LRTT is an international provider of in-service teacher training in some of the most challenging places to teach in the world. We believe every child deserves a great teacher no matter where they grow up or where they’re from. We’re passionate about developing teachers into global leaders by motivating, coaching and exchanging ideas with colleagues in areas of real need.
Tell us a bit about the history of your company
LRTT blossomed in 2011 when five friends visited a rural community in southern Uganda to lead teacher training. Our teachers from the UK - we call them Fellows - trained teachers to shift learning from chalk-and-talk to modern styles that make lessons more engaging and ensure every learner participates. Ugandan teachers gave us great feedback and our Fellows learnt so much that they returned the following year.
From Guyana in the Caribbean to Cambodia in southeast Asia, 300 Fellows have inspired and trained more than 2500 teachers, helping improve the lessons of more than 20,000 pupils in eight countries. We’ve also doubled the yearly number of LRTT Fellows to nearly 180 this year. We’re spreading our wings and attracting teachers from Australia and the US. We’ll be sending at least 400 teachers to our Fellowships in 2017 alone.
Why did you become a B Corp?
We didn’t have to change our culture to become B Corp - it was a perfect fit. Teaching is about making a big social impact to the present and future of our world. There’s no better way of doing this than joining a global movement of like-minded people, who put public benefit at the heart of what they do.
What excites you about being a member of the global B Corporation movement?
Learning about other companies who put the environment, transparency and social responsibility first is just refreshing. It’s great to know that there are like-minded companies around the world and the movement is our channel to connect and start the conversation.
Tell us about the impact your organisation is having in the world
Our Fellows are empowering teachers around the world to use their skills beyond their classroom, country and continent. We’re building a borderless professional community for teachers by teachers to exchange experience, knowledge and expertise for a global good. Our Fellows get valuable leadership experience and new knowledge to their teaching practice, becoming better professionals. Our model involves training teachers, observing lessons and coaching conversations to embed these improvements. We see teachers engage, apply the strategies and get feedback on how effective this is. We’d love to see our training get more self-sustaining with teachers in the countries we work in taking the lead to develop one another. 2016 is a great milestone because it’s the first time that local teachers have led some of our training sessions.
What benefits have you seen since certification?
We’ve been working with the B Lab team to learn how to make use of our new-found membership. Our UK-based staff attend B Corp events to network and share challenges and successes. We’re also connecting with B Corps involved in the education sector to see how we can collaborate.
How did your other staff react to the certification?
With happiness and relief! The process was comprehensive and as we’re a growing social enterprise, we had to create some of our supporting documents from scratch.
It’s 2020, five years since you certified as a B Corp. What does the movement look like?
We’re collaborating with other education B Corps in the education sector and have a network in meets regularly and shares great ideas and practice. The B Corp movement is so huge that it’s a strange thing for a company not to be a B Corp!
Who is your B-Corp Crush?
Kickstarter. Yancey Strickler and his team have democratised innovation by helping entrepreneurs sell and market products before they’re made. What a great way to help innovators smash barriers with technology.
What is inspiring you at the moment?
Our growth in the past year across the globe is encouraging us to think bigger, aim higher and look at ways we can we can bring teaching professions together.
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