In Kyiv, the “Spilnoschool” project by the public organization “New Format of Education” has been running for its second year, with the main value being the child’s motivation as the primary driving force in learning. This article is published as part of the international project by the Goethe-Institut called Future Perfect, which focuses on the theme of sustainable urban development.
“Spilnoschool” is an educational and social innovation. Typically, such initiatives are referred to as “alternative education.” Six years ago, there were fewer than ten such projects across Ukraine, but now there are over 40 just in Kyiv and the Kyiv region. Therefore, “Spilnoschool” is part of a larger movement aimed at rethinking the system and principles of children’s education.
Alternative education is emerging and gaining popularity in Ukraine, especially after the events of the Maidan. Parents no longer want to accept the current situation. Public (preschool, elementary, and secondary) education is underfunded, which affects its quality. Moreover, although state schools are funded by citizens’ taxes, the citizens themselves have no influence over the educational process or the ability to improve it. As a result, enthusiasts are looking for various ways to create alternative institutions.
However, since 1992, the education legislation has not changed significantly, and it is officially illegal to provide educational services without a license. Therefore, all alternative educational projects for children operate as follows: students attend an alternative institution of their choice, but they are enrolled in external studies at a licensed school, where they periodically take tests and exams and receive state certification. This is also how “Spilnoschool” operates, founded by Anastasia Kyslynska.
Why does traditional education not meet modern needs?
The first push for Anastasia came from her direct experience with the modern education system as the mother of a school-age child. The authoritarian nature of this system and its lack of focus on the individual child who is beginning to explore the world. When Anastasia wanted to find an alternative school for her first son (who was then studying at the British International School, a prestigious school in Kyiv), she encountered limited choices. The school where her son studied for five years provided a lot of knowledge but didn’t care about what he wanted to learn or what his parents’ expectations were. The main reason for the problems, according to Anastasia Kyslynska, is the lack of a personalized approach to the student: “In a regular school, no one asks who you are and what you strive for. You just have to do as we say. And this, in turn, completely diminishes the child’s desire to learn and explore new things within the school format. However, everyone who comes into this world wants to learn – a baby watches new things with great curiosity, listens, and learns through taste.”
Thus, the school, as an institution that should provide knowledge and encourage discovery, somehow has the opposite effect. According to Anastasia, the problem lies in the outdated model, where the child is treated as just an object of learning, not an active subject of their own education. The child is required to obey someone else’s will. This “industrial-type” model was created 200-300 years ago and had its advantages back then. Today, such an approach “breaks” some children, while leaving a noticeable mark on others. And what does the child do to resist this? They block this unpleasant and foreign environment: they get sick, resist, or don’t pay enough attention to learning. It’s clear that since the creation of the previous general education model, humanity’s goals have changed, and thus the approaches and principles of education must change as well.
On the other hand, there are parents who themselves come from the Soviet education system and view their child through their own experience. “Everyone lacks certain skills, and they try to impose these skills on their children as something absolutely necessary: foreign languages, programming, teamwork, or the ability to work with an audience during public speaking,” says Anastasia Kyslynska. In practice, this approach is no different from the traditional “industrial” school: we don’t ask what the child wants, but tell them what they need to do to be “successful.” What is a benefit for one child can be the opposite for another.
With this understanding, the future founder of “Spilnoschool” participates in the development of several educational projects. Among them is the re-conceptualization of the “Divosvit” center in Obolon, turning it into a center for useful family leisure, where, according to Anastasia, many pilot projects were run and successful experiments conducted. After that, she worked for nine months on the creation of the “Novo-Pechersk School” project until February 2014. The next step came after realizing that the demand for quality new education needed to be created through her own successful example: “At some point, while communicating with like-minded people, I realized that there was no clear demand for a new format of education, and therefore I wouldn’t find an investor for a ‘private school of the future’ without compromises. And then my youngest son turned six, and I decided that for him and the other children of my like-minded friends, we could create an educational institution that would be financed by the parents’ collective contributions, where there would be no private owner, and management would grow from the creation of a community united by common goals and based on shared values. That’s how the idea of ‘Spilnoschool’ was born.” The project’s budget consists of the contributions from the parents who send their children there. Anastasia contributes along with everyone else.
How Does “Spilnoschool” Work?
Currently, there are just over twenty students, aged 6 to 11. The children at Spilnoschool spend the entire day there. Anastasia notes that the costs for maintaining the project are quite significant and include both the upkeep of the infrastructure and the work of the teachers, additional activities, stationery, excursions, and more. This creates the necessary environment for development.
To develop the pedagogical concept of the institution, Anastasia invited Lolita Malinina, a specialist from Dnipro, with whom she had long been acquainted. One of her conditions when choosing the location for the school was to ensure that children would have contact with nature, including for the purpose of fostering respect for the environment. Therefore, “Spilnoschool” is surrounded on all sides by a park and forest, where students go for walks every day. Additionally, there are animals living on the grounds of the former private house where the school is located: cats, dogs, and even a horse and pony. Under the supervision of teachers, the children spend time with the animals. In the warm season, the children plant and grow plants on the school’s grounds.
The core concept of “Spilnoschool” is the belief in a child’s cognitive abilities, their genuine curiosity, and their natural desire to learn. Anastasia and Lolita emphasize that the key in the learning process is not to impose the adult’s will on the child, but to create the right environment for learning around them. Accordingly, the child finds their own motivation to learn, with the help of teachers and the educational tools they have developed.
Starting from the first grade, children are taught the basics of project management and time management — they plan their day, week, set long-term goals, and gradually work towards them. In this way, self-discipline and the ability to manage oneself are developed. An equally important focus at the school is the ability to communicate and work together — because often, achieving a result requires more than just one’s own efforts; it’s necessary to involve others on the basis of partnership and mutual respect. Naturally, these skills are not taught to the children “from behind a desk” — they are learned through play and creative activities and are organically woven into the learning process.
Parents actively participate in shaping the learning process: together with the children and teachers, they decide which additional subjects will be taught at the school. Currently, these include Kid IT (basics of programming and algorithms for children), English and Chinese languages, Aikido, music, dance, and more. Parents can also choose how many times a week their child attends school.
However, according to Kyslynska, there is an unfair nuance in this system. Parents, when choosing an alternative to public schools, are forced to bear the cost of their child’s education twice: first, by paying taxes to the state; second, by supporting the project’s operation, like “Spilnoschool.” This prevents development, as resources are used inefficiently. If funding for education were structured differently, such as through educational vouchers granted at the birth of a child, it would allow for more effective and fair distribution of funds.
What’s Next?
Anastasia compares “Spilnoschool” to a seedling that will eventually outgrow its small pot and be ready to be transplanted into the ground. The project has been launched, it is in its second year, and all of its key components and principles can be demonstrated to interested parents and potential investors. Anastasia is currently actively searching for investors, as the school will soon need a new, larger space with quality infrastructure and an environment that encourages new knowledge and passions. She also wants to play an active role in designing the new space. She believes that such a format could be most appealing to a Kyiv developer building a school for a new residential area.
Moreover, soon the second reading of the new “Education Law” will take place, which aims to replace the outdated 1992 law. If adopted, this would create a solid foundation for changing the entire school education system. However, even now, with the existing regulatory framework, parents can influence the learning process, particularly through effective human contact with the principal of a regular public school or the homeroom teacher, especially when it comes to elementary school. Interest in development and initiative should be supported by parents, and such joint activities will benefit the child. This is also one of the core principles of “Spilnoschool.”
