‘The teachers at Apeejay Nerul don’t ask the students to participate, they simply involve them in eclectic activities’

Mrs. Geeta Mehta is an architect and the founder of Kshitij Architects. Her children Vidhi Mehta and Dhriti Mehta are class 9 and 6 students at Apeejay Nerul respectively. Her husband, Mr. Deepak Mehta, is the chief marine engineer with Anglo Eastern Company. In an interview, Mrs. Mehta appreciates the school for ensuring the holistic personality development of the students. Edited excerpts:

Why did you choose Apeejay Nerul for the admission of both your daughters?

Apeejay Nerul is the oldest CBSE School in Navi Mumbai. I wanted a CBSE curriculum school for my children. So out of the schools we were contemplating about, Apeejay Nerul stood out because of its rich legacy in education. They focus on academics primarily. I found that I can trust this school for my children. Deepak and I have a very busy schedule. I can trust the teachers at Apeejay Nerul to look after the education of the children.

Please tell us a bit about Vidhi and Dhriti and take us through their progress at school?

My elder daughter, Vidhi, is introverted by nature. She is learning Kathak and is a fifth-year student in the same. I appreciate the role of the teachers in giving her the platform. The teachers at Apeejay Nerul don’t ask the students to participate, they simply tell them to participate. I was worried about her introverted nature but now I feel happy about the fact that she is being called upon by the teachers and is getting rid of her stage fear. She has a dance performance today as well. She has a very logical brain so among her subjects she is into Maths and Science.

My younger daughter is a complete extrovert. She loves to participate in the extra-curricular events all the time. She is a gymnast as well. Her area of interest lies in the languages. She has taken French. She wanted to study one global language. I really like the fact that the school provides options to choose in languages. The school has Marathi, Hindi, English, Sanskrit and French. She is pursuing French and is very happy about it.

Are the teachers engaging well?

Yes, the criteria of knowing whether a teacher is teaching well or not is the performance of my children. I do not teach them at home. They are quite independent and they study on their own. I have not put them in any extra-class or tuitions. They are doing very well at school. I can say that it is all because of the teachers. I feel that all the teachers are very good at the school. My younger daughter always talks about Vijaya Lakshmi Ma’am, her science teacher and her computer teacher Suvarna mam. My elder daughter praises the computer teacher as well.

What is the best thing about the school?

The school is very close to my parents’ house, so it is very easy for us to drop the kids off. The school has a mix of teachers, comprising both experienced faculty as well as some fresh teachers. If any new teacher has any problem with a teaching technique, then a senior teacher steps in. I feel that it is the strength of the school.

How has the experience of the online classes been for your daughters?

Yes. They’ve faced no issues. They had good connectivity as well. They performed well in the online classes. Even in the online mode, the school had the annual day and special assemblies. So they were participating in a lot of extra-curricular activities along with academics. They missed their friends but that was a universal phenomenon during the pandemic. I am a working parent, so I left them to their own devices and the teachers kept them very occupied with a lot of projects.

Now that the schools have reopened, are Vidhi and Dhriti happy to go back to the school building?

Yes. They are very happy to go back for offline classes (laughs).