On October 3, 2019, the Syed Ahsan Ali and Syed Maratib Ali School of Education (SOE) at LUMS invited the Beaconhouse Group to discuss the ideas of educational innovation that are being implemented by the organisation. The presentation was part of the SOE Models of Educational Innovation Series, where practitioners are invited to present interesting and innovative solutions to problems of access and quality in education. This interactive forum provides students with a chance to critically reflect on the organisation’s theory of action/change, the scale and sustainability of the model, as well as its larger policy implications.
The event also provided a platform for MPhil Educational Leadership and Management (ELM) students to pick valuable practices from prestigious institutions like Beaconhouse and see how these can be implemented in public sector schools. The session was conducted by Dr. Lawrence Burke, Chief Education Advisor Beaconhouse Group. Dr. Burke has also served as the Director of Education for the Beaconhouse School system from 2014 to 2017, and has held posts of responsibility and senior leadership roles in education in Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Argentina, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, India and Fiji.
Beaconhouse has independent divisions across multiple regions, including the UK, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Oman, UAE, Pakistan and Belgium. It caters to the education and training needs of a large and diverse group of individuals of varying ages, socioeconomic backgrounds and nationalities, with activities extending beyond education.
Dr. Burke traced the history of Beaconhouse, highlighting how they have various education institutes ranging from Gymboree to TNS to Concordia Colleges, catering for students of every age. He also talked about The Educators, which provides low cost education. He traced the history of the system from the Caldwell Report in 1995 to the new organisational design in 2018, highlighting continuous innovation. The main emphasis of these innovations involve fostering professional and personal growth by developing a curriculum reflecting digital learning and teaching which leads to the holistic development of a student.
The event concluded with a Questions and Answers session where the MPhil students shared their opinions and perceptions regarding the future of the Beaconhouse School System. They also exchanged suggestions and insights on possible improvements to Pakistan’s education sector, and how Beaconhouse, as an entity, can support it.
