Schools2030 endeavours to discover “what works” to improve holistic learning outcomes, to catalyse locally rooted education solutions that can inform systems-level educational change.

AKDN / Christopher Wilton-Steer

The partnership comes at a critical moment in history for the world’s education systems due to COVID-19. With more than 160 countries having implemented nationwide school closures – impacting more than 1.5 billion school‐aged children – the need for reimagining the future of learning could not be more important for frontline teachers, school leaders and students themselves.

According to Amy Jo Dowd, Head of Evidence at the LEGO Foundation, “This is a critical moment to reform our education systems. We have a responsibility to build a future in which all children can flourish and where they can engage in meaningful learning experiences that foster traditional academic skills alongside cognitive, creative, social, emotional and physical skills. This exciting partnership with Aga Khan Foundation and Schools2030 sets out to build the evidence needed for education systems to integrate learning through play into their practices and equip today’s children to navigate the world of tomorrow.”

Schools2030 is a 10-year participatory action research and learning improvement programme that partners with 1,000 government schools across 10 countries. The programme is supported by a coalition of nine founding philanthropic donors, including AKF and the LEGO Foundation. This historic coalition shares a common interest in supporting schools, teachers and learners to discover “what works” to improve holistic learning outcomes, to catalyse locally-rooted education solutions that can inform systems-level educational change.

Drawing on these shared values, the Aga Khan Foundation is excited to operationalise the LEGO Foundation’s visionary “learning through play” approach through the Schools2030 programme at scale. The theory underpinning learning through play suggests that a child who is enjoying a meaningful activity, collaborating with others, actively engaged and experiencing some sort of agency in the process will likely become more motivated, and thus learn more than a child who is tasked with passively learning by rote memorisation or unenjoyable experiences. This new partnership seeks to build the evidence between quality learning through play and the progression of holistic learning outcomes of young children.