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9 Aug 2021 |

Create a preschool that delivers what parents want

How do you create a preschool that delivers what parents want? This question lead us to look into several aspects of creating a preschool.

Walking around any residential area in any city in India, one is able to spot at least half a dozen pre-schools or billboards advertising preschools. How well are they able to deliver what parents need? And how well do they understand their roles as the bridge to primary education? And most importantly, how well are they able to deliver on the promises they make.

What do parents want?

What parents want out of preschools is very different from what they want in a regular school. Their focus is more on child safety, hygiene, social interaction and play.

Take care of my children
My child should feel safe
My child should want to go to school
Children should be engaged
Children should be engaged with several different activities
Learn how to appreciate everything
Children should want to learn
Children should be excited about their day and school
Children should be happy to tell us about their day in school
Want a safe environment to grow

Encourage my child to be curious, to learn
Build the confidence of my children
Instil curiosity and want to learn
To be able to ask questions
To be able to think independently
My child should be able to express himself well
My child should make friends
Children should learn how to interact with others
My child should learn how to play with others
Help children develop emotionally and socially
Help my child express himself

Fun, clean safe
Welcoming and an open mindset to make children comfortable to foster creativity!
Making children learn and have a POV on the alphabet

Safety first (sending my child to someone with trust), teachers should be friendly with us and have to be guardian to the kids
Basic entertainment without screens like dance, playing, little bit learning
Fun and social interaction

Over the years we have seen multiple versions of such statements researching and understanding parents looking for a preschool to enroll their children. And, of course we have spent several years creating schools that promise these and deliver them. It is a layered understanding of creating a right balance between target parent requirements and the needs of a 21st century education.

At the outset parents will look for safety of their child and the convenience of the school location. From that starting point the rest of the statements become differentiating factors in determining the right school for their children. This differentiation between schools is often layered with how the schools speak about themselves, what the parents see and what they hear from other parents about the school.

Some of these observations are conscious, others subconscious.

Are the spaces safely designed? Are they welcoming, are they engaging? Is there diversity?
Who is in the school? Do the teachers and the head of the school inspire confidence in their ability to take care of my child?
How does the preschool acknowledge my child is special? Is the school geared to give adequate attention and care to my child

What makes the preschool better suited to the needs of each child?

It is not possible to address all individual needs of parents as often they can be contradictory.
E.g. Some parents will want a digital element in the school others will want nothing to do with it

Importance of research

When we partner with clients, our projects often involve local area research. We delve into requirements such as these and identify the higher level needs of parents. Only by understanding where the requirements of the parents are coming from can one seek to fulfil them effectively. And as a result serve the needs of the larger target group. Often there are instances where parents need help in managing the behaviour of their children and this help comes from the environment set up in the school.

New entrepreneurs often identify one set of parents and build a school around their needs. Sometimes it is the needs they missed when they sought a preschool for their children. In other instances it is the perceptions of their peer group. It runs the risk of being a limited view. When preschool-teachers set up the school, they may have a great academic plan but will miss out on the administrative or operational efficiencies. Each of these runs the risk of resulting in a siloed view of the needs of the market.

We have created such an appropriate environment across diverse geographies. We are quickly able to understand the root solution that will address diverse needs of parents. We are also able to define the linkages between these solutions and the school brand, vision and mission.

Our approach is to help the entrepreneur articulate their vision of the school and map out how best it suits the market requirements. We then draw inspirations from developments in the sector across the world. For our projects we need regular interactions with architects, designers, academic counsellors, school founders, teachers, parents and vendors. This means that we have a continuously updated list of vendors and school needs. We also have a historical perspective on what worked and what didn’t. That allows us to deliver insights quickly.

A school where a child is safe, happy, socially comfortable and learning/developing according to their age. The ability to deliver this, to deliver the high level requirements of the target parents and to pull the triggers will enable those parents to see value in the school promise. That will result in the success of the school.

Over the years, Newton Schools has provided services as project consultants in developing the school concept, marketing strategy and the financial projections. Such engagements begin at the concept stage when the school is an idea and perhaps even the land has not been acquired. We have also worked in already initiated projects as academic/management consultants defining the curriculum, the teacher training and recruitments. And in other projects as management consultants building a bridge between school owners and everyday operations of schools.

Post to follow: Approaches to early years education.

Planning CCTV for schools

A question that we often face is about planning the CCTV system for schools. When a new school is being constructed or an existing school is being renovated, a CCTV system needs to be planned. We have planned and installed CCTV systems in many schools and have the benefit of seeing them work over a period of time. This article will summarise our experience and views on the same.

Are CCTV cameras mandatory in schools?

While the CBSE affiliation bye laws themselves are silent on the topic of CCTV, they do mention several indirect points connected to the topic of safety. The bye laws direct schools to follow the National Building Code and the School Safety Policy issued by the National Disaster Management Authority, along with a few other relevant policies and documents. These codes and guidelines, and state laws make it mandatory to have CCTV coverage in ‘vulnerable areas’ of schools, however, that is no guideline that all areas, including classrooms need to be covered.

Should schools have CCTV camera’s inside classrooms?

This is a much debated topic. In most organizations, employees do not like being directly monitored by CCTV while doing their work. In a classroom with only 1 teacher, the teacher feels directly monitored and feels it is an invasion of her/his privacy. It restricts their freedom to run their classes as they wish and the culture then lacks trust. On the other hand, school administration often feels that having a CCTV camera in the classroom will ensure safety and security of students. One view on this is the following:

In cities and developed areas where the staff is well qualified, trained and motivated, it is better to avoid CCTV cameras in the classrooms. If we can’t trust our teachers, who can we trust then? Students in classrooms are monitored by teachers, and they too deserve that much freedom to negotiate their time with their peers without constantly being monitored.
In some scenarios, like in pre-primary sections or in classrooms that have expensive equipment, CCTV cameras could be installed.
If the school is located in areas with high attrition of teachers, or in areas where security of kids is a key concern, only then should the administrators consider planning a CCTV in classrooms
Besides classrooms, all corridors and outdoor spaces should have CCTV coverage.

How do we plan a CCTV system for a school?

In our experience, a well planned CCTV system is effective not as a deterrent but as a post-incident analysis tool. While we may have eyes on monitors, the possibility of preventing incidents while they are happening is rare and difficult. Therefore, the following points can be kept in mind while designing the CCTV system for a school:

Cover all common areas such as corridors, lobbies, entrance and exit gates and try to cover open areas like playgrounds when feasible. Based on the schools locations, specific cameras may be planned to cover boundary walls, parking lots and basements.
Connect all the camera’s to a central place like a security room or in the admin offices.
Provide for multiple viewing displays at places like the guard room (for outdoor cameras only), reception (for indoor cameras only) and the Principal’s room / meeting room (for reviewing incidents after authorised access).
The access to all recordings must be password protected, with the password closely guarded by the head of school and / or authorised person.

Technical specifications to keep in mind while planning a CCTV system for a school

While detailed drawing and technical specifications can only be made specific to a project, here are some key points to consider:

Plan for an IP based system with POE cameras- it will avoid the need to provide a separate power connection to each camera, reduce wiring costs and increase reliability.
The NVR (network video recorder) should have extra capacity to add camera’s when required. It should also have enough storage to store all recordings for at least 1 month.
The NVR and connected switches should be powered by a UPS system only, with sufficient backup to outlast power outages.
In addition to providing wiring at planned camera locations, leave additional spare wires at locations where cameras might be required in the future.
Good brands to use for CCTV are Bosch and Honeywell, while brands such as Hikvision and CP Plus are common as they are slightly less expensive.

There are many other considerations while planning a good CCTV system for a school. Do reach out to us if you have any questions.

26 Jul 2021 |

American Embassy School – Grade 5

The American Embassy School provides a balanced education defined by a joyful pursuit of excellence in academics, athletics, arts and service. They enable each student to be an inspired lifelong learner and a responsible, compassionate global citizen.
Involvement:

Newton was engaged to renovate the interiors of Grade 5 in 2018

Key Contribution:

The American Embassy School, New Delhi had decided to redo their classroom interiors to make them better suited for a 21st century education. Classrooms were redesigned by Education Design International, ( a world-leading school design firm). Newton was engaged to do the first project under this redevelopment. The project was a complex project with tight timelines. We were able to deliver the project within the prescribed time and to the satisfaction of the clients

Current Status:

The interiors were very well received by the educators, the parents and the students, both for the design intent and the quality of work delivered. We have been invited back to the school to complete the later stages of the project.

24 Jul 2021 |

American Embassy School – Pre-K

Newton has renovated parts of the AES campus to convert traditional classrooms and corridor-based sections into highly effective learning communities. These learning communities enable multiple modalities of learning that were not possible in the old building. The school facilities have been transformed so that AES is now able to deliver the world class education it is internationally renowned for.

Project Start Date: 15 May 2020
Project End Date: 01 Aug 2020

24 Jul 2021 |

GD Goenka LaPetite

Renovation of existing building to launch new branch of GD Goenka LaPetite Preschool at New Friends Colony, New Delhi was executed by Newton. The existing building was several years old and needed extensive changes to convert into a modern Pre School. The designs made by architects were implemented, while offering a major cost saving to the clients. The overall look and feel achieved was as per the specifications of the architects.

Project Start Date: 01 April 2019
Project End Date: 05 June 2019