St. Paul's School, Darjeeling
Website
Website : http://www.stpaulsdarjeeling.com
Address
Address : Jalapahar PO Darjeeling 734 103 West Bengal
Phone : (0354) 2252334
Email : rector.spsdarj@gmail.com
St. Paul's is, essentially an Indian residential school for boys. That is to say, the staff and the scholars are predominantly Indian, and its educational policy is oriented towards life in India and India's place in world affairs. But
this has not come in the way of one of the School's most important assets: its international, multi-racial and cross-regional cosmopolitan character. This is an asset of immeasurable educational value. Boys from many different parts of
India, of different castes and from different religious communities, are living, working, eating, worshipping and playing together with boys from other nations with different social and religious customs. We can hardly over- emphasize
the importance of this factor. The intellectual, emotional and social adjustments a boy must make in such an environment provide additional interest and stimulus in his school life, and are a useful preparation for such adjustments in
later life in an increasingly international world.
The Board of Governors
The Right Reverend the Bishop of Calcutta is Ex-officio Chairman of the Board of Governors of St Paul's. The Governors are appointed in part by the Calcutta Diocesan Board of Education and in part by the Education Department of the West
Bengal Government. They are men prominent in diverse fields who form a representative body in close touch with Indian, American and European education and affairs.
The Staff
The Rector/Administrator is the Head of the School. The Rector/Administrator maintains overall control of the Primary, Junior and Senior Wings, the Bursary and the Estate Department. The Senior Master, Head of the Junior Wing and Head
of the Primary Wing handle all the academic-related matters in their Wings, and handle pastoral care and administrative work in their departments. The Bursar is in charge of the Accounts Office and oversees the employment and welfare of
the Domestic Staff.
In accordance with the multi-racial character of St Paul's, the staff are recruited from all over India. Most of the members of the staff live on the school estate. Some residences adjoin the dormitories, others are on the boundaries of
the estate in separate houses.
In addition to the teaching staff, there are the Matrons-in-charge of the personal welfare and care of the boys in the Senior, Junior and Primary Wings. Caterers are in-charge of the boys' diet and of the cooking and serving of food.
The Estate Manager's many sided duties include the maintenance of the buildings and of the estate in general, and assisting the Bursar with matters related to the Domestic staff.
Communications
All communications with the School, except those regarding bills should, in the first instance, be addressed to the Rector. Correspondence about bills may be addressed to the Bursar. Parents writing to their sons are asked to designate
in the address the appropriate Folio Number and House. Students are permitted to phone home occasionally.
To Communicate
All communications must be addressed to the Principal
Curriculum
The Primary and Junior sections of a school represent the most important stages in the development of a boy. The type of education we are trying to foster in the Primary and Junior Wings, in preparation of a boy's life in the upper
school and later, is to make him think for himself, to promote originality and creativeness, and to adjust to living in an unfamiliar community, thus gaining confidence. St Paul's is known for its discipline and it is in the Primary and
Junior Wings that the foundations are laid: the emphasis is on self-discipline with a certain amount of freedom to let the seeds of self-discipline mature.
Over the last few years great changes have been brought in the educational field with regard to teaching, especially the teaching of small children. We have been studying these changes and have incorporated those that are clearly
useful. In each Class section there are about twenty-five boys. In keeping to this standard, mere textbook instruction gives way to individual guidance, and individual needs are accented. There is a central library and separate
libraries for the Primary Wing and Junior Wing, each stocked with books chosen carefully to match the required reading standards.
With the inclusion of interactive smart boards in all the classes Education in St Paul's has acquired a new dimension.
The aim of the curriculum is to provide a good, all-round education with specialization at a later date. There are four classes in the Senior Wing. The subjects taught in class are English Language and Literature, Hindi, Bengali,
Nepali, Dzongka, French, History, Geography, Political Science, Sociology, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics, Economics, Commerce, Elements of Accounts, Computer Science, and Art.
Boys in Class 10 are prepared for the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) examination and, two years later, in Class 12, for the Indian School Certificate (ISC) examination which qualifies a candidate for admission to a
degree course at an Indian University.
The School is subject to inspection by the Inter-State Board for Anglo-Indian Education and by the Directorate of Education of the West Bengal Government.
Co curricular activities
There are two NCC troops at St Paul's in the Senior Wing and the older boys belong to the International Award for Young People which has a syllabus designed to suit the conditions of an Indian school. These programmes include
• animal care
• archery
• camp craft
• compass work
• drill
• first aid
• initiative tests
• map reading
• mountain rescue
• plant study
• rifle shooting
• rock climbing
• work on the estate
After the completion of training, boys are awarded bronze, silver or gold medals of the Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme.
Hobby clubs Senior Wing
• Art and craft
• Batik
• Cooking
• Cybernetics
• Drama
• Dramatic Society stages a play annually in October
• Elocution
• Indian and Western music
• Indian and Western music and band
• Model-making
• Philately
• Photography
• Senior Wing presents a concert from time to time
• Socially-useful productive work programmes which develop manual, artistic and technical skills
• Textile design
• Wood and lathe work
Societies representing a wide range of intellectual interests meet regularly
Secretary of each Society and hobby club is invariably one of the boys
• Bengali
• Debating
• English literary Society
• French
• Geography
• Hindi
• History
• Mathematics
• Natural history
• Science
• World Forum
Subjects vary from year to year and according to the availability of suitable members of staff who would be in-charge
From time to time the school sends up candidates for
• Music and Speech Examinations of the Trinity Guildhall School of Music
• Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music, London
Games, Sports and Recreation
Fifteen minutes physical training for all, every morning before studies - taken by Prefects and supervised by the PT master
Games played according to the season for one hour a day, five times a week, under the supervision of a teacher
Enough time allowed for the boys to play on their own, to be inventive and to learn how to occupy themselves independently.
There are plenty of indoor games that keep children happily occupied Learn karate from a trained instructor
Rock climbing with instructors coming in for the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute Obstacle Course
Good leisure-hour habits are fostered through hobbies of various kinds
• Younger boys in the Junior Wing belong to the School's Boy Scout troop known as Carmichael's Own,
• Youngest in the Primary Wing become Cubs Television sets for all three wings with satellite TV connections to watch
• news everyday
• programmes that are of educational value
• important sports events regularly Other major games
• badminton
• basketball
• cricket
• cross-country running
• football and hockey
• short seasons for athletics and squash
• table-tennis
• Tennis
• volleyball
Eton Fives
there are very few places in the world where it is played and St Paul's is one of them; this is a sport which is ideally suited to our monsoon conditions
Admission Procedure
Parents, desiring admission for their sons, are required to complete the Registration form found in this prospectus. The registration form may be down loaded from the school website and return the same to the School Office. The
registration fee is not refundable nor constitutes any assurance. If any child is withdrawn and seeks readmission, it will be treated as fresh admission. Entrance Tests / Interviews are held in August and sometimes in December. Places,
subject to availability, will be offered on the basis of the written tests / interviews at the exclusive discretion of the school.
School Year
The School year normally begins in early March and extends to the last week of November / early December. The year is divided into three terms with short breaks in May / June and September / October. During these short holidays a boy
may stay out of the School with parents, (relations or friends) provided that permission has been obtained from the Rector. All boys must return to School by 4.00 p.m. on the last day of these holidays.
Certification
Before a new boy arrives at the School, the following certificates are required
• A doctor's certificate stating that the boy is fit for School life in Darjeeling.
• A complete health information certificate on a form supplied by the School.
• A transfer certificate from his previous school, if he has not submitted one.
• A birth certificate. (A Certified Copy).
Fee structure 2020
Visit http://www.stpaulsdarjeeling.com/fee-structure.php
Admission form
Visit http://www.stpaulsdarjeeling.com/admission-form.php
Food and health
• All the boys play regular school games and the whole school has fifteen minutes' physical exercise every morning before studies commence.
• The School has a qualified doctor to visit the school daily to supervise the running of the School infirmaries and attend to the medical needs of staff and students.
• The DDMA Nursing Home in Darjeeling is equipped to deal with all in-patient treatment, dental treatment, X-rays and out-patient treatment, with the exception of special medicines.
• Except for minor ailments, parents are notified by nursing sisters immediately after their son is admitted to the infirmary or the Nursing Home, and are kept informed of his progress.
• Each boy has a health information form. This must be filled in by a qualified medical practitioner in order to help the school should any need arise.
• The Rector and staff have lunch with the boys; at meals, at least one member of staff is present.
The Buildings
The main buildings of the Senior Wing are grouped on three sides of a Quadrangle. The fourth side, open to the mountain view, leads to lower terraces where the Junior and Primary Wings, the Chapel and the Rectory (the residence of the
Rector) stand. The buildings around and above the Quadrangle contain the School hall, dining hall, library, dormitories (each with its own bathrooms and lavatories), classrooms, infirmary, common rooms, and barber shops.
The Howard Block (named after the Rev David Howard who worked for 36 years which included 18 years as Rector) houses three dormitories for the Junior Wing (with attached Staff Quarters) and the Science and Computer laboratories. The
school also has its own gymnasium, a cricket and athletics ground, two other playing fields, and courts for tennis, badminton, basketball, volleyball, squash and Eton fives.
The School buildings house comfortably over 250 boys in the Senior Wing, over 220 in Junior Wing and 150 boys in the Primary Wing. The present size of the School is maintained, since to increase numbers excessively would jeopardize one
of St Paul's educational principles, namely, the importance of maintaining individual relationship between teacher and pupil.
The School estate is well cared for by the Estate Manager and his staff, and the boys have the advantage of living in surroundings not only of exceptional natural grandeur but also of the cultivated beauty of gardens, lawns and planted
forest trees.
History
In 1823, John William Ricketts, an Anglo-Indian leader from Calcutta, conceived the idea of a school to meet the educational needs of the growing British and Anglo-Indian community in Calcutta. At 7:00am on (Thursday) May 1,
1823, the Parental Academic Institution was established and started functioning on 11, Park Street between the Archbishop House and the then Sans
Souci Theatre with an amount of then Rs 3551.The first Principal of the institution was Dr George Smith.
In 1847, the school was renamed St Paul's School by Bishop Wilson, who had associated the school with St Paul's Cathedral in Calcutta. During
1863, the school was in difficulties and Bishop Cotton decided to move the school to Darjeeling. The current buildings were not the location
of the initial school and were later additions as the school expanded. In 1864, the school was moved to its present Jalapahar ("Burning Mountain")
estate in Darjeeling with 31 boarders and a few day scholars. The estate was purchased from Mr BrianHodgson for Rs.45,000. The original two-storied building, built on what is today known as the Lower Field, no longer exists,
and the magnificent buildings that form the core of the school were largely built in 1898. The first electricity lines in the school were
connected in 1909. The Lefroy Hospital was commissioned in 1914 and the Lyon Hall in
1915 respectively. In 1920, the chapel was demolished to make
room for Westcott Hall, thanks to a liberal donation from the Maharaja of Burdwan. Construction for the existing school chapel began in
1933 and was completed in 1935.
The Rectory in St Paul's School, Darjeeling houses the Rector of the school and his family. The Rectory is one of the oldest buildings in Darjeeling hailing from the British-Indian Era. Built in
1813, it was the residence of the owner of the Jalapahar estate till
1864. In 1864 Bishop G E L Cotton acquired the Jalapahar Estate for establishing the School and this building was christened the 'Rectory'
which remains, till today, the official residence of the Rector. Pelly's is the residential building which houses the official residence of the Senior Master of St Paul's School and his family. The building is named after a
former Rector of the School, Rev R L Pelly. A number of its students fought in both World War I and World War II. Many of those who died are remembered in plaques that can be found in the school chapel. Bishop Foss Westcott,
Metropolitan of Bengal, Burma and Ceylon, played a very important role in the school.
L J Goddard, was the longest serving and, perhaps, the most important Rector, leading the school between 1934 and 1964 — including the
transition from British-ruled to independent India. His successors were David Gibbs (1964–72) and Hari Dang (1977–84). L.J.Goddard
and David Gibbs received the OBE. Goddard for his contribution to Education in India and his work at St Paul’s and Gibbs for his work at St Paul's, while Dang received the Padma Shri. Over the years, a number of estates
were purchased and merged with the existing school estate, thus growing to its present size. The Mount Vernon Estate (now known as Dawkins) was purchased at the beginning of the
1900s and the Terpsithea Estate in 1955. The school was under
the guidance of Mr Gardner from 1984-1990. Today, St Paul's is home to over 750 Indian and international students from neighboring
Sub-continental, South-East Asian and European countries.
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