August - September 2015

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83 Aug-Sep15
EDUCATION
Getting a Good Start
Getting our children into the right primary school is a
huge undertaking, but with littles ones starting school
so young, choosing the right preschool can be just as
big a deal. We sat down with ANIRUDDH GUPTA, CEO
of Safari Kid schools in Asia and the Middle East, for
some advice.
Children seem to start school so young in Hong Kong;
how important are the early years of education?
They’re the most important years in a person’s life. There’s enough
research now to prove that 85 percent of the human brain develops in
the first five years. All the critical faculties – cognitive abilities, physical
skills, social skills, memory and recall, logical thinking, creating and
imagining – develop during this time, and the brain works on a “use
it or lose it” principle. The more the parts of the brain dealing with
these areas are stretched and exercised during the first five years,
the greater is the person’s ability in these areas when they grow up.
In essence, a good preschool education ensures that all the critical
parts of the child’s brain are adequately exercised. This ensures
that as a child grows, their ability to learn and use those areas of the
brain is that much higher.
Are there particular aspects of preschool that will help
prepare my child for primary school?
Hong Kong has a particularly difficult primary school admission
system. Almost all primary schools assess children (or interview
them) before granting admission. A good preschool should be able
to identify the parents’ objectives in terms of primary school and
prepare the child accordingly. Apart from core literacy and maths
skills, good preschools will enhance social awareness, ability to work
in groups, awareness of the environment and social interaction skills,
self-confidence and ability to speak to adults and peers without being
shy. All these attributes help in primary school and beyond.
What advice do you have for parents who are
currently trying to choose a preschool?
Here are some questions you might like to ask while
making your choice.
• Is the curriculum “instruction based” or “pure
play-based”? Do the preschool’s curriculum and
philosophy ensure all-round development of the
child?
• Does the preschool get children ready for primary
school? And for which system of schooling – local
or international? And does the preschool work with
parents on primary school admissions?
• Does the preschool programme take into account
the different developmental needs and speed
of different children? How much individualised
attention is provided? What are the student-teacher
ratios?
• How often does the preschool communicate with
parents, and what is the interaction like? As a parent,
how frequently do you get updates from the school
on your child’s activities?
• Does the preschool take care of the small things –
which are nonetheless terribly important – like toilet
training, monitoring children’s health and wellbeing,
and so on?
• What are the learning environments like? Are there
spaces for the children to explore in, do arts and
crafts, engage in physical activity?
• What is the quality of the staff and management?
In the end, it’s the commitment and passion of the
school that makes a good preschool.
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