This summer, four teachers from two Ark schools will travel to Kenya and Zambia as part of a Fellowship Programme led by Global Schools Forum (GSF), a former Ark Venture turned independent charity.
The Fellowship Programme aims to foster peer learning and knowledge-sharing between Ark staff and GSFʼs member organisations.
GSF works to strengthen global education through supporting non-state organisations. Its 72 members operate across 51 countries in Africa, Asia and South America, running or supporting 30,000 schools, and providing five million children access to education.
Ark is an education charity that exists to make sure that all children, regardless of their background, have access to a great education and real choices in life. From working with just one school, Ark has since grown into a network of 39 schools in the UK – and is now recognised as one of the highest-achieving academy groups in the country.
Khaleda Qureshi (Ark St Alban’s Academy) and Hannah Bridges (Ark Conway Primary Academy) will work with Dignitas in Nairobi, Kenya. Dignitas offers innovative, award-winning training and coaching to school leadership teams that improve the quality of learning for all children. Khaleda and Hannah will support the Facilitation of Effective Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) for School Transformation at Dignitas.
Connor McElwaine (Ark Pioneer Academy) and Sarah Al-Hanoush (Ark Boulton Academy) are heading to Ndola, Zambia, to work with Promoting Equality in African Schools (PEAS) a not-for-profit organisation focused on improving access to quality and sustainable secondary education. They have a network of 35 rural secondary schools in Uganda and Zambia, and work with governments to share and adapt what works from their network to support the government system. Connor and Sarah will help teachers master effective teaching practices through a rigorous review of PEAS’ resources and teacher training.
Melanie Robinson, Ark’s Senior Venture Partner, said:
"As part of Ark’s 20th anniversary, we're delighted to be re-launching the GSF Fellowships Programme. This is a great opportunity for our staff in the UK to contribute to teacher education across the globe. We're looking forward to sharing news on the impact of our fellows' current trips to Kenya and Zambia soon."
Divya Behl, Programme Manager at GSF, said:
“We are excited to be facilitating this global collaboration between education organisations like Ark, Dignitas and PEAS to learn from each others' strengths and expertise. We hope the Ark teachers will provide fresh perspectives to the host organisations, and that the on-ground experience gained in East African schools will be a tremendous professional development opportunity for the Fellows. Our best wishes to the four Fellows!”