One of the top-rated international schools in the world came from humble beginnings—it opened in 1977 in one little house with 54 students. Today, Good Shepherd International School is a full-time residential school in an exotic location on the slopes of Nilgiri tea gardens in southern India.
Left: A training session for the math teachers of GSIS is conducted by Ms. Akshita Gandhi, Vice President of the First in Math Online Programme (23 Sep 2014). Right: One of GSIS top students, Achuthanand Madanapalli, enjoys a Skill Set game.
First In Math® India Pvt. Ltd. CEO Monica Patel visited the school this year, and was the recipient of their incredible hospitality. “I was completely delighted,” says Patel. “They have their own farms and livestock, so all students get fresh milk and produce each day. Even their delicious baked goods and snacks are made in-house!”
Good Shepherd has used the First In Math Online Programme since 2012, and began the year-long maths progamme again in August of this year. In three short months, students have solved more than 5,25,000 maths problems.
FIM aligns with a teaching strategy that includes incorporating the latest technology to facilitate diverse learning styles of students. According to Akshita Gandhi, First in Math Vice President, the supplemental programme generates great excitement among teachers. “Given that in each class there is a wide range of skill levels, it would typically fall on teachers to differentiate math tasks. In FIM, all students work toward the same learning objective, but each works on a task that they can best complete accurately. Each student finds a task that matches his or her skill level—their paths are parallel and lead to the same academic outcome.”
According to Patel there are currently there are 10 students from GSIS on the list of Top 100 Students in FIM India National Rankings.
Founded by Dr. P.C. Thomas and Mrs. Elsamma Thomas, the school in Ootacamund, Nilgiris sits on a 150-acre campus, and houses 700 fully-residential students from more than 40 different countries. The school’s First In Math Program administrator, Mr. Suresh Thangarajan, is a dedicated father figure to students living at Good Shepherd. All teachers live on-campus, and nurture the students as parents would.
The influence of this environment is reflected in the enthusiasm with which students interact with all activities, including First In Math.