Singapore International School, Mumbai
The Singapore Consulate at Mumbai called up inviting us to attend the launch ceremony of the Singapore International School located at Post Meera beyond Borivali in Mumbai. This is the first such school in India conforming to the Singapore education standards, with affiliation to the Ministry of Education of Singapore (and others).
You can visit the website of the school at “SIS Mumbai” .
I was surprised that the founders chose a location that far from the city of Mumbai. While space is a constraint in Mumbai for sure, people also wish to avoid commuting as much as possible. May be that is the reason why the school is promoting week-boarding perhaps.
The school seems to be having a lot of space - 15 acres - which is quite a luxury in this congested city. Most of the construction seems to have been completed, and the classes are starting this month. I met with about half a dozen folks from Singapore, including a couple from the local Singapore Consulate. We talked a lot about adjusting to the living conditions in Mumbai and how tough life is for the average person. The School is located on the National Highway 8 which is always choked with lorry traffic. I told them it took me 45 minutes to reach from Malad which is supposed to be couple of stations away on the Western Railway route. We estimated it would take about 2.5 hours to come to the School from South Mumbai !
Anyway, the School is a commendable effort by some Singaporeans to impact the local education scene. Given that the cost per year is in the range of USD 14,000 per child, it is clearly out of reach for most, if not all. I was thinking this same education quality is available for SGD 25 per quarter at a good Singapore school ! However, given the hype for international quality education in India currently, I am sure many wealthy parents with secondary school-going children, might consider this option of week-boarding their kids. Further SIS is in the process of getting the IB (International Baccalaureate) accreditation, which is strongly preferred by such parents.
We had an excellent lunch with a number of other parents, who had come down for the function. There were a couple of presentations with a guest of honour speech by a Singapore Member of Parliament. I would strongly suggest that Singaporeans de-emphasize their accent, because in general Indians did not seem to understand the very Singaporean English and the speed with which the presentations were delivered.
It was an interesting distraction to make this visit and interact with a few Singaporeans and local parents though.
Have a great Easter weekend !
Cheers
Vijay Srinivasan
8 April 2007
Mumbai
