“Many thanks to EW survey respondents for this honour. As Asia’s oldest boys’ boarding school, Bishop Cotton has maintained its 168-year-old legacy and mission of nurturing ‘men of character’. Our focus on character development, service and instilling citizenship values distinguishes us from the rest. Our teachers and staff are trained to focus beyond academics on developing children’s confidence, resilience and social consciousness. That’s why our top scores for pastoral care and mental and emotional well-being of children, and high scores for co-curricular and sports education are so satisfying. But while we have maintained our traditions, we have also embraced change to ensure our students are well-equipped to succeed in the digital age. Recently, we inaugurated a full-fledged STEM Lab in the school, and introduced AI and robotics as subjects in secondary school. Moreover, our students now have the option to write the international Cambridge IGCSE and A/AS levels school-leaving exams” — Mathew P. John, Headmaster, Bishop Cotton School, Shimla (estb.1859; 300 students and 60 teachers)