Among Pune’s best preschools 2017-18, a total of 24 sufficiently well-known pre-primaries are ranked and rated by 522 parents with preschool children and 61 teachers/principals polled by field personnel of C fore, Delhi

Maharashtra’s second largest city after Mumbai, Pune (pop. 4 million) has over the years emerged as an education hub and hosts several top-ranked higher education institutions including Symbiosis International University, College of Engineering Pune, Armed Forces Medical College, National Defence Academy and the Film and Television Institute of India among others, which attract an estimated 20,000 foreign students annually. Also a centre of the manufacturing, IT and knowledge industries which employ highly-qualified new-age industry professionals, Pune is one of the country’s youngest cities with 33 percent of its population below 30 years of age.

Consequently, it’s no surprise that growing demand from young parents for professionally administered high-quality early childhood care and education (ECCE) has transformed Pune into a hotspot of preschool education. A host of pre-primaries — proprietary and franchise — have mushroomed in the city offering a range of ECCE pedagogies and options to young parents. In the EW Pune Preschool Rankings 2017-18, a total of 24 (cf. 10 in 2014) sufficiently well-known pre-primaries are ranked and rated by 522 parents with preschool children and 61 teachers/principals polled by field personnel of Delhi-based market research firm C fore.

Proprietary preschools

Since the EW Pune Preschool Rankings were introduced in 2013, Leapbridge International Preschool, Kalyani Nagar (estb. 2010) has been ranked the city’s #1 preschool. However, in the past two years it has been forced to share the top rank with other preschools. In 2015, Leapbridge was jointly ranked #1 with Indus Early Learning Centre (IELC), Koregaon Park and in 2016 it was tied at #1 with Primrose Nursery, Koregaon Park. This year once again it shares the top ranking with IELC, Koregaon Park followed by Primrose Nursery at #2 and debutant Global Montessori Plus, Chinchwad at #3. 

Promoted in 2014 by the Bangalore-based Indus Trust, which also runs the top-ranked Indus International schools in Bangalore, Pune and Hyderabad and IELC centres in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Chennai (all ranked among the Top 10 in their cities), IELC, Koregaon Park is also top rated on seven of the ten parameters of ECCE excellence. “We are overjoyed that your informed sample respondents have restored IELC, Koregaon Park to its rightful #1 position this year. IELC is a 21st century pre-primary which provides youngest children with foundational early years education necessary to emerge as leaders of tomorrow. Our #1 rank on most of your parameters is validation of Indus’ holistic approach to early childhood education with our well-trained teachers delivering hands-on learning to children in a safe and hygienic campus. In particular our focus on continuous teacher training is exemplary — recently some of our teachers visited schools in Finland to learn and adapt their best ECCE practices,” says Rachna Gupta, an alumna of IGNOU, Delhi with a Cambridge International Diploma and centre head of IELC, Koregaon Park, whose affiliated preschool IELC, Bhosale Nagar is ranked #4 this year. Together, the IELC pre-primaries in Pune host an aggregate 183 children instructed by 25 teachers. 

Likewise, Dr. Amrita Vohra of Global Montessori Plus, Chinchwad (estb.2011), the feeder primary of Pune’s Global Indian International School (GIIS), is delighted about this pre-primary debuting at #3 with top ratings for provision of special needs education. “We are very happy to be ranked among Pune’s Top 5 pre-primaries. Our ECCE programme is a blend of the Montessori, Multiple Intelligences and Play-way pedagogies focusing on all-round growth and development of children. I am also very pleased with our #1 rank for special needs education as we always keep an open door for children with special needs, who are integrated into inclusive classrooms by our special educators,” says Dr. Vohra, an education postgraduate of Himachal Pradesh University who was awarded a doctorate in educational psychology by Rani Durgavati Vishwavidyalaya University, Jabalpur, and is the incumbent principal of GIIS, Pune. 

Further down the 15-strong league table of Pune’s most admired proprietary preschools, there has been a major rearrangement of seating. Vivero International Preschool, Kalyani Nagar has slipped to #5 (3 in 2016), Leapbridge International Preschool, Aundh to #6 (4) and Serra International Preschool, Aundh to #7 (6) while Orange Ivy Playschool, Viman Nagar has retained its #8 rank. The Top 10 table is completed by Sapling Nursery, Ram-Indu Park and Lexicon Kids, Viman Nagar. 

Franchised 

The league table of Pune’s franchised preschools has experienced a major rejig this year. Kangaroo Kids (KK), Pimple Saudagar, a franchisee of the Mumbai-based Kangaroo Kids Education which has a network of 100 owned and franchised preschools countrywide, has risen spectacularly from #7 last year to Pune’s #1 franchised preschool in 2017-18. Maple Bear Canadian Preschool, Baner Road and Little Millennium, Viman Nagar have retained their #2 and #3 positions respectively, while Podar Jumbo Kids (PJK), Baner Road has debuted at #3. The rise of KK, Pimple Saudagar has pushed the previously #1 ranked EuroKids, Kalyani Nagar to #4 even as another PJK franchisee in Hinjewadi has debuted at #5.

Bindu Saini, principal of KK, Pimple Saudagar (estb.2014), is elated about the great leap forward of this pre-primary top-rated by the sample respondents on seven of the ten parameters of preschool excellence. “This is great news. I attribute our top ranking to the excellent Kangaroo Kids Education curriculum based on latest neurosciences research which accommodates children with varying learning abilities, emphasises individual attention and involves parents in the learning process. Our satisfied parents have seen the transformation of their children and have strongly recommended us to friends and family. Of all the parameters, I am especially happy with our #1 rank for safety and hygiene which is a top priority for us. Our 6,000 sq. ft campus is fitted with 26 cameras, patrolled by three full-time security guards, and all ten air-conditioned classrooms are equipped with air purifiers,” says Saini, awarded a Ph D by Panjab University, Chandigarh. Currently, KK, Pimple Saudagar has 187 students mentored by 24 teachers on its muster rolls. 

Similarly, Pooja Podar Jain, principal of Podar Jumbo Kids, Baner Road, is delighted with this eight-year-old pre-primary debuting at #3. “We are very happy and excited with this news. It reassures us that we are moving in the right direction. Recently we adopted the Podar Jumbo Kids’ Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum which focuses on seven areas of children’s learning and development. This age-appropriate curriculum combined with our innovative teaching practices has helped us focus on whole child development. Moreover, we closely involve parents in all activities of the school and encourage them to reinforce our holistic development philosophy,” says Jain, an alumna of Mumbai University and the Podar Institute of Education, Mumbai, who promoted PJK, Baner Road in 2009. 

The 12-strong league table of Pune’s franchised preschools features three franchisees of EuroKids (EK) International — the Mumbai-based ECCE chain with 900-plus franchised preschools countrywide — EK, Ashok Nagar (6), EK, Aundh (8) and EK, Viman Nagar (9). The Delhi-based Sesame Street and Mumbai-based Tree House have one franchisee each in the Top 10 — The Tree House, Aundh, ranked #7 and Sesame Street, Wakkad, at #10.

 

To read the EW Pune Preschool Rankings 2017 please visit: http://www.educationworld.in/rank-preschool/pune/2017.html