BENGALURU: Parents today are choosy about schools for their children. While many can afford high fees, low-income groups that cannot pay are forced to compromise on their children’s education. To help the latter group, a survey has come out with a list of top ten schools that are budget friendly, but maintain high quality of education.Education World, in association with C-fore, a multi-disciplinary research organisation, conducted a survey of 2,115 parents, whose children study at Budget Private Schools (BPS). BPS principals and teachers were interviewed to rate 300 BPS in 143 cities and towns across the country. These schools were rated on 11 parameters of excellence which included competence of faculty, academic reputation, co-curricular activities, sports facilities, value for money, leadership, safety and hygiene, infrastructure, individual attention to students and lifeskill education.
The top 10 schools in Karnataka are Ashwini Public School, Laggere, Bengaluru, New Blossoms Education Society, Bengaluru, Sunrise Public School, Peenya, Bengaluru, Vidya Niketan, Gangavathi, Koppal, Nandini Public School, Bengaluru, Shree Shyla Vidya Samsthe School, Bengaluru, Sandeepani National Public School, Ajjampura, ShankaraVidyalaya, Kolar, Swamy Vivekananda High School, Vijayanagar, Bengaluru and Sandeepani International School, Holalkere.Ashwini Public School also secured the tenth spot in the countrywide ranking.
Farhathunissa, a parent, said, “My son and daughter study at Sunrise Public School. The fee is very nominal, only about Rs 10,000-15,000 per annum for nursery and Rs 20,000 for higher classes. My husband works at a garments company and we cannot afford to send our children to big schools where the fees run into lakhs. The school is known for its academics, sports and infrastructure.”
Principal of Swamy Vivekananda High School, Shailaja Khened, said, “We do not take any donations and charge a very nominal fee. The idea is to make it affordable for every student and give them good education. We charge only Rs 800 for nursery, Rs 950 for middle school and Rs 1,200 for high school students. We even have a ground to conduct sports activities and many students have played at the national level. We have only 25-30 students per class.”