Month: February 2020

SFormal schooling has been around in India since centuries now. However, there is a vast difference in the way the schools were run in 1950s to the way they are run now. Many aspects have changed over a period of time. Though, many schools still run in an old age traditional way, there are several other schools that have updated their methods with the changing times.

The way the classrooms looked back then and the way they look now is vastly different. The classrooms usually had a blackboard, table and chair for the teacher, desks and chairs for students. At the most some schools had the privilege of having bulletin boards in their classrooms. The classrooms of today look much different. There are many resources available in the classroom. The blackboard in many schools has been replaced by smart boards. The walls are no longer blank and bare. There are colourful paintings or charts on the walls that enhance learning experiences. In many schools, there are strings hanging from one wall to the other displaying students’ work. There are other teaching learning resources that hang from the ceiling as well in some classrooms. In a nutshell, the classrooms these days are more vibrant and colourful and add value to the learning experience of children.

Just like the classrooms, the school premises and infrastructure has also changed over the years. The new school infrastructure has more amenities and is tech-enabled. While many big schools have huge fancy buildings, good schools have thoughtfully designed their premises. A good school infrastructure is one which provides all amenities at ease and facilitates the process of learning. Merely having fancy buildings and huge spaces is not a sign of good school infrastructure.

Another major thing that has changed in schools over the years is the methods of teaching. In the earlier times, teaching was more lecture-based and mainly done through books and blackboard. It is popularly known as the chalk and talk method. While now teaching is done using different resources. This shift has happened in good and aware schools and is slowly happening in other schools that are realizing the importance of changing the traditional methods of teaching. Book is just one resource these days. Topics are taught through activities using different kinds of teaching learning materials. Technology is also increasingly being used in the teaching learning processes. The schools these days have shifted from one-way teaching to activity based and two-way teaching. The latter of course is more beneficial in engaging children and enhancing their learning ability as well.

The changes that have occurred in the schooling system over these years are based on scientific studies and evidence. It is important to know and understand how students learn and make learning meaningful and relevant for every child in school and not only for the so called ‘intelligent students’. While largely most schools realize this fact, not all schools actually follow these practices. Reputed and experienced schools such as Millennium Schools are an example of schools that base their curriculum and teaching methods on in-depth research. Their practices make them the best CBSE schools in India. The Millennium Schools and Millennium World Schools, both follow a global approach and focus on making learning more meaningful for every child. Millennium Schoolsare rightly rated amongst the top schools in India.

BThe usual thought process equates a school to academics. Well, academics is certainly a core part of any school but not the only part. A school is much beyond academics. A school is a place where children are given education. Education is also thought to be synonymous with only academics generally. However, education too is way beyond academics. Education is about holistic development of children. Holistic development means development of three main domains – intellectual, physical, and social and emotional. Education is complete only when these three are nurtured in school through different learning experiences.

The usual norm in most schools is to prepare children for examinations. But again, the purpose of education is not exam preparation rather life preparation. Rote learning of topics from the books and writing the same in examinations can earn a child good marks and high grades but she may not have developed apt skills for life. All topics taught in different subjects in school are not of much of value in life. Even those topics that are important for life will be useless if an individual is not able to apply her learning in real life. Mugging up topics is a futile exercise which can only get marks but application part will be missing and thus of no importance in real life. On the other hand, conceptual understanding of topics, application based learning and development of skills add value to a child’s life.

The main purpose of school education is to prepare a child for life. Skill-based education is what schools need to focus on. Though, many schools are trying to shift their focus from only academic achievement and examinations to overall development of children, we have a long way to go in India. Even boards of education, particularly CBSE board, suggest holistic education and have given guidelines to schools to follow. There are some schools that have set an example of giving holistic education in India. One of them is the Millennium Schools. Ranked as the top CBSE schools in India, they are located in more than 40 cities across our country.

The Millennium Schools and Millennium World Schools offer world-class curriculum that is very unique. The curriculum, based on research of more than ten years, promotes holistic development in the true sense. The curriculum has won several awards and accolades from different international and national educational organisations. Millennium Schools focus on discovering and nurturing innate potential of each child. These schools with a difference actually go an extra mile for developing different capacities of each child in their schools. These schools are rated as top schools in India for the quality of education and other facilities they offer.

Millennium Schools have a global approach in their curriculum. They understand that the world is changing at a fast pace and we need to keep up with it. Therefore, they offer education beyond academics that helps children become 21^st century learners and future-ready. They have also integrated technology in education in a way that millennials are able to learn in a millennial way.

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Every city, particularly bigger cities and metropolitans have numerous schools. Every school caters to a specific section of parents. While some schools attract the elite class, other schools find their customers in the middle class families. There low-budget schools as well that cater the demand of parents in the low-income group. However, irrespective of the size of the school, budget of the school, segment of parents that they cater to and so on, any school can be successful in its own right. Effectiveness and success are not just for bigger and fancier schools. Any and every school can become successful if they have certain specific characteristics. This article explores main characteristics of effective and successful schools.

Leadership & Vision

The first characteristic of a successful school is its leadership. Strong leadership steer organisations and institutions in the right direction. Schools with principals and school management as effective leaders are more successful than the others. The vision and goals of the school tend to be clearer and the path to achieve the goals is also paved collaboratively which contribute positively in the success of the school.

Aiming at Excellence

Several studies reveal that the schools that have high expectations from their teachers and students are more successful and effective than the others. High expectations do not mean unrealistic expectations that put in more pressure and act negatively on people. Here, high expectations mean offering challenging yet positive situations and environment to enable students and teachers to grow and nurture their abilities more. Schools that aim at achieving excellence in every aspect will certainly get translated into effective practices leading to success.

Reflection and Growth Mindset

In order to grow, an organisation has to reflect on different aspects and learn from experiences. Reflection is a powerful tool that provides feedback, both positive and negative, to the schools in various aspects. These become opportunities for the school to analyse their challenge areas and work on them. Continuous reflection process with a growth mindset will ensure success to schools.

Positive & Nourishing Environment

Every individual grows better in a positive environment. This is especially true for children. They perform and learn better in a safe, calm, secure, positive, and a nourishing environment. Schools that focus on creating a healthy and happy environment grow more and are more successful.

There are many characteristics other than the ones mentioned above that contribute towards effectiveness and success of schools. However, only a few schools are able to stand out with such qualities. One such chain of schools that have proven to be effective is the Millennium Schools. Rated as the topmost CBSE schools in India, The Millennium Schools and Millennium World Schools demonstrate these characteristics of effective and successful schools. Children at the Millennium Schools are happy and they get the opportunities to learn their way. Millennium Schools are global in their approach towards learning and their focus is on making children ready for future. With strong leadership abilities, the principals, school management and the Millennium management share a common vision and work towards it relentlessly. These characteristics and other aspects make Millennium Schoolsfeature in the list of best CBSE schools in India.

CThe Central Board Secondary Education (CBSE) is one of the most reputed and popular boards of education in India. A board of education lays down a structure for schools to follow. The structure includes certain rules and regulations that the school needs to abide by for smooth functioning. The board also has guidelines related to the curriculum and examination system. The CBSE board too has its guidelines in place which all schools affiliated with it follow in principle.

The CBSE board system of education is considered to be more student-friendly than other boards in India. Their focus is more on learning the concepts rather than rote learning of facts. As most people will think that assessment is all about tests and term examinations which are primarily in a written question-answer form. However, assessment is not about judging the performance of children but rather it is about knowing where the child is at and what needs to be done for the child to progress. This cannot be achieved through written tests and examinations at the end of completing a chunk of syllabus. This is a continuous process that has to happen during teaching and learning process.

This approach to enhance every child’s learning is also reflected in the CBSE’s system of examinations and evaluations. The system is based on continuous evaluation which is done comprehensively. Usual system of evaluations followed by schools in India earlier was the term examinations and unit tests. However, with positive changes in the CBSE board, CBSE schools in India follow a different pattern. Even though term examinations still exist, assessments are also done on a continuous basis in the classroom. Assessment is not only down through written tests but includes a variety of methods. For example, classroom activities of various kinds are a part of the assessment system in CBSE. Activities can be individual, in pairs or in groups. Teachers use pre-created rubrics to understand the level of learning of every child. Based on this level, the learning process of children can be further enhanced. Different kind of creative projects are also given to students and are assessed by teachers to comprehend their learning levels.

This assessment process is helpful for teachers too as they are able to know how much and how well students are grasping the concepts being taught. It becomes difficult for the teacher to re-teach concepts at the end of completing a topic. However, the CBSE system of assessment allows teachers to gauge students’ understanding while the topic is being taught. This enables teachers to tweak their teaching methods so that all students are able to grasp the topic well. This also proves to fruitful for students as they are able to learn better and perform better in term examinations.

Many good schools like Millennium Schools are affiliated with the CBSE board. The Millennium School and Millennium World School are top CBSE schools in India that lay emphasis on student learning rather than measurement of performance. For these schools, each child is unique and the main aim is to help each child discover her potential and excel in it. Their approach is unique which has won them several awards and accolades.