Petit Seminaire Higher Secondary School is a higher secondary school for boys in the state of Pondicherry, India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

.

History

The history of Petit Seminaire dates back to 1844 as a seminary attended by 89 students of whom 25 were ecclesiastical students aspiring for priesthood. In 1873 it became a public college. In 1880, Petit Seminaire stopped receiving government subsidy, and has maintained its financial independence.

The student population showed an increase from 800 in 1903 to 1100 in 1907, of whom 700 were Catholics. In 1932, the English section was upgraded into a high school, preparing boys for matriculation and was affiliated with the Madras university. In July 1978, Petit Seminare was born again, this time as Petit Seminaire Higher Secondary School, offering two courses of study at the higher secondary level.

Motto

The school's motto is "Nil Magnum Nisi Bonum" meaning "Nothing is great unless it is good".

Religious teaching

The class on Catholic doctrine is compulsory for all Catholic students. For non-Catholic students value education classes are conducted on the Christian version of morality, and values of simplicity, dignity of labour, forgiveness, tolerance and generosity.

Clergies from Petit Seminaire

The alumni of Petit Seminaire include several bishops and priest, among others:

1. Most Rev. Dr. Michael Augustine,D.D,D.C.L, (Archbishop Emeritus of Pondicherry and Cuddalore

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Pondicherry and Cuddalore

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Pondicherry and Cuddalore is an archdiocese located in the cities of Pondicherry and Cuddalore in India. The Archdiocese now celebrates its 125 years of being elevatd to the status of Archdiocese.-History:...

),who was also Vice Pricipal (sous-director) of Petit Seminaire in 1961

2. Most Rev. Dr. Yvon Ambrose, Bishop of Tuticorin,

3. Rev.Fr. A. J. C. Lawrence,,who was also Vice Pricipal (sous-director) of Petit Seminaire in 1976 (Clergy of Catholic Archdiocese of Pondicherry and Cuddalore),

4. Rev.Fr. J. Paul (served as Principal for the longest period of time- The Golden Era of petit seminaire ) (Archdiocese of Pondicherry and Cuddalore)...

ETC...

Rivalry

There's always been a great rivalry between Petit Seminaire and Cluny which is a girls school in the same city.Students Compete in state toppers ,sports and other Activities in which majority of them Petit Seminaire Emerged as Winners.

Languages

Tamil is taught as a compulsory subject to all students up to 5th standard. Tamil

Tamil language

Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...

, Hindi

Hindi

Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...

 and French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

are offered as optionals from 6th standard onwards.

Physical health education

Physical training and health education is given to all the students from Lower Kindergarten(L.K.G.) to Higher Secondary level.

Life Oriented Education is present in curriculum.
'Human Resource Development' subject is taken from 4th standard to 9th stanadard.

Computer education

All students from the L.K.G. to 10th grade are given hands-on computer experience. Computer science is taught as a subject along with Mathematics. It has been extended to 11th and 12th standard students.

Majors/subjects offered in higher secondary course

• Part I - Languages - Tamil, Hindi, or French
• Part II - English

• Part III - Optionals
• Group I - Maths, Physics,Chemistry and Biology (2 sections)
• Group II - Maths, Physics,Chemistry and Computer Science (2 sections)
• Group III - Accountancy, Economics and Commerce and Business Mathematics.

Facilities

• There are physics, chemistry and biology laboratories. Every year nearly Rs. 100,000 is spent to equip the laboratories.
• The school has two computer labs, one at the main school and the other at the nursery school. The main school lab has about 60 PCs and a LAN with three terminals. The nursery school has ten PCs. Examination results and financial transactions are computerised.
• The school has a library with over 50,000 books.
• School buses are provided to rural students.
• Play grounds are available. Nursery school(Uppalam) Main Ground is for Football, Cricket, Handball, Table tennis, Basketball, Volleyball, Ball Badminton, Badminton and other outdoor games and activities. Main school venue has basketball court, table tennis court, Indoor Badminton court(Escande Hall) and an assembly ground adjacent to school church. NCC and Karate training is conducted in primary school ground.