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School draw picks 200 lucky kids

DUBAI — It was not merit but luck that counted, when 2,800 disappointed parents missed out on Dubai Indian High School’s tight kindergarten admission process which accepted a mere 200 children.

School authorities announced the selected candidates yesterday, chosen on the basis of a lottery system.

Parents flocked to the school campus in the morning waiting with baited breath to see whether their child’s name would come up in the lottery. The names were announced in two batches, at 9am for girls and 9.45 for boys.

Nasir Rana was one of the unlucky majority whose daughter Anabia Rana, who he registered last week, was not picked out of the draw.

“The school must look at increasing the number of students to compensate the demand or have parallel batches. Here you are just trying your luck.”

Anabia’s mother Yasmeen said: “We were really hoping that our daughter would get through. The school should at least hold interviews for children whose names did not come through the draw. That way their system would seem more just.”

Rohit Warde’s daughter’s name, Kimaya Warde, was also not pulled out of the draw. He said the Indian High School was any Indian parent’s first preference when they were looking to admit their child into a school.

“I personally think the draw system is not unjust, but in such cases sometimes truly capable children lose out an opportunity to become part of a good school. However, I plan on bringing my daughter back to the school for admission when she reaches an older grader,” said Warde. Another parent Bigi John said: “We will try to place our child in another school and probably come back here when she grows older ... the fees at the Indian High School is very affordable for the high standards that it offers. I might apply again for a seat in KG2, where students have to undergo an examination and an open interview.”

Sushil Joshy was one of the successful few, whose son made it through the lot. “I am really relieved that his name came through the draw. The matter of admission causes huge amounts of stress to any parent and I guess in this case we just got lucky,” said Joshy.

The Indian High School CEO, Ashok Kumar, said the system was as fair as it could be.

“It was a very transparent system and it gave equal opportunity to all those who applied. The school applied a permutation combination, and luck has nothing to do with it. This is the only system that we can follow,” said Kumar.

dhanusha@khaleejtimes.com