KEY Academy named Top 10 finalist for World’s Best School Prize for Innovation

KEY (Keep Educating Yourself) Academy, an independent primary and secondary school in Lagos, Nigeria, has been named one of the Top 10 finalists for the World’s Best School Prize for Innovation, in recognition of its pioneering project-based learning (PBL) model that equips students with critical thinking, creativity, and 21st-century problem-solving skills.

The prestigious award, launched by T4 Education in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, honours schools making exceptional contributions in five categories: Community Collaboration, Environmental Action, Innovation, Overcoming Adversity, and Supporting Healthy Lives.

Winners will be chosen by an expert judging academy, while a public vote—which opened on Tuesday, June 18—will determine the Community Choice Award.

All winners, including the overall category champions and the public-voted choice, will be announced in October, and will be invited to present their work at the World Schools Summit in Abu Dhabi, scheduled for November 15–16, 2025.

“In a world being turned upside down by Artificial Intelligence… a good education, with humans at its heart, has never been more important,” said Vikas Pota, Founder of T4 Education and the World’s Best School Prizes.

“Schools like KEY Academy are beacons of hope, demonstrating the innovations needed to prepare young people for an uncertain world.”

A model tailored for impact

KEY Academy’s approach to education is built on the belief that transforming how children learn—not just placing them in classrooms—is the real solution to improving outcomes. The school has refined a structured project-based learning (PBL) framework, contextualised to Nigeria’s educational and cultural environment.

Instead of traditional one-way instruction, teachers act as facilitators, guiding learners through inquiry-based projects. Students collaborate with professionals from diverse fields to tackle real-world issues, and their work is showcased to both the school and the wider community.

The impact is measurable:

• 95% of students demonstrate higher-order thinking skills, including critical thinking and problem-solving

• 85% show increased confidence in public speaking, collaboration, and leadership

Parents are also actively involved through workshops, open classrooms, and student exhibitions, ensuring a community-driven approach to education reform.

With this global recognition, KEY Academy now stands among a select group of schools whose practices could shape the future of education worldwide.