Promoting excellence in teaching, both on campus and more widely, is a fundamental goal of the Aga Khan Academies.
The Academies aim to identify and develop teachers of the highest quality who are committed to both the all-round development of young people and their own professional excellence. Of the over 450 employees across the Academies, most are local to their countries. Each Academy supports excellence by modelling best practices in teaching and learning within its classes and by providing high quality development opportunities for all Academy teachers. Faculty members have opportunities to work collaboratively with experienced Aga Khan Schools colleagues from around the globe and to teach abroad within the Aga Khan Academies network.
AKDN / Lucas Cuervo Moura
Each Academy features a Professional Development Centre (PDC). These aim to strengthen the profession of teaching by providing substantial professional learning opportunities to teachers and school administrators from the Academy and other Aga Khan Schools, as well as local government and other not-for-profit schools.
The PDCs consult with teachers, school leaders, local and international higher education institutions, and government education bodies to develop programmes in line national needs. They also collaborate with other AKDN agencies such as the Aga Khan University and the Aga Khan Foundation.
PDC programmes build competence through enhancing teachers’ subject knowledge and their classroom practices. They cover interactive learning technique, student-centred teaching methods and leadership development. Each PDC also leads an 18-month Teacher Preparation Programme that develops young local graduates as International Baccalaureate (IB) educators, with many joining the Academy community after the programme. The Academies are the only IB-authorised secondary education provider offering this certification. The programmes provide participants with an in-service learning experience where theory and practice complement one another.
As centres of excellence that implement best practices in education and teaching, the Aga Khan Academies are valuable resources for education systems in their regions.