Page 58 - Education World November 2022

People

Adventurous education innovator advice to schools around the world.
Direct talk. “During my long and
varied career in private schools in
Europe and Asia, I have become
increasingly aware of the vital impor-
tance of teachers transforming into
lead learners in their classrooms. The
mission to introduce and propagate
this pedagogy to the teachers and
educators community in India which
hosts the world’s largest number of
children, drew me to Bengaluru and
the Legacy School, whose values and
mission are congruent with mine.
During my tenure here, I intend to
invest my learning and experience
to develop a professional develop-
ment model which will be globally
accepted,” says Costain.
Legacy School, Bengaluru’s brain
gain may well prove to be India’s as
Costain: teaching transformation mission well.
Dilip Thakore (Bengaluru)
AMES COSTAIN is the newly overseas assignment with the Brit-
appointed Head of School at ish School, Nepal where he taught
Jthe Legacy School (estb.1984), science and served as head of Unputdownable
Bengaluru, ranked among India’s higher secondary school. In 2011, he
Top 10 international day schools, returned to the UK to pursue a Mas- edupreneur
and #1 in Karnataka and Bengaluru ter’s degree in education leadership
in the latest EW India School Rank- at the University College of London JAY GUPTA is founder-CEO
ings 2022-23. Affiliated with the where he researched K-12 education of S.K. Educations Pvt. Ltd,
UK-based Cambridge International models and systems worldwide. Aa Delhi-based company that
and Geneva-based International Bac- Unsurprisingly, given his deep owns the Bachpan Play School and
calaureate (IB) exam boards, Legacy study of best schools and education Academic Heights Public Schools
School has 860 students mentored systems, Costain received a flood of (AHPS) brands. Over the past 20
by 100 teachers on its muster rolls. offers from private schools around years since Gupta ventured into K-12
Newspeg. Costain was appointed the world, immediately after post- education, the number of Bachpan
headmaster at Legacy in June this graduation. In 2012 he accepted an and AHPS franchisee schools has
year. appointment as headmaster of senior multiplied to 1,200 with an aggre-
History. An alumnus of UK’s Nor- school at the Oakley College, Canary gate enrolment of 100,000 students
thumbria and Exeter universities, Islands, Spain. Three years later, he mentored by 7,500 teachers.
Costain began his career in 1990 as moved to St. George International, An indefatigable educator, despite
a leisure industry consultant and Koln (Germany) comprising four being wheelchair-bound after he
subsequently in an offshore financial English-medium schools with an ag- was stricken by polio when he was
company. Two years later, he signed gregate enrolment of 2,500 students. seven months old, Gupta has also
up with the Longridge Tower School, After a two-year stint (2015-17), co-founded the Sonepat-based
Scotland as games master and craving further “academic adventure Rishihood University (estb.2020)
physics teacher (1993-96). This was and experience,” Costain signed up and Prismart Gyan Era Learning
followed by a decade-long stint at the to head the British International Solutions Pvt. Ltd (2013), a company
privately promoted Lord Wand- School, Ukraine (2017-19). offering e-learning solutions to K-12
sworth College, Hampshire, where In 2019, this peripatetic primary- schools, and registered the Hum
he served in multiple roles and was secondary education leader returned Honge Kamyab Foundation (2018)
promoted to head of higher second- to the UK and started Ethos Educa- to promote and provide special
ary school. tion, an international consultancy needs children and youth access to
In 2006, he took on his first providing institutional improvement academic and sports education.

58 EDUCATIONWORLD NOVEMBER 2022