Today, there are 140 million students enrolled in grades one through nine in Chinese schools, and there is a stark gap between the educational resources available to students in the countryside and in the cities. Relative to students in more developed and urbanized areas, rural students lack access to diverse and quality educational opportunities. The scale of China's urbanization is without precedent, and the gap between rural and urban students has been growing for decades.

Join us this Friday, March 1st, as we invite Sarah Shen, board director of Adream Foundation, to discuss her experience in trying to bridge the educational gap between rural and urban children.

In China, the use of highly selective tests to decide which students can continue their studies, combined with the means used by universities to decide whether or not to admit students, have had an impact on the way the country's primary and middle school education standards are assessed and the very structure of the educational system itself. When the system is remarkably focused on teaching to the test and finding the 'model answer', the passion and imagination of the nation's young are smothered.

Can philanthropy take part in addressing and responding to these social issues to leverage social innovation in China? Adream Foundation was the pioneer to 'test the water' and launched a project called "Adream Center" to work with the public education system in the direction of better quality and equality. Love is priceless, but philanthropy costs. By adopting the good practices in the commercial business world, philanthropy can be more efficient, cost-effective, and sustainable.

Adream Foundation was established in Shanghai China in 2008 and approved as a public fundraising organisation in 2014. The foundation aims to develop competency-based education and promote education equality. Across China, there are 3000 Adream Centers that provide competency-based education solutions to schools from grades 1 to 9. The solution offered to schools includes a multi-media classroom, 30 course curriculums, teacher training programmes and operation services both on-line and off-line. Three million children benefit from their projects.

Fresh Start Rotary Club of Shanghai is a member club of a global network of 1.2 million who envision a world where people unite to create lasting change. We support social enterprise and help empower entrepreneurs with a social purpose.

We warmly welcome all to attend, listen, and ask questions.

*As we are a volunteer organization, we are not equipped to deal with refunds; so, please be sure of your purchase. Thank you.