All students of Global Indian International School had been waiting to get a glimpse of our school's new SMART Campus at Punggol. The campus was to start operations in the July semester and all students were anxiously waiting for that day to arrive. So when we were told there will be tours for selected students to view the campus we were all excited. It was doubly thrilling for me when I learnt that, as a member of the school's Journalism Club, I was chosen to be among the first to visit the campus.
So off I went, along with a bus load of students from the Student Council and Journalism Club, on a short ride from East Coast Campus to Punggol, chatting all the away about how the campus would be. The minute we laid our eyes on the humungous campus, we were awestruck.
The huge campus had a curved structure resembling a nest, which conveyed that the school is a place to nestle and nurture us kids before we can fully develop and fly into the open skies with our wings spread out. We saw interesting elements included in the design, like the Fountain of Knowledge and the Mist Fountain, specially built for students to hang out, relax amid the greenery, or have open air classes. It was a good idea, I thought. After all, natural beauty is necessary for nurturing creativity in students.
The two separate buildings making the curve had corporate style blocks which are to have our classrooms. Each floor was themed differently - inspired by nature and paying homage to the various continents. There was the river theme in one floor, the canopy theme on the other, the American continent on the third and the Asian continent on the fourth and so on.
Dedicated classrooms were assigned for primary and secondary students, there were new labs and some new spaces like the IT Labs, Radio station, Culinary Lab and the Environment Lab which were exciting new concepts. The library was so spacious and inviting, that I did not want to leave. A high-tech amphitheatre with an awesome sound system and LED screen blew my mind. There was even a play area for children, and a Link Bridge linking the two curved buildings which had great views of the Punggol township.
After seeing all this we realised, good things take time, and we were glad the school took its time to turn out to be an awesome building which will be a source of pride for us.
Our teachers explained that GIIS management always had the vision of creating a huge infrastructure that can incorporate the 21st century teaching resources with innovative teaching style.
The GIIS Smart Campus is literally “Smart”. Technology has been used to its fullest in order to create a holistic environment where students aresafe and enjoy learning. It is spectacular and stunning. Our excitement is at its peak, as we look forward to moving in the SMART Campus as soon as possible.