‘The name Apeejay Noida itself is a synonym for quality in the education sector’

Mrs. Neha Gupta is a homemaker. Her husband Mr. Tarun Gupta is a solution architect in the IT department of SkillNet Solution. Their daughter Ms. Arshi Gupta is a kindergarten student at Apeejay School, Noida. In an interview, Mrs. Gupta speaks about its rich legacy in education, the development of her daughter’s reading habit and the  stupendous efforts of the teachers. Edited excerpts:

Why did you choose Apeejay Noida ahead of other schools for your child’s admission?

We moved back to India from the United States in 2018. We then had to choose a good school and we were tied about choosing between CBSE and IB board schools. We then did a little research. We found that the IB schools in India have a sense of elitism and showboating in them. We could afford an IB school but we wanted a basic school which is attached to one’s roots. A school which would make our child humble, kind and compassionate. Basically, a well-established school that imparts moral values to its students. Also, all the IB board schools are very new. So, I couldn’t rely on them. Therefore, we rejected the idea of IB schools.

We wanted to give our child the same upbringing and environment that we had received as students. We shortlisted some 3-4 good schools, with Apeejay Noida in the list. Also, one of my husband’s colleague’s son (they had also moved back from the US) was studying at Apeejay School, Noida and they were very happy with his progress. So, that was a crucial reason behind getting Arshi enrolled here.

 There’s another reason as well. We observed that there is a lot of craze about the AC class rooms in schools. Apeejay School, Noida does not have air-conditioners in the classrooms and that was a very important reason behind our decision. I wanted my child to learn to stay in a non A/C environment as well. She is already in an air-conditioned environment at home. I want to give her an upbringing which is well grounded.

Apeejay Noida is a well-established school with a 50-year-old rich legacy in the education sector. The name Apeejay Noida itself is a synonym for quality.

Please tell us a bit about Arshi and take us through her progress at school?

Arshi loves reading. She is five but she can read books up to the level of 7-8 year old kids. Her pre-schooling at another school had developed a sound base in phonetics. Apeejay School, Noida, took that base further.

Arshi joined the school in class Nursery. Their Nursery curriculum in English was very well planned. That developed her reading habit. By the end of Nursery, she was a full reader. Actually, their Jolly Phonics curriculum worked out very well.

Arshi likes to dance and hums to tunes she willfully makes. She has an on and off interest in painting and has a passion for story narration. She is performing well at school.

Are the teachers engaging well with the students?

The teachers put in a lot of effort. I am aware that in the online mode, the parents are not very satisfied but nevertheless the teachers are so committed in the online mode, that one can only imagine how much and how well they teach in the offline class. So far I have had an interaction only with two teachers: Ms. Kajal in Nursery and Ms. Sandhya Mehta, Arshi’s class teacher in Kindergarten. I would like to thank them both. They would personally call if the student was absent for two or more days. Ms. Mehta cooperated a lot with me when I was Covid positive.

What is the best thing about the school?

I think the best thing is that the school did not let the students get much impacted in their education because of the pandemic. Even in the offline mode, the school celebrated all events such as the Annual Appreciation Day, Graduation day, Diwali celebration among others. They never let the students feel that they are missing out on anything due to the restriction of being at home.

On graduation day, they shared a video link in which we parents had to make a hat and make the child wear it for the occasion. That was really very special.

How has the experience of the online classes been for Arshi?

It was really good. I never had any problem. It was never the case that she was unable to understand any concept. It was a very nice experience.