Message

Dear Members of the Columban family,

Here at St. Columba’s we join the members of the global Christian Brother Family in seeking new ways to re-live one of the most significant moments in the life of Edmund Rice. On the 15^th of August, 1809, the founder and his early followers pledged themselves to dedicate their entire lives to the charitable instruction of the poor. What was formally ritualized 200 years ago is for us today an occasion to draw new strength and inspiration from the vision and faith of Edmund Rice.

If we are to remain faithful to what began in the heart and mind of the founder, we need to ask ourselves some very fundamental questions. Do our young students enjoy coming to school? Do our curricular and extra-curricular activities give them an adequate sense of their personal worth and dignity? Have our classroom methodologies kept pace with the recent advances in pedagogical theory and practice?

As we attempt to address some of these questions, we find ourselves greatly challenged and energized to respond to the present times. Some initiatives that have already begun include the introduction of Technology in classes 4, 5, and 6. We entered into a contract with M/s Educomp Solutions Limited in November, 2008 and after finalizing negotiations we introduced the Smart Class Module in 1-5 classrooms in the Middle School. Our teachers have over the recent months familiarized themselves with the operations of the Knowledge Centre and have begun to use the various modules that are currently available to us to make our classroom interactions more attractive and hopefully more effective.

We have submitted plans to the NDMC to begin construction, both in the Senior School and the Junior School. In the Senior School, we plan to introduce certain Vocational subjects at the Plus Two level. On completion of buildings we hope to give our young men in class XI the added options to taking the following subjects:                                                                                                                                      

In the Junior School we propose to introduce a Mathematics Laboratory and larger rooms for activities like Crafts, Music, Yoga and Drama. We believe that having the infrastructure we would be in a better position to provide the necessary outlets to develop their creativity and giftedness. The theory of Multiple Intelligences emphatically states that every child is smart. The challenge every educator faces is to assist the child to determine the specific area of the child’s giftedness.

I would like to personally acknowledge the great support and encouragement that the school has received from the Executive Body of our Parent Teacher Association. May we resolve to work closer together to keep the spirit and Vision of Edmund ever alive at St. Columba’s.