‘In our school, we don’t mind saying sorry’

CHARTING THE COURSE: Principal A K Shrivastava at his office in Birla Public School. “If you don’t change with the changing times, you will be left behind,” he says about embracing the digital medium. Photographs: Anand Holla

By Anand Holla

Almost 10 years after its inception in Doha, the Birla Public School (BPS) will step into the new academic year next month with 7,200 students. Principal A K Shrivastava talks to Community about the road ahead.

What are the main issues dogging the school?

At BPS, lack of space is our foremost problem. But it’s not just us. Most schools are worried about this. There has been a huge influx of expats to Qatar, and this number is only going up. Too many parents line up for admissions, yet unfortunately most schools don’t have the space to accommodate children.

How do you plan to overcome this problem?

We are conscious of not packing students into classrooms like sardines. This is why we are already in the process of opening our fourth school (currently, BPS has three – kindergarten, primary, and the main school). We are securing approvals from various government agencies for the new primary school, which will open near the Medical Commission Roundabout. In the next few months, it should be ready. Plans are also afoot to build a bigger school.

It must take quite some time to put these systems in order?

Things may take a little longer here in Qatar. But we don’t crib about it. That’s because the government is setting some standards, and they are good standards. Why shouldn’t we be party to them?

The government has also brought about a lot of important reforms. Once upon a time, practically all Indian schools were operating from porta cabins (portable structures). Today, you won’t find even one. Gradually, things change and they change for the better.

What initiatives are being pursued for the near future?

We will soon be initiating the concept of ‘paperless schools’ by using digital devices like tablets for both teachers and students. In the West, it’s quite common.

On an experimental basis, we will be introducing it in the international curriculum for a couple of higher classes. The process needs a lot of investment. We are in talks with vendors who can provide us the hardware and software. We are also working on setting up an e-library. There are some hitches like permissions and copyright issues that we are figuring out.

Why do you feel the need to embrace the digital medium?

If you don’t change with the changing times, you will be left behind. Besides, I don’t see any harm in this switch. Children are more tech-savvy than us. They can quickly grasp how to use these gadgets. Why not make the best use of it?

We cut trees to print books. If a school asks a thousand students to go paperless, won’t the savings on notebooks, textbooks, worksheets, and circulars be significant in many ways?

What about the extra-curricular activities?

Since we are working towards getting accreditation from Qatar National School Accreditation, we need to look into the minutest details. For this, a major issue is the co-scholastic area, like developing life skills, physical education and soft skills. Earlier, we weren’t focusing on them. Now we have put those things in place.

So what is being done now to bridge the gap?

For students up to class five, we have two lessons per week, where the children are divided and taught hockey, football, basketball, table tennis, badminton, swimming, and even cricket. Even in the afternoons and evenings, we have two hours of activities. So for those children keen on seeking extra inputs, they can come by later and learn.

Having been the chairman of the Council of CBSE Affiliated Schools in the Gulf last year, you would be aware of the state of affairs concerning schools. Have processes become better?

Definitely. Processes have become a lot more streamlined now. We get e-mails from the CBSE (Central Board of Secondary Education, the leading board of school-level education in India), or we stay updated by tracking their website. This year, the CBSE has appointed Sanjay Sachdeva, an exclusive nodal officer for the Gulf. Today, there are 137 members in the Gulf Council. We can write to him about our problems and he ensures that our work is done in no time.

What do you feel about the Supreme Education Council’s efforts to bring parity in terms of quality and fee structure?

I am all for it. Nobody can deny that it’s necessary. But to accommodate such large numbers of students as we need to, one can’t deny that the quality does suffer. In our education system in India, we rely on rote learning, and not on skill-based learning. The approach is to cram it up and reproduce. In India, we lack the culture of research work.

The SEC has stressed on research-based work. For instance, the World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE, established by Qatar Foundation) awards young boys and girls from schools for their work.

While even the CBSE has introduced that, when the numbers are huge, the quality is somewhat lost. The SEC is trying to bring quality work, which for us, is a challenge to figure out.

How important is the parent-teacher interaction in improving the whole schooling experience? 

It is extremely important. Starting this year, we plan to invite nominations from parents and have representatives so they too can be part of the system. Honestly, I attribute the growth of our school to the parents. They meet me, or mail me, and immediately we take care of things. When we make mistakes, we correct them. Any suggestion in this school is taken with utmost respect. In our school, we don’t mind saying sorry.

Please share an instance.

Only a couple of days ago, we informed the children that they would get their bus to return home at 11am. We realised a little late that exams of some classes will finish only by 11.30am. One parent wrote to us saying her child reached home late. I immediately responded, saying I am sorry for erring on our schedule, and this won’t repeat. I consider it as a big Birla parivaar (family). In a parivaar, nobody is big or small.

What is your view on private tuitions? 

I have always been strictly against them. As a physics professor of Grade 12 students back in Delhi, I never offered tuitions. And my students did very well. After the school hours, I was there in the teachers’ room to help everyone. That is my philosophy. I have tried nurturing the same idea here as well.

BELOW:

The BPS campus in Mesaimeer.