| National Public School, Rajajinagar | |
| Motto | 'Reach Out, Reach High, Reach Beyond |
| Established | 1959 |
| Chairman | Dr. K. P. Gopalkrishna |
| Principal | Mrs. Santamma Gopalkrishna |
| Location | Bangalore, India |
| Vice-Principal | Mrs. Sumitra Das |
| Director | Dr.Bindu Hari |
National Public School is a school in Bangalore, India established in 1959 [1] by Dr. K. P. Gopalkrishna. Its main campus is located on Chord Road, 5th block, Rajajinagar. The campus comprises four buildings which house the classrooms, labs and auditorium. The playground comprises three portions. One portion houses the tennis court. The second portion is the throw-ball court.It is one of the few schools in India given full autonomy by the Central Board of Secondary Education. The school is often referred to internally as NPS-RNR or NPS-R. Classes generally consist of 30-40 children, and the total student strength currently exceeds 1800.[2] The school has been reputed for the quality of its faculty.
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The school is renowned for its excellent academic reputation and ethical practices. It is one of only two schools in the country to have been granted full autonomy (upto class 10) by the Central Board of Secondary Education. The innovative methods of instruction have kept pace with technological changes. Students writing the board examinations traditionally achieve high marks. The laboratories are well equipped and maintained; at least, in comparison with other centres of secondary education in Bangalore. The high school math teachers really enjoy helping students crack difficult IIT-level problems every now and then, during their free time. Despite all the additional stress they undergo, students still manage to crack the competitive exams each year, achieving quite exceptional ranks and earning laurels at the national and international level olympiads. Many students have made it to the Indian Institutes of Technology, Birla Institute of Technology and Science-Pilani, National Institutes of Technology, NLSIU and AIIMS, and many have made it to world-class universities such as MIT, Stanford University, London School of Economics, Nanyang Technological University and National University of Singapore in recent years. The alumni have spread to all walks of life like IT, medicine, law and fashion designing to name a few.
Every student must report to the school before the watchman closes the rear gate. Entrance through the front gate is allowed after the rear gate is closed. The students must not only come with a clean uniform, but also with a sense of pride and belonging to the NPS family. Parents are encouraged to actively participate in their wards' education ,which implies that they are expected to attend all Parent-Teacher Association[4] meetings, if the child has a below par performance in studies or misbehaviour in classes, or if the parent would like to discuss the progress of the child. Parents are advised to fix up appointments with the office as and when required.
Students are distributed to four houses: Phoenix (blue); Centaur (red); Orion (green); and Pegasus (yellow). Each house has a distinct identity, and while the inter-house games are competitive, house rivalries give way to school unity. There are two trophies awarded at the end of the year to the winning house(s). One is based on the performance of the house in athletics referred to as the sports cup, while the second is based upon the house members' performance in the various clubs ( Theater, Science, math, quiz, computers, Eco and Health).
The school possesses a large and well-insulated auditorium (which stands up to the school's rigorous fire hazard requirements, and contains no fewer than four distinct major exits). Next to the auditorium are the two boys' washrooms, which are maintained satisfactorily. Inside the auditorium is a concrete badminton court. Table tennis is also played here. The school also has a well-equipped science laboratory, and a modern computer laboratory with computing facilities for over eighty students apart from Audio Visual rooms , Smartboard room and a resource room . The playground has a rock garden that is used for outdoor class discussions.
The Physical Education department is responsible for the enforcement of health and safety regulations in the school campus. The school is thus well equipped to handle everyday medical/first-aid issues. First -aid is administered for minor maladies; in the unlikely event of a major catastrophe, arrangements are made to transfer to hospital via an ambulance. Fire extinguishers have been installed at strategic locations. In the event of a fire, they will be employed under supervision of the nearest staff member. The school conducts fire drills with enthusiasm, and the district fire brigade visits the school each year in order to educate students in matters of fire safety.
Volleyball, basketball and throwball are permitted outdoor sports. At present, volleyball matches are restricted by altitude constraints - owing to the presence of the branches of a large tree immediately above the court, participants are required to prevent the ball from travelling in a direction perpendicular to that of the ground. This has also caused neighbours to mistake volleyballs lodged in the tree for unnatural fruit, and many attempts to recover these have ensued. Football has been banned following mild distress from junior members of the student community; after their failure to distinguish between objects travelling at different velocities, and their successful interception of the more painful variety. Even when football was permitted rarely, lobs and long balls were prohibited, thereby encouraging the use of the "through-ball". Given these circumstances, the NPS-R school football team reached the semi-finals[6][7] of the inter-school competition Vivum[8] (conducted by TISB )[9] in both 2009 and 2010. The school administration has adopted a policy that emphasises safety as a major priority, and sporting activities that are capable of causing mental or physical unease are strictly avoided.
The school organizes a bi-annual Inter-school competition. The competition, known as Napsonic,[3] involves a number of teams from different sister schools competing to win prizes for various events. To ensure fair play, the students of National Public School, Rajajinagar do not participate in the fests that the school usually sponsors.[4]
The school conducts a number of intra-school events, among them the "Sports Day," with drills and march past; "Rhythms";[5] and "Annual Day", a triennial event which in which all students participate. Students concentrate on dramas and enactments. "Spectrum"[6] is an event in which students build scientific models, statues, paintings, or computer programs and exhibit their work to parents and other similar spectators. Each year the school organizes a Graduation Day[7] programme[8] to bid adieu to the graduating students, during the course of which students hold aloft lamps. In 2010, the school celebrated its golden jubilee.[9]
There are also school sports events conducted for classes 1 to 12 and kindergarten,[10] in which the winners undertake a prestigious crown-wearing ceremony, witnessed by the entire participating section.
The school selectively encourages participation in inter-school competitions.
The institution is affiliated to the CBSE and follows the three language formula. The school has twice been attacked by mobs during the Cauvery riots and when actor Rajkumar was kidnapped (acting with an apparent sense of loyalty to the state language); resulting in damage to the library and classrooms.Facing crisis is a part of the every day functioning of institutions. Managing these and moving on ahead undeterred is the measure of an institution's success and NPS has done this many-fold. Concerns have been raised over the quality of education - is'nt that the prevalent scenario everywhere? Teachers are committed and resourceful and encourage students to persevere.
National Public School has also been censured for its attitude towards total and unquestioning obedience; and its position on student discipline. Also, its lack of flexibility about the uniform. Values of life and self discipline are core elements and the school endeavors to teach the students to respect authority and turn out to be well mannered. A uniform must conform to the pattern and requirements of its organisation and that is universally accepted.
The year of 2009 witnessed an unprecedented event wherein the auditorium stage screen and walls were vandalised, and suffered minor damage - what an unethical act! The school is a place that supports and cares for all within and it is everyone's duty to take care of it.
The school song, written by an anonymous alumnus, is traditionally sung by graduating students between the months of September and February, in their final year at school. However, it has been recently brought to notice that this song has been performed by a choir of eighth-graders. In this, too, the school ensures that students persevere and sing with dedication and the standard quantities of pride. It is a little known fact that the song is a slightly adapted version of the hymn 'Shine Father Shine'.
[11] God help us to reach out to others
In the midst of our darkness shining
Let the light of our alma-mater shine on us
Set us free from the shackles of ignorance
Shine on us (2)
Shine let it shine
Fill our school with honour and glory
Blaze spirit blaze
Set our hearts on fire
Flow river flow
Flood our nation with peace and harmony
Help us reach out, reach high and reach beyond!
God help us to reach high above us
Keep our feet ever firm on the ground
Lord we come to your mighty presence (pronounced as pre-sonce)
From our shadow into your radiance (pronounced as radi - once)
Shine on us (2)
(Shine let it shine)
God help us to reach beyond horizons
Show us a vision that's filled with your wisdom
Mirrored here may we shine and endeavour
glorify the name of NPS forever
Shine on us (2)
(Shine let it shine)