The dilemma: which board to opt for?

Parents spend sleepless nights making sense of the different school boards and curricula

- Mansi Zaveri

If you were to open any parents' group on social media or on WhatsApp, you will find that the most intense and heated debates centre around which board and curriculum is best suited for children. There are some who advocate the international curriculum for the global citizens of tomorrow, while others reject this outright, calling it a "free-floating, fluid organism without the rigour of an Indian board". There are similar discussions on ICSE, CBSE, GCSE, NIOS, AISSCE and more, with each parent propagating their own choice and thought process.

Why is this debate on the right board becoming more and more heated-and confusing? Some would say it's because parents are still attempting to understand the choices available. The pandemic has shaken things up further, opening up possibilities of home schooling, open schooling and hybrid teaching.

We always thought our parents had it easy. For them, the debate was restricted to whether to send a child to an English-or Indian-language-medium school. The choice of boards was limited to ICSE, CBSE and state. Parents didn't need to know phonics for their child to make it to their favourite school; they assumed (rightly) that the schools would do a better job of teaching that.

Today, the admission process is discussed ad nauseam at every play date or dinner party, with harried parents contemplating the merits of International Baccalaureate (IB) versus progressive. So, what is it that dictates a parent's decision? We open with the chicken-or-egg debate. Which ought to be the first choice? The school or the curriculum? "Obviously, the school", says Swati Popat Vats, president, Podar Education Network, Mumbai. "The vision of the school should match with your family's vision and goals for your child," she asserts.