Here is Pascal Chazot and his wife, with us. They dared to think differently in education, which is the need of the hour.

Pascal Chazot was invited as a speaker at this Summit to address the issue:

Higher, Technical and Vocational Education : Is Integration Possible ?

The Summit was inaugurated by Shri.Kapil Sibal, Union Minister of HRD, Shri.Ashok Chavan, Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Dr. Indu Shahani, Sheriff of Mumbai Convenor, H.E. Paul A Folmsbee, US Consul General among other eminent dignitaries.

Article on MGIS in the Mumbai edition of DNA

Being an active and engaged educational practitioner and academician since twenty years, Anju presented incisive insights and knowledge about the Great Indian Classroom which she brought alive with anecdotes and real-life incidents.

For more information, click here

To name a few examples: Mihir Sharma, Anahita Sarabhai, Isha Jhaveri Malvika Bhagwat, and Radhika Pandit (from the class of 2007) have all been assisting with different subjects. Isha Jhaveri has joined the school after completing her graduation to teach French as a foreign language and Business Administration full time. Mihir gave short intensive and rigorous interventions in Theory of Knowledge classes, Anahita in the Theatre Arts, Malvika in English Literature and Radhika in Mathematics. Furthermore, Gautam Sinha (from the class of 2008) who has graduated from the University of Sound Engineering, Chennai has just completed a crash course with our 10th graders on Music history, theory and Ethno-musicology.

Training new teachers to the rigor of our school pedagogy as well as that of the International Baccalaureate is one difficult task. The active pedagogy at MGIS is student-centric and inter-disciplinary, requiring long years of training and hard work to understand and apply its tenets. While the IB curriculum for every subject and module is extensive and requires a sound understanding of the material, as do its very strictly prescribed methods and criterion for evaluation. For this reason, the school conducts regular teacher trainings and sends its teachers for workshops and trainings.

The school welcomes this influx of alumni students returning to help out, and we hope that future generations of the school’s graduates will continue to come in as well!

Instead of an abrupt return from the holiday mood to the academic rigor of schoolwork, the first day here is all about getting readjusted to being a student, and predisposing yourself to some of the material you will be tackling over the term.

It is set up as a sequence of different activities throughout the day, ranging from those that work towards group-formation – getting acquainted with new classmates and making them feel comfortable – to activities that implicitly introduce the kids to some of the projects and modules they will be working on.

Of course, the intent is also that the return to school be a joyous occasion, and the MGIS first day of school is also largely about just having fun!

Here are some pictures from this term’s start:

A slew of students have done exceedingly well, but a special mention must be made for Zara Desai, who graduates at the top of her class with an outstanding grade of 42 (the maximum being 42 plus the possibility of 3 bonus points)! Congratulations from everyone at school Zara, you deserve it!

Also, and equally importantly, we are glad to report that our students have secured admissions in Colleges of their choice, and have enrolled in India and around the world, including:

Sciences Po – Paris, Shrishti Institute of Art and Design – Bangalore, Maharashtra Institute of technology – Pune, Fergerson College – Pune, Gujarat University,
FLAMES – Pune, HL College – Ahmedabad, Indian Institute of Planning and Management – Mumbai, Symbiosis – Pune, Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies – Mumbai, Christ College- Bangalore, Pennsylvania State University- USA…

“A lady driving a scooter shot across while the other side had already started moving. A young volunteer traffic cop stopped her in the middle of the circle gesticulating to her to move aside. There seemed to be some heated verbal exchange and the lady refused shaking her head vigorously. She then struck the hand of the traffic cop and next started hitting him with her hands. He ducked. She then started driving her scooter onto the foot of the cop. There was no congestion at the circle. She then began to drive away. The cop held on to the back of the scooter. She had to stop so she jumped off the scooter which fell onto the road. She then ran after the cop beating him with her hands. He ran around the scooter trying to duck but never lifted his hands. Her head was covered with the usual dupatta and she wore sun glasses making her face invisible. Finally, another cop came and put himself between her and the other cop. Another cop came and lifted her scooter. She drove away after possible hurling abuses. I could not leave my car as I was at the wheel. I could do nothing but watch with a sense of shame. But the others around me, they watched the entire scene laughing.”

The incidents of traffic offenders attacking cops have become common
A couple of days later, my wife troubled at this civic misbehaviour went to the same cross road. She entered the police station and asked for the cop who was aggressed. There was only one young man and he looked up and smiled and said it was him. She recognised him and told him that she was a witness to that incident in case there was any action to be initiated. He shrugged and said that all that was in a day’s work. There were 50 such cases a day, he said. “How can I hit a woman?” he asked.

Obviously the woman seemed to have taken advantage of that fact. He said that the woman said that she would take action as he had molested her. “That’s outrageous!” my wife exclaimed. “I saw the whole thing clearly in front of my eyes.” Besides to molest a woman in full front of commuters in full daylight in the middle of a busy circle, how plausible was it?

He shrugged. “We have to bear this madam.” He was a young man, a volunteer, just starting out his career.

There have been so many instances of people attacking traffic cops and even injuring them whenever they are stopped. What is it that drives people to misbehave with the traffic cops? Do they cease to see them as human beings? Do they only see the uniform and beat them as a kind of perverse anger directed at those cops who might have abused the system? The traffic cop is unarmed and spends a good part of his day in polluted areas under a sweltering day. It’s not easy for them. All cops are not corrupt and if one is, then there is a redressal mechanism. Just remove all the traffic cops on the roads and see the chaos that will ensue!

Was the case mentioned above actually a battle of the sexes where the woman took out her full anger on a man? Today, I think I found an answer by the traffic police. A woman cop. At the law garden circle, two youth with scarves on their necks drove past and spat pan just in front of my car. They advanced beyond the acceptable line. This lady cop came and gesticulated to them to move back. They did not, trying to rev up their engine more. She calmly came forward and switched off their engine! They could do nothing but wait for the change in signal. More women participation will change the scenario!

The above article was published in the Ahmedabad Mirror on 01/05/2010

Here are a few news paper articles that chronicle some of the the two teams’ feats:

MGIS Enters Final

MGIS Drowns Riverside!

MGIS Blanks JGIS

Surprise defeat for Kahaani Kougars

MGIS Clinch Sintex Cup

Students put up stalls of projects they have done, they decorated their classrooms with the many charts, models and artwork that they had produced; some of them even decided to put up dance performances and skits for the event. It was a truly befitting culmination to another fruitful year at the school. Here’s wishing everyone a wonderful and relaxing vacation!

Some pictures from the expo:

What I needed to know was what was expected of me and what I needed to improve. This is the other kind of reporting: a qualitative feedback. This feedback is directly related to the task and informs the child about the areas of strength and areas where improvement is needed.

The first thing about a qualitative feedback is to make the expectations clear to a child. This means that the criteria have to be defined with levels of achievement. In one task, let’s say creative writing – there can be several criteria. For example: imagination, structure and use of language. So a child may do well in one criterion and not so well in another. This itself gives a specific feedback.

Mostly grades are given in a qualitative report. But the human tendency is to then translate an ‘A’ grade into more than 90 % and so on. This brings a hierarchy back amongst the children. As a result of marks, children have a tendency to become competitive with each other. In the absence of marks and competition, I have noticed children are more cooperative.

The other point is who evaluates? Why should a child not have a say in what he or she has learnt? This articulation of one’s own learning is a very complex intellectual skill. Young children in our school put a tick mark against visual symbols that express different levels of achievement in a task. This makes the child more reflective. It also makes a report card more participatory and less judgmental.

The other aspect of reporting is the manner in which we give the reports to children. Rather than this being the dreaded moment, it should be the most exciting moment. What ruins a report card is when someone tells a child ‘Can do better.’ How unfulfilling this is! All of us can always do better. Come to think of it, the teacher could have done better!

The last point is about repeating a class. A reader asked me this question via mail some time ago. Repeating a class is a good solution when a child is either under age, was irregular due to some disturbance or needs to strengthen basic concepts before moving on. The problem is that it can be perceived as a punishment by a child or can be linked to failure. For a child, if his friends move on to another class, it can be very disturbing and can be counter-productive. In that case, it may be better to change the school so that the child’s self-esteem is not hurt.

Ideally, it is better to put a system into place where the child will come forward and express his or her own learning to the parents and class. This can be done by examples of work selected by the student in a kind of portfolio and should make a report card redundant!

The above article was published in the Ahmedabad Mirror on 27/4/2010.

Recently, the current batch of DP2 Theatre students finished work on their individual productions and performed them for the public: A total of four plays were put up in succession over a period of a couple of weeks, and each and every performance was orchestrated by the students themselves. Apart from working on the actually plays, they also handled constructing the sets, managing the lighting and sound effects, and even organizing the events and invitations.

The different plays that the students performed were:

“4.48 Psychosis” – Directed by Sripal Shah

A rendition of British playwright Sarah Kane’s last work, the play centers around its protagonist’s struggle with extreme clinical depression and contemplations of suicide.It is an intense and controversial but equally poignant script that deals with the human psyche in its most fragile state.

“Nagamandala” – Directed by Sharmeen Attarwala

Written by Girish Karnad and based on the folk tales of northern Karnataka, the play is the tale of a young neglected bride, who in an occult attempt to win her husband’s affections, entices the King Cobra instead.

“Life, Smiles and Tears” – Directed by Kanisha Modi

A student production all the way through- script included. The play is an abstract combination of mime, dance and monologue that deals with themes of prejudice and terrorism, and the recent Mumbai attacks in particular.

“First breath after Coma” – Directed by Zara Desai

Another completely student-conceived script, and an experimental theatre concept. ‘First breath after Coma” is a play that consists entirely of recordings and footage, and has no designated stage or actors. It is a deliberation on conformity that takes the form of a conversation between a recently awakened coma patient, and a mysterious, anonymous voice.

The event constituted Karate students of different age-groups and levels (including certain members faculty and staff) competing in public one-on-one matches, and after the culmination of the tournaments, all the participants and MGIS karate students were bestowed with Karate belts of colors corresponding to each of their degree of progress.

•   The function and purpose of the report card.

•   The manner of reporting and its consequences.

•   The issue of repeating a year.

The purpose of the report card is construed to give feedback to the parents. Actually, its original purpose is and ought to be primarily for the teacher. The kind of mistakes a child makes or the conceptual difficulties a child may have, should give the teacher and school a feedback about strategies to be adopted or changed. Instead, it becomes a judgment on the child.

There are two kinds of reports. One is the quantitative one which simply informs the child and parent how much a child got out of how much. This kind of reporting does not give any idea to the child, parent or teacher as to the exact nature of strengths and weaknesses. As most of the tests are written, they only test the written understanding. Often, teachers are not clear as to what is being tested. For example, in a fill in the blank question in geography where lets say, the answer is a ‘deciduous forest.’ If a child spells it wrong, often the teacher cuts the marks. But what was being tested here: the concept of the deciduous forest (a fill in the blank is not the best way to test concepts), or the spelling of the terminology? Spellings are a language test. If the terminology is to be tested then that should be a clear objective. So maybe this child understands what a deciduous forest is, what a tree in this forest looks like, where it grows and can even pronounce it, but gets it wrong in writing. So the marks are cut. I could give more examples of this kind where expectations from a test are not made clear and children are penalised. When marks are given, there is no real idea given to the child as to where to improve.

The other issue with a quantitative reporting is that it immediately positions children in a hierarchical relationship with others. This is obviously a normative system that does not look at the individual child but at a population. I won’t go into details here but this does not help a child improve. A quantitative evaluation is like saying that if someone earns more, he/she is better. Firstly, more is a relative term. Secondly, it does not take into account the context of evaluation, the other qualities and human values, life skills, etc. So a child who has great leadership skills but is bad at written expression gets penalized. Finally, what is being tested is not clear either. So children get marks for mugged up definitions but will get a zero for expressing their understanding in their own words. Obviously, mugging up is a lower order thinking skill whereas expression in one’s own words (whether oral or written) is a higher order thinking skill.

Somehow, marking to me appears much like branding a child. Labels of percentage are stuck onto a child that shelve children into slots. Obviously, quantitative evaluation such as objective type tests have their place in entrance exams, etc. But in the primary and secondary education, they are artificial and contrived.

The above article was published in the Ahmedabad Mirror on 20/04/2010

Here is a crash course in understanding proverbs and their meanings in relation to the grandmother of all scandals.

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy: Obviously, play is important. Cricket is play. Then cricket became so serious that they need to play to get over the work of cricket. So instead of players, they get film stars and cheerleaders who all play for the cricketers.

Appetite comes with eating: So the more everybody made merry, the more they got greedy.

Actions speak louder than words: What they said and what they did were not the same thing. In fact some chaps misread auctions for actions. As a result, auctions become louder.

All that glitters is not gold: All the razzmatazz, the sparkling wine and sparkling women appeared to be gold. And where there is gold, gold diggers will come.

A watched pot never boils: Nobody looked at the melting pot of politics, money, actors, cricketers, glamour girls/ boys and the media. The melting pot began to boil even as those in Pawar, sorry power, looked the other way.

A man is known by the company he keeps: Tharoor can write novels but does he not know this simple proverb?

A chain is no stronger than its weakest link: The chain of money, politics and power is a strong one. But hit it where it’s weak and it comes undone. Members of the opposition thought that IPL had nothing to lose but its chains and went at it with hammer and tongs.

A fool and his money are soon parted: As a result, everyone started running for cover. We stand nothing to gain was the refrain. What? With figures that could feed a hungry nation? Tch, tch. Poor fools.

A friend in need is a friend indeed: This is the time when you come to know about your friends. The media discovered Lalit Modi’s college friends while Modi began to run to find one.

All roads lead to Rome: Tharoor ran to 10 Janpath. It didn’t help because Rome is no longer home.

All’s fair in love and war: Now all kinds of leaks have sprung between emails and conversations as everyone settles scores (not on the field, of course).As you make your bed, so shall you lie on it or as you sow, so shall you reap: It’s a bed of nails if you take the former proverb and it’s a cactus plant if you take the latter one.

A good conscience is a soft pillow: So only those whose definition of sweat equity was what you got after a hard day of honest work can afford to smile and sleep.

All good things must come to an end: All that glamour, glitter, excitement, all that made the IPL more exciting than the Cannes awards ceremonies, suddenly disappeared in smoke greater than the volcanic eruption of Iceland. And I could only cover proverbs beginning with ‘A’ with the IPLgate!

The nation is amused watching other people’s dirty linen washed in public. They say a scandal a day keeps the doctor away.

The above article was published in the Ahmedabad Mirror on 24/4/2010

I missed my flight after checking in from Mumbai to Ahmedabad because the scanner at the security was not working. When the scanner got working, the security man disappeared to have tea. By the time he returned, the gates were closed and I was left stranded with my eight-year-old daughter. My fretting and fuming amused them. A couple of other passengers who had missed their flight to Kolkata said there was nothing I could do. Security forces have over-reaching powers. I then remembered my identity card as a diplomat issued by the Indian government. Within minutes, the security became deferential. Airlines people materialised, apologised. The VIP lounge was opened, I was escorted to the plane for a later flight and had a vehicle waiting for me when I landed in Ahmedabad.

A passenger can be seen virtually unclothed to the team of security scrutinisers at some airports in US and London

I am all for supporting any procedure that ensures safety of passengers. But today, the fear and the paranoia have become a tool for manipulation and a carte blanche for irresponsible behaviour. The recent bomb hoax to avoid missing a flight is one of the many examples. The other is the introduction of body scanners that can view the passenger with an X-ray vision sans the clothes worn. In what is already starting to happen in some airports in the USA as well as in Heathrow in London, the passengers can be seen virtually unclothed to the team of security scrutinisers, sitting in a separate room of the airport. Some human rights groups are crying foul for the violation of the right of privacy that the use of these machines in public places constitutes. Notwithstanding these objections, the French lower house of parliament has just voted the introduction of these machines on an experimental basis for the next three years at some selected airports.

And this is the point that leads me to the proposed ban of the burqa in France. The burqa has religious connotations as a dress form. When the head scarves were banned in schools in France, I had explained the reasons to Indian friends. French public schools are laique or secular. Overt religious display of any symbol of any religion is banned. This includes wearing the cross on a chain. This rule is applicable to all religions. But if you wish to wear anything outside the school premises, no legislation can prevent it. The debate then spread to wearing the turban for the Sikhs. Now it is the burqa.

The burqa has been linked to suppressing the liberty of women in France. But it was argued that some women wore it by choice. Then, a new argument took birth —it was for the general security of the masses. The socialists who have been opposing such a legislation have a tough time trying to find a counter-argument to this. The question is that when anyone can be undressed (even virtually) in public places for security reasons like for the air transport, how can anyone object to forcing every women to show their face in public, for the same security reasons?

As we see it, the problem may be more complex than it appears and cannot be reduced to a comparison between the ban of the burqa in western countries and that of the mini skirt in some traditionalist countries. Individual liberty fought an unequal match with public morality but now new legislations will be passed under the veil of public security!

The above article was published in the Ahmedabad Mirror on 13/02/2010

All of the French students and teachers were put up with host families from MGIS, and over the past couple of weeks, have been involved in a number of interesting activities at the school that have exposed them to the different facets of life in India. They participated in garba-classes, and an art workshop with Mr. Toofan Refai, they learned about and celebrated holi; they visited the many heritage sites in the city, and also made a three-day trip to Zainabad.

At the same time however, these exchange programmes serve another very important purpose: of doing meaningful and beneficial work in assistance of the underprivileged .The French students were here especially to collaborate with MGIS on various community-service projects, and to set up a micro-credit programme for those in need.

The exchange programme culminated yesterday with a retrospective of sorts. grade 10/11 MGIS students put up stalls of the different activities that had taken place (tie & die, henna, block-printing, Indian games). While the French students expressed their own experiences of their time here through role-plays, songs, collages/visuals, and a short film.

Here’s to the success of another wonderful and enriching exchange, and to the hopes of many more in times to come.

Click here to read a student’s account of the opening day of the exchange

Click here to read related press article

The students enjoy lunch at the Natraani Cafe

Learning to use a Charkha

A visit to the city museam

MGIS and Lycee international students have dinner at Rajvadu

Celebrating holi on campus!

Block-printing stall on last day

A french student at the henna stall on the last day of the exhange programme

The students during their trip to Zainabad

Pics: Reema Shah

The Lone Tree:

The first of the two workshops, this one was for students of grade 3 and 5.
Nature and the evniournment were the principle themes here, and the students were first divided into groups to conduct research on the various plants that grow around them, and their traditional uses.

After this, the students were asked to draw illustrations of particular species, and eventually they produced posters and collages pertaining to all the information that they had acquired.

Living Dreams:

The second workshop was conducted for the students of grade 6 and 7. As a prelude to the actual session, the students were asked several days in advance to write a short essay on what their ideal lifestyle would be like.

During the workshop itself, the children would try to articulate what they had conceived for the essay on paper, using creative painting, handicrafts, collages, and so on.

The students met the idea with tremendous enthusiasm, and seemed to have enjoyed themselves thoroughly, and in doing so, have managed produce an abundance of quality work! Here are some pictures from the event:

The script was based on the book ‘The Shadow of Imana’ by Veronique Tadjo which the students had studied earlier in the year. This particular module resonated with the students, and eventually led to the idea of presenting the series of events in dramatic form.

The production itself was a tremendous success, garnering much applause and possitive feedback. Well done, students!

In April, 14 students and two teachers from MGIS went to France for a creative and cultural exchange programme. “We had a great time introducing Gandhiji and his philosophy of Ahimsa to French children from Class VI to XI, through interactive activities and a short film prepared by students,” says Minoo Joshi, a teacher who was a part of the exchange programme. The students who went to France elaborate on the warmth with which they were treated in the foreign land.

“The French people are really loving and their art is also impressive. Gandhiji is really respected there so the students were eager to learn more about his principles,” says Ahalya Gandhi who visited France.In February 2010, 15 students of Lycee International will come for two weeks to MGIS and collaborate on a series of community service projects and a micro-credit programme for the underprivileged. After this, another team from MGIS will visit France.
My friends Simon Behr, William Puyo and I have come down to work with the underprivileged in Kutch. We plan to start a micro-credit programme for them. Our other batchmates will arrive in February next year,” says Edward de Souchier, a visiting student from Lycée International.

Anju Musafir, the founder director of MGIS, explains the programme, saying, “Lycée International  is a very prestigious school in France. What’s special about this particular programme is that there is a lot of student-to-student and teacher-to-teacher interaction.”

She says that the students decide the projects well in advance and work on them together. “Schools in Gujarat are generally not the first choice when it comes to exchange programmes. This is a way of encouraging them to have many such cultural exchanges in Ahmedabad,” she adds.

The above article was published in the Ahmedabad Mirror on 21/7/2009

and then proceeded towards the activities prepared for them by the MGIS students of standard 10. There were interactive activity stalls of Indian food, music, art, dance and sports.

The French students and teachers enjoyed being a part of these activities. They relished the different flavours of the Indian street side food: Bhel & Pani Puri, and spontaneously shook a leg to some Bollywood songs. They also showed off their painting skills on the Indian diyas and dressed up in Indian clothes and jewellery.

We met these students and felt fresh vibes of energy. The students were also taught to write their names in our national language, Hindi and were introduced to traditional Indian games. They appreciated the diverse Indian culture and thoroughly enjoyed their first day.

- Harsimran Singh, Grade 10, MGIS

We’ve been very close to them while they were in school and we wanted to find out how they’re doing for themselves after passing out of MGIS.

Here is what they have to say…

Abhik Basu:
“I’m studying at FLAME College (pune) and I think that the most important asset that MGIS provided me with is a world-sensitive outlook. In the future, as I see myself move from place to place I think this is one thing that will help me no matter what what I do. Besides that, it gave me a pot full of amazing, and fun memories as well! Its funny but I’d like to graduate with Economics as my major as well as be a professional Golf player.”

Niyati Patel:

“I’m doing my B.A in English Literature from University of Warwick (UK). Being an MGIS graduate has helped tremendously because I have all the analytical and critical thinking skills that one is expected to have in university. And university doesn’t teach these skills right from scratch. They just throw you into deep waters and expect you to find your way. Thats why, it has helped being an MGIS graduate. The essays, the project submissions…doesn’t seem as daunting as it would have had I not got the grooming I received here.”

Mihir Sharma:

” I was studying in Christ College, Bangalore but the course did not lend itself to research and I am personally inclined to research so I decided to move to Connecticut College in America, which allows me the opportunity to study for one year in Cambridge as part of an exchange program. I had to drop a year in order to transfer, and during that time I worked at the Bangalore International School teaching French for MYP, English as Second Language to Korean students, teaching football, assisting in Theory Of Knowledge (TOK) classes and learning Spanish, music and photography.”

Isha Jhaveri:

“MGIS is an unforgettable experience of learning and acquiring knowledge through extraordinarily original yet fantastic ways of learning. It not only opened new doors but taught us how to glide through the journey of life by making us not only students but by making us composed, aware, sensitive, pensive †and responsible human beings.†(Isha is doing a B.Com degree and got the highest scores in the history of her college).”

Sunaina Shah:

“I took a year off and have been pursuing a childhood dream, that of traveling the world. MGIS gave me the courage and self confidence required to break away from the mould and do something I really wanted to do. During the year, I went to Cambridge Summer School and did well, learnt Spanish in Spain, worked in a Kibbutz in Israel, lived in Bangalore learning the flute for two months with the money I earned…And now I’m focusing on the Entrance exams for Architecture Schools in India. I feel so fulfilled and happy! I know that no matter what, I can survive.”

Meenakshi Makwana:

“I’m doing my BBA, parallel to my studies I’m working. Now, I earn for my family and I feel proud. I want to do an MBA and be hired in a good institution. In MGIS, I was on complete scholarship and during those seven years of schooling I’ve had the opportunity to develop qualities I had in me but were lying dormant. Working with people on projects, having free access to computers, having a platform to express myself…all these together have expanded my horizons, my knowledge and have made me clearer about my goals in life.”

Tasha Mangaldas:

“The IB course was very difficult and was in many ways a pre-university grooming. I think MGIS gave me the freedom to make my mistakes and learn from them, What I learnt went beyond academics and thats what I will take ahead with me. Also, the self discipline that came with the freedom I enjoyed in school, setting up my own work schedule, meeting deadlines…these are real life skills that will come in handy at any point of time.”

Avni Sethi:

“ I am currently studying at Shrishti College, Bangalore. Being in MGIS I learnt to make choices and take responsibility for those choices. In my previous school I was noticed as a dancer but it was sheer luck, I’m sure there were other more talented dancers who didn’t get noticed but in MGIS if you have it,  you get the platform to showcase it. Everyone does. I did and I’ve learnt to become very comfortable with myself.”

Anahita Sarabhai:

“I decided to come back to MGIS to assist the DP Theatre Arts teachers and I’m loving it! One thing I think I really owe to MGIS is my new found interest in teaching. If it weren’t for the impact the incredible teachers of MGIS made on me, especially in the last two years, I wouldn’t have known how important it is to have a real passion and love for a subject in order to teach it well. So one of my most recent goals is to teach theatre and make it a more prominent part of the education system in this city (and that of the country !!!).”

Sukruti Sayal:

“I am studying in the University of Bordeux. Earlier, I was studying in Law School but did not find it as intellectually stimulating as I thought it would be. So, I decided to work, I worked as the sub-editor of the first page of DNA, Ahmedabad.
In MGIS, I learnt to empathize and be open to others’ perspectives. When things don’t go my way, I have the patience to listen and to understand the “other’s” point of opinion. This is TOK applied in real life. I also learnt not to accept things at face value, to probe further, to pay attention to detail… These are valuable life skills.”

Malvika  Bhagwat:

” I’m doing my Bachelor in Fine Arts from FLAMES and it feels like an extension of MGIS! We have projects, group assignments, field trips, interviews and other activities which we have done as students of MGIS so it feels familiar and its easier for me to grasp difficult concepts faster. (Malvika came sixth in her university)”

Zuheir Desai:

“Being an MGISian, I am capable of communicating effectively and can hold my ground when I participate in a group discussion. Instead of just observing passively, I understand and participate in what is going on rather than simply observe what is going on. (Zuheir got 40 in his Diploma Exams but decided to reappear for a few papers to improve his grades and take the necessary time to work on his applications to top most universities)”

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Read about previous batches:

Class of 2007

Class of 2008

Class of 2009