Позитивные изменения. Образование. Школа будущего (Тематический выпуск, 2022)/Positive changes. Education. The school of the future (Special issue, 2

An analysis of this model in the domain of characteristics of the School of the Future highlighted in our study[20] also points to some limitations. First, the lack of opportunity to individualize the curriculum. In the study we came across the fact that even if the contract with the educational organization working under the International Baccalaureate program specifies the development of an individual route for the student, the implementation of this clause may be reduced in practice, for example, to the division of groups according to knowledge of the English language and only be limited to this. It is impossible not to mention the criterion of selectivity of such schools — education under the International Baccalaureate program in the vast majority of cases has a high cost, because it involves a significant part of the cost of paying for the «franchise» itself, which also depends on the dollar and European currency exchange rates, which the school must pay on top of other, traditional costs of wages, rent, etc. Some schools, like Letovo, offer scholarships that can cover up to 100 percent of tuition, but at Letovo, selection is based on other criteria (such as exceptional academic knowledge).

The most popular franchise option is the International Baccalaureate (IB) program. Many private schools and impact-investment projects follow the path of buying a foreign franchise.

Generally speaking, based on current market offers, when using the option of buying an educational franchise, we are talking about a certain «average» and easy-to-replicate version of the educational model. As one of the participants in our study, the creator of a network of schools in Moscow, said, "We want to build VkusVill in school education." At the same time, as other experts note, it is difficult to talk about the innovation of the proposed educational approach and its flexibility to changing conditions, the needs of students, the needs of the area, etc. In other words, if our goal is to make non-fundamental but large-scale changes (simultaneous and easy launch in multiple areas), then a franchise might be a good option. But if the decision is made to build the School of the Future, even if only in a few areas, we should definitely consider other options.

When choosing the option of the «proprietary» educational model, it is worth using an evidence-based approach and guarantee of objectivity in the evaluation of the proposed approach and its results.

2. SELECTING A PARTICULAR TEAM/METHOD

Another option could be the selection of a particular team or educational (often "proprietary") program. In the case of proprietary programs, it is worth immediately noting the importance of the possibility of disengaging an educational method/ approach from its creator, in case the investor's goals go beyond opening one school. Just like the unique school Apelsin that cannot, apparently, «replicate» and go outside St. Petersburg without its creator Dima Zitzer. Just like, basically, the fact that no new schools based on the legendary Summerhill School model have emerged in England.

Another difficulty in choosing a "proprietary approach" or working with a particular team that has a ready-made educational program may be the lack of evidence/guarantee of the claimed results, on the one hand, and their subjective reevaluation by the author, on the other. In our study, we encountered several cases in which the authors of their own educational methods, extremely passionate about their approach, found it difficult to describe the results of using these methods and, even more so, to rely on an evidence-based approach. Here we may be talking about venture capital investments, although in the case of education, it seems that the evidence-based approach is still preferable. The option that the experiment «failed» means several dozen or even hundreds of children who were taught "wrong things" in a “wrong way."

Thus, in addition to meeting the characteristics of the School of the Future identified in our study (lack of selectivity, the possibility of individualization of the curriculum, etc.), when choosing the option of the “proprietary" educational model, it is worth using an evidence-based approach and guarantee of objectivity in the evaluation of the proposed approach and its results.

3. CREATING A PROJECT TEAM TO OPEN A SCHOOL