Freedom to choose – By Saisha Punjabi

I studied in an atypical school in Mumbai which was both new and small. Though there is an obvious risk associated with studying in such a school, after my experience, I would recommend it to all motivated students. In my school, students typically had a lot of independence- no uniforms, no school buses and could leave school and eat lunch outside school during our breaks (or take a quick nap if we lived close by!). More importantly however, students were urged (if not expected) to contribute to the development of the school by taking initiative to expand the extracurricular and academic opportunities by starting their own clubs, raising awareness and involvement for social causes, coaching junior sports teams etc.. This flexibility and openness allowed for the school to develop much faster and better than possible if solely administrated by the higher authorities. Further because we were not bounded we became responsible for our own schooling experience! Overall, the lack of rigidity that allowed students to pursue their interests while learning from those of others, meant that our four years in high school was much more than merely a means of getting a diploma. BY Saisha Punjabi