EduSpots

We are very excited to share that EduSpots has been selected for the Dovetail Impact Foundation's Accelerator Portfolio! 💥 The Dovetail Impact Foundation has selected EduSpots as one of 30 African-based nonprofit organisations with potential for scale, to offer a programme of workshops and one-one coaching across communications, finance, fundraising, M&E and strategy. They have also supported EduSpots with a significant unrestricted grant to support our organisational development. 💫 The Dovetail Impact Foundation invests time, treasure, and talent in organizations that promote human flourishing. The goal of the Impact Accelerator Portfolio is 'to partner with high-potential organizations through unrestricted grants and support beyond the grant – to grow their impact, focus their programs, hone their message, and expand their funding base.' The EduSpots team are excited to already be working with a coach from Mighty Ally, and joining a series of sessions and peer group meetings with insights into our marketing and strategic communications already advancing our work. 🙏 A huge thank you to the Dovetail Impact Foundation for believing in EduSpots and our model for community-driven change! 🔥 We look forward to working with you in the months and years ahead and showing you some remarkable change resulting from your support! #eduspots #accelerator #ourcollectivefuture

Some reflections on how active citizenship education is driven through EduSpots' network of 50 community-led 'Spots'. Time for an updated article on this, taking into account our learner profile and pedagogical approach moving forwards .... #globalcitizenship #globalcitizens #ourcollectivefuture

😊 I’m very excited to share that EduSpots has been selected for the Dovetail Impact Foundation's Accelerator Portfolio! For anyone else with an idea that they have convincing evidence could reach a wider of impact, my advice is just to keep going - keep improving your model, responding to feedback, and slowly building your staff team, systems and finances. 💥 The Dovetail Impact Foundation has selected 30 African-based nonprofit organisations with potential for scale to offer a programme of workshops and one-one coaching across communications, finance, fundraising, M&E and strategy. They have also supported EduSpots with a significant unrestricted grant to support our organisational development. 💫 The Dovetail Impact Foundation invests time, treasure, and talent in organizations that promote human flourishing. The goal of the Impact Accelerator Portfolio is 'to partner with high-potential organizations through unrestricted grants and support beyond the grant – to grow their impact, focus their programs, hone their message, and expand their funding base.' The EduSpots team are excited to already be working with a coach from Mighty Ally, and joining a series of sessions and peer group meetings with insights into our marketing and strategic communications already advancing our work. 🙏 A huge thank you to the Dovetail Impact Foundation for believing in EduSpots and our model for community-driven change! 🔥 We look forward to working with you in the months and years ahead and showing you some remarkable change resulting from your support! #celebration #accelerator #ourcollectivefuture

In March, EduSpots launched its new Catalyse Leadership Programme, enabling 30 Catalysts to advance their leadership, entrepreneurship and wider professional skills. This two year programme is fully funded by the EA Foundation The programme kicked off with a five day residential training Academy where Catalysts participated in collaborative workshops with expert practitioners equipping them to drive further sustainable impact in their communities. As part of the programme, Catalysts applied to receive flexible grant funding, enabling them to execute 'Catalyse Projects' at their Spots. Currently, these 30 Catalysts are driving change across 30 communities through their impactful Catalyse Projects. These projects are tailored to meet the unique strengths or needs of each community, aiming to create sustainable improvements in education, digital literacy, and overall community development. #PressPlay to hear some of the Catalysts speak about their projects You can read more about the progress of these projects here: https://lnkd.in/desgeUGn #eduspots #project #Catalyst #changemaker #ourcollectivefuture

Join us in this EduSpots Ignite Talk to discuss strategies to promote multilingual education and explore the power of literacy in fostering a more interconnected and peaceful world. Our amazing guest speaker, Ndidi Chiazor-Enenmor is an award winning multi-talented author and advocate for education, children’s rights, and cultural awareness. She has written extensively for children, producing a range of books which includes picture books, early chapter books, and teen fiction. As a culture enthusiast, she is passionate about preserving local languages, culture, and the environment. She explores these themes in her books and champions them through workshops and events. Don't miss this opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals and discuss strategies that will be helpful for learners at home, schools and communities. This event is FREE to attend but you'll have to register to save your seat. Date - Monday, 9th September 2024 Time - 5pm GMT (6PM WAT) Platform - Zoom Register via Eventbrite: https://lnkd.in/djSu8XT5 #InternationalLiteracyDay #MultilingualEducation #ZoomEvent #eduspots #webinar #literacy #literacyforall

Join us to discuss strategies to promote multilingual education and explore the power of literacy in fostering a more interconnected and peaceful. Our amazing guest speaker, Ndidi Chiazor-Enenmor is an award winning multi-talented author and advocate for education, children’s rights, and cultural awareness. She has written extensively for children, producing a range of books which includes picture books, early chapter books, and teen fiction. As a culture enthusiast, she is passionate about preserving local languages, culture, and the environment. She explores these themes in her books and champions them through workshops and events. Don't miss this opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals and discuss strategies that will be helpful for learners at home, schools and communities. This event is FREE to attend but you'll have to register to save your seat. Date - Monday, 9th September 2024 Time - 5pm GMT (6PM WAT) Platform - Zoom Register via Eventbrite: https://lnkd.in/djSu8XT5 #InternationalLiteracyDay #MultilingualEducation #ZoomEvent #eduspots #webinar #literacy #literacyforall

💥 Under EduSpots' model of change, it currently costs just £15 / 308 cedis to enable ONE learner to access a Spot for a WHOLE YEAR! That's the cost of a 🍕 to provide significant educational opportunities and community engagement.... All whilst enhancing the skills of a network of over 300 voluntary community-based Catalysts and advancing play-based and practical pedagogy in schools and beyond! This remarkable statistic has been calculated by dividing our entire annual income last year by the number of estimated learners using the Spots. No hidden costs! ❌ 📍And what can a learner access in an average Spot (with some variability due to stage of Spot)? 1. Books, learning resources & digital devices. 📚 2. A safe space to study with electricity (with 12 Spots using solar power). 💡 3. Mentorship and support from a team of local Catalysts. 👩🏿🏫 4. Membership of a range of learning clubs (in some Spots, across early years, creative literacy, STEM & sustainability education and gender equity) 5. Involvement in Keeping Spots Safe education and activities including online safety. 🔥 And what are the outcomes we are observing upon learners? 1. An increase of 8.2% in 'reading for pleasure' across EduLit club members in 9 months in 2023, using Impact Ed's evaluative system. 2. Increase engagement in education with EcoSTEM club members increasing advancing in ImpactEd's 'engagement in education' measure by 5.4% in 2023. 3. Improved literacy scores (e.g. 71% of EduKidz members increasing their ASER testing level within a 9 month period in 2023) 4. Many examples of learners becoming the future Catalysts of change in their Spots and wider communities! 📧 Want to learn more about our work, and the ever-evolving Catalyst-driven EduSpots model? Sign-up to our newsletter here: https://lnkd.in/erQJq-F7 #education #community #ourcollectivefuture

This year, we've welcomed 11 new Spots into the EduSpots network! 🎉This graphic shows EduSpots' reach so far! 🎯 Our core aim is to work towards 50 Spots in Ghana that are consistently running our programmes and systems in line with our Dream Spot Model by the end of 2025, reaching 15,000 learners through the efforts of over 400 community-based Catalysts. Under our model, it costs just £15/learner a year to access a Spot with its clubs & resources, all whilst building a skilled & confident network of Catalysts! You may wonder why our work is stretched across 12 regions of Ghana, making monitoring and Spot visits a little tricky, especially as we typically work in underserved, hard-to-reach communities, too! Here are the reasons behind the strategy: 1. It's intrinsic to the effectiveness of our model that communities apply to be part of our network, rather than our team reaching out to specific communities. This generates a strong sense of community leadership from the start. 2. The Catalysts identify the cross-cultural learning across the regions of Ghana as a huge benefit and learning opportunity associated with being part of EduSpots. 🎇 Congratulations once again to all new Spots, and to all of the remarkable Catalysts in our network who have collaborated to make our network what it is today! #network #expansion #ourcollectivefuture #eduspots

Within the EduSpots network, learners and Catalysts have benefited from access to a range of digital tools used to support teaching and learning. In the article below, Catalysts shared their thoughts on the impact of digital tools within their respective Spots following the distribution of two tablets and a Wi-Fi kit to all 30 communities participating in the Catalyse Leadership Programme. Here is the link to read the full article, including how you can support EduSpots in acquiring further digital devices https://lnkd.in/dNH_meFw #eduspots #ourcollectivefuture #digitilisation #digitaltools #edtech

💡 How can we make the best decisions when recruiting new team members? As we move through a season of recruitment in EduSpots, a few reflections on how we make difficult decisions about who is the best fit for the team, looking at lots of super candidates! 1. We reflect as a team again on the specific core deliverables and skills needed in the role, and who meets these best looking carefully at tasks, CVs, interview responses and session delivery. We try to avoid getting derailed by meeting lots of great people we love along the way, which can be very difficult! 2. Where core skills or experience needed for the role may be lacking despite an overall fit, we consider whether there is relevant experience, and how quickly a person may learn, looking at how they answer challenging questions or research new topics. 3. We look at how well a person is able to take direction and ask for clarification when needed, whether through tasks, or questions, as this will be key to working smoothly together - responding to, and giving feedback, is key. 4. We consider how much we think they'd enjoy working in the organisation! EduSpots’ environment may not be for everyone, and we look for people who may actively thrive off creativity, innovation and a fast-paced environment and naturally work in an 'EduSpotty' way - i.e. collaborative, creative, caring and impact-driven. 5. We look at how a person's leadership capacity may grow through being part of our staff team, considering growth through staff roles as a core part of our organisational impact. 💭 Of course, sometimes, we have to just listen to our instincts about the best fit for the role... logic may not give us all the answers! 🙏 Thank you to everyone who has engaged with this recruitment cycle, and for your patience in the team getting back to you. The team have enjoyed meeting so many passionate educators and development enthusiasts! #recruitment #reflection #decisionmaking 📸 Our awesome Ghana-based staff & peer mentor team at our July training residential!