Quite clearly the change of incumbent in the headmaster’s office has not affected the rock-solid reputation of The Doon School which is ranked India’s #1 boys boarding school for the third year in succession.
The boys boarding school league table of the annual EducationWorld India School Rankings is as thoroughly dominated by the Dehradun-based The Doon School (TDS, estb.1935) as the co-ed boarding schools table is dominated by the Rishi Valley School, Chittoor (Andhra Pradesh). Except for 2012 and 2014 when TDS was second ranked, it has always been top-ranked during the past five years. Therefore unsurprisingly, TDS is ranked #1 again by a wide margin. Top ranked on almost all parameters among boys schools, TDS is also top-rated among all boarding schools (boys, girls, co-ed) on the parameters of academic reputation, teacher welfare and development, safety and hygiene, pastoral care and internationalism.
Quite clearly the change of incumbent in the headmaster’s office with Matthew Raggett replacing Peter Mclaughlin (who served two five-year terms) in July 2015, has not affected TDS’ rock-solid reputation within monitors of India’s K-12 education scene. That’s perhaps also because Raggett, an alum of Newcastle (UK) and Charles Stuart (Australia) universities and former principal of the International School, Leipzig (Germany) — selected after a global search has brought a wealth of academic and administrative experience to TDS.
Responding to an email questionnaire from EW, Raggett derives special satisfaction from TDS’ cross-category top-rating on the parameters of teacher welfare and development. “It’s encouraging to learn that there is some recognition out there of the work we are doing, especially in the fields of pastoral care and teacher welfare and development. For instance, all our teachers and resident faculty are obliged to be certified by the Boarding Schools Association, UK or Duty of Care, Australia as having developed pastoral care skills. Vis-a-vis teacher welfare and development, it’s well-known that we host a Teacher Training Centre on our campus, which attracts a regular flow of visiting trainers, subject and curricular experts and where we often convene peer-to-peer workshops to which we routinely invite teachers of local schools. Our research on the value of teachers reflecting together on what they are learning from their development programmes shows a very significant effect on students’ learning outcomes,” says Raggett.
For the second year in succession the second ranked school in the boys boarding schools league table is the Shimla (Himachal Pradesh)-based Bishop Cotton School, which has the unusual distinction of having bested TDS in 2014 when it was ranked #1. Led by its long-standing cheerful but purposive headmaster Roy Robinson, this vintage (estb.1859) CISCE-affiliated class III-XII school continues to enjoy an excellent reputation countrywide.
However this year, BCS is obliged to share the second rank with the Scindia School, Gwalior (SSG, estb.1897) which has risen in the esteem of this year’s sample respondents. Ranked #4 in 2016-17 with high ratings under the parameters of internationalism and community service, SSG, which was ranked #10 in 2012, has risen steadily in the public esteem over the past five years. The promotion of SSG is undoubtedly good news for Dr. Madhav Deo Saraswat, hitherto founder CEO of the Sapkal Knowledge Hub and founder-principal of the Orchid International School, Nashik (Maharashtra), who took charge as principal at SSG in April 2015.
“I am privileged to learn that informed educationists and teachers across the country have awarded the Scindia School this high ranking. I also commend EW for conducting this exhaustive survey which has evaluated schools countrywide from all possible perspectives,” says Saraswat, an English and Hindi alum of Agra University who served a long stint as a teacher at The Doon School (1989-2005). “The results of this year’s survey — and especially the high scores we’ve been awarded on the parameters of internationalism and community service — are an indicator of belated awareness within the educators’ community that SSG provides balanced education for life, by developing the qualities of heart and mind to the highest level,” he adds.
Like the Scindia School, another low-profile, home-grown boys boarding school which has been steadily moving up the league table is the Nainital-based Birla Vidyamandir (BVM, estb.1947), which was ranked #13 in 2012, #7 last year and #6 in 2017-18. The conservative business house of Birla which is unlikely to promote a co-ed school, is well-represented in the 29-strong league table of the country’s top boys boarding schools. Its show-piece Sarala Birla Academy, Bangalore (estb.2004) has held on to its #5 position for three consecutive years while the Birla Public School, Pilani has improved its ranking to #9 this year (10), as have the G.D. Birla Memorial School, Ranikhet to #11 (14) and B.K. Birla Centre for Education, Pune to #16 (23).
“It is heartening that the hard work invested in developing our students has been acknowledged by the nationwide educators’ community. As head of the institution, I am proud of my teachers, staff and students. It is their sincerity, devotion, sense of belongingness and commitment to attaining our institutional goals that is responsible for our higher ranking year on year,” says Anil Sharma, a physics and education postgrad of Delhi University and M.D. University, Rohtak, former principal of the Sanskriti School, Ajmer, Gyan Bharati, Delhi and deputy principal of the Lawrence School, Lovedale, who has been principal of BVM since 2011. According to Sharma, right now the school’s heritage campus is experiencing a massive infrastructure overhaul to include installation of central heating in the dormitories and shooting and archery ranges.
Further down the 29-stro
ng league table of the country’s best boys’ boarding schools, old rivals St. Paul’s and St. Joseph’s, Darjeeling have almost traded places to be ranked #1 and #2 in West Bengal, while the B.K. Birla Centre for Education at #16 (23) despite its modest national ranking, is nevertheless ranked the #1 boys boarding school in Maharashtra (pop. 112 million). Ditto Atma Vidya Mandir ranked #14 (9), is top-ranked in the western seaboard state of Gujarat (pop. 60 million). Like we’ve commented elsewhere in this cover feature, national rankings don’t tell the whole story in this continent-size country where several states are bigger and more populous than most European countries.
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