‘My children have blossomed into beautiful humans due to this school’

By creating a values-based environment, incorporating moral education into the curriculum, involving teachers as moral guides, promoting service learning, implementing character education programs, and encouraging positive behavior, schools contribute significantly to the character development of the students, expresses Subhashini Praharaj whose son Sarvesh is studying in class IX at Apeejay School, Nerul.

Excerpts from the interview.

How did you select Apeejay as an admission choice?

Initially, we were staying in Sanpada and we moved to Nerul later when my daughter was quite young. And that time we started enquiring about a good CBSE Board in this area. And we heard a lot of good things about this school from parents and friends around. Even my cousin, who is an Apeejay alumni from 30 years back, had the best of things to say about this school. 

How is your experience with the school so far?

Apeejay has an excellent teaching faculty and they are quite rigorous making sure about the performance of the kids, how well they are doing their work, and getting it checked. And one thing that was lacking in the previous school was the kind of discipline Apeejay inculcates in its students.

How are the teachers here?

This school has some excellent teachers. I have had interaction with teachers from different elementary levels and my favourite thing about this school is the kind of teachers here. For my son, the teachers have displayed such immense and exclusive patience over these years, they have never discouraged him from being who he is, while at the same time putting all his energies into a productive set of activities and executing it perfectly. They have helped him realise his real potential.

Another important factor is that the teachers have also disciplined him and handled him so well whenever there was a requirement. Every single interaction with the teachers has been a pleasure and this is why I recommend this school to everyone around.

What kind of a positive influence has this school been?

Speaking about my daughter, Apeejay taught her a lot of discipline. Earlier, she used to slack off so many responsibilities but then over time this school taught her she started disciplining herself and respecting time and managing it more appropriately. This helped her learn about her real strengths and retrospect on her life. For my son, I have observed he has turned into such an enthusiastic child. From doing volunteer work to participating in social activities, he just loves to be there in the moment and make a difference.

Describe your parenting mantra.

For both of us, primarily the approach has been about looking into the core areas which require work and effort. I am always very involved academically with both my kids. Other than that, my focus is to make sure that my children understand the important facets of life. I am now preparing them for life which is beyond school which is coming up very soon. I want them to understand the complexities that are a part of this world today and should not make their social media life their end goal.