‘Holistic development for kids is a must along with academic excellence’

Even though Apeejay School, Faridabad in Sector 15 is a lot further from where the family stays, they still chose to send their only child, Aahan Mehta, who is in class VI to this school. The reason, the mother, Swati Karwal, says is simple.

“My husband, Sharad Mehta, who is a robotic engineer, always wanted to study at Apeejay School, Faridabad. The school has created a reputation for itself as being one of the best schools in the city. Unfortunately, for some reason, he couldn’t go to this school. When Aahan was born he wanted him to go to this school. But as luck would have it we chose a school that was near to our home. But I think my son was destined to study at Apeejay and a year later we changed his school and now he has been here for the last five-six years,” says Swati, who works in the IT sector in Gurugram.

Excerpts from an interview.

How is Aahan doing since he changed schools?

I would say that he is doing well. This is because we changed his school in the nursery itself. He is also taking part in extracurricular activities and doing well there as well. He takes initiative to take part in all the activities that the school organises. The school too ensures that there are equal opportunities for students to participate in such events and it is not just about academics. A student is encouraged to explore his creative side as well.

My son is very fond of cooking and has joined the culinary activities these days that the school has.

How did he cope during the lockdown years?

He did well even when the classes went online. What I love about this school is the initiative that the teachers took. Aahan was in classes IV and V for the two years of lockdown, the way his teachers taught for those two years was nothing short of brilliant. First, they would explain the topic and then they would also explain the topic practically. The teachers understood that since the classes were not face-to-face, they had to do this extra. This made the classes very interactive for the students.

What is the teaching methodology?

I am very happy with the way the teachers are teaching. As I mentioned, during the lockdown, I too was working from home and for the first time I saw how our kids are learning and how a topic is being taught. Everything is taught practically as well making it easy for the students to understand.

How is Aahan coping now that the schools have gone offline?

He is doing well. But he sometimes struggles with the pace at which the teachers go in certain subjects that involve a lot of written work. The two years of COVID-19 and online classes meant very little written work. So, he shirks those classes. Though teachers do step in and help these students, it is not always possible to slow down the pace and I understand that. Also, till class V there was very little pressure on the child but in class VI, there has been a change.

The need for holistic development in kids.

Not everything is life about your score/marks. It is also about how a person behaves when he/she is out in society; there are norms and one has to abide by them. It is, therefore, important to tell them how to be good citizens.

“I am very happy with the way the teachers are teaching. During the lockdown I saw how our kids were learning and how a topic was being taught. Everything was taught practically making it easy for the students to understand”

-Swati Karwal, IT Professional and Mother of student at Apeejay School Faridabad

What is the most important lesson you want to teach Aahan?

I would like to explain this via the problem that I am facing at present. He is our only child. However, he is the youngest of all the cousins. So he is extremely pampered at home. He just has to ask for something and the minute it is in his hands. My husband and I don’t want that for him. He must understand the value of money or appreciate the things he is getting. But for now, I have not been able to come up with a solution.

However, a couple of parents have suggested that I ask him to do some household chores and pay him for those and then he uses that money to buy whatever he wants. I am still debating on this.

Would you recommend Apeejay to other parents?

I definitely would and I have already recommended the school. A colleague has recently shifted from the US office to India. She too lives in Faridabad. I told her she could try Apeejay School in Faridabad.