Twelve tips to selecting the right preschool for your child!

A few days ago a close acquaintance revealed that she was completely stressed out worrying about ‘getting admission’ for her daughter in a good school. Her daughter would turn two years old in a couple of months and the anxious mother wanted to ensure admissions for the next academic year starting in June. She had endless questions in her mind such as – “do I send her to an independent preschool or a preschool attached to a big school? Are school chains better than schools without any branches? How do I decide which school is the best? What about safety, transport…?”

As her list of questions kept increasing, I realized that the decision regarding schooling is probably one of the most important decisions in parenting. It is also a personal decision which has to be taken by the parents themselves. Friends, relatives and acquaintances can help by giving a feedback, but the decision finally rests with the parents.

The growing number of preschools, their branding and large-scale advertising often confuses parents, making it tougher for parents to make the right choice.  Selecting a school for my children was a difficult decision for me. The different schooling perspectives baffled me. The entire exercise of selecting the right school was overwhelming for me too. The twelve pointers that helped me take this decision for my children were

1. The nature, personality traits of my child: Am I aware of my child’s preferences, likes, dislikes, sources of joy and happiness? It is important for parents to select a school where the child will be comfortable, happy and enthusiastic about learning. A child who loves the outdoors will probably not like to sit in a closed classroom throughout the day. Similarly a curious child would want his curiosity to be satisfied at school and children who have never stayed outside their homes, without their mothers will need a warm, loving atmosphere which is like their home.
2. School demographic profile: this includes seeking answers to questions of location, year of establishment, whether the school is part of a chain, its religious, political or social affiliations, number of teachers, students and background of the children.
3. Pedagogy / Approach / Methodology: Preschools today offer various options with regard to the pedagogy, approach and methodology used for teaching. In India we have the Montessori, Kindergarten, Steiner and many other philosophies as well as methods developed by international parties such as Singapore, Canada and America being most popular. Each of these approaches are different and are based on different notions of childhood, teaching and learning. However what is crucial is an understanding of these approaches and reflection on what approach the parent feels is the best for their child.
4. Facility, the school environment and resources: Your child will be spending a few hours away from home for the first time and hence it is important to check the school’s premises for indoor, outdoor space, toilets, safety, comfort, cleanliness and hygiene.
5. Transportation: Most schools provide transportation facility. Some school own their vans or buses while some schools hire other transportation services. Information regarding safety of children when in transit and also the distance and time taken for travel is imperative.
6. Fee Structure: Parents need to analyse their financial situation and decide whether they can afford the school fees and whether they are getting their money’s worth at the school. Hence asking questions pertaining to fee structure, installments and refunds helps the parents in their decision. It is also beneficial to ask whether books and stationery, uniforms, field trip expenses and meals are included in the fees charged.
7. School size, student teacher, classroom ratio: It is important not only to know how many children have enrolled in the school, but also how many children are in each class and how many teachers handle the children at any point of time. Along with the student teacher ratio, the parent should enquire into the size of each classroom and check whether there is ample space for children and teachers inside the classroom.
8. Teachers: apart from experience and qualification of the teachers, the parent should explore if they could talk to a few teachers. The parents should try to gauge the teachers’ personality, their views about teaching, their notions about childhood and children during this discussion.
9. Parental involvement: Some schools are very demanding on the parents and expect parents to be involved at every step of their child’s schooling. Such schools involve parents in completing homework/project work and organize events and parent days regularly. Some schools are happy with minimum involvement of the parents. Such schools often have a no homework policy and get children to complete projects in the school itself and rarely call the parents for an event or meeting. Seeking information regarding this helps parents evaluate time available on their hands and demands of the school and decide whether they can meet all the requirements of the school.
10. Feedback from other parents: Feedback from parents is crucial yet tricky. Parents should ask specific questions instead of – ‘how is the school?’ for which they may get a monosyllable answer either good or bad or its okay. Parents should think about a few things that are important for them and ask relevant questions such as – where did the children go for a field trip? What did they do over there? Did your child come back happy? Or do you get homework every day? What does the teacher do if a child hasn’t submitted homework? Or can you share a few good traits of the teacher?
11. Admission to the Primary school: Most parents do get worried whether the children will get admissions in the primary school after completing kindergarten. Some parents thus prefer seeking admissions in a preschool affiliated to a primary and high school while others try to understand how the preschool prepares children for the next level. While some parents focus only on developing the foundation, some want children to ace the entrance tests or interviews set up by the next level schools. Thus an understanding of how the preschool will help in preparing the child for the next level school helps in taking a decision.
12. Reason out and decide: Finally, parents should reason out whether a particular school is apt for their child. Keeping in mind that, ‘Sometimes the best rated school may not be the best for my child’, the parent should carefully weigh all the pros and cons and take a conscious decision.

Happy Preschool hunting!!

Coming soon –   What is the right age to start schooling?