Syllabus for constant travellers

Bangalore has apparently become a hub for International schools in the country. There are dozens of them, spread out on the periphery of the city. All posh, if compared to the average city school most of us old Bangalorean’s grew up with, offering facilities which are comparable to the best in the world.

They are obviously meant to cater to a niche segment of children whose parents come mainly from the IT, banking and multinational work force in the city. The fee structure is far beyond the reach of the common man, but the facilities offered in all of them are top of the line, with a highly qualified teaching staff. Lush rolling campuses, every kind of sports facilities one could desire, with aesthetically designed school buildings and airy, state of the art class rooms.

Class room strengths are at a minimum which are the dream of any teacher and parent desiring only the best for their ward. These are picture-perfect schools, which can compete with some of the best in the world. Very few city schools can offer any of these facilities or could even try to, what with the mind boggling numbers of children who have to be accommodated in every class.

Yet with all these five star facilities, the question upper-most in one’s mind is – how can these children who finish from these exceedingly luxurious schools, hope to come out into the rat race of city life to compete with the rest, for the final school leaving certificate?

Talking to a few principals, one realises that while being equipped with only the best, the child is clearly trained, to fall on their feet and compete anywhere, on a level playing field. M Srinivasan of Gear Innovative International School, which is off Sarjapur Road says, “My school is affiliated to the CBSE board, but it is our individualistic style of teaching that makes us different. That is the reason why we are called ‘Innovative’, as our curriculum is very different. We have all the top facilities like sports fields, basketball courts, squash courts, etc., and we are very particular that all children participate in everything. Our school is just eight years old and the kind of education we offer is the kind parents are looking for.

“Ours is the only school with a pre-school along Montessori lines, with teachers trained by us to handle multiple-intelligence and brain development initiatives. Our fees are much lower than the average international school because we want to reach out to a lot more children.”

IGCSE for two years

Chris Roper who is the head of the secondary school of the Canadian International School in Yelahanka says they use the Ontario Curriculum from Kindergarten to Grade 8 with their wards. Once the children reach Grade 9 and 10, they take the Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) exams.

“Our students are a mixture of expats coming from Europe, America, UK and a number from Korea, whose parents have come to the city on work. They are looking for an education with an eye to move their children back to their home countries for their further studies. We also have a lot of Indian children who have been born abroad and who also aim to go back to complete their higher education.”

The school is on a 15 acre campus overlooking a small lake. Naturally, this pastoral setting would be ideal for the all-round development of a child. The school boasts of sports facilities like a football pitch, basket ball court, three tennis courts and 25-metre swimming pools, besides state-of-the-art labs for Chemistry, Physics and Biology.

Different league entirely

The Indus International School on Sarjapur Road, is yet another renowned school in the city with branches in Hyderabad and Pune. While speaking to Ajay Shekar, the director for marketing, one realises that these schools are in a completely different league in comparison to the regular city school.

City schools have thousands of parents queuing up for a few hundred seats. It is like a battle field out there, come admission time. These International Schools however have erudite marketing professionals who have the school’s USP at their finger tips.

“We deliver an international curriculum with an International Baccalaureate (IB) affiliated to Cardiff. (www.ibo.org) We are the only full spectrum IB school in Bangalore with the IB philosophy from Kindergarten to Grade 12. We have 960 children in our school with 400 who come from 30 different countries. The Indian children are normally NRI who have dual citizenship,” explains Ajay.
 
Fee structure

The fee structure starts at 1.85 lakhs from the kindergarten to 5 lakhs for the 11 and 12 grades. The fee for a boarder is on a different scale. 

“This includes books, stationery, transport, their meals, support classes; everything is taken care of in the fee,” reveals Ajay.

Student-teacher ratio

Each class has just 18 to 20 children and in the lower classes there are two teachers per class. Top-of-the-line labs for everything from robotics to multimedia are provided and laptops are a feature of every class. The children are exposed to all types of sports including horse riding, cricket, karate and gym and they all have to learn to swim as well. There is a variety of music, dance and drama classes provided and all children are encouraged to participate in everything.

Finally, nothing including placements, is left to chance. An on-the-campus, full-time counsellor places the children in universities across the world for further studies.
This article features just three schools in the city. There are dozens out there with bigger and better facilities on offer for your child. If you have the wherewithal to enroll your ward in one of these schools, it’s an investment on the child’s future.

Don’t be biased

Don’t shrug it off with a preconceived notion that these schools are for softie kids who are pampered by rich parents. These schools have a goal for every child and with fewer in a class to contend with, a teacher can definitely give of her creative best. Finally all the children who graduate from them, from the topper to the runt, all are equally well equipped to take on the competition waiting out there for them.

A quick tour

Bangalore International School, 15 KM, Hosur Road, Kothanur Post,
Bangalore - 560077
080-28465059, 28465060

Ebenezer International School
Singena Agrahar, Huskur, Hosur Road, Near Electronic City
Bangalore- 560100,
080-41464326, 41464327

Deccan International School
Chikkalsandra,
Bangalore- 560061
080-26393704

Indus International School
Billapura Cross, Sarjapur,
Bangalore- 562125 , 80-22895900
[e-mail]

TREAMIS World School
Hulimangala Post, Jigani Hobli
Bangalore - 04 , 080-27803006, 9972399041
[e-mail]

Venkat International Public School, 19/A/1913/2, KB Temple Street, 6th Street,
Rajajinagar,
Bangalore - 560010
Phone No: 080-23502735

Mallya Aditi International School, 121, 3rd Cross, Yelahanka, Bangalore- 560064
080-28462850

Inventure Academy
Whitefield-Sarjapur Road,
Chikkavaderapura Gunjur Post,Via Varthur
Bangalore – 560087, 080-7822102 / 27802600