The world is getting to be a global village for English-medium cradles in Jamshedpur.

This year, eight schools have applied for International School Awards (ISA) from British Council as a part of their endeavour to seek global recognition and exposure.

Motilal Nehru Public School, Gulmohur High School, Hill Top School, Dayanand Public School, Loyola School, Kerala Public School (Burmamines), JH Tarapore School and Narbheram Hansraj English School have applied for the coveted award and are gearing up to win the title next year.

The title is worth winning as it is an accreditation scheme that recognises and celebrates exemplary practices of internationalism in schools. It also provides a framework for schools to develop an action plan and implement global activities throughout the year, encouraging schools to collaborate and innovate with overseas counterparts to create a rich learning experience.

“The school is abuzz with innovative activities. We are connected with seven schools from the US, UK, Turkey and Ghana on the web. We’ve also linked our school to www.thedayiwasborn.net, where students find out the importance of their birth dates and develop projects,” said Paramita Roy Choudhury, principal of Narheram Hansraj English School.

So far, only three schools in the state —two from Jamshedpur and one from Bokaro — have bagged the British Council international award. They comprise Jamshedpur’s Kerala Samajam Model School and DBMS English School in 2010, and Delhi Public School, Bokaro, this year.

At present, 350 schools in India have the British Council’s ISA tag, bestowed on a cradle for three years.

“These awards celebrate internationalism. Students get a chance to think differently. I think awareness has increased enormously in Jamshedpur. The award can also be used as a marketing tool for schools,” said Mrigank Mouli Mukherjee, manager, school programmes (east India), British Council, Calcutta.

Gulmohur High School has been organising innovative programmes such as the international week, where kindergarten students worked on dolls from across the globe, tribes of Africa and India, and utensils and fabrics used in other parts of the world.

“Students learn not only about themselves but about the world they live in. Students who have never visited a foreign country get to know about them online through chats and e-mails,” added Sunita Sinha, principal of Gulmohur High School.