Page 66 - EW October 2024

Cover Story EW BOYS BOARDING SCHOOLS RANKINGS 2024-25

INDIA’S BEST BOYS BOARDING SCHOOLS

The league table of sufficiently high-profile boys boarding lowed by Birla Vidyamandir,
schools has been shrinking year by year. This shrinkage has Nainital at #4, and G.D. Birla
been attenuated by sub-division of the boarding schools Memorial School, Ranikhet #5.
league table into ‘legacy vintage’ schools All these three Birla boys boarding
schools have retained their ranking of
2023-24 even as Sarala Birla Academy
has retained its #2 rank. Evidently,
the Birla clan’s organisation develop-
ment and management expertise ex-
tends beyond corporate and business
management.
Although TDS has become accus-
tomed to this ‘nationalist’ boarding
school (promoted by Calcutta-based
barrister C.R. Das in 1935 as a riposte
to premier Brit-promoted board-
ing schools reluctant to admit native
students) topping all school ranking
surveys, headmaster Dr. Jagpreet
Singh says that far from being jaded,
he is “over-joyed” that TDS has re-
tained its #1 rank in EWISR 2024-25.
In particular, Singh is delighted that
TDS has been awarded highest score
under the parameters of competence
of teachers and curriculum and peda-
TDS headmaster Dr. Jagpreet Singh: beyond curriculum gogy (HOTS).
“Hitherto TDS was affiliated with
ll-boys boarding schools itician Mani Shankar Aiyar, to trans- three examination boards — Cam-
are an endangered genre. form the class VI-X TDS into a co-ed bridge (UK), IB (Geneva) and CISCE,
The league table of suf- boarding school. On the contrary, a Delhi. Now we are in the process of
Aficiently high-profile boys co-ed TDS is likely to become even phasing out our affiliation with Cam-
boarding schools in the annual Edu- more popular and storm the ramparts bridge and IB and to become solely
cationWorld India School Rankings of the country’s top-ranked co-ed affiliated with CISCE. But while re-
(EWISR, estb.2007) has been shrink- boarding schools (Pinegrove, Kasauli, maining with CISCE, we are also in
ing year by year. This shrinkage has Chinmaya International, Coimbatore) the process of developing our own
been attenuated by sub-division of in the annual EWISR. curriculum aligned with NEP 2020
the boarding school league table into Meanwhile in this year’s EWISR, which will venture far beyond the
‘legacy vintage’ schools (over 90 years although TDS is top-ranked as usual board’s syllabus/curriculum. The new
of age). Therefore in EWISR 2024-25, followed by Sarala Birla Academy, TDS curriculum will offer students the
the league table of non-vintage boys Bangalore (estb.2004) which joint- option of choosing majors and minors
boarding schools includes a mere 13 ly ranked #2 with Welham Boys crafted by CISCE with strong focus on
institutions. School (estb.1937) has maintained vocational and life skills to make our
But even if all-boys boardings its rank of 2023-24, the top table of students future-ready for employment
are going out of fashion, it’s doubt- India’s most respected boys boarding and entrepreneurship from young age.
ful if the reputation and popularity schools is dominated by low-profile Therefore, the top scores awarded to
of The Doon School, Dehradun institutions promoted by the business us under teacher competence and
(TDS, estb.1935) will ever diminish. house of Birla. curriculum development parameters
Not even if its management hears the In EWISR 2024-25, Vidya Nik- are validation that we are on the right
pleas of not a few ole boys, including etan (formerly Birla Public School, track,” says Singh, an alum of Rajas-
formerly high profile bureaucrat-pol- estb.1944), Pilani is ranked #3, fol- than University, former housemas-

66 EDUCATIONWORLD OCTOBER 2024