How Mary Roy cut her own path in education

A school with no textbooks or homework! The students, upon returning home, get to play and not stress about their studies. They find the time to engage in their favourite hobbies. Most people would be concerned about such an education system, which is entirely different from those followed by all other schools. Questions like would the children score good marks are natural. However, when the results come out, all these students who were thought “not serious in studies” pass with flying colours.

This concept caught the fascination of a woman. ‘Pallikoodam,' which literally means school in Malayalam, was set up by taking a leaf out of the model followed by an Ooty-based British school. Thus formed the famous educational institution in Kottayam - a magnificent example of the globally well-known Malayali success story.

The credit for successfully implementing this model that cannot be easily copied or executed goes to a single name: Mary Roy, founder of Pallikoodam, principal of the institution for four decades and its guiding force till her end.

Even in the future, the ideas left behind by this extraordinary educationalist will keep inspiring generations.

In the beginning, the school was christened Corpus Christi. Later, it was renamed ‘Pallikoodam', which was suggested by Mary's daughter and writer Arundhati Roy, winner of the Booker Prize for 'The God of Small Things.' With Mary at the institution's helm for 42 years, it was recognised as the best school several times. The school stood out not for its unconventional education system, but also for its appearance.

An expert in alternative architecture, Kerala’s own Laurie Baker, designed the school. A beautiful institution that stands amid dense trees on a hillock. Students of the school never felt like leaving the institution. Those who catch a glimpse of it yearn to be a part of the campus.

The specialities of the method of instruction are unique. Its excellence in arts and sports is unending. A real educational institution, in every sense of the word, as it not only imparts knowledge but also teaches the first lessons on comprehensive personality development.

Mocked a nursery teacher for her unconventional method

Nobody rolled out a golden carpet for Mary Roy, who came to Kottayam to live, work and flourish after being disillusioned with her life in Ooty. She made a name for herself fighting several circumstances.

Today’s Pallikoodam had its humble beginning in a rented hall of the Rotary Club. Started in 1969 with students in Classes 1 to 5, Mary Roy revealed a new educational system by flocking the children together. Her wealthy relatives scoffed at the idea. They teased her and called her a nursery teacher. But Mary didn’t back off. She found nothing inferior about being a nursery teacher.

She was determined to convince society of this system. That resolve gave her the strength required to take each step. Once parents saw their kids comprehending things better than before, they took a liking to Mary's way of doing things.

Gradually the world witnessed the rise of a new teacher who led generations to a promising future through an unconventional education system. Many, later, followed the light of the alternative education that Mary Roy introduced, though in varied measures. But ‘Pallikoodam’ continued to hold its head high with Mary Roy as its architect.

More children began to join the school. The building became insufficient to house them all. She bought five acres on a hillock at Kalathippadi in Kottayam. A beautiful campus came up there (later, the campus was extended to 10 acres).

The USP of Pallikoodam

Mary's Pallikoodam has several specialities. Primary education is only imparted in the mother tongue. Mary went down the road less taken at a time when parents increasingly desired for their wards to learn English the moment they start to speak. However, she had in mind the brilliant lessons imparted by educationists from across the globe. The students who didn’t learn English till Class IV became fluent in the language as they moved up the ladder.

Till Class VIII, there are no exams. Mary's stand was that a student's calibre should not be weighed just by holding exams at the end of the year. “Teachers who see and interact with the students on a daily basis are well aware of their standards…Can’t they evaluate how much a child has learned without conducting an exam?” That was both her question and vision.

Subject experts used to teach lessons even in primary classes. She dispensed off the idea of employing 'average' teachers in lower classes. As the saying goes, if the foundation is strong, the building will last longer; she was sure the students, on getting a sound basic education, would be able to step into an excellent future.

Several alumni of Pallikoodam have reached great heights in their careers and lives. Most of them have enrolled their children in Pallikoodam now.

Besides leading financially rewarding lives, students passing out of Pallikoodam often choose the path their heart has always desired. There are some who left high-paying jobs to lead a peaceful life. They attribute the mental maturity to make such a bold decision to Pallikoodam. And that was all that Mary Roy truly wished for her students.

Arundhati too did her schooling till Class 6 at Pallikoodam. Those days, elementary education was only up to 6th grade.

Mary Roy has bid adieu from this world after making Pallikoodam self-reliant on all accounts. There is a society, a team of companionship, to run the school. The future of the institution is in safe hands. Besides, Mary Roy's eternal ideas will continue to lead the institution on the path of glory. It's impossible for anyone to "chain" knowledge, nor Mary Roy, who led a life following the light of excellence.

As Pallikoodam turns a guiding force for many educational institutions today, it speaks volumes of the success of Mary Roy, the educationalist who dared to dream.