Annual Report 2014

11 Dec Annual Report 2014

“Excellence is not an act but a habit”. Looking back at our journey of the past 6 years serving the cause of quality education, we are both happy and proud of the memorable milestones we have crossed, the great strides made in every field of activity within this short span.

It is my privilege and pleasure to present the Annual Report for the Academic year 2014 – 15, a platform to communicate directly with you, our respected Guests, Rev. Fathers, Sisters, Well wishers, Benefactors, Parents, staff members and students. The year has been truly a rewarding year – each day having its own spice and flavor, to savour. I wish to begin with our performance on the academic front.

Academic Results: Success and achievement was unfolded when our 40 students of Class X who appeared for AISSE in March 2014, the 3rd successive batch passed with 100% quality results, 5 of them obtaining the 10 CGPA, the highest grade in CBSE system for Class X. Congratulations and thanks to the hard work of our dedicated Staff and whole hearted cooperation from our students and parents.

The Academic Journey, 2014-15 of MCCS with our Staff, began when the old and the new staff members met together for the Annual Institution Planning on 27^th May 2014.

A few staff members namely Sr. Marina A.C., Sr. Ivy Moras A.C., Mr. Vasudeva Holla, Ms. Mradula, Ms. Muriel, Ms. Ashalatha, Ms. Shanthi Alvares, Ms. Ashwith, Mr. Ashwin and Mr. Nagesh left us at the end of the last academic year and I take this opportunity to sincerely thank them for their services to this institution.. We welcome Sr. Janet Maria A.C., Sr. Lavishanthi A.C., Ms. Leena Naik, Ms. Chaitra, Mr. Jacob, Ms. Elsa John, Ms. Fiona, Ms. Sheiba, Ms. Latha, Ms. Swathi, Ms. Laveena Barboza, Ms. Philomena, Ms. Laveena, Mr. Rajesh and Mr. Vijay who have joined us in 2014.

The new academic year commenced for Class IV to XII on 2^nd June, Class I to Class III on 5^th June, Nursery, LKG and UKG classes reopened on 11^th June where the pupils walked spritely into the school and they were warmly welcomed at the school assembly.

The Almighty God has graciously blessed us, since the inception of the school. A new block has been added to the infrastructure. Indeed God has showered his special blessings on us through our management, parents, staff and wellwishers. The maiden activity held in the new block ground floor hall was to host the general body meeting of all the principals of AICS – Association of CBSE and ICSE schools of D.K. and Udupi districts where around … principals met together for discussion, sharing and planning on June 10^th.

 Re-Accreditation of ISA 2014-17: We are very happy and proud that British Council has re-accredited the International School Award to our school for the 2^nd consecutive time for 3 more years, which encourages Global dimensions in education.

 Staff Development Programmes: MCCS is fortunate to have a cadre of nearly 60 teachers, well trained, dedicated and capable of fulfilling the demands of the growing modern generation of students.  Staying updated and empowered is the key to success, especially in the field of education.  We encourage our staff to constantly upgrade themselves by attending workshops and training programmes.  Before the new academic year commenced, the entire staff had an orientation programme on “Teaching Excellence InStep” by Mr. Ronald Mendonca of Smart Solutions, another day’s session on “Communicating with an impact” by Mrs. Patsy Lobo of Shared Insights, and a day’s programme on “Life skills” by Ms. Apoorva, Cochin. Principal Sr. Melissa A.C. took part in a 2 day’s National Conference at Mysore on “Innovative and Humane Schooling for a New World Order” organized by Mysore Sahodaya. A number of our teachers attended various seminars – Ms. Vidya Rai, Ms. Rosamma and Ms. Zanet a day’s training in CCE and Formative assessments conducted by CBSE, Ms. Rosamma and Ms. Lavita, a workshop on “Using Manipulatives to teach Mathematics effectively”, Mr. Praveen and Ms. Jayashree, a workshop for PET’s, Ms. Reshma and Ms Swathi, a workshop on “Special Learning Disabilities”. Ms. Clemencia D’Couta oriented our Kindergarten staff for a day on skills of Reading, Writing and Hands on activities. They also attended a day’s workshop on “Growth and Development of the Child and to handle them positively in the Class” arranged by the Management. The entire staff underwent a 2 day’s orientation programme on Life Skills – “New Horizon’s” by Dr. Sr. Elveera Tellis Nayak and team, which was appreciated by our staff.  An English lab has been set up in association with Teach Next in the New Block and the orientation for the same was given to teachers of English by Mr. Ajay Kumar of Teach Next. Sr. Janet Maria & Ms. Vidya, a 3 day international conference for school leaders, and Ms. Leena Naik & Ms. Chaitra, a days seminar on teaching science.

 Education for Growth of the Inner Spirit: There’s more to a school than teaching and learning. We at MCCS, strive to instill and foster God consciousness in our students right from a young age. The daily Morning Prayer and assembly speaks volumes of this. Each class prepares well with a specific theme with motivational thoughts/talks, skits, power point presentations and news. Catholic Staff and students participate wholeheartedly in the Monthly Mass, taking turns class wise to lead the liturgy and choir.

Teaching values and life skills from the beginning goes a long way in shaping the young minds to respond positively to the challenges of an ever changing world and tackle life astutely. Life skills are inculcated through relevant activities that enable the children to develop their self-esteem, critical thinking and emotional intelligence. Personality development programmes are provided in collaboration with the Catholic Association of South Kanara. As an integral part of our daily routine, students are provided with several opportunities to develop essential personal and social qualities, thereby we strive to motivate them to give their very best in whatever they do.

Academic Excellence and Intellectual Enhancement: We believe that learning takes place all the time and everywhere. Continuous Comprehensive Evaluation system is followed for all the classes, where evaluation is based on a holistic performance leading to the all round development of children. Reading is dreaming with open eyes. The guided library period every week helps in instilling in our students the habit of extensive reading, a taste to value and read good books.

As always, this year too was filled with a lot of celebrations which included the Environment Day, Vanamahotsava, the School Feast – the feast of our Lady of Mount Carmel, Ramzaan, Nativity of Mother Mary, Gandhi Jayanthi, Diwali, Kannada Rajyotsava, National Unity Day, Maulana Abdul Kalam Day and Establishment Day of the Apostolic Carmel in India. Independence Day was celebrated with a rhythmic march past by the students and a cultural programme; the national flag was hoisted by Mr. Sudheer Albuquerque. The Patriotic sentiments were further enhanced with the Singing Competition on patriotic songs – solo for Juniors and group for Seniors.

The kids of Nursery and Kindergarten enjoy the play way, fun-filled, activity based learning. UKG children celebrated Onam with joy and enthusiasm. The little ones with flower baskets in hand, prepared the beautiful flower carpet along with their teachers at the entrance of the New block. The LKG children celebrated Fruit Day, where they not only learnt the names of different fruits, but also prepared a fruit salad along with their teachers.

Competitions and activities thus organized offered opportunities for students to learn the values of teamwork, individual and group responsibility and a sense of culture and community living. Realizing that extracurricular activities provide a channel for reinforcing the lessons learned in the classroom in a real-world context, and are an integral part of inclusive education, more opportunities were provided to students to take part in a number of activities – competitions-both intra and inter school, Essay writing, Elocution, Extempore, Drawing, Poster making, Collage making, Singing and Folk Dance solo competitions were organized giving our children a platform to display their talents and abilities.

The true test of a school’s co-curricular programme is its participation and meritorious performance when it comes to inter -school activities. We are very proud that in the English Essay Writing Competition organized by CBSE in association with MHRD, Govt. of India, on the occasion of Gurutsav, Sept 5^th, our student of Class VIII – Roshna Narayan stood 1^st in the category of Class VI – VIII and bagged a cash prize of Rs. 5000/-.

Fifteen senior students took part in ABHIVYAKTI held at Sharada Residential School, Udupi, and Forty nine junior students in PRATHIBHA held at Yenepoya School, Mangalore, both being  cultural and literary competitions conducted by AICS (Association of ICSE and CBSE Schools of D.K and Udupi) and several of them won prizes. Seventy nine of our students took part in MMCA – Kalotsava 2014 competitions and thirty of them won prizes and medals, bagging the Gitanjali silver jubilee kala trophies for lower primary and primary level.

In the Pre-Unique competitions held at St. Aloysius, Safa Suleman & Fiona Saldanha won 2^nd prize in Bitwise computer programming and Vernette Rodrigues won 3^rd prize in spell bee.

Shrisha R.P won 1^st prize in Rgatharang and 2^nd prize in district level singing competiton. A number of our students have taken part in various cultural and literary competitions organized by banks, hospitals and other organizations where our children have performed well, winning several prizes. (put the photos of foresee, bank, hospitals, Dell Quiz, Genius Quiz, Krishna Janmastami etc)

A total of 143 students have taken part in E-mats All India General knowledge Test in August 2014 and we are glad that this year too Chinmay H.N. won the All India 3^rd Rank among the students of Class X. This is the 5^th consecutive year, he is securing a rank in Emats at the National level.

Teachers Day was celebrated in pomp and splendor as the Staff members were showered with love and affection through greetings and a wonderful cultural programme by the School Cabinet on 5^th September – Teachers’ Day, followed by a Get-Together and Fellowship Meal, by the Management.

It was then time for our versatile teachers to celebrate Children’s Day on November 14^th with an unusual cultural programme received with much joy by the students.

Open House was conducted regularly thus giving an opportunity for parents to discuss their children with respective teachers.

Leadership and Career Options:

Leadership opportunities are provided to the students by rotation within the classroom to develop a sense of responsibility, self-esteem and self- monitoring skills. The Cabinet Inaugural was held in June where Master Preetham Correa of Class XII and Ms. Rebecca Albuquerque of Class X were sworn in as Head Boy and Head Girl and took charge of their responsibilities along with the other Cabinet ministers in the presence of the Chief Guest, Mr. Manoj Louis, Professor of Commerce, Govt. First Grade College, Bantwal. He oriented the students highlighting the seven qualities needed for good leadership.

To keep the students abreast of the growing opportunities and avenues of further education and career options, a Career Guidance programme was held for Class X in association with Rotary Club, Mangalore North.

Education related to Social Issues: MCCS tries to make its students humane and empathetic towards the less privileged of the Society. Thanks to the generosity of our parents, the students collected the Annual “Love Offering” – Rs. 111,452/- in cash and nearly 505 coconuts, 322 K.G’s of rice, 1231cakes of bath soap, 201 bars of washing soap, 1379 packets of biscuits, tooth paste tubes and stationery items. The students of higher classes along with the teachers shared this bounty with the inmates of the Home for the Aged at Bajjodi, Mother Teresa’s Home, Falnir, Prashanth Nivas, Jeppu, Jeevadhan and Sneha Sadhan AIDS Rehabilitation centres, Kaikamba, St. Agnes Special School, Bendore and Infant Jesus Children’s home and school, Maryhill. The Class X students also visited Jeevadhan and Sneha Sadhan AIDS Rehabilitation centres, Kaikamba and entertained the inmates with a short cultural programme. Yes, they were convinced that Divinity knocks at the door, when we become humane.

As part of our outreach programme, we have made available our computer lab for the students of Class III – VII of Infant Jesus Kannada Primary School where these children are happy to learn computer through our staff Ms. Prathima Mohan. Some of our Parents often share either in cash or kind and celebrate the birthdays of their children with the inmates of Infant Jesus Ashram.

Experiential Learning through Club Activities: As mentioned earlier, at MCCS, we believe that extra-curricular activities greatly enrich the school experience of our students. Hence, the students have been provided opportunities to gain skills that may develop into lifelong leisure pursuits through various Clubs like Eco, Science, Fine Arts, Literary, Health and Wellness and Young Global Citizen’s. The students meet twice a month and plan and execute various activities pertaining to their Clubs.

Regular meetings, training of Scouts & Guides, Cubs and Bulbuls are held for the students; a residential camp too was organized in the school. The scouts and guides took part in the “Cleanliness Jatha” organized by Bondel church. This year we introduced “Bunnies Scheme”, the junior wing of Cubs & Bulbuls at our school. A group of around 253 kids from UKG and Class I were enrolled as Bunnies and the inauguration was held on 11th September, 2014, at which Mrs. Irene D’Cunha, District Commissioner for Bharath Scouts and Guides, and Josie Albuquerque, Assistant Commissioner were present.

The rare event of Mother Veronica, the Foundress of the Apostolic Carmel being declared Venerable by His holiness Pope Frances on July 9^th was celebrated in our school on November 19^th, on the occasion of the Establishment Day of the Congregation in Mangalore with a thanksgiving Eucharist celebrated by Rev. Fr. Santosh Kamath S.J., thus invoking the blessings of God for the beatification of Mother Veronica. The Carmel Blossoms under the guidance of Sr. Janet Maria put up a meaningful programme highlighting the life and teachings of Mother Veronica, which is relevant even today to the modern youth. The philosophy and the spirit of our Foundress was shared with the staff by Sr. M. Liceria A.C. on the occasion of our school feast.

We also provide a vast range of additional programs to support the students’ academic, social, cultural and physical development. These include Karate, Dance, Music and Chess which are conducted by expert coaches.

Sports and Games: Sports and Games are a great way for students to develop skills, achieve goals, learn cooperation, and stay physically fit. Hence, regular periods are allotted for games activities, mass P.T. exercises and Yoga classes; besides special coaching in basket ball, football, volley ball, table tennis and chess is provided.

The nursery and kindergarten children had their sports meet on 12^th November and Lower primary on 15^th November.

• Our football team took part in the Independence Day Cup tournament held at Nehru Maidan, and AICS Football tournament held at Vishwa Vinayaka School, Kundapura.
• Our basket ball teams of boys and girls participated in the Basket Ball Tournament held at Mangala Stadium, where the junior boys won the 3^rdThey also took part in the AICS Basket Ball tournament held at Little Rock Indian School, Udupi.
• Eight athletes took part in the AICS Juniors Athletic Meet held at G.M. Vidyanikethan School, Brahmavar where victorious with a total of 4 gold medals – Ashton Suares in 100 and 200 mts, winning the Individual Championship, Hima Shetty in 400 mts and Hita Shetty in Discuss throw and a bronze in 4×100 mts relay, and the girls athletic team bagging the overall runners up championship.
• In the AICS Senior Athletic Meet held at St. Thomas Residential School, Byndoor, Sarah DSouza won 3 gold medals in 200, 400 and 800 mts, bagging the Individual championship for the 3^rdconsecutive year. She also won gold in the cross country race;
• In the AICS swimming competition held at Sharada Vidyanikethan, Talapady, Karunya of class VIII won gold in 50 mtrs butterfly, gold in 200 mtrs individual medley, silver in 100 mts free style and silver in 50 mtrs free style.
• Deeksha S of Class IX bagged silver medal in 2^ndNational level open karate championship held at Moodbidri. Shri harsha, Shri Vatsa, Veekshith & Nikhil won prizes in Karate – Kata & Kumite.

At the CBSE zonal athletic meet held at Bidar in October 2014

• Hima Shetty won silver medal in 400 mts,
• Ashton Suares – gold in 100 mts, silver in 400 mts. He also won bronze in 100 mtrs at Bijapur and Bangalore.
• Sarah DSouza – gold in 400 mts and 800 mts race; at the athletic meet held at Kanteerava stadium, Bangalore – gold in 400 mts, silver in 200 mts; and bronze in medley relay in the zonal meet held at Hyderabad.
• All three – Hima Shetty, Ashton Suares and Sarah DSouza will be taking part in the CBSE National Athletic Meet to be held at Divine Child School, Mehsana, Gujarath from Jan 8^th– 12^th We wish them well and greater success.

 Health Care for a Healthy Personality: A thorough health check up was conducted by A.J. Institute of Medical and Dental Sciences and the students who had problems were directed to the hospital for further treatment. This year we also introduced a School Health Card for all the children, as prescribed by the CBSE.

 Special Programmes:

Safety Campaign: It is unfortunate that a number of alarming and shocking incidences on “Child Abuse” are happening even in schools across our State and Nation. The management of MCCS has taken utmost care to ensure the safety of our children while at school. As per the Education department guidelines, a child safety committee has been constituted. We have educated our children and equipped them with knowledge and life skills required to protect themselves from undesirable situations. Mrs. Sameena Nayak, the renowned family counsellor of our city conducted workshops for all the children class wise and gender wise. She also addressed the parents in 4 groups, giving them awareness of the present scenario and educating them in safety measures. Mr. Karthik S Kateel in association with mangalorean.com conducted a workshop “Swaraksha for Women and Girls” for the girl students of Class IX – XII together with our lady staff. He taught them some simple techniques to safeguard themselves when in danger.

Besides, care is taken to monitor all who enter our school campus, and a log book has been maintained for this purpose. ID cards have been issued to students, staff and even parents. The entire school is under CCTV surveillance.

Swatch Bharath, Swatch Vidyalay Mission: Following our Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s diktat to start Swachh Bharat – Swachh Vidyalay Mission on October 2, the birthday of Mahatma Gandhiji, our school children along with few parents participated in the mission. While the students of classes 9 to 12 along with their teachers gathered at Kadri Park near KPT in collaboration with Rotarians and Inner Wheel club members to help clean in and around the Kadri Public Park, the other classes helped in cleaning the classrooms, school surroundings and the nearby roads. Besides, a number of students joined in writing slogans, short poems and drawings on cleanliness, which were exhibited on the School Bulletin Boards.

 Carmel Festember was an unique event planned together by the management, staff, students, parents and well wishers in support of this beautiful edifice of learning. The event was kicked off on 8^th November with the lighting of the traditional lamp and the release of balloons to mark the inauguration by the chief guest of the day- Mrs. Manjula Bansal, wife of Inspector General of Police P Amrit Paul, along with other dignitaries on the dais and the crowd cheering to welcome the fun and frolic day filled with games, food, music, dance and other entertainment. We thank all who worked very hard – the staff, festember committee members, parents, students and donors, towards the success of this event, the first of its kind to MCCS.

Conclusion and Thanks: I take this opportunity to sincerely thank

• The management for their invaluable guidance and encouragement
• The teaching, non-teaching and support staff for their competent and committed service
• The parents for being highly supportive
• The students for making all our efforts truly meaningful and rewarding.
• Our well-wishers and benefactors who silently contribute financially for the growth of the school.
• Finally, we thank God for yet another glorious and fruitful year and seek His bountiful blessings for the years ahead. May Mary, our Mother of Carmel, the patroness of our school continue to guide and lead us onward.

Yes, MCCS has carved a niche for itself among the cluster of educational institutions in the city, but the motto of the school is striving for excellence, so we will not bask in the glory of our laurels but keep moving forward in our quest for – “Higher and Nobler” in everything that we do and achieve. Thank you and God bless all.