PRINCIPAL’S REPORT TO THE BOARD

The Re-opening of the School in 2008

The new academic year began with the return of the required domestic staff and the staff teaching the ICSE and ISC (12) Examination candidates and the class 10 and 12 students on Monday, 11 February.  The students of these classes reported to school on Tuesday, 12 February and the class 10 and 12 students began attending regular classes on Wednesday, 13 February.  The ICSE and ISC students attended classes for a period of three days, subsequent to which they were allowed to prepare for the forthcoming Examinations under the guidance of the teachers who were available on the campus. Special Science practical classes were arranged for the ISC students.

The ICSE and ISC (12) Examinations commenced on Friday, 29 February whereas the ISC practical Examinations commenced on Monday, 18 February.

All other members of staff reported for work on Thursday, 28 February.

The boarders of classes 5 to 9 returned to school on Wednesday, 5 March and the boarders of classes 1 to 4 returned on Thursday, 6 March.  The class 11 boarders returned to school on Thursday, 10 April and commenced classes on Friday, 11 April.

The annual staff retreat followed by a general staff meeting was held on Saturday,1 March.  Rev. Anita Templeton led the staff in the devotions and the Principal presided over the staff meeting thereafter.

Staff

Mrs. V. Sabherwal and Mr. B.P. Singh retired from the service of the school at the end of the 2007 academic year.

Ms C. Wharton and Sister P. Kakde resigned from the service of the school at the end of the 2007 academic year.

Mrs. G. Prayas resigned from the service of the school in February 2008 and Sister Ireen Razia resigned on 23 May 2008.

The following staff joined the school during the year: Mrs. M. Pundir, Mrs. S. Sharma and Ms P. Banerjee as teachers at the Senior School; Mrs. C. Birch as a teacher at the Junior School; Sister Deepa K.T. and Sister S.  Masih as hospital sisters at Wynberg; Mr. D. Birch as Asst. Housekeeper at Allen and Mrs. S Wharton as a secretary in the School Office.

Student Enrolment

On 30 September, 2008 there were 689 students on roll, of which in the Junior School there were 178 boarder boys, 56 boarder girls, 64 day scholar boys and 41 day scholar girls.

In the Senior School, there were 183 boarder boys, 74 boarder girls, 47 day scholar boys and 48 day scholar girls.

There were 63 Christian children and 13 Anglo-Indian children on roll on this date.

ICSE AND ISC (12) Examination Results

The school presented 58 candidates for the ICSE Examination of 2008 and all 58 candidates were awarded pass certificates.  Rohit Beria topped the batch with 94.6 %.

27 students were presented for the ISC (12) Examination of 2008 and all 28 were awarded pass certificates.  Rashmi Lekhwar topped the batch with 94.5 %.

Prize Day 2007

Prize Day for the academic year 2007 was held on Friday, 23 November 2007.  The Guests of Honour for the function were Mr. Victor Banerjee and Mrs. Maya Banerjee.    Mr. Victor Banerjee addressed the school at the function and Mrs. Maya Banerjee gave away the prizes.

The Easter Sunrise Service was conducted at the Seven Oaks’ flat on 23 March. Rev. A Templeton delivered the message.  The day was concluded by a special dinner that was served at both the Junior and the Senior Schools.

The Investiture Ceremony for the prefects of the Junior School was held on 25 April at Hart Hall, Wynberg and the Investiture Ceremony for The Captains and Prefects for the Senior School was held on 7 May 2008 at The Sir Kirby Laing Auditorium.

Founders’ Day

The 120^th Founders’ Day was celebrated on Friday, 6 June 2008 with a Divine Service at the Sir Kirby laing Auditorium at 9:00 a.m. The guest of honour for the occasion was Dr. Vandana Shiva, the Founder Director of Navdanya- a Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology.  Dr. Shiva addressed the school at the service and also cut the traditional Founders’ Day cake. After the service, the guests were served a high tea and this was followed by a swimming gala for the students. The celebration concluded with Founders’ Day Dinner.

Fancy Fair

The annual Fancy Fair was held on Saturday, 7 June 2008. The Principal declared the Fancy Fair open at 9:30 a.m.  A net profit of Rs. 5,14,645 /- was recorded at the Fair and this amount has been credited to the Wynberg-Allen Scholarship Fund.

Grant of Scholarships

67 students were granted scholarships during the year amounting to Rs 34, 64,125 /- .  In addition to this; the Board sanctioned an amount of Rs. 31,039/- for a deserving former student, to enable him to complete his graduation.

Open House Days for Parents in 2008

Open House Days were scheduled in the School calendar for 26 June and 06 September.  Several parents availed of these opportunities to meet the teachers and discuss their children’s progress.

Independence Day

Independence Day 2008 was celebrated at the School with the unfurling of the National Flag at 8:30 a.m. by the Principal.  Thereafter, a Special Assembly was held at which the Principal and the School Captains addressed the School.  The assembly was followed by a Cultural Programme presented by the students. The celebrations concluded with the Independence Day Dinner for the students and staff.

A special tea was served to the Class IV employees and their families on 14 August 2008 and each employee was given a cash gift to mark the occasion.

Teachers' Day

Teachers' Day was celebrated on 5 September 2008 at both the Junior and Senior Schools.  The students took special assemblies at both schools for the staff.  The assemblies were followed by a special tea for the staff and the traditional basketball matches and activities.

Students’ Health

Generally, the students have maintained very good health during the year.  However, this year, there were an unusually large number of students who suffered from chickenpox.  These students were immediately quarantined in the school infirmaries until they could be sent home for recovery.

The high standards of hygiene, an excellent wholesome diet and a regular physical fitness programme keep the students in good health.

Extra-curricular and Co-curricular Activities

A good range of extra-curricular and co-curricular activities form an important part of the school’s programme:

The annual Senior School Hindi Play “Chor Nikal Ke Bhaaga” was staged on Friday, 2 May 2008.

The annual Junior School Hindi Play “Kanwa Nai” was staged at Hart Hall, Wynberg on     8 May 2008 and the annual Junior School English Play “When Toys Come Alive” was staged on 8 August 2008.

The Senior School Inter-house dramatics competition was held on the 19^th and 20^th of September 2008 and was of a very good standard.  The plays presented were as follows:

A Talent Show was organized at the Junior School on the 14^th of May.

Our students participated in the Albert Barrow Memorial All-India Creative Writing Competition and The Frank Anthony Memorial All-India Debate at Welham Girls’ School, Dehradun.  They also participated in The A.C. Deb Memorial debate, The Bro. Masterson Memorial Inter-school Debate, The Bro. Bergin Memorial Debate, The Inter-school Hindi Declamation contest at Lawrence School, Sanawar and in several Inter-school debating competitions in Mussoorie.

The students performed well in these debates and won several awards.

The usual Inter-house debates in Hindi and English and quiz competitions have been held regularly at both the Senior and Junior Schools as scheduled in the calendar.  The students participated in several Inter-school quizzes and performed well in the same.    As always, the Inter-house elocution contests in both Hindi and English were held at the Junior and Senior Schools.

Our teams performed very well in the Inter-school and other tournaments that they participated in.  Our Senior girls reached the semifinals of the Gardner Memorial Basketball tournament in Dehradun and our Boys' team reached the quarterfinals of  the Uttarakhand Basketball tournament that was held at Welham Boys' School in Dehradun.

The Inter-house Aquatics Meet was held on 14 September 2008 and a total of 13 new records were established.  A special mention must be made of Christine Wilson who set new records for each event in the Junior Girls division.

The students participated in the Inter-school swimming competition held at St. George's College and performed fairly well.

The Inter-house cross-country was held at the Senior and Junior schools on the 4^th  and 9^th  of September respectively.  Christine Wilson set a new record in the Junior Girls' division.

In the Inter-school cross-country event at Woodstock School, our teams performed extremely well winning all four divisions in the girls' event and the Intermediate Division in the boys' event.  Raghav Jhingran in the Senior Boys' division and Sumona Colvin in the Junior Girls' division set individual records.

The Inter-house Athletics Meets for Junior and Senior schools were held on the 27^th of September and 4^th of October respectively.  Mrs. Arti Ahuja, Deputy Director (Senior), Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, and Dr. David Laurenson, Principal, Woodstock School were the guests of honour at the Junior School and Senior School Meets respectively.  A total of four new records were established at the Junior School Athletics Meet and a total of ten new records were established at the Senior School Athletics Meet.  Special mention must be made of Sonali Hatwal who established five new records at the meet.

Wynberg-Allen hosted the 11^th Annual Inter-school Athletics Meet on Tuesday, 21 October 2008.  Mr. David Hilton was the guest of honour at the Meet.

Wynberg-Allen fared extremely well at the Meet, claiming six of the eight divisions and the overall championships for the girls and boys.

Christine Wilson, Sonali Hatwal, Aman Sehgal and Abhishek Rai Claimed the individual championships in their divisions.   Our students set several new records with Sonali Hatwal setting four new records.

Apart from these fixtures, the students have participated throughout the year in hockey, cricket, football, basketball, badminton, table tennis, chess, indoor games and volleyball at the Inter-house level.

Courses and Workshops: Our student leaders attended a seminar on “Leadership” which was conducted by Mrs. Monica Nayar.  Several staff from the Junior School attended a workshop on “How to Identify and Take care of Dyslexic Children” at St. George’s College.

A two day Teacher Training Programme on “Creative and Dramatic Approach to Learning” was conducted on the 9^th and 10^th of August by Mr. Tim Benton from the UK.

A Workshop on Improving the Learning Quotient in The Classroom was conducted on the 18^th of October by Mr. John Mason.

A diagnostic assessment test for the students of classes 4 to 12 was conducted by Educational Initiatives private Limited, Ahmedabad, (ASSET).  The students and teachers are receiving feedback forms regularly from ASSET.

The class 12 students had career counselling sessions on the 8^th and 9^th of October. This was conducted by the Institute for Career Studies, Lucknow.

The students of the Senior School are involved in a “Plastic Waste Collection Drive” in collaboration with the Municipal Corporation Mussoorie, LBSNAA and the local civic bodies.  The first such exercise was held on 16 April and our students did a good job for which they were commended and awarded a certificate.  The students have been engaged in the planting of trees and caring for the environment on a regular basis.                                                                                                                                    

Club activities are conducted on a weekly basis and Nature walks/hikes are organised for the students regularly.                                                                         

Excursions:  for the Senior School students were organised from the 14^th of April to the 18^th of April to Himalayan areas such as The Nature Village, Ram Nagar, Nainital, Lansdowne, Chandrapuri, Bhimtal and Aam Danda.

The Junior School students went on day outings to nearby areas on the 26^th of April.

School Dining Rooms:  The School Dining Rooms have functioned well and provided the students with good, nutritional and hygienic food.

School Facilities:  Several school facilities have been upgraded. A summary of these facilities is as follows:

	Swimming Pool - Antiskid tiles in the changing rooms
	The Senior School Academic Block - Two floors were tiled and the windows and doors were replaced. New lighting was installed to improve the lighting and cut down on the electricity bills.
	White Boards were installed in all 12 classrooms.
	The roof and rafters of Windy Ridge were replaced
	The flooring of the Computer Room at Allen was replaced with vitrified tiles.
	The school Office toilet was renovated and split into two separate toilets for ladies and gentlemen.
	The Reading Room in the Senior Boys’ Dormitory was renovated
	An additional box room was commissioned in the senior boys’ dormitory
	The Allen Playground was leveled and re-surfaced
	The School Buildings were freshly painted and distempered
	A new septic tank was constructed at Wynberg
	The “pushta” in front of the basketball court at Wynberg was rebuilt
	The main electricity cable at Wynberg was replaced
	A dry grinding machine and a wet grinding machine was purchased for the Allen Kitchen
	Sixty beds and 120 coir foam mattresses were purchased for the senior girls’ dormitory
	An LCD projector was purchased for the Audio-visual lab at Allen
	A deep freezer and fridge for the bakery at Wynberg were purchased
	2 motors for the swimming pool
	1 CX 20 pump for the waterworks at the stream
	Two 3000 litre water tanks for the Junior School
	One staff quarter at Wayside was partially renovated
	An existing room was renovated for use as a multimedia /computer room.
	Furniture for the multimedia/computer room
	50 Thin clients and a dedicated server for the computer department.
	A new Toshiba studio to serve as a printer in the new multimedia room
	Networking peripherals and power conditioning equipment for the multimedia room.
	50 computer chairs for use in the new computer room and the ladies section of the staff room at Allen.
	The first phase of the planned rain water harvesting was completed – a retaining wall and platform was constructed near the Science Block at                Allen and 10 water storage tanks of 10000 litre capacity each were purchased.
	New desks/writing tables were installed in the ladies section of the staffroom at Allen.
	The old unused toilets below the school flat were renovated for use as a store room for sports equipment.
	The wooden cabinets in the headmistress’s office were replaced.
	The wash basins outside Hart Hall at Wynberg were replaced.
	New Landing mats for the high jump and pole vault events.
	A Nikon digital SLR camera
	An online UPS for the main Office.
	A voltage stabilizer for the Junior School Science Room.
	250 energy saving tube lights which were installed in various places in the school.
	A new telephone exchange (EPBAX) at the Junior School which was linked to the senior school exchange using the existing OFC connection.
	Various electronic equipment like microphones, DVD players, Television sets, Music systems and so on.

Conclusion

Wynberg-Allen has achieved a great deal over the years thanks to the dedication, foresight and perseverance of the people who have worked and given unstintingly to the school in the capacities of teachers, administrators and as members of The Board of Management.  Thus, a rich legacy has been bestowed upon us and with it the great responsibility of continuing and upholding the wonderful and noble work that is Wynberg-Allen.  Each year brings with it new challenges and new opportunities to build upon the foundation that has been laid for future generations to come.

I would like to place on record my thanks and appreciation to the Chairman, Members of The Board of management and the Wynberg Homes Society for their guidance, advice and unflinching support at all times.

Finally, I would also like to place on record my thanks and appreciation to all those who have worked so well for the school throughout the year:  The Bursar, Headmaster, Headmistress, my Secretary and all members of staff.

L TINDALE

SECRETARY, BOARD OF MANAGEMENT