Aarifeen School of Excellence: A school where ‘child is the curriculum’

Zainab Amin, a second grade student at Aarifeen School of Excellence (ASE), Singhpora Delina in Baramulla likes to spend time at her school as it is the source of entertainment for her.
She believes the school provided her a platform to excel in academics as well as sports. She feels proud to have won gold medal in the recently held inter-district Wushu Championship at Tangmarg where she participated through her school.
Another student Adeel Irfan, an ardent follower of football said that he loves to run, pass and kick the football.
“I am thankful to our physical education teacher who is always there to help me and works on enhancing my skills. Right now, I am one of the strongest players in my area,” he said.
Today, Aarifeen School of Excellence is house hold name in Baramulla that enjoys great community support. Engaging community to create an educational institution of highest standard was a difficult task but over the years the people have understood that ASE is their aspiration and it needs peoples’ cooperation and support.
The school was established in 2018 by Idarah Falahudarien, a government-registered society, and is proving to be one of the best institutes in the town.
Coordinator ASE, Asma Sadiq said the ASE strives for the realization of 3 E’s – Education, Ethics and Excellence’. “The school believes that every child is unique and has his/her own way of acquiring knowledge, attitudes, values and skills.”
The school provides comprehensive education to the students focusing on academic excellence, the development of creative tendencies, and strengthening of the ethical foundations. ASE runs up to 3rd grade by 2022-23 and it is thriving.
In the short span of time, the school has earned a great namefor its student-centred curriculum and interactive mode of learning and teaching.
“ASE is distinguished by its stream curriculum, state of the art infrastructure, trained educators, child counselling & early intervention, Arabic & Islamic studies and online school management system,” Asma said.
It provides an environment that emphasises on intellectual and emotional growth in which every student discovers and realizes his/her potential.
In October, the ASE was conferred with Dynamic School Award in the Jammu and Kashmir. The award ceremony was held at New Delhi in which a few nominations were made from J&K. The award is given after calculation on the basis of 13 different parameters.
To meet the demands of the time, Asma said ASE has partnered with NatureNurture, InQuad and IQRA International Educational Foundation for its educational program.
The school offers a child centric Arabic curriculum designed in view of modern linguistic requirements and different child pedagogies focussing on making them able to speak this language.
ASE believes in holistic development of the student in which extra-curricular activities plays a significant role. These activities are mandatory for every student to participate.
The curriculum followed at the school is activity based that centers around active learning and presenting information in a fun and interactive way through creative tasks and activities.
The school aims to be an institution of excellence where sound ethical values, character, wisdom, leadership, service and academic achievement are encouraged in a safe and nurturing environment.
“The first and foremost aim of the school is to provide an environment that lays emphasis on intellectual and emotional growth in which every student discovers and realizes his/her full potential and highest academic standards are achieved,” said Asma.
She said that the emphasis is laid on integrity, ethics, moral courage, hard work, responsibility and self-discipline and where students, educators, parents and the administration work together as a nurturing community.
The curriculum coordinator of the school Aafreen Farooq said that the school educators believe that child is not made for the curriculum rather ‘Child is the Curriculum’.
“Our classrooms are smart classrooms, with non-toxic and child friendly furniture and props. The learner is our priority,” he said.
While deliberating over curriculum followed by ASE, Asma said that the highlight of activity-based curriculum is that it engages children and gives them tools to work things out for themselves. These are led by students and aim to develop creative thinking skills.
Notably, ASE is one of the few schools in Kashmir to equip the school buses with GPS tracking which allows for real-time location tracking. With this, both the school authorities and parents can track the school bus in real–time.
“By using GPS tracking system, parents can follow the route of bus on school ERP so they are aware of any deviation or any delays because of the traffic,” she said.
Besides providing world-class curriculum, ASE claims to be the only north Kashmir school that provides floor heating services to learners besides child-friendly classrooms and furniture.
Teachers of the school are sent to training to different places of India including Delhi to get modern curriculum training and impart skills to them that are needed in the modern education.
The school has a separate physical education department with a vision to empower talent through its blend of academic rigor and hands-on applicability to real-world topics.
“Our physical education department ensures to inculcate the team spirit, mental wellbeing, bonding, physical health, perseverance and time management,” Asma said.
From hockey, cricket, wushu to football, the department ensures to improve social competence and confidence levels in students. Recently the school won 12 medals in District Wushu Champion.