Honing and nurturing young minds

What are the key achievements of your school?

The school learners have brought laurels to the school by scoring excellent scores (100 per cent) in the CBSE board examinations 2023. The school is in the outstanding category of DAV Schools. 51 per cent of learners of Class X scored above 85 per cent and 44 per cent of learners of Class XII (medical, non-medical and commerce) scored above 85 per cent. The feather in the cap was the school’s selection for the TAG Heur and CBSE collaboration project on hybrid learning, skill hub initiative and digital literacy which saw more than 94 teachers of the school clear the advanced Microsoft training online programmes.

How have you bridged the post Covid learning gap?

The school took long strides during the pandemic and brought education to the doorsteps of each of its learners. Parents lauded the efforts of the school, its faculty and its management. After the pandemic, the road to bridge the learning gaps and learning loss began. The school initially switched to the hybrid learning format. Gradually, as the infection faded, children were brought back to the classrooms. The Google classrooms were used as one of the mediums to share the work covered in the classes, as extended support. Extended curricular support was offered to children studying in board classes. The teachers, who had received training from the Chandigarh DAV Cluster, formulated worksheets, activity-based assignments, PPTs, videos to enhance the understanding of important concepts. The gap or the learning loss is still dealt with in terms of loss of interest in writing, gadgets using up the majority of time of the learner, faulty sentence structures be it languages or science.

Share some NEP practical applications that the school has adopted.

The school is a DAV institution and has recently switched to a new system of assessment for Class I-VII, which is partly theoretical and partly competency-based skill assessment. The entry level to the school begins at pre-school where the age of the child should be between three and four years, as per the NEP. The school has introduced humanities stream this year, with the aim to provide a platform to apply for a variety of subjects, as suggested by the NEP 2020.

Are there any vocational skills being imparted to students?

The school had introduced coding in Class VI-VII last year, and AI and IT to students in Class IX as skill subjects this year. As one of the schools selected by TAG and CBSE, 25 learners from Class IX-XII will receive training in financial digital literacy from Microsoft this year.

What are the key assessment parameters used?

The Cumulative Book Record for Nursery to Class II covers value-based education through the learning of languages, math and EVS as the parameters along with art integrated learning and assessment. A spate of activities are conducted in art n craft, music, dance and health for holistic development of the learners. The new scheme of assessment for Class III-VII under the DAV Centre of Academic Excellence covers the various competencies based on the evaluation of problem-based learning, portfolio and application-based activities, art integration and experiential based activities. We follow CBSE guidelines for Class IX-XII where pen and pencil tests along with competency-based assessment takes precedence.

Are there any faculty training programmes to upgrade the skills of teachers?

The DAV Chandigarh Cluster under the aegis of DAV Centre of Excellence, New Delhi, undertakes to train all its teachers every year. Workshops are held for EEDP, primary, middle and secondary teachers around summer break and for senior secondary teachers around the autumn break. The Master Trainers, nominated by the Chandigarh Cluster go for further training to Delhi and return to train the other teachers belonging to schools in the cluster. Besides these, the teachers are encouraged and sent to participate in the CBSE workshops. A training of 25 hours for the teacher and 50 hours for the Principal is essential and is being followed.

Message for students

My dear children, you are traversing through times which are exciting as well as a blend between the tradition and modernity. The nation is forging ahead. Chandrayaan-3, Aditya L-1 have catapulted the country in a league of leaders. The excitement is palpable. The school and its curriculum is trying to encompass the changes and offer to all their platforms to flourish, grow and succeed. Make the best of the opportunities offered, try to innovate and apply. Most importantly, strike a balance between recreation and self-study. Remember anything done in excess is a waste of your time and effort. If repeated again and again, it becomes a habit, difficult to shake off. Thus, treat social media as a dessert — to be consumed in small portions. At no point can it be compared to a meal! Build up our energies of perseverance and patience. Adopt a compassionate approach. Be humble and build your integrity. These are going to be the most sought-after qualities in the days to come.

Sports infrastructure and facilities in the school

The school has provided a platform to many a budding star. Children from Nursery to Class XII participate in the annual athletics meet, where drills and athletics come together. Yoga and taekwondo clubs showcase their prowess and aerobics and Zumba is the order of the day. The children participate in a spate of sports activities throughout the year ranging from skating, archery, basketball, chess, badminton, netball, football, cricket, wrestling, weightlifting, lawn tennis, martial arts, athletics-javelin, yoga among many others. The school lends support to all the players and the last year tally of medals won at the state and national level was 49 gold, 54 silver and 57 bronze.