Heera International School hosts ‘Spandan 2016-17’- Annual School Day
Mangaluru: “Spandan 2016-17”-the Annual School Day was vibrant and buoyant as it brought to life the blended learning experiences of the school kids on the stage to their teachers and parents with Fr Denzil Lobo SJ- Former Rector of St Aloysius College-Mangaluru and currently the Director of AIMIT-St Aloysius College-Beeri as the Chief Guest and guest of honour- Patsy Lobo- Senior Coordinator and Trainer-Teacher’s Training Foundation, along with other dignitaries on the dais namely- Dr K Bhasker Shetty – President, Nandavan Education Trust which runs Heera International School; Dr A Roshan Shetty- Trustee and Correspondent; Dr A Kishan Shetty- Trustee, Janet Thomas- Administrator; and Lily Pushpa- Principal In-charge, of the day.
The children through their prayer dance filled the minds of the audience with heavenly light and their lively body coordination to the music welcomed the gathering with their dance. The children were simply the star attractions of the evening where they unleashed their hidden talents and enthralled the audience who were predominately parents and grandparents of the school children, along with the teachers and staff of Heera International School. The programme was inaugurated by lighting of the traditional lamp by the chief guests and other dignitaries.
The presentation of the annual report gave a glimpse of the flashback of what the children did inside and outdoor during the year 2016-17. Following the school annual report, students were honoured for their achievements in academics, sports and co-curricular activities by the chief guest and guests of honour. The three dignitaries addressing the audience praised the school run by Nandavan Education Trust for their service, dedication, commitment and care towards the children in providing them with the best education and manners. The school management and teachers who nurture the students received high compliments from the community for their service and love towards the children hailing from different backgrounds, near and far.
The Chief Guest, Fr Denzil Lobo SJ spoke only three sentences one to the parents inviting them to be grateful to the institution and the teachers for looking after their children with love and care. To the tiny tots, to see the love with which their teachers do their best for them and today teachers need to be supported for their selfless service to the little ones, especially by the parents. “Knowledge is not so important, but wisdom is. Let me Quote Martin Luther King, where he had said “We must remember that intelligence is not enough. Intelligence plus character–that is the goal of true education. Complete education gives one not only power of concentration, but worthy objectives upon which to concentrate. The broad education will, therefore, transmit to one not only the accumulated knowledge of the race but also the accumulated experience of social living”. We need to teach our children characters, and need to mould them when they are still young”.
“As Nelson Mandela said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”-therefore Education is the key to eliminating gender inequality, to reducing poverty, to creating a sustainable planet, to preventing needless deaths and illness, and to fostering peace. And in a knowledge economy, education is the new currency by which nations maintain economic competitiveness and global prosperity. Education is an investment, and one of the most critical investments we can make. Allow your children to learn and grown in their own phase, don’t pressurise or put stress on them,” added Fr Denzil.
Guest of honour, Patsy Lobo addressing the audience said, “I compliment the school management for their motto “Dare to Dream, Learn to Excell”- this speaks volumes of the initiative and drive of the five doctors in this Shetty family who dared to dream and start this institution. Today I have three messages to give you – One for the lovely children here, one for the devoted teachers and one for all the concerned parents that are here. My dear children – it is a joy to greet you and offer you a special message of love. You were made to be loved. All of us want to be loved by our parents, our brothers/sisters, our grand-parents, friends, teachers, neighbours. Children, we should prove ourselves to be richly deserving of this love by our words, deeds and good behaviour. You are our pride, joy and the hope of our future. It is because of you that the world goes round. I want you to fight for the world fit for you because the world fit for you is the world fit for everyone. Each one of you is a gift to us and a gift to the world. Be proud of this.”
“Dear Parents and Teachers – Our education system has a built-in stress component that starts at kindergarten and continues throughout the school years – stress for the children, stress for the teachers and stress for the parents. We forget that learning should be in an enabling and relaxed atmosphere through a process of fun which stimulates the interest, enquiry and inquisitiveness of the child. Instead of creating the atmosphere for children to explore and “learn”, we have evolved a system to “teach” along with homework, marks and examinations even at primary school stage. We, teachers, have the joy and challenge of touching and stimulating young hearts. The dream begins with a teacher who believes because the child believes in you and needs your support and encouragement to progress to the next plateau. In teaching, the fruit of a day’s work is invisible and remains invisible for at least 20 years. Keep this in mind and move on.”
“Dear parents – you should consider yourself very lucky and privileged to have those precious ones still with you. We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget what he/she is today. It’s important to remember that we learn many things from children. Our children are stressed and hassled with exams, marks, comparisons, humiliation if they do not perform to the expectations of their parents or teachers – all needless at this stage of life for children. All I can say is – Allow them to grow at their own pace, enjoy them, love them, give them your time…quality time, an overdose of love is never wasted. All of us stakeholders – School Managements, principals, teachers, parents and students need to contemplate on those profound words, coming as it does from a successful School Principal. We Have A Dream Today with ……students sitting in front of us. Let us All dare to dream and ensure that our education system is indeed serving the interests of our children”, added Ms Lobo.
Dr Bhasker Shetty also speaking said, “We did not start this school for commercial purposes – My late Wife was fond of children so we decided to start this school in her memory. We have employed the best teachers who can give the best education to the children, and we plan to employ more teachers in the coming days. We also have the best facilities here, and children should avail all the opportunities that we offer. Apart from being good in academics, children should also take part in co-curricular activities, and at our school the mainstream learning goes hand in hand with social, philosophical and traditional learning, exploring holistic educational avenues for schooling. Based on the concept of integrated learning we focus on integrating indigenous knowledge systems, ecological sensitivity and social connectivity through many innovations. Our school’s educational offerings are enriched by a wide range of sporting and co-curricular activities, as well as community service initiatives, that seamlessly complement our academic programmes. This facilitates children’s learning on all levels – intellectual, physical, social and emotional”.
“A school should instil in a child a lifetime love for learning and knowledge, and provide the foundation for all-round development and excellence. These aims inspire all of us at Heera International School in everything we do. At HIS, our focus is on creating an atmosphere of learning that children enjoy and one that encourages them to discover and express their talents to the fullest. We are driven by the belief that every child is important and the children should be at the heart of every educational endeavour. This makes us direct all our efforts to inspire and enable each child to believe in and practice our motto, ‘Dare to Dream…Learn to Excel’ added Dr Bhasker Shetty.
Following the formal function, it was all cultural extravaganza put up by the talented children. Unleashing their hidden talents during the Annual School Day proved that they too have talents and can entertain the crowd. The show was marvellous and glittering and was a non-stop extravaganza of children performances which lasted for an hour or so.
Talk about Annual School Day – this one named “Spandan” was much more than that- it was a Showbiz, an Extravaganza, an Entertainment, a Mega Nite- all full of music, dance and act- and the students enthralled the audience with their hidden talents which were spectacular and mesmerising. These students went beyond their capacity and to the maximum in entertaining and mesmerising the audience. The children gave their best performances to please the management, teachers, staff and especially their parents who applauded them throughout the programme.
The welcome address was delivered by school administrator Janet Thomas, vote of thanks was delivered by Teacher Shubalakshmi and the event was compered by Teacher Rajini. Everyone enjoyed the programme, including the parents who went home with happy faces feeling proud of their children talents. Long live the talented kids of Heera International School – ShaktiNagar-Mangaluru!