One of the great African presidents, Julius Nyerere, once said that the point of education was to turn creatures of destiny into creators of destiny. As the Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid at the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa, I have passionately led a Talent Identification Programme for nearly ten years now. The programme identifies “creators of destiny”, students in Year 6 in Kenyan government schools, in deprived socio-economic and educational areas of Kenya, who are academically able and show leadership potential. This May, seven of these students have fulfilled part of their destiny, in graduating from the IB Diploma Programme. Six of these seven students have secured a path to their next destination in life, by gaining access to some of the best universities in the world, on full scholarships. The Academy has guided and nurtured the students to have the confidence to become “creators of destiny”. The vision of His Highness the Aga Khan is that these students, as well as other members of the 2018 graduating class, will go out and be creators of change in their own communities.

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As a teacher, the idea of educating a child for profit has always repelled me. The Academy’s inclusive culture was one of the factors that appealed to me when I first applied for the post at the school, as was the opportunity to lead the Talent Identification Programme. (Coming from a very working class background myself, I know that my parents would never have afforded me the opportunity to gain access to a secondary or higher education, without the assistance of the state system in the United Kingdom). From the outset, I can honestly say that not all teachers were supportive of bringing these students into the school’s residential programme. I did have a picture in my mind of how successful this could be from my work at previous schools, but I must admit, I did have sleepless nights about the scale, severity and scope of it all. 

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The assessment process in identifying these students has evolved and refined over the years. One very important aspect of innate leadership that is assessed is that of inferential thinking, the ability to make connections across different areas of knowledge. From this graduating cohort, I always remember one of the students exhibited exceptional ability in this area. Japheth Otieno, at the age of 11 then, referred to the inter-relation between governments causing difficulties in a problem solving activity when he mentioned, “Imagine that a Country A is helping Kenya with aid and money. Imagine that another Country B is an enemy of Kenya. Conflict may arise between Countries A and B, as there is suspicion over the reasons for this assistance to Kenya.” In the selection interviews, we look for students who are likely to question their world, have a keen sense of justice and morality, have good verbal communication skills and a sense of extra-curricular involvement. Japheth impressed me with his references to whether there was a multi-level universe or not and his passion for his kitchen garden, where he had initiated some preventative measures for protecting his plants. Japheth has now secured a place with the King-Morgridge Scholarship at the University of Wisconsin Madison in the United States.

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I am delighted that this cohort sees the first student from the Ganze area, William Baya, graduating. I remember meeting William for the first time in 2011. At that time, the Kilifi County Governor reported widespread hunger in some parts of the county, especially for families living in the semi-arid areas. Learning in hundreds of primary schools in hunger-stricken parts of the country had been paralysed as the government dispatched emergency relief supplies. It was against this backdrop that we first met William, then a student at Vitengeni Primary School. William had already showed some leadership traits with him being involved as a scout commander and a school prefect. His school felt that he was a responsible and determined pupil. He mentioned about working hard in life so that he could target his goals – his motto at that time was “front ever, back never”. The self-drive William displays from adhering to this motto has guided him through the six years at the school and given him a full scholarship to attend Washington and Lee University in the United States. On learning of this, his father beaming with great pride said, “The Aga Khan Academy Mombasa has transformed my boy and that I am looking forward to him to come back and work for the community to repay the Aga Khan's contribution.”

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One unique aspect of the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa, is its double heritage of world-mindedness and its proud East African identity. Since the inception of the school in 2003, Swahili has been compulsory for all students up to 14 years of age. His Highness recognised the need for young leaders to be able to communicate in their national language with other members of their community. (It is interesting to note that other non-national schools have only recently introduced Swahili into the curriculum for all students after a recent government directive). The Academy is at the forefront of academic thinking and is always forward thinking. 

The development of the students in the school to “creators of destiny” is by no means left to chance. From this double heritage foundation, important concepts such as those of meritocracy, pluralism, ethics and other virtues and attributes that make up the students’ learner profile, have been integrated into all aspects of the curriculum. The students are allowed to run the risk, among other things, of failure because the privation of not succeeding can be an excellent teacher. Students are also given responsibility so that they can experience and learn from taking leadership roles. This is encouraged in every student. The students take charge in aspects of enrichment, academics and service, so that they are held accountable and answerable for their decisions, both when they get it right and when they fail.

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Prudence Hainga after graduating this year will join the University of Edinburgh to study Political Science. Prudence reflected on what this scholarship meant to her and her community. “I want to realise my childhood dream of fighting injustice and corruption in Kenya. Having experienced and witnessed different levels of inequality in my country, I want to delve into a career path that will help me change what has become a detrimental routine in my country. The Kenyan political system is majorly defined by tribalism and inequality. Therefore, learning how political systems function and what others have done to ensure sustainable development as well as spread out opportunities for their citizens, will help me to decipher ways in which I could impact change in my country’s political system and rid Kenya of tribalism and greed. I am motivated to use my knowledge as a weapon against discrimination and inequality and work for a better Kenya – a Kenya that feels like home to all.”

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These young men and women who have benefited from this progamme, did not have a great deal when they first came to the Academy, and their future was continually uncertain, with parents struggling to secure jobs, keep food on the table as well as educating their children. To see them grow and nurture and fulfil what was expected of them at this moment in time brings a lot of satisfaction. I have taught in many schools throughout the world, but there is something unique and special about this graduating class and other students at the school. The school recently had a visit from the representative from the International Baccalaureate Organization. On commenting on the school the one thing that stood out in my mind was his reference to the children here. He simply said that the children were “staggering”. These staggering students are helping to fulfil our mission for the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa that fits with building a better Kenya.

By Paul Davis

Anahita Aman is in her seventh year at the Aga Khan Academy in Hyderabad. Having started there in grade 5, she is now a grade 11 student in the Diploma Programme. She is wise beyond her years and yet has a youthfulness that is contagious. She is full of hopes and dreams and strives to get the most out of her days at the Academy so that she can ultimately give back to the community and society at large.

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For Anahita, the strongest part of the Academy is its holistic approach to student development.  “They don’t just focus on the academics but also on sports, music and art – so in that way it’s a really holistic approach to learning, and it’s helped me develop into a multidimensional and multifaceted person,” Anahita says. This holistic approach means that she gets the freedom to explore her passions, and that excites her. She loves music – whether it be singing, playing the keyboard and tabla, or learning Indian dance. She is also a self-proclaimed feminist who is passionate about gender-based violence, gender equality and education for girls. She recently had the chance to fuse these two passions as part of a personal project requirement at school. She wrote, composed, and performed her own songs with powerful messages on these topics.

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This year, Anahita made a shift to the residential programme and says that it has been a great learning experience – one that has forced her to come out of her shell. She has learned how to better manage herself and her time, and she has become more independent and more social. “I learned how to adapt to my surroundings, how to adjust with other people and to make things work.” But Anahita feels that she has grown in other ways also, and this stems again from the holistic approach of the Academies. 

“Service and action is mandatory as a part of the curriculum…they emphasise the need for community awareness, for concern about society, and they emphasise the need to give back and to make positive and effective contributions to society.” For the service and action component of the Academy’s programme, Anahita was part of fundraising teams that raised money for nearby government schools to install water filtration systems and purchase sports equipment, among other things. “We don’t look at it as an obligation or a compulsion but we do it out of passion, and the Academy gives us that passion, that feeling or need to give back to society,” Anahita says. She is proud of her service accomplishment along with many others that the Academy has also helped her to achieve. 

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She is a member of the journalism club and has made great strides in her writing skills, including how to better articulate her thoughts. She has taken part in a national sports tournament where she represented her school in football and track and field, having won a silver in high jump. And she has been part of the Model United Nations where she not only got a real sense of how the world works, including how people live and what the prevalent issues are, but also developed skills in public speaking, problem solving and knowledge application. Anahita says, “The Academy helps us apply this knowledge to real-life situations.”

The holistic approach to learning and development that the Academy takes is something that Anahita believes makes it unique. But there are other things too. For one, there is no spoon-feeding. Instead, you’re taught how to learn and how to learn on your own – the approach is not one of rote learning but rather application of real-life situations. She’s also really happy that the Academy creates a safe space. “We have that sense of comfort that there’s no pressure of performing and we have the space to experiment with things. We don’t feel pressure at any point, we don’t feel stressed, and we don’t look at exams as huge challenges but as small barriers that we can overcome.” 

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Anahita also believes that the Academy’s mission and vision are both important and inspiring. In fact, it was the mission that attracted her parents to send her there. “It teaches us to be culturally rooted and diverse. It teaches us how to accept our differences and so we have this feeling of community,” says Anahita. The Academy also aligns within the framework of the International Baccalaureate (IB) programmes. As such, the attributes of its learner profile are very powerful in instilling life values. All of this is what she believes make it distinct from many other schools.

Anahita credits the Academy for helping her become less shy and less self-conscious. She says, “I feel like I have the comfort to be who I am and to express myself freely. I feel acknowledged and I feel I’m being appreciated for who I am.” When asked if there was any particular person at the Academy that played a big part in this, or whether there was someone she really looks up to, she says that she doesn’t account only one person as a role model but instead looks to the many amazing people she has met along the way for their different but equally important attributes. “I may like someone’s enthusiasm, someone’s hard work and dedication, the way they work with people, the way they bring people together,” Anahita says. “I like to get inspired by these characteristics, by these attributes from different people and imbibe them into myself to be the best person I can be.”

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Anahita’s future looks bright. While she is still unsure of what exactly she wants to do, she has learned how to articulate her passion, and that in itself has given her a sense of determination. She hopes to be able to combine her interests in music and literature with humanities and gender studies. She imagines perhaps becoming a poet or musician and incorporating important messages into her work. “I think the Academy is giving me the space and the platform to explore what I’m actually interested in,” Anahita says, “and I think that will lead me to my ultimate ambition.”

By Ceisin Popat