Ebenezer International School Bangalore

At first sight, the glass panelled blue edifice of the latest addition to the city’s international school circuit, the Ebenezer International School Bangalore, seems like an extension of the sky. Its linear design accentuates the open landscape that spreads across 12.5 acres.

Says Dr Ebenezer, “Schooling is now no more only about high quality academics and extra-curricular activities, it is also about preparing young minds to meet the demands and pressures of an increasingly complex future."

The joie de vivre at the day-cum-residential school is infectious, as students of all ages dart between the halls and onto the landscaped gardens, heading to join in an impromptu game of hockey or basketball, dance or origami sessions. In addition to mandatory classes under the ICSE syllabus and the IGCSE syllabus from class IX onwards, the school offers a diverse range of special classes. Students looking to spruce up their language skills can choose from a host of foreign and regional language classes. Those with an ear for music could choose between Hindustani or Western music and those with a yen for dance can master the classic Indian dance forms.

Learning is far from theoretical at EISB; teachers try to demonstrate everything that is taught and create experiences that enhance what the child absorbs from each lesson. An apt illustration of the teaching methods at EISB is the Children’s Day programme with a farm theme. The school grounds were converted into a veritable farm with livestock, which brought lessons to life. A basic arithmetic class is made fun and empirical, with toddlers setting off on a field trip to the market to buy groceries and put their mathematic skills to the test

Shalom, the meditation hall

The names of the buildings reflect what EISB aims to be – an alma mater that helps children achieve their potential while leveraging their unique talents. The pyramid-shaped meditation hall, ‘Shalom’, is a serene sanctuary; water flows softly around the edges and natural light streams in from the skylights.

My Dreams – School of Learning is the brightlycoloured kindergarten section; the toddlers have the building to themselves and it is built specially keeping their needs in mind. Everything is sized to suit the little denizens; the stairs, the bathrooms, the labs and even computers are thoughtfully chosen not to overwhelm the kids with their enormity.

The class rooms are cosy with bright tiny chairs, sporting cartoon characters; the walls have scenes from a popular kids’ movie along with play corners that display projects put together by students. To help make playtime safer, the playground is made of a soft rubber compound.

The middle and high school block, called The Rainbow – Centre of Excellence, abuts the administrative building Trinity Hill, and is a labyrinthine structure that envelopes state-of-the-art learning facilities. Open courtyards with exotic flora and water bodies with gushing fountains, lights shaped like lotuses present a delightful visual.

Rainbow - Centre of Excellence holds class rooms for middle school and high schools

EISB has rejected one-size-fits-all methods and has customised education to meet the aspirational demands of children who have information at their fingertips. EISB will add new dimensions as it grows. “We will be ever vigilant to keep abreast of global academic trends, and upgrade all aspects of our infrastructure, intellectual and physical, to play a lead role in education,” says Dr Ebenezer.

Einstein’s Science Centre, with biology, physics, computer science and chemistry labs packs technology that encourages students to push the scientific envelope. The school’s auditorium, The Globe, is named after the playhouse that Shakespeare made famous. This is an ideal platform for students from different countries to stage plays that are popular in their cultures. The faculty encourages children to enact scripts from different societies to widen their cultural understanding.

The Tagore Heritage Centre of Performing and Fine Arts has experts who train students in the art of dance, music, speech, presentation, yoga and sculpture. The school has also signed on GAP, India’s first focussed Global Awareness Programme for teachers and students.

Students looking to flex their athletic muscle head to the multi-level sports facility, Olympia. Spread over 12120 sq ft, the sports centre features a swimming pool with an elevated viewing area on the ground floor, an indoor games facility on the first floor and on the second floor, young athletes practise their badminton and basketball moves, while others try their hand at billiards and snooker.

Children with learning disabilities and special needs are brought up to speed at the Learning Laboratory, where specially qualified teachers invent teaching methods to make lessons more relevant and usable for them. The library, or Knowledge Hub helps supplement classroom sessions with online facilities and a collection of more than 10000 publications and counting.

Dr Ebenezer plans to add higher education to his portfolio and is already working on a blueprint for a new module ‘From Kindergarten to Career’. With other states inviting him to replicate the model, the Ebenezer brand of education will soon be accessible in other cities.