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| Introduction
to the Academies |
The Aga Khan's
Vision |
Introduction to the Aga Khan
Academies
The first of a planned network of Aga Khan Academies dedicated
to expanding access to education of an international standard
of excellence in Asia and Africa was inaugurated in Mombasa,
Kenya, in 2003.
The network of Academies will eventually feature a curriculum
based on the framework of the International Baccalaureate
(IB). At the centre of this approach is a broad education
in the humanities from pre-primary years through to higher
secondary. The Academies will also feature a robust system
of international student and teacher exchanges between
Academies in different countries as well as with allied
schools, including Phillips Academy in the United States
and the Schule Schloss Salem in Germany. Proficiency in
at least two languages, with English as the medium of
instruction and progressive mastery of information technologies
will also be hallmarks of the programmes. To ensure access
regardless of socio-economic status or other limiting
factors, admission to the Academy is merit-based and means-blind.
“An education must equip students with
the tools that enable them to adapt and thrive,
in a world characterised by change,” His
Highness the Aga Khan has said. “In such
an environment, technical proficiency is not
enough. Education that prepares children for
life must go beyond fundamental skills to stimulate
creativity, intellectual curiosity and honest
inquiry. Advancement and development, both personal
and societal, are dependant on these elements.
Innovation and progress arise from the ability
to approach a challenge in a new way and offer
a solution.”
In addition to Mombasa, schools are planned
for Nairobi in Kenya, as well as Dar es Salaam
in Tanzania, Kampala in Uganda, Kinshasa in
the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Antananarivo
in Madagascar, Maputo in Mozambique, Dhaka in
Bangladesh, Mumbai and Hyderabad in India, Karachi
in Pakistan, Kabul in Afghanistan, Osh in the
Kyrgyz Republic, Khorog and Dushanbe in Tajikistan,
Damascus and Salamieh in Syria and Bamako in
Mali.
The Academies will all feature residential campuses
designed by renowned architects. They will have
well-equipped laboratories for general science,
physics, biology, chemistry, home science and
computers, art and music rooms, a library and
resource centre, a religion and culture room,
a counselling facility, a design and technology
workshop, student and teacher lounges, a theatre,
a multipurpose hall and a cafeteria and dining
area. Facilities for sports will include swimming
pools, fields for athletics such as soccer,
hockey and athletics. A gymnasium will typically
house facilities for a variety of sports such
as basketball, badminton, volleyball, squash
and gymnastics. Other facilities might include
tennis courts, a cricket pitch or an ice-skating
rink, where appropriate.
Each Academy will incorporate a Professional
Development Centre for teachers that focuses
on professional development for teachers and
curricular innovation at all affiliated institutions.
Each Centre will function not only for the benefit
of the Academy but extend modern teaching and
learning methods to government and private schools
locally and regionally.
These efforts are underpinned by the International
Academic Partnership, which brings together
the worldwide resources of the Aga Khan Education
Services, Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts,
USA, Aga Khan University’s Institute for
Educational Development (AKU-IED) in Karachi,
Pakistan and the Schule Schloss Salem, in Salem,
Germany. Since its founding in 1993, the IAP
has linked over 400 schools in Bangladesh, India,
Kenya, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Uganda
and the United States.
Click here to download the Aga
Khan Academy International brochure (pdf
- 2m) or visit the Aga
Khan Academy, Mombasa website. |
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