An inimitable institution of excellence

by
Captain Alokesh Sen
Shishu Mandir, later rechristened as Vidya Niketan (Popularly known as Birla Public School) was founded by the Birla Educational Trust in 1944 under the guidance of Dr Maria Montessori, the world acclaimed pioneer in child education. Captain Alokesh Sen, Principal, shares the genesis, growth and future plans.

 

It is an old institution. Take us through the journey.

The architectural design of the junior section campus of the school bears testimony to the great visionary Madam Montessori understands of the specific needs of the growing children and her sense of aestheticism. The Institution remained a day school till 1948. In 1952, the school was made a purely residential institution. In 1953, the school was granted the membership of the Indian Public School Conference. An inimitable institution of excellence An inimitable institution of excellence An inimitable institution of excellence An inimitable institution of excellence 


“You are here laying a foundation for the future of India and you are performing a very sacred duty. All I want to say is don’t be complacent with what you have achieved. The law of nature is either you move forward or you have to move backward. Therefore if you want to move forward, you have to constantly work hard with determination and devotion.”

     – Ghanshyam Das Birla, Founder, Birla Public School, Pilani, Rajasthan



These words have been the perennial source of inspiration behind the great leaps the school has taken (and is taking) in the pursuit of excellence in the school education since its inception. Keeping in mind the ‘law of nature’ stated by the founder and ‘constant hard work with determination and devotion’ by the BPS fraternity has helped the school carve a niche for itself amongst the top schools of the country.

On vision/mission

The vision of the school is to make an Institution of excellence dedicated to producing future leaders and useful dynamic global citizen.

Mission Statement of the School mentions that Birla Public School strives for excellence in school education that provides diverse and learner centric environment conducive for every individual student to realize his potential to the fullest to become an enlightened, vibrant and productive member of the society with strong ethical values and pluralistic ethos.

USP of your School

The USP of the school is a perfect blending of modernity and tradition. The school strives to give the modern education keeping pace with trends in the school education at global level to prepare them to face the challenges of 21st century but at the same time it ensures that the students keep rooted in the Indian culture and value system.

What are the courses you offer?

At present the school starts from class IV and culminates in class XII. It follows the CBSE Curriculum. It has all the 3 streams of science, commerce and humanities in class XI and XII. The curriculum has been broadened by its integration to the internationalism to cultivate global competence among the students. The school curriculum is also enlivened with Kurt Hahn’s philosophy (Six IDEALS).

On technology integration in administration and education

With a view to making BPS a 21st Century Institution of Excellence, technology is integrated in both teaching as well as administration. The school has 10 computer labs. Each classroom is a smart classroom facilitating the use of digital content by the teacher along with his / her teaching. The entire campus is Wi-Fi campus and the students use TABLETS as a tool for their technology driven learning. The entire world is brought into the classroom through video conferencing in which a group of students of our school interacts with that of another country. The virtual Model United Nation, online collaboration projects, participation of the teachers in webinars and teachers’ blogs are integral part of the curriculum process of the school.
The entire school processes are on ERP system, in which the timetable, the substitution classes, the lesson planning, the payment of fees, payment voucher generation, indenting of items by the students from the tuck-shop, stock taking, etc are all done online.

Challenges in running a boarding school

The uniqueness of a boarding school is that in addition to the academics and curriculum transactions, the school also undertakes the responsibility of the pastoral care. This means that the school is more responsible for physical growth, emotional growth, value inculcation, etc. Therefore, the school carries out the task of parenting in addition to teaching. Secondly, the educators also need to keep themselves updated. The benefits of the boarding school system are you can fulfil the institution vision making these boys worthy citizens ready to undertake larger responsibility of the nation. Catering to the varied expectations of the parents is another formidable challenge that we experience.

Awards and associations

The school is a member of various national and international bodies like Indian Public Schools’ Conference (National), National Public School Conference (National), Round Square Conference (International), United School Organisation (International), UNESCO ASPNET (International). The school is also a recipient of International School Award by the British Council and accredited by Quality Council of India (NABET), which is a body of Government of India.

On safety and security

The school complies with all the safety and security norms as spelt out by the CBSE and the State Education Board and also, the Government of India. We have the fire fighting system in place to deal with even a major incident of fire. We have a very sound security system, the entry and exist gates of the school are manned, round the clock. The entire campus has got approximately 250 CCTV cameras fixed at various locations with a 24×7 hours monitoring room. The staff and students’ members are sensitized on the safety at regular intervals by conducting different fire fighting drills, evacuation drills, at the swimming pool. The school has zero tolerance policy to bullying. Cyber security is also a top priority for which close monitoring is done and awareness programmes are organised from time to time.

Life skill programmes

Swimming and horse riding are an integral part of the school curriculum, treks and tours are conducted regularly. The integration the six IDEALS of Round Square ensures that the students are equipped with life skills to face the challenges of life. Adventure Desert and Cycle treks and survival camps go a long way in teaching life skills to the students.

Future plans

We envision a great role of artificial intelligence in the coming years. The school has to proactively prepare the staff and the students to become well-versed in its use. Cricket and hockey coaches are to be employed to bring these to the level of football and other sports in the school. Organizing more student and teacher exchange programmes with top Indian and foreign schools is in the pipeline.
Infrastructure:

  •  Football ground
  •  Basketball court
  •  Handball ground
  •  Volley ball court
  •  Synthetic lawn tennis
  •  Badminton court
  •  Hockey grounds
  •  Cricket
  •  Boxing ring
  •  Archery
  •  Skating rinks
  •  Rock climbing wall
  •  Table tennis
  •  Squash
  •  All-weather swimming pool
  •  Horse riding as an integral part of the school curriculum right from the inception
  •  State-of the-art science, language, Maths and Computer labs
  •  Band training posts

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