Unclear age rule for nursery admission in Gurgaon worries parents

Adding to the confusion of parents seeking nursery admissions for their little ones in Gurgaon, schools do not follow a uniform age criterion. While some schools are offering admission to three-year-old children, others are accepting applications for students who are aged three years and a half.

Schools such as Amity International School in Sector 46, Millennium School in Sector 38, Ridge Valley School in DLF Phase 4 and Vega Schools in Sector 48 are admitting children who are three years old on March 31.

“Schools in Delhi are accepting students who are three years old and we are following a similar pattern,” Avishek Roy, head, community outreach, Vega Schools, said.

Institutes that have kept their age criterion as three and a half years are Delhi Public School in Sector 45, Lotus Valley International School in Sector 50, Delhi Public School, Sushant Lok, Salwan Public School in Sector 15, Suncity World School in Sector 53, Scottish High International School in Sector 57 and KR Mangalam School in South City 1.

Principal of Suncity World School Rupa Chakravarty said, “There are more schools offering education under different boards -- CBSE, ICSE and IB -- in Gurgaon as compared to Delhi. So, one cannot define a particular age group as each board has different difficulty levels.”

An official of Salwan Public School said, “The school is looking for slightly older children with more maturity and learning level. This is why the criterion is three-and-half years.”

But, the multiplicity of age criteria have left parents perplexed. Their children are not eligible for admission in all schools, leaving them with little option.

Sakshi Chopra, a parent said, “I recently shifted from Delhi and there, the age criterion is three years and above. But, Gurgaon has a different system all together. I am confused about which school to admit my girl in as the one I wanted would not take her due to the age criterion.”

Setting a new trend, The HDFC School in Sector 57 is offering admission to students above the age of three years and three months on 31st March. The school says though they want children with good maturity and learning levels, they are relaxing admission norms by three months.

“A lot of children might miss a seat in a good school due to a few days or a month. The school’s age criterion is to give relaxation to parents and children. Also, three months will not make a major difference,” Anita Makkar, principal of The HDFC School, said.

Robin Willams, a parent, said there is no checklist available for parents to understand the right age for nursery admission in Gurgaon. “One has to go through each and every school website or call them to understand the same, and also the fee structure.”

Education activists said Gurgaon should follow the age criteria of Delhi schools.

“The schools are not giving any clarity over admission criteria to parents. The parents are expected to know everything on their own. There should be a body that overlooks the functioning of nursery classes as well,” Tripti Singh, a city-based education activist, said.