The 2nd most vital decision that you will make as a parent – apart from deciding to expand your family and have a baby in the first place – is deciding the right school for your child. Making the right decision is crucial as with this one decision, you will put your child on a lifelong path toward learning and achieving future success. Choose wrong and you will be stuck with it forever! So, yes, the pressure is definitely on you because the future of your child is in your hands. Enrolling him/her in the right school is going to decide which prestigious college or university they go to and what career they pursue. Also, the values that they are going to learn.
It is surely a high-pressure decision and the choice can be overwhelming since there are just too many schools to choose from. Luckily for you, a few of the most crucial issues that you need to weigh are given below. Go through them and it should make it easier for you to navigate the school selection process.
● What Are The Needs Of Your Child?
When choosing a school, you need to put your child’s needs first. You need to find out about the size of the school, the class size, and special interests or programs that they might have. Then, you have to ascertain if your child needs personalized attention or he/she is flexible enough to interact socially and be a part of a larger community. Co-educational or single-sex schools are another factor that you need to consider and both of them are good options. It comes down to your personal preferences.
Also, you have to consider if your child has any special academic demands. If so, you need to discuss it with the school and find out if they are up for the challenge. A top school in Siliguri will be capable of catering to the holistic development of your child. You just have to do your due diligence to find that school.
● What Are The Needs Of Your Family?
Broadly speaking, there are three formats of schooling – day schools, day boarding schools, and boarding schools. Day schools are those that typically run for about 7 to 8 hours during the day. Once the school hours are over, students are expected to go back home. On the other hand, day boarding schools continue till evening. Schools that have day boarding facilities offer extra hours to students where they can stay back on the campus, complete their homework or clear their doubts. Teachers also remain on the campus to assist students and help them.
As for boarding schools, they are residential schools. Students stay on the campus and they take care of their daily chores themselves. They go back home during holidays and share a room with their peers.
So, you need to consider if you want your child to come back home daily after school, or stay back for a few hours so that you can finish your work and your child can finish homework, or you want to send your child to a boarding school. Both boarding and day boarding schools are excellent options for working parents.
-
What Is The Student-teacher Ratio?
According to iCBSE, parents need to check the student-teacher ratio because some schools have the tendency to increase class size rather than increasing the number of teachers and students. If the strength of the class is very high, it is obvious that the teacher won’t be able to give each child enough attention. This can be a huge impediment to your child’s learning. For a good connection to be maintained between students and the class teacher, the class size has to be balanced out.
-
Does The School Offer Extracurricular Activities?
A good school is one that focuses on the holistic growth and development of the students. It might be that the school focuses on amazing academics, but lacks when it comes to extracurricular activities. Probably, it wouldn’t be a good fit for your child because your child needs physical exercise and also the chance to learn some new skills or hone his/her talent.
Research suggests that children are more engaged with the school if there are extracurricular activities like sports, art & craft, drama, music, theater, dance, singing, and so on. This gives students the opportunity to hone their skills, showcase their talent and boost their creativity.
-
Does The School Provide Special Programs?
When you’re sending your child to a CBSE board school in Siliguri, you know that the school is going to provide all the academic learning that is made mandatory by the education board. But, it is also crucial to find out if the school offers something extra. For instance, there are schools encouraging students to practice yoga in the morning so that they can boost their physical and mental faculties. As a parent, you would want to send your child to a school that takes care of every aspect of your child’s growth and not just academics.
A pro tip when it comes to choosing a school would be to find out the parent-teacher engagement level. You might not be available for a parent-teacher meeting every day, but find out their involvement and if they are comfortable with parents reaching out to them. A good parent-teacher relationship is vital for the overall growth and development of your child.
So, these are a few things that you need to consider when selecting the right school for your child. This is going to be your child’s introduction to formal education and you would want it to be an amazing experience. Best of luck!