The Ark Education NZ

In the beginning

The realization of the vulnerability of being a government employee motivated three out-of-work teachers to come up with a concept that would be of service to the community in all aspects of education, as well as provide them with an income. We also have always felt that the present model does not work for many of our students and a strong motivation for us is to shift paradigms from the present industrial/ business model of education to one that is more organic and humane.

What we want to do

The Ark Education NZ is a platform to which anyone in New Zealand with an educational need will be able to come and have that need met. We aim to become a one-stop-shop when it comes to educational services and products in New Zealand. Educators and educational providers pay an affordable subscription fee to add their profile/s to our directories and upload resources for sale. We do not discriminate in any way and we encourage as much diversity as possible in the way of educators and education services for any age: from formal schooling and tutoring, to courses on gardening and wellbeing, to special educational services; every iteration of education that you can imagine. Anything related to education in all its forms is welcome. This is so we can provide as much choice and as many options as is possible, thus empowering the users.

Our biggest priority is to provide a place where a community of learners and educators are able to meet to discuss all things education in a safe, inclusive, as well as challenging space. We plan to do this by developing discussion groups, by working with agencies to promote and develop innovative educational ideas, and supporting all to shift paradigms towards a system that promotes creativity, humanity and the betterment of life on this Earth. The added bonus will be that we will drive traffic through our site.

 How we operate 

 What we want to get done

Neither of us are in a position to invest the money that will be needed to enable this project to fulfil our vision. Having been quoted upwards of $50 000 to create a custom website, we decided to create our own site on a custom site builder. Without any previous experience in website building or e-commerce (other than using it), we have had a very steep learning curve. All this has been done on less than $2000 thus far, however we cannot progress much further to create the “hub” we envision without some financial support. 

We want to continue to build our community on social media and create as much content as we can to become a useful and viable platform. To do this we will need to employ at least one other person, part-time. Our website, although functional, needs work to improve it’s functionality and viability. We are also very keen to publish a study on how New Zealanders perceive the future of education in an attempt to get a new paradigm on the table. We intend to do this by: discussing interesting topics and approaches to education through our social media and blog; holding events, both online and in person; by developing a survey that will be filled by the network of people we can bring on board through our community; and using Calli’s academic background to produce a report by the end of 2022, that can be published and shared through the media and academia.  

Although unemployment affords us the time to create, it does not afford the means by which we can materialize our vision. Our determination and passion for this project is unquestionable, and we are willing to work hard, put in the time, serve where we can and make this happen.