Pune: Having developed an expansive footprint of working with leading educational institutions across India, Fatema Agarkar – an accomplished educationist and founder of Agarkar Centre of Excellence (ACE) is now training her sights on the Middle East, by designing specialised courses for schools and teachers in the UAE. Her framework brings together global best practices and shapes them into implementable strategies that are, at once, innovative, personalised, time-tested and aligned with the evolving needs of the dynamic professional landscape.
The curriculum will be especially designed by Team ACE following rigorous audits that measure the performance of the institution against objective standards including Curriculum Planning and Implementation, Assessment Standards, Achievement of Learning Outcomes, Classroom Management and Resource Management, among others. These audits are also customised in keeping with the specific needs of the school, with attention paid to both the institution’s strengths and challenges. This is complemented by a non-academic audit that involves spending time with the admin team members, reviewing available admin and marketing literature, and sharing corrective measures and strategies. Team ACE’s 360-degree approach enables holistic gap analysis and enables Fatema and her panel of experts to make nuanced and thorough recommendations.
Another key focus area is teacher skilling, which involves Team ACE collaborating with teachers to help them implement national and international best practices. This programme is designed with the longer-term objectives of creating life-long learners and equipping students with a versatile skillset that serves them far beyond the classroom. To ensure seamless integration, the team will put together a curated toolbox, with a hand-holding option offered for teachers once they have implemented the learnings from the workshop.
“Over two decades of my work with institutions and educators across India, I’ve identified the criticality of intertwining modern methods of learning and teaching, as well as customising education as per the intellectual needs of each student. At the same time, my endeavour has always been to bring a variety of ‘real life’ experiences to children through in-school teaching-learning strategies and curriculum, thus creating life-ready citizens by focusing on core life skills and values. I hope to bring ACE’s unique brand of learning and teaching to the UAE, and I’m very excited about the potential for transformation that this geography holds for us,” said Fatema.
To date, ACE has collaborated with several leading and dynamic educational institutions, including L’Ecole Montessori International (Andheri), Nahar International School (Mumbai), Sarvanksh Vidya Mandir (Ratnagiri), The Gera School (Goa), DY Patil University, Holy Child School (Panchkula) and Sundarjis Global Academia (Pune), among several others. Team ACE is eagerly anticipating the next chapter of their journey in the Middle East and is focused on creating a meaningful impact through their presence and interventions.
