Empowering Teachers: Tackling the Global Learning Crisis From the Front Line
A Q&A with Heather Hiebsch
Original interview conducted by Sally Bloomberg for Harvard Advanced Leadership Initiative Social Impact Review. Read the full article here.
CEO and Co-Founder of TeachUNITED, Heather Hiebsch, recently sat down with Sally Bloomberg, a member of the 2021 Harvard Advanced Leadership Iniative Cohort. Sally and Heather discussed the work TeachUNITED is doing with teachers to address disparities in education. Excerpts of the interview are below.
The United Nations estimates that “by 2030 approximately 300 million students will lack the basic numeracy and literacy skills necessary to succeed in life.” Even though many people and organizations believe that technology can address these issues, the research is clear – enhancing the quality of teachers has the greatest impact on student outcomes. High quality education requires great teachers.
Sally Gail Bloomberg: Thank you for speaking with me about how TeachUNITED is helping to address disparities in education. You have dedicated your career to enhancing education for children. What motivated you to co-found TeachUNITED in 2016 and what is your current vision for the organization?
Heather Hiebsch: Thank you for inviting me. Like many of your readers, I care about the climate, poverty, access to health care, gender equity, and many other issues called out in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which is why we must improve education. An educated society is the only way to solve these massively complex issues. In other words, by improving education for 1 million people, I see this as 1 million more opportunities to address all other global issues.
I have worked in education for 25 years and was especially inspired during my time as a public school principal. While following the research, I also saw firsthand what a difference a great teacher could make in turning a child’s life around. We also saw the power of educational technology (EdTech) to amplify whatever is happening in the classroom, both good and bad.
When I saw the shocking United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) statistic that 250 million children cannot read, write, or do basic math, I wondered how we might be able to leverage technology and great teaching to change that statistic. In 2016, I left my job and joined a nonprofit working on a solution for mobile edtech. However, it soon became clear that the biggest factor in student success – a great teacher – was being left out of most education interventions. That led us to sunset our original model and revise our approach by focusing on enhancing the quality of teaching in order to have the greatest impact on student outcomes. We launched TeachUNITED to reflect our new focus.
There is no doubt that kids (and teachers) are engaged by technology. But people show up for relationships, and people show up for results. And that comes from great teaching.
My vision is for all students to have great teachers who believe they can (and will) succeed. TeachUNITED is committed to providing teachers in rural and under-resourced communities with the support, skills, and strategies to create these transformational experiences in the classroom.
Bloomberg: The United Nations created Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) to “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all” in response to research that shows that “the world is falling behind in achieving quality education.” What is TeachUNITED’s approach to enhancing teacher quality and student outcomes? Also, who are the thought leaders who influenced your approach?
Heather: Our curriculum has four main pillars: Mindset, Engagement, Personalization, and Data. We apply these concepts in every classroom, at every grade level, and within all the countries where we have programs. Our program starts by working with the teachers within existing schools, helping administrators and teachers build their capacity to lead, replicating and sustaining the program long term. We model everything with our teachers; then we translate the strategies and apply them in the classroom with the students.
We start with mindset, asking the teacher questions to help them reflect on their perspectives about themselves and their student population. We help uncover unconscious fixed mindsets that may inhibit both teachers and students. That’s a radical shift in classroom culture, and it’s important that teachers see themselves as having the ability to make a difference and close learning gaps (i.e. collective teacher efficacy).
Then, we focus on engagement. Using an engagement scale, teachers reflect on their current state ranging from disconnected, to compliance, to authentic engagement and excitement. We want teachers to reconnect with their purpose and goals within the teaching profession so they can share that energy with the students.
From there we move into personalized learning. We practice strategies to address the common challenges: What does it mean to not just teach to the middle? What does it look like to challenge kids who need an accelerated schedule? What do specific interventions look like to help close gaps for other students? And most importantly, we meet the needs of each individual student in the reality of today’s classroom with limited resources, a tight schedule, and without creating more work for the teacher.
Finally, we help teachers embrace the power of data in the classroom – to truly know where their students are and what they need. Assessments can be quick, informal, and part of the daily lesson. Data is the underlying foundation of personalized classrooms. It is the evidence we need to ensure all students are growing (and helps overworked teachers know their time is spent where it’s most needed).
Our first year working with a school is the most intensive because we are working with lead teachers, modeling the strategies, and providing feedback. Teachers work online, in small groups, and one-on-one with their coach to master the skills that they apply in the classroom. In year two the lead teacher moves into a role where they coach other teachers. Our goal is to build a school system’s capacity, not dependency. By developing lead teachers into in-house coaches, school systems are left with the local expertise and resources needed to sustain the outcomes long-term.
Bloomberg: Please introduce us to your learners, teachers, and coaches. Who are they and where are they located?
Hiebsch: In support of TeachUNITED’s commitment to educational equity access, we focus primarily on rural, remote, and traditionally underserved communities. In 2023, we served more than 479,000 students in seven countries in Africa (Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda), more than 577,000 students across six countries in Latin America (Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Peru), and more than 151,000 students in the United States (in rural parts of Colorado, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, and Wyoming). We focus on schools where teachers’ access to ongoing professional opportunities is limited because of geographic isolation or insufficient financial resources.
Our students are in grades 1 through 12, and our teachers range from those new to the field of teaching to people who have been teaching for their entire careers. Our programs are available in English, Spanish, Swahili, and Mayan.
All but one of our coaches are former teachers, and approximately half are TeachUNITED alumni.
Bloomberg: How does TeachUNITED evaluate its impact? To what extent are these measures the same or different in the various countries that you serve?
Hiebsch: We have similar measures in all the countries we serve because we are focused on academic outcomes for foundational skills for graduation, like literacy and numeracy. Collecting data about student performance and teacher engagement is baked into our approach. Our teachers incorporate data on a daily basis rather than wait for the national exams. That way, lessons can be adjusted based on students’ needs. As some people say, we’d rather take a temperature than conduct an autopsy.
Regarding impact, one thing we see a lot in our work is that people get really excited about program reach numbers. But reach is not always synonymous with impact; therefore, we measure both. We are thrilled to report that we have reached more than 1.5 million students and 40,000 teachers in 14 different countries. This number includes the teachers we have trained directly as well as the teachers trained by our certified NGO and government partners. These numbers reflect the local ownership and scalability of the program.
When we dig into the impact, I am particularly proud to share some specific positive outcomes experienced by our students and teachers. In 2023, our participants regularly outperformed controls. Specifically, in Africa, while TeachUNITED primary schools improved their graduation rates by 10%, control schools actually dropped 10%. Secondary schools also excelled, improving their pass rates 92% more than control schools.
In Latin America, young learners continue to build strong foundations, as TeachUNITED early primary students grew 57% more in reading fluency than their peers at comparison schools.
And in the U.S., students of TeachUNITED teachers outperformed their peers across the board on state standardized tests. TeachUNITED schools had 93% more growth in math and 22% more growth in literacy than comparison schools.
In addition to looking at student success measures, we also have teacher-specific measures that we track. For example, we evaluate teacher retention in all the regions and countries we serve; this ties back to UN Sustainable Development Goal #4 and the sub-goals. In the US, TeachUNITED schools reported a 12% improvement in teacher retention (as self-reported by participants at the beginning vs. the end of the program).
More About Heather
Heather Hiebsch is the Co-Founder and CEO of TeachUNITED. The organization is dedicated to ensuring that millions of children in rural and remote communities receive a high-quality education, and operates programs across the United States, Latin America, and East Africa. With over 20 years of experience in public and international education, Heather has made it her personal mission to tackle the global education crisis and address the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 4 by supporting teachers and staff and enhancing educational outcomes for students. She is driven by the data and evidence showing children have the highest potential to succeed when they have highly skilled and engaged teachers.
Prior to TeachUNITED, Heather was a founding school principal and launched a nationally recognized pioneering K-12 hybrid school. She is a Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation Entrepreneur and Cordes Fellow. Heather has been a featured keynote speaker at Digital Learning’s Inaugural Conference, a finalist for the Global MindED Inclusive Leader Award, and published as a case study education leader by the Christensen Institute, Evergreen Education, Project Tomorrow, EdWeek, and Forbes.