Given its historical error of neglecting English language learning, there’s rising clamour within middle class households in Gujarat for privately provided early childhood care and education. Here are Ahmedabad’s best preschools 2018-19. The western seaboard state of Gujarat (pop. 60.4 million), where prime minister Narendra Modi served as chief minister for three consecutive terms before leading the BJP to a landslide victory in general election 2014, fares poorly on several human development indicators including education and child health. The state ranks #18 in the Educational Development Index 2017 of the National University of Educational Planning and Administration, Delhi and has an annual female school dropout rate of 8.5 percent cf. 4.6 percent nationally. Unsurprisingly given the state government’s poor human resource development track record and more so its historical error of neglecting English language learning, there’s rising clamour within middle class households for privately provided English medium early childhood care and education (ECCE). Even as several greenfield K-12 schools are being established, there’s a corresponding upsurge in English medium pre-primaries being promoted by edupreneurs statewide, especially in the commercial capital of Ahmedabad, which is emerging as an ECCE hotspot. To rate and rank the textile city’s most admired preschools in the proprietary and franchised categories, the Delhi-based research company C fore interviewed 505 parents with preschool-going children and 63 ECCE educators in Ahmedabad. Proprietary preschools Except at the top where RedBricks Junior, Satellite has comfortably retained its #1 rank for the third consecutive year, Ahmedabad’s proprietary schools league table 2018-19 has experienced a makeover. Olive Green Kids School, Navarangpura, has inched up to #2 (3 in 2017), Rising Kids Preschool, Bapunagar, has slipped to #3 (2) while Vedant International School Maninagar has retained its #4 rank and 9Kids, Memnagar has gained ground at #6 (7). Little Wings Holistic Childhood Centre, Bopal, ranked #7, Thumbelina Nursery and KG School, Naranpura at #9 and Square One, Anand Nagar Road at #10 have all ceded rank since 2017-18. The other notable change in the Top 10 league table is the entry of two previously unranked preschools — Bodakdev School for Children at #5 and Superwings, Thaltej at #8. “I am delighted that we’ve been ranked #1 in Ahmedabad for the past three years. The deep commitment of our teachers has helped us to continuously innovate and consolidate our reputation as a school where children not only imbibe knowledge and life skills, but develop curiosity and love of learning. That’s why I am especially pleased about our #1 rank under the parameter of competence of teachers and teacher development. Our 32 teachers receive rigorous induction training and are continuously provided opportunities for professional development. This focus on teachers has resulted in a unique pedagogy which combines experimental learning and outdoor play,” says Renita Handa, an alumna of St. Xavier’s College, Ahmedabad and Bentley University, USA and promoter-director of Redbricks Junior, Satellite (estb. 2009) which has an enrolment of 277 pupils. Manan G. Choksi, director of the mint-new Bodakdev School for Children (BSC, estb.2018) which…
