Error message

The page you requested does not exist. For your convenience, a search was performed using the query maputo aga khan academy maputo growing community.

Exchange programme students thrive in and out of the classroom

Strengthening the network through successful student exchanges

Watch the video of the Foundation Stone Laying Ceremony

Strengthening the network through successful student exchanges

Interview with David Chesney: Journey from a student to an educator with a passion to teach

Ajey Balaji: His Unflinching Love For Teaching French

HYD_20190614_Spotlight_Ajey_1.jpg

Ajey Balaji, who hails from Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu, joined AKA Hyderabad in 2013. He is a French language facilitator, form tutor for grade 11 and the Academy’s fervent Francophile. Ajey holds a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry and did his post graduation in medical microbiology until finally deciding to pursue several specialised certifications and degrees in French. Currently, Ajey is a PhD scholar at the University of Artois, France.

HYD_20190614_Spotlight_Ajey_2.jpg

Ajey’s professional journey into teaching French at the Academy happened much later in life. He moved to Hyderabad in 2000 after having found work at a laboratory. “When I moved to this city, I was working for a lab producing vaccines for cattle. As a matter of fact, my first friends and colleagues in Hyderabad were hamsters, rabbits and sheep!” Ajey recalls with a smile.

HYD_20190614_Spotlight_Ajey_9.jpg

He channeled his spare time by successfully completing an advanced diploma in French language and civilisation in 2003. However, Ajey being a man of determination and dedication didn’t quite stop there. His journey towards mastering the language gained traction at the University of Nantes in France, where he obtained a master’s degree. His master's dissertation on “The linguistics of medical evaluation forms in French for doctors and nurses aspiring to work in francophone countries” is now a textbook on the subject. And, in the midst of this whirlwind French romance, he secured a position at the Academy in 2013. “I had finally found my calling,” he says.

HYD_20190614_Spotlight_Ajey_7.jpg

Today, Ajey is one of the most adored members of the teaching staff, praised for his abilities in pedagogy and for his abilities in baking in equal amounts. “Having worked all my professional life with adults, I was uncertain of rising to the challenges of teaching at a school. However, Ms. Meenakshi Joshi (MYP coordinator) set the tone for my MYP journey. Thanks to her unfaltering faith in my abilities, today, I have discovered the innate paternal instincts in me. This challenge has taught me a precious lesson that it is important to nurture equally both, a child’s emotional and academic well-being.”

HYD_20190614_Spotlight_Ajey_4.JPG

His innate talent for French has garnered him many exciting opportunities. One such recognition that he cherishes the most was his appointment as an official interpreter for eight senators of the Republic of France who visited Hyderabad on a diplomatic mission. One of the meetings he translated for was with the activist Ms. Sunitha Krishnan, a co-founder of Prajwala, an NGO that rescues, rehabilitates and reintegrates sex-trafficked victims into society.

HYD_20190614_Spotlight_Ajey_6.jpg

HYD_20190614_Spotlight_Ajey_10.jpg

The academic year 2018-19 has been fantastic for Ajey as he accomplished many professional titles and international recognitions. For instance, this year saw his selection by the Embassy of France in India for the teacher training program at the Centre for Applied Linguistics in the city of Besançon, France. This position enables him to be trained under a pedagogical expert from the International Centre for Pedagogical Studies, Sèvres, France which will help him soar higher as a master teacher in French at a national level.

HYD_20190614_Spotlight_Ajey_8.jpg

Also this year, Ajey has had the distinction of working as a teacher-mentor; being a referent translator-interpreter; and working as a jury member of the examiners of the DELF-DALF exams of the Ministry of National Education, Government of France. These are benchmark achievements in the field of French language acquisition. Reflecting upon the year, Ajey states, “The unconditional love and acceptance I receive from my students is the best testimony to my professional accomplishments.”

Should you find yourself in the dining hall during lunchbreak, you would find Ajey walking ahead followed by a trail of grade 7 students. The convoy travels from Senior School like an excited atom with Ajey as its nucleus and orbiting around him are a bunch of recent Junior School graduates, all immersed in deep conversation. At their lunch table, students will sit flanking Ajey on either side and sharing key insights of the day.

Post lunch, the crew may take a couple of minutes to test if the tree outside the Commons is still sturdy enough to hold a few 7^th graders. On a hot summer day, Ajey will join them at basecamp under the benevolent shade of the tree, deeply invested in both, the safety of the children and to see just how far they can go.

Dining Services Menu 1 and 3 - Bird Flu

The Academy's dining services provide a varied menu throughout the week. We aim for meals to be nutritious and delicious and for mealtimes to be an important aspect of Academy life.

Paneer butter masala
Tomato dal
Steamed rice
Triangle paratha
Curd
Banana
Melon

Dining Services Menu 2 and 4 - Bird Flu

The Academy's dining services provide a varied menu throughout the week. We aim for meals to be nutritious and delicious and for mealtimes to be an important aspect of Academy life.

Paneer masala
Veg tawa
Tadka dal
Plain rice
Chapati
Curd
Cream bun

Dining Services Menu A - rev

The Academy's dining services provide a varied menu throughout the week. We aim for meals to be nutritious and delicious and for mealtimes to be an important aspect of Academy life. We are committed to providing balanced vegetarian and non-vegetarian options for all meals.

Menu for 13–19 April 2015

Monday

Breakfast

Fresh fruit juice
Banana
Choice of cereal with milk
Brown bread and muffins with jam, butter and honey

Scrambled eggs
Baked beans, boiled arrowroot, grilled tomatoes

Hot milk, tea, coffee, drinking chocolate

Lunch

Carrot ginger soup

Salad bar

Greek chicken with baked potato wedges / Croquette
Vegetable medley

Roast chicken
Ugali
Cabbage

Vegetable korma
Daal with roti and rice
Carrot and cabbage pickle

Chocolate mousse

Dinner

Clear vegetable soup

Salad bar

Curried beef
Rice
Cabbage and carrot pickle

Matoke

Khadhi
Vegetarian pilau

Carrot and cabbage pickle

Bread and butter pudding

Tuesday

Breakfast

Fresh fruit juice
Banana
Choice of cereal with milk
Brown bread and Danish pastries with jam, butter and honey

Eggs frittata
Red kidney beans, oven roasted sweet potato, grilled tomatoes

Hot milk, tea, coffee, drinking chocolate

Lunch

Minestrone soup
Salad bar

Salisbury steak with gravy / beef pizza
Mashed potatoes
Seasonal vegetables

Salisbury steak

Ugali
Sukuma and githeri

Paneer kadai

Crème caramel

Dinner

Cream of spinach soup

Salad bar

Honey lime chicken
Fried rice
Sautéed vegetables

Spring rolls with sweet and sour sauce

Fried rice

Fruit crumble with custard sauce

Wednesday

Breakfast

Fresh fruit juice
Banana
Choice of cereal with milk
Brown bread and doughnuts with jam, butter and honey

Pancakes, beef sausage
Baked beans, baked arrowroot, grilled tomatoes

Hot milk, tea, coffee, drinking chocolate

Lunch

Beef vegetable soup
Salad bar

Crumbed fish with lemon butter sauce / fish fingers
Sautéed potatoes
Seasonal vegetables

Pan fried fish

Ugali with sukuma

Bean curry, okra curry
Rice
Puri

Pumpkin cake

Dinner

Cream of tomato soup
Salad bar

Stir fried chicken

Stir fried rice

Stir fried vegetables

Vegetable manchurian balls

Stir fried rice

Naan

Ice cream

Thursday

Breakfast

Fresh fruit juice
Banana
Choice of cereal with milk
Brown bread and muffins with jam, butter and honey

Poached eggs
Fried red kidney beans, boiled sweet potato, grilled tomatoes

Hot milk, tea, coffee, drinking chocolate

Lunch

Butternut squash soup
Salad bar

Sweet and sour chicken / stir fried chicken
Noodles or fried rice
Seasonal vegetables

Roast chicken
Ugali and fried cabbage

Vegetable macaroni

Focaccia bread

Peas

Plantain in coconut sauce

Dinner

Cream of vegetable soup

Salad bar

Beef stroganoff
Roti
Rice
Black daal
Vichy carrots

Fresh mangoes

Friday

Breakfast

Fresh fruit juice
Banana
Choice of cereal with milk
Brown bread and Danish pastries with jam, butter and honey

Country scrambled eggs
Baked beans, steamed arrowroot, grilled tomatoes

Hot milk, tea, coffee, drinking chocolate

Lunch

Leek potato soup
Salad bar

Fried fish and chips with tartar sauce / fish fingers
Peas
Coleslaw

Sweet and chilli paneer
Peas curry
Roti
Rice

Fish

Ugali and sukuma

Ice cream

Dinner

Vegetable broth

Chicken pizza
Mushroom pizza

Fruit triffle

Saturday

Breakfast

Fresh fruit juice
Banana
Choice of cereal with milk
Brown bread and kaimati with jam, butter and honey

Plain or masala omelette
French toast, grilled tomatoes

Hot milk, tea, coffee, drinking chocolate

Lunch

Tomato basil soup
Salad bar

Tandoori chicken
Naan
Jeera rice
Vegetable curry

Daal
Vegetable curry

Naan, rice

Banana cake

Dinner

Clear vegetable soup
Salad bar

Beef kebabs in herb sauce

Spaghetti
Focaccia bread
Green beans

Vegetable aloo gunda

Spaghetti

Focaccia bread

Fresh seasonal fruit

Sunday

Breakfast

Fresh fruit juice
Banana
Choice of cereal with milk
Brown bread and mahamri with jam, butter and honey

Fried eggs
Steamed cassava, cow peas in coconut, grilled tomatoes

Hot milk, tea, coffee, drinking chocolate

Lunch

Carrot ginger soup
Salad Bar

Chicken curry
Roti
Rice
Okra curry
Daal
Cabbage and carrot pickle

Fruit strudel

Dinner

Mushroom soup
Salad bar

Hot dog / roll
Sautéed potatoes

Vegetable tempura

Sautéed potatoes

Banana in chocolate