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President Ilves meets Ms Wendy Kopp, the founder of Teach for America and the Teach for All movement
06.04.2011
President Ilves met in Kadriorg today with Ms Wendy Kopp, the founder of Teach for America and the Teach for All movement together with the initiators and supporters of Noored Kooli (Youth to School) and Tagasi Kooli (Back to School) movements.
According to President Ilves, the Teach for All umbrella organisation serves as a good example of promoting education through a global network. “There are many issues that are very similar in nature, regardless of the location of countries on the world map,” Mr. Ilves added.
According to the Estonian Head of State, he is pleased that the Noored Kooli (Youth to School) and Tagasi Kooli (Back to School) movements have proven themselves in Estonia, just like the Teach for America movement.
49 young people have chosen to work at schools during the your four years of the Noored Kooli (Youth to School) programme and the number of applications received in its fifth year is 172, the highest ever. Last year, more than 1,000 people and 300 schools participated in the Tagasi Kooli (Back to School) project.
“Such programmes enrich our educational landscape and will help to introduce capable young people to Estonian Schools. I do hope that the organisers and supporters of this movement have the will to remain involved in projects of such importance. And from my side, I promise to give my support,” President Ilves added.
Ms Wendy Kopp, Mr. Artur Taevere and Mr. Nick Canning from the Teach for All organisation; Mr. Thomas Backteman and Mr. Priit Perens from Swedbank Group; Mr. Rein Leipalu from Ragn Sells; Mr. Mart Kuusk from the Good Deed Foundation; and Ms Triin Noorkõiv and Ms Kaire Kroos from the Noored Kooli (Youth to School) programme attended the meeting with President Ilves.
Background information:
Ms Wendy Kopp first mentioned her idea of creating an organisation, which would refer the graduates of the best universities to the poorest schools in America, for a two year period, in her Princeton University graduation paper in 1989. Today, Teach For America has become one of the most powerful educational movements in the United States of America – apart from the teachers who work in approximately 8,000 schools, 20,000 alumni have passed through the programme.
Teach First was established in the United Kingdom in 2002 and the Noored Kooli (Youth to School) programme in Estonia by the Good Deed Foundation and Swedbank in 2006.
In 2007, Ms Wendy Kopp initiated the foundation of an umbrella organisation, Teach For All, which, as of today, has already helped to launch similar programmes in 19 countries from Brazil to China.
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