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An Affordable, Independent South African School Network Driving Change in a Challenging Educational System

Wed, April 17, 8:00 to 9:30am, Hyatt Regency, Floor: Bay (Level 1), Bayview B

Proposal

In January of 2017, the Economist publish an article titled, "South Africa Has One of the World’s Worst Education Systems." Even more shocking, the article went on to highlight that, "South Africa has the most unequal school system in the world...The gap in test scores between the top 20% of schools and the rest is wider than in almost every other country." SPARK Schools (SPARK) is working to change that. SPARK is a network of affordable, independent schools offering high quality, globally-competitive education to children and families in South Africa. At 21 schools serving nearly 11 000 families, SPARK is disrupting the state of education in the country. "SPARK believes that high quality, affordable education has the potential to change the South African nation for the better" (SPARK CEO Stacey Brewer). As a non-state operator, SPARK is disrupting education through social responsibility: (1) SPARK's high quality low cost model challenges the status quo of education in South Africa. (2) Every school in the network serves as an integral part of the community in which it is built. SPARK responds to the needs of the community. (3) SPARK works closely with other schools and education organisations to share best practices and resources supporting the growth of education throughout South Africa. (4) SPARK's educational outcomes for children in South African span beyond academics into social and emotional development, resulting in global citizens who take ownership of contributing to the society around them. This presentation will share how SPARK leverages its impact to drive social change, and the successes and challenges SPARK experiences in doing so.

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