Admission Diaries Facilities A School Should Provide

The quality of facilities provided by a school plays a crucial role in the student's learning process. School facilities are tools that enable effective teaching and learning processes. Studies show that lack of facilities hurt students' performance, making it challenging for them to compete with other students in entrance examinations to reputed universities. Besides, facilities also help with the smooth functioning of the school organization.

Most international schools have a good infrastructure and multiple curricula to provide a productive learning environment for students. The general impression is that international primary schools are expensive. However, this is not always true.

As a parent, what facilities do you need to look for in an excellent primary school?

Teaching methods and goals: Find out from the school website the goals that the school has set for the primary students and the teaching process. Reputed award-winning schools like GIIS Tokyo have stated that their primary school faculty identify, nurture, and grow their students' academic and non-academic interests. They ensure that the information passed on to them is measured and engaging, making the rigorous curriculum a fun-filled and joyful experience. There is a comparison of their teaching methodology to a spiral structure which, while rising systematically, burrows deep down, implying that the concept of rising higher and going deep gives a good balance between the students' imagination and understanding.

All-round development: Though focusing on academics is a must, the right school will ensure that the students get sufficient exposure to physical education and sports as part of co-curricular activities. Check if the school encourages extracurricular activities to hone your child's skills, be it in sports or fine arts like music, drama, and dance.

Parental involvement: Ask if there will be parent-teacher meetings (PTMs) and how often they are conducted. Apart from PTMs, find out if the school involves parents in every step of the child's growth and education. International GIIS schools share information with parents through the customized portal – my IIS, which acts as a communication platform between parents and teachers. Schools send emails and newsletters periodically and promptly respond to parental queries.

Curricula: Most international primary schools offer multiple curricula so that students can choose the curricula that are most suitable for them. GIIS Tokyo offers CBSE and IB Primary Years Program.

School premises: Inspect the school premises to see the available facilities to help the students learn better and the teachers to teach well. Good international schools have a spectrum of spaces that gives a beautiful campus experience to students. Some of the campus facilities at some international schools like GIIS Tokyo include a separate learning zone, multipurpose hall, yoga room, audio-visual room, library, IT lab, physics lab, chemistry lab, biology lab, Maths lab, Mahatma Gandhi Centre for universal values. There are also centers to learn various dance forms like Kathak and Bharat Natyam, Carnatic music, piano, etc. There are courts for Tennis, badminton, basketball, play area for soccer and karate. The campus is wifi-enabled.

Teacher-students ratio: Overcrowded classrooms are detrimental to the learning process of your child. Inquire what the student-teacher ratio is. Ideally, a classroom should not have more than 30 students at the primary level to get adequate attention from the teacher.

Security: Please ensure that the school has appropriate security measures in place. Good international primary schools have many security layers which combine the traditional security measures with the modern to monitor in-campus movements round the clock. There will be guards handling the gates 24/7 and traditional identity cards alongside CCTV cameras, biometrics, and smart cards.

Scholarships: Most international primary schools offer a variety of scholarship programs to deserving students. Check if your child is eligible for any and avail of these to get a waiver in tuition fees.

Hygiene: You should pay attention to the school's steps to follow international hygiene standards and cleanliness. Young children cannot take care of themselves, and a school should have high standards to ensure children have a safe environment.

Global citizen: The world today is coming closer than ever before. So the children of today should ideally be nurtured as global citizens who are encouraged to be curious, explore, question established beliefs, and be responsible, caring children of the planet. The students and faculty of international schools hail from different nations. Therefore, students are exposed to different cultures and learn to accept and appreciate the multi-diversity of the world. The curricula of the best international school in Japan offer students an opportunity to be active participants in their own learning journey as they explore local and global issues in the context of real life.

While shortlisting a primary school for your child, make it a point to check out the above-mentioned facilities. The essence of the blog can be summed up in this quote by Denis Waitley, "The greatest gifts you can give your children are the roots of responsibility and the wings of independence."