid-19) has compelled the School to follow for the time being a method of online teaching that is being modified and updated constantly to suit the needs of pupils from Nursery to Higher Secondary classes without subjecting them to undue strain and pressure. Actual teaching is combined with interaction with pupils as far as possible. Pupils are provided with study material as and when necessary, and assignments are set and corrected regularly to enable a continuous assessment of the academic progress made by a pupil. All efforts are also being made to conform to the directions of the appropriate authorities regarding syllabi and evaluation. Since teachers are being continuously trained by the technical team of the Satikanta Guha Foundation and consultants to become familiar with all the different aspects of online teaching, including various problems related to continuous assessment and evaluation, the School may combine online teaching with actual classroom teaching on a regular basis even when normalcy returns.
It is strongly recommended that a pupil be given easy but supervised access to a laptop/desktop and internet facility at home, so that he may attend online classes conducted by the School as and when necessary. The schedule (days and timings) of such classes will be announced beforehand and guardians should see to it that their wards attend such classes and complete the assignments set within the time limit prescribed. It must be borne in mind that the method of continuous assessment depends largely on an evaluation of all kinds of assignments. In case, it is not possible to hold any examination in an academic year, the promotion of a child to a higher class will depend on such an evaluation.

General Supervision & Teacher-Pupil Ratio

It should also be made clear that by ‘academic excellence’ we do not mean securing some of the top ten or twenty ranks in a public examination. Though affiliation to any board or council means working within a prescribed syllabus, the School will do its best to educate its pupils in the true sense of the term: teaching them to think independently and rationally. Pupils will always be encouraged to interact with teachers both inside and outside the classroom. To make this interaction easy and possible, the teacher-pupil ratio will be about 1:30. Pupils will have free access at all times to their teachers, who will give them all the attention and help they need to solve their academic problems as also any others that they may have. Though pupils will spend only a part of the day in school, the aim will be to make them feel at home and encourage them to open out and grow naturally.

Remedial Classes & Special Training

The School wants a pupil to excel as much as his parents do. While every effort will be made at school to provide a pupil with the guidance and attention that he needs, at least one of the parents must give some time to him, not only to ensure that he revises the lessons taught in class or completes the tasks set, but to give him the company he needs. It must be remembered that a pupil will spend only a limited time at school, and many a problem can be nipped in the bud if only a parent spends a little time with the young, curious, and demanding learner at home. This has become all the more necessary in the modern social structure, particularly with the decline of the joint-family system. It is essential that a parent knows who the pupil’s companions are and how he is spending his time.
A pupil should not need any special help at home. Additional guidance or ‘special training’, if and when necessary, will be provided by the School by way of remedial classes at no extra charge. These classes will be designed and held in accordance with the special needs of each child or a group of children – either in parallel with general classes or separately, on Saturdays and/or holidays, on the school premises or at the residence of a teacher of the School. Guardians are requested to cooperate with us in this matter by ensuring that a pupil attends these classes regularly. We would also like a guardian to let the pupil work independently, for errors, perhaps more than correctness, serve as true indices of proficiency.
Guardians must understand that a recommendation to attend these classes must not be taken as an unfavourable assessment of a pupil’s merit. On the contrary, such a recommendation assumes that a pupil has the capacity to do better and all that he needs is some special attention or guidance in some specific areas, and that also only for some time.

Medium of Instruction

Parent Teacher Meetings

Academic Year

Each Academic Year will commence in April and end in March the following year. It is planned, subject to the relevant rule/s of the affiliating body, to begin an Academic Year on the first working day of the second week of April every year and end it on the last working day of March the following year. Each Academic Year will be divided into three terms: (a) April/May to September/October (inclusive of Summer Vacation) (b) September/October to December (inclusive of Autumn and Christmas recesses) (c) January to March Though the number of terms will remain the same, the duration of each term may vary from year to year.

School Hours

Nursery I – Class II: 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. Classes III – XI: 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. School hours may be changed in the academic interest of pupils or as advised by the concerned authorities. On specified days of the week, pupils may be required to stay back after regular school hours for extra-curricular activities, remedial/special training classes, etc.
Classes III – XI: 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
School hours may be changed in the academic interest of pupils or as advised by the concerned authorities.
On specified days of the week, pupils may be required to stay back after regular school hours for extra-curricular activities, remedial/special training classes, etc.