Academics at GIS
“Learning is not attained by chance; it must be sought for with ardor and attended to with diligence.” – Abigail Adams
Education is about far more than the marks fetched by a student. It’s about distinguishing the right from the wrong and having the current and comprehensive knowledge required to stay afloat in today’s society. Therefore, Gitanjali International School helps the children to develop a perception on the world around and push their thinking both creatively and conceptually in many subject areas. Small group instruction, personalized attention for all the learners, flipped classrooms, blended learning, self directed learning allow teachers to thoroughly assess them during their work. Curriculum is developed keeping in mind all the three types of learners namely visual, auditory and kinesthetic thereby touching the learning needs of a learner. We believe that each child rises to meet high expectations. Teachers encourage them to take intellectual risks, stretch socially, expand their ideas and investigate central issues.
METHODOLOGY & LEARNING STYLES
The GIS approach to learning encourages the development of this skill, not just because the IB curriculum demands it but because survival can depend upon it.
Student Centered Learning
Gitanjali methodology concentrates first on the student’s aptitudes, then on the skills and knowledge they need to acquire. Traditional education tends to value a limited range of knowledge and skills but more recent research suggests that intelligence is not unitary but multiple. At Gitanjali, we aim to give students a broader, deeper, richer educational experience by recognizing each student’s strongest talents and building on them in order to ensure that all the areas of talent are developed.
Multiple Intelligences Theory: A Learning Tool
The Multiple Intelligences research of Dr. Howard Gardner of Harvard University provides a new insight into student-centered learning. Much of traditional education values a very limited range of abilities, centering on literacy and numeracy. However different individuals have different aptitudes. By using the strongest aptitudes or ‘intelligences’ as a starting point we can educate more effectively by teaching different students the same topic in different ways according to their particular ‘intelligences’. In a class situation, this approach allows students to benefit from each other’s strengths and to develop their competence in their weaker as in their stronger ‘intelligences’. Gardner identified eight ‘intelligences’:
Linguistic
Developed at Gitanjali through such activities as creative writing, literature, foreign language learning, theatre, debating and public speaking.
Logical-Mathematical
Developed at Gitanjali through such activities as science and maths projects and experiments, industrial design, stock-market games and helping to run the student store.
Musical
Developed at Gitanjali through such activities as playing, directing studying and composing classical and contemporary music.
Bodily-Kinesthetic
Developed at Gitanjali through such activities as creative writing, literature, foreign language learning, theatre, debating and public speaking.
Spatial
Developed at Gitanjali through such activities as sculpture, drawing and painting, photography and geography.
Naturalist
Developed at Gitanjali through such activities as ecology, gardening, wildlife observation, biological and chemical experiments.
Inter-Personal
Developed at Gitanjali through such activities as group projects, peer teaching and counselling, media work (including student magazines and the Yearbook) and international exchange programmes.
Intra-Personal
Developed at Gitanjali through self-awareness training, counselling and the creation of physical and personal space for meditation, reflection and tranquility.
Project Based Learning
If we recognize that individual students have different ‘intelligences’ it is logical to allow them to develop these different talents through individual projects. Well organized Primary classes frequently function like this. To take an example from the Secondary curriculum: in a Design-Technology workshop at Gitanjali, 15 students will typically be pursuing 15 different design projects: in electronics, in engineering, in plastics, in architecture etc.
The fact that the project is the students own ensures that s/he works with a complete concentration which ensures that s/he remembers what is learned: (This approach can be applied almost as easily to languages and mathematics as it can to so-called practical subjects)
Research suggests that many of us remember:
• 10% of what we read
• 20% of what we hear
• 30% of what we see
• 70% of what we discuss with others
• 80% of what we experience by doing
Learning to Learn
Gitanjali aims to develop motivated, confident articulate students with the skills necessary for independent study. Observing that teachers are also learning, young people are themselves encouraged to become Life-Long Learners.
Anywhere-Anytime Learning
Because the campus is student-friendly, with universal access to IT and other technological support, students become aware from the outset that learning can and should be ‘Anywhere-Anytime’.
CURRICULUM
Curriculum at GIS encourages both personal development and academic achievement challenging students to think critically, to ask the right questions and think across disciplines. The skilled-based curriculum also fosters diversity, curiosity and a healthy appetite for learning.
A child’s first experience of school plays an important role in setting the child’s approach to learning. Children need to feel safe and have classrooms that foster a tone that allows even the quietest and sensitive child an equal opportunity to interact with teachers, attendants and fellow students. Therefore, during the early childhood years, we focus on learning through experience, interaction and inquiry. The teacher-students’ ratio is considered very important in giving each child a warm and a nurturing touch.
The Kindergarten Program at Gitanjali International School ensures that structured and progressive learning in English, Mathematics, Science, Social Science and Art is continuous, varied and substantial. Music, Dance, Sports, Health and Well Being, Life Skills, Values etc. have also been integrated into the curriculum. Special focus is on imparting values, so that our children realize the importance of friends, family community and society. We believe in creating scientists, scholars, intellectuals, engineers, researchers, and creative minds for the future. We encourage children to explore their environment and optimize their learning using multiple skills which includes speaking, singing, movement, drawing, painting, writing, building, designing, collage, dramatics and music.
Our Primary Program offers a comfortable transformation from colourful world of kindergarten to an equally colourful world of primary learning.
At primary level lot of absorption, observation, retention, questioning, reinforcement and controlled practice takes place. This stage of education is immensely important; as it is here the foundation of literacy, numeracy and other structures are laid down for the future.
Each year, as they begin their journey in the Primary Grades of III, IV and V, they are introduced to a new curriculum to provide them with advanced learning. Everything learned in the primary classes will build the initial ground for the students to work towards their dream. In this crucial phase, every aspect of learning i.e. academics, inculcating values, discipline etc is closely taken care of. The development during the primary stage of education empowers the comprehensive abilities, enhancing their vision for both personal and academic goals.
The Secondary program offers effective transition from middle to high school and then to higher education programs in various college and universities.
At this stage a teacher plays a role of a mentor steering the learning process of children. A student is ready to exhibit what he has observed over the previous years. This stage includes production, demonstration, exhibition, presentation and performances by the students.
The Students of secondary grades of V to X are provided with a significant understanding of each subject. Once the foundation of learning is established in the primary classes, they are further provided with the required academic rigor to prepare them for the upcoming challenges. We provide our students with an integrated knowledge of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, in an easily comprehensible manner through our unique teaching methods.
FACULTY
GIS believes in its teachers and in the importance of encouraging professional growth for our educators. ‘Our Team’ consists of the key personnel of the school that works relentlessly to materialize innovative ideas related to the curriculum and other activities. Being profoundly creative and intellectual, the team members and the school’s faculty endeavour to cater to the futuristic educational needs of students with utmost rigour and precision. The school consciously understands the importance of quality education and thus, has instituted a highly professional and collaborative teaching culture that enhances the student’s performance. Besides being tech-savvy and well-trained, each team member possesses a deep understanding of children’s behavior, for above academic qualifications; a tender heart remains indispensable for righteous action.
ADMINISTRATION
The administrative department assists the school with many services like Security, Housekeeping, Gardening, Canteen, Stores, HR, Computers, Transport, and Events Management etc. The school bus offers safe and prompt mode of commuting between school and home for the children. Security is a vital concern for schools worldwide. Our digital surveillance solution is a comprehensive security offering designed school community across campus. Digital cameras are deployed in every corner of the school to monitor the security. All the security guards are well trained to ensure that the school community is safe. The administration ensures that there is smart monitoring of the security of the students and staff.
CAPACITY BUILDING PROGRAMS
Coming soon...