NewZNew (Dera Bassi) : ATS Valley School here today announced setting up dedicated labs like Maths lab (Jodo Gyan), Language lab, Motor labs for pottery and carpentry. Taking a step further to ensure safety of children, the school has introduced cameras inside the classrooms.
The school has also installed cameras and GPS systems in its buses even though it has as yet not been mandated by the Punjab government. The mobile app allows parents to track their child’s bus at any given moment. Female and male attendants will be present in all buses to enhance the safety of our children till they reach their parents.
The school has also tied up with trained instructors from the Bihar School of Yoga keeping in mind the growing popularity of yoga and its need for a healthy body and mind. The school also happens to be the only one in the area which is running Shiamak Davar dance classes, and is also offering robotics as a part of science curriculum from Class 4 onwards. The school also boasts of a 9-hole golf course spread over 35 acres, which is free for school students and will soon be opened for outsiders. Cambridge for English Language Assessment is also on cards.
Addressing media persons here today, The CMD of the ATS group, Mr. Getamber Anand, who had initiated the ATS Valley School project, said, “Based on the study by British psychologists, we, at ATS Valley School, believe that while every child may not possess a specific talent such as art or music or mathematical ability, every child does possess desire to excel.
He informed, “The school has built studios for Music, Art and Dance. All these activities are part of the curriculum and are to be done with equal emphasis. Our children are exposed to mental stimulation even when they are not in class. “
Mr. Anand added that to move with the times, besides smart boards, there is an ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) Lab while computers abound around the school so that children are exposed to a tech-friendly atmosphere. The school is in discussions with Samsung to introduce tablet teaching where each child works on one tablet with digitised content. All work in the school is done via e-mail and through the website, he said.
Mr. Anand said, “There are many people living in this area who aspire to have a good education for their children. We are not just promoters of infrastructure- we are duty bound to provide world-class facilities to enhance the environment that we live in and create. A fully functional school that provides world-class education in a nurturing environment for children therefore is close to our heart.”
Mr. Sandeep Sehgal, the School Head, while briefing about the methodology being adopted, said, “During the break, there are several boxes of puzzles available at various places in the school so that once children have eaten their lunch, they may sit and solve these puzzles-which many children sit and do. This fosters not just mental growth but team work and patience. Reading is another area that the school focuses on.”
He added trips to various manufacturing plants, adventure resorts and similar excursions are part of the annual curriculum, differentiated by age, so that children are exposed to much more than what is there in text books. Visits to manufacturing plants, historical sites, museums etc. are planned as part of the calendar to aid the teacher in the lesson being taught in the class.
Mr. Sehgal explained, “We offer Golf, which other schools do not. Schools offer yoga, but we have tied up with instructors from the famous Bihar school of Yoga to add an extra dimension to an activity that is now otherwise common place. The teaching of yoga by our instructors is linked to behavioural and learning issues also, other than the more common benefits. Our infrastructure is among the best in the tri-city area.”
Giving an insight into school infrastructure, Ms. Aprajita Singh, Coordinator (Operations) said, “While the school can easily host 1200-1500 students, what is more important is that there are designated spaces for not just classes but art, craft, music, dance, pottery, carpentry etc. We also encourage children to design their own classroom.”
She added, Parents are encouraged to meet with teachers not just on PTM days but on any working day at the end of school. Teachers stay back in school after children leave for this purpose- so that parents may discuss the performance- academic and/or behavioural- of their child with the people that the child is closest to in school- the teachers.
