Ever since this sui generis publication’s first league tables were published in August 2007, the annual EducationWorld India School Rankings (EWISR) survey, which rates and ranks the country’s best known primary-secondary schools across 14 parameters of education excellence, has incrementally captured the imagination of parents, teachers, principals and other stakeholders in K-12 education. That’s because over the past eight years, together with the Delhi-based Centre for Forecasting and Research Pvt. Ltd (C fore), one of the country’s most respected field research companies which has conducted all but the very first EWISR perceptual survey, your editors have continuously tightened and improved the rankings methodology and classification of schools to ensure transparent and equitable outcomes.
A major innovation was initiated in 2013 when the earlier broad classification of the country’s most reputed day, boarding and international schools was divided into several sub-categories such as co-ed, co-ed day-cum-boarding, all-boys and all-girls schools. We felt this was necessary to avoid unfair apples and oranges type of comparisons of schools with distinctly different character and objectives.
Moreover, the initial 12 parameters on which schools were rated and ranked have been increased and contemporised with the inclusion of new parameters such as life skills and conflict management, special needs education, pastoral care (for residential schools), safety and hygiene and community service. The objective of the continuous upgradation of the annual EWISR survey methodology and evaluation parameters is to propagate the message that primary-secondary education should be an enriching multi-disciplinary learning experience for every child.
In the circumstances, the reality that the annual EWISR surveys generate great excitement within the K-12 schools’ community is a socially beneficial development. After initial hesitation in the early years, all school managements are cooperating fully for purposes of conducting and publishing the annual EWISR survey — an indicator of growing institutional pride and ambition that augurs well for the children enroled in them.
Inspired by enthusiasm within the parent, teacher and student communities, EWISR 2015 is the largest ever schools rating and ranking exercise in Indian history. The database of sample respondents who have assessed and rated the country’s Top 1,000 schools this year at 11,660 is the largest ever, and field research was conducted countrywide by 120 C fore representatives for over four months. Moreover to collate, cross-check, proof-read and tabulate the 100-plus league tables in this issue, your editors and associates in Bangalore led by Summiya Yasmeen worked through frequent power outages, general strikes (bandhs), floods, a municipal election and traffic gridlocks that citizens of this reportedly glorious republic are heir to. Therefore, we apologise in advance for minor errors which may have crept into this mammoth exercise. Nevertheless please don’t hesitate to write in to us for publication of corrigenda.