Teachers Lead Tech

According to the WEF, 97M new tech roles will emerge by 2025 yet the global COVID-19 crisis exposed and accelerated the digital divide among different socio-economic backgrounds and regions. 

To close the divide and ensure that EVERY kid thrives in the digital economy, we are empowering NGO and non-profit leaders to serve primary school teachers locally and bring technology-building skills to classrooms.

We do this by building Teachers Lead Tech – a guided learning space, where primary school teachers learn to create with tech. 

Our goal is to serve 1M primary school teachers and reach 20M kids of diverse socio-economic backgrounds, genders and abilities by 2025.

According to the WEF (2021), 65% of children entering primary school today will work in completely new job types that don’t yet exist, while 97M of new tech roles will emerge in the upcoming five years alone.

Yet, education systems lag behind to ensure that every child, regardless of their gender, location and socio-economic background, gains future-proof skills and equal opportunities to prosper in the digital economy. 

Our power squad, 32M primary school teachers, are serving 751M kids daily and continuously. Yet, according to the Microsoft 2019 study (UK), only 15% of teachers feel confident about using technology as a learning tool in classrooms, 77% agree that time for preparation is a key limiting resource. Technucation model analysis (2017) says new skills, analytical thinking, and a safe continuous learning environment is key for teachers' ability to catch up with the speed of technologies.

Until we ensure that every primary school teacher is confident to bring fundamental technology creativity skills to classrooms, most kids will be left out in the digital economy. 

Teachers Lead Tech (TLT) is a guided learning space where primary school teachers learn to create with tech.

Driven by learning analytics and a research-based pedagogical approach, we provide teachers with CONTENT, CONFIDENCE and COMPETENCE to bring technology creativity and culturally relevant digital literacy skills to EVERY kid in the classroom at their crucial learning age 7-11.

CONTENT: time-saving, innovative learning and teaching resources, blending class subjects with technology creation practises. Our approach guides learners from fundamental understanding to bringing creative ideas to life through fundamental tech creativity skills.

CONFIDENCE: regular, hands-on online skill-building practices with mentors and continuous community support.

COMPETENCE: a guided learning path and tools for regular skill transfer in the classroom. 

To scale our solution globally and address cultural differences, Teachers Lead Tech becomes a tool for NGO, non-profit or community leaders to serve teachers locally.

To join our learning platform for teachers and see open courses, sign up here: https://yourtlt.com/en/join

• Primary school teachers.

We serve and empower primary school teachers (86% of whom are women globally) to become role models and transfer tech skills to EVERY kid in the classroom, despite their socioeconomic background. 

Primary school teachers are the most important change agents in scaling digital literacy skills to different socioeconomic backgrounds, yet they remain underserved as there are no existing continuous and effective systems to help them bring tech skills to classrooms. 

We piloted our approach with 1,000 primary school teachers (2018-2019), where 100% of them gained the confidence to create with technologies in the classroom and 73% started transferring skills in classrooms, reaching 15K kids. Starting September 2020, we have onboarded 1,400 teachers, who already reached 28,000 kids and report growth in creativity and collaboration in classrooms. 

• Meeting kids early.

Bringing fundamental tech creativity skills to kids at a crucial learning age 7 to 11 through our research-based pedagogical method “Understand. Practise. Create”. The method guides learners from understanding to CREATING technology solutions, this way providing kids with fundamental skills and equal opportunities to participate in a future economy as technology CREATORS, rather than just users.

• Enabling local community leaders.

To serve 1M teachers, we empower local education leaders, non-profits, NGO’s, who lack technological expertise and tools to bring fundamental tech creativity skills to teachers and kids in their communities. Teachers Lead Tech becomes a tool for them to secure a solid income stream through a revenue-sharing model, saves time and enables content adaptation to different education and cultural subtleties.

To better understand the needs of teachers and NGOs, we mix data gathering, behavioral scientific research and in-depth support to teachers and NGO network.

32 million primary school teachers are serving more than 700 million kids at their crucial learning age. By equipping teachers with digital literacy and technology creativity skills and tools for learning transfer, we ensure that kids stand a chance to flourish in the digital economy regardless of their gender, location, or abilities.

To serve 1 million teachers by 2025 in any country with culturally relevant digital literacy skills, we enable local NGOs, non-profit, charity, community leaders to save time, create impact in their community and earn income through a revenue sharing model.

TLT is currently being implemented in Lithuania and is piloting global NGO partnerships to scale impact through a revenue-sharing model. 

We have piloted our pedagogical approach with 1,000 primary school teachers (99.7% women) across Lithuania in a 2 year-program (grand by Google.org, 2019). After completion, 100% of teachers’ tech confidence and competence improved and 76% started applying tech creativity in classes reaching 15.000+ kids.

We launched TLT in September 2020. In 5 months, 20% of all primary school teachers in Lithuania were onboarded thanks to developed partnerships with municipalities, major tech companies, and development centers, and we are now focused to bring this model to global NGOs communities through revenue-sharing model.

We are bringing innovation through 1) our pedagogical approach, 2) a guided learning focused on teachers' learning success, empowered by learning analytics and 3) an innovative scalability model through NGOs and nonprofits to enable cultural adaptability.

1) Unique and innovative pedagogical approach. Our research-based approach “Understand. Practise. Create” guides learners (teachers and kids) through technology creativity from fundamental understanding to being able to CREATE new solutions with different tech concepts.

2) Teachers' learning success – our No1 priority. We serve and unlock the potential of one of the most underserved groups – primary school teachers (86% of whom are women globally) to become role models and transfer tech skills to EVERY kid in the classroom. By upskilling 1 teacher, we make sure fundamental technology creativity skills reach approximately 20 kids, at a crucial learning age 7 to 11, this way creating an inclusive and scalable change model. 

Teachers' learning success is our No1 priority, which we ensure by developing guided and personalised learning experience technology, strong community support, and innovative learning materials applicable in classrooms.

3) Scalability model, enabling local community leaders. To empower 1 million teachers, we partner with local education leaders, non-profits, NGO’s, who lack technological expertise and tools to bring fundamental tech creativity skills to teachers and children in their communities. Our revenue-sharing model, innovative technology solution and support system help them secure a solid source of income, save time, adapt our approach to their cultural nuances and scale impact in their communities.

After launching TLT in September 2020, as of June 2021 we serve 1,400 primary school teachers and 28,000 kids. By the end of 2021, our aim is to reach 3,200 teachers and 64,000 kids. 

In 2022 - 13,600 teachers and 270,000+ kids and continue growing at a 4.25x yearly rate, by 2025 reaching 1 million primary school teachers and 20 million kids. 

To 1) substantially increase the number of youth who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment and decent jobs (Quality Education) as well as 2) ensure equal opportunities for women & other underrepresented groups in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Gender Equality), we measure our impact by two main KPIs: 

#KPI 1: 100% of participating primary school teachers gain confidence to continuously transfer fundamental technology creativity skills in their classrooms. 

#KPI 2: 20 million kids learn fundamental technology creativity skills by 2025 and gain equal opportunities to participate in the future economy

10 – full-time staff, 4 – part-time, 2 contractors.

We are a women-led team of education and technology professionals, on a mission to serve 1 million teachers globally with products that reshape education systems. We have always been extremely focused on bringing inclusive initiatives and solutions, to create equal economic opportunities for kids from all socioeconomic backgrounds.

We have substantial know-how in implementing big scale technology educational projects, e.g. the 2-year program “Tech vedliai” (grant by Google.org, 2019) which trained 1,000 primary school teachers (99.7% women) across Lithuania. After completion, 100% of teachers’ tech confidence improved and 76% started applying tech creativity in classes reaching 15,000+ kids. 

Our founding team comes from a non-profit background – before starting to serve teachers, we ran a technology creativity non-profit academy for kids for 5 years and reached 20K+ (40% girls) through various initiatives. 

To build a scalable and inclusive solution, we launched Teachers Lead Tech in September 2020 and raised first round of 500,000€ investment.

In 5 months, 20% of primary school teachers in Lithuania joined and we are now expanding to serve 1M teachers globally, by developing strong global partnerships.

To highlight a few team member:

• Monika Katkute-Gelzine, the founder and team lead, who has an impactful voice in promoting quality technology education. 

• Ruta Kruliauskaite -  a creative technologist & curriculum designer, NYU alumni and a Program Designer at NYU.

• Augustina Matuseviciute - an expert in large-scale learning strategies and digital transformation, who previously worked for Fortune500 clients at General Assembly, London.

Teachers Lead Tech is a women-led team that is fully remote, having employees in two continents at the moment. Our open, remote and flexible job policy opens opportunities for people from different backgrounds and locations to join our team and leadership positions.

We are excited to apply to Solve to help us reach 1 million teachers and 20 million children by 2025 and help them flourish in the technology creation and STEM-related education and job market. 

We believe that Solve can help us:

• to connect with global and local NGOs and education leaders, who are looking for opportunities and tools to bring technology creativity to their communities.

• to get grant funding from technology companies willing to invest in teacher education (both globally and locally);

• to get access to customers, i.e. governmental education institutions; 

• to get exposure in media and conferences, connections to educational, science, research institutions;

• to get mentorship in product distribution, legal matters, funding and revenue model development.

We are in our growth phase, at the same time piloting and launching our NGOs revenue-sharing model. We focus on getting help and expertise in:

• Connecting with local and global NGOs to scale our technology and pedagogical approach globally.

• Exposure in media and conferences, connections to educational, science, research institutions;

• Mentorship in product distribution, legal matters in the situation of scaling (intellectual property, finance laws, etc.), funding and revenue model development.

• Local and global NGOs (Teach for All, Teach First, micro:bit foundation, etc) in adapting and bringing our solution to teachers' communities they serve. 

• Major technology companies, who prioritize tech creativity in their strategy and are willing to invest in innovative education solutions. 

• MIT and research centers that would help us improve learning experience and develop innovative, research-based education approaches.

We are bringing digital literacy and technology creativity skills to EVERY kid in the classroom, by serving primary school teachers with a learning experience that provide them with needed content, confidence and competence.

Our technology creativity content for learners (teachers. and kids) is adapted to a school curriculum and can be adapted to cultural and educational differences. Each lesson leads to creative projects, where a learner is encouraged to look for creative solutions by combining different technology concepts and tools. 

By providing teachers with such a learning experience and serving them in bringing it to classrooms, we can ensure that each kid, regardless of their gender, socio-economic background and abilites can have fundamental technology creativity skills for the 21st century.

The ASA Prize would enable us to tailor our to U.S.-based primary and secondary classrooms and develop needed partnerships with NGOs and other education leaders to scale the solution in teacher communities across the country.

Teachers Lead Tech helps children not to be left behind while experiencing a lack of integration and difficulties that socio-economic background brings. The prize would be used in partnering with NGOs, which can bring our learning experience to sensitive underrepresented groups and help kids develop creativity, collaboration and digital literacy skills.

By serving primary school teachers, we make sure that EVERY kid in the classroom, regardless of their gender, race and abilities, gain fundamental technology creativity skills to foster in the 21st-century economy. Our scaling model, where we enable NGOs to adapt and bring our solution to the communities they serve, ensures a culturally relevant learning experience. 

The prize would be used in establishing and empowering partnerships with NGOs that would bring Teachers Lead Tech solution to their communities, with needed content, support system and innovative pedagogical approach from Teachers Lead Tech. 

We close the gender and skill gap by upskilling primary school teachers (86% women globally) to gain confidence, competence, and content to fundamentally understand technology creativity and continuously transfer skills to every girl in the classroom at a crucial learning age – 7 to 11.

Our solution is tech-driven, gender, race and location inclusive learning system, devoted to equipping girls at their key learning age with fundamental digital literacy and technology creativity skills. These skills, including creativity, problem-solving, critical & ethical thinking are key in building equal opportunities and a bias-free future job market, which is already being disrupted by various technologies.

Fundamental technology creating practises from an early age will ensure girls are equally represented in the creation of next-generation technology solutions. By working with primary school teachers, we can ensure that technology creativity skills are transferred to every girl – despite their socioeconomic status, cultural background or location. 

We would use the prize to further develop our open courses and needed NGO partnerships in order to bring our solution to teachers, especially in sensitive socio-economic areas.

1) We use Learning Analytics to improve teaching and learning experiences by critically evaluating raw data and generating patterns to characterise learner habits, predict learner responses, provide timely feedback and meet the needs of a learner. Our goal is to create a unique data model and transformative personalised learning path for a teacher, which would lead from initial fear and insecurity to the joy of learning and regular skill transfer in classrooms by mixing love & data. We hope this data model will not only become a tool to optimize teacher learning success with Teachers Lead Tech but also could be replicated widely when upskilling teachers in other fields.

2) We are developing AI learning and creating module for teachers, to bring fundamental AI-building skills to kids, by merging it with the curriculum. This way we will ensure that each kid, regardless of their gender and socio-economic background, has a fundamental understanding of AI and gains equal opportunities to participate in the future economy as an AI solution creator. 

The prize would be utilized to develop and improve our unique data model for personalined learning path and bringing this solution to sensitive socio-economic areas.

We are developing a sustainable model to bring technology creativity skills and STEAM skills to EVERY kid in the classroom by serving primary school teachers and developing a scalability model through NGOs. This model helps us ensure that no children are left behind in providing them with needed creativity, collaboration, problem-solving, and digital literacy skills needed for the 21st-century economy. Our innovative personalised and guided learning technology we are currently developing will not only become a tool to optimize teacher learning success with Teachers Lead Tech but also could be replicated widely when upskilling teachers in other fields.

The prize would enable us to scale our solution through partnerships with NGOs and improve our personalized learning technology.