teacher training Archives

The Mirror Effect: Modeling Joyful Classrooms Through Teacher Training

Mar 5, 2026 | Luminos Fund | In the News, Teaching & Learning

By: Neha Raheel

At Luminos, we’re often asked what fuels the joy at the heart of our learning model. Step into one of our classrooms and the answer is immediate: children singing, playing, moving, laughing—and at the same time, building strong literacy and numeracy skills with real confidence.

This isn’t accidental. It’s intentional. Joyful learning is our North Star. We model it at every level of our programming, starting with how we train our trainers, continuing through how they equip and support teachers, and ultimately shaping what children experience in the classroom each and every day.

Neha Raheel, Director of Teaching and Learning, Luminos Fund

If we want classrooms that are engaging, structured, and joyful, then our training rooms must model those qualities first.

At Luminos, one guiding principle shapes all our teacher training: the way you train is the way they will teach. If we want classrooms that are engaging, structured, and joyful, then our training rooms must model those qualities first. And if we want teachers to co-create safe and inclusive classroom cultures with learners, model new concepts or skills effectively, check for understanding and use gradual release of responsibility well, then our trainers must do the same. Not by talking about these practices in theory, but by modeling them consistently. Unfortunately, across much of sub-Saharan Africa, teacher training still relies heavily on lecture-style delivery with little opportunity for participation or practice-teaching, a pattern that too often carries into classrooms where rote learning becomes the norm.

Luminos’ practical, engaging standardized training approach stands in sharp contrast to this region norm. Our training rooms are a mirror: what happens there reflects what we hope to see in our classrooms across Ethiopia, Ghana, Liberia, and beyond.

In Sidama, teacher Toshine leads her class in a literacy lesson using her Teacher’s Guide. (Photo by Mekbib Tadesse for the Luminos Fund)

Why Standardize Training?

Luminos delivers comprehensive training before the start of each academic year, followed by one or two refresher trainings aligned to each instructional phase. As students progress and new concepts are introduced, teachers need dedicated time to reflect, refine, and prepare for the next phase with clarity and confidence. Through multiple trainings and ongoing coaching throughout the year, we ensure support is continuous, responsive, and grounded in classroom realities—rather than front-loaded at the beginning of the academic year.

Whether a teacher is trained in Ethiopia, Liberia, or Ghana, the core experience should be equally rigorous and impactful. Standardization helps us achieve this.

Sessions are delivered first through a Training of Trainers and then directly to community teachers—young adults from the same communities as our students who lead Luminos classrooms each day using our structured pedagogy materials. Luminos also trains government teachers to adapt and implement our structured pedagogy approach and materials within public school classrooms. This investment in teacher capacity has proven highly effective: an external evaluation found that structured pedagogy in government adoption classrooms led to extraordinary gains in children’s literacy and numeracy outcomes.

With Luminos’ standardized training approach, we are not aiming for isolated pockets of excellence; we are building systems where good training is inevitable.

A key priority across all of this work is maintaining quality and consistency. Whether a teacher is trained in Ethiopia, Liberia, or Ghana, the core experience should be equally rigorous and impactful. Standardization helps us achieve this. It ensures that every training follows the same instructional logic, every agenda and manual is built from shared instructional foundations, and every trainer has a clear understanding of what effective training looks like. Most importantly, it embeds training expertise into systems rather than leaving it in the hands of a few excellent individuals—because if we truly believe every child can learn, then we must also believe every trainer and teacher is capable of becoming powerful leaders of learning.

With Luminos’ standardized training approach, we are not aiming for isolated pockets of excellence; we are building systems where good training is inevitable.

The Anatomy of a Luminos Training

Luminos’ standardized training approach provides both trainers and teachers with clear, consistent guidance. We monitor fidelity, define strong instructional delivery, and intentionally balance theory and practice so participants spend more time learning by doing, all while receiving regular feedback.

Throughout the training process, joyful learning is built through deliberate choices. Our methodology is interactive and engaging, promoting discussion, collaboration, and inquiry, with frequent opportunities for peer learning. We include brain breaks and energizers not as fillers, but as a reminder that movement and processing matter. We reinforce the importance of equitable participation, and we build in regular checks for understanding to demonstrate the value of using formative assessment to inform instructional decisions in real time.

Our training approach includes six interactive session types—Learn, Discuss, Participate, Practice, Teach, and Reflect—each intentionally named to reflect the action participants take during the session. Together, they create a predictable arc of learning that mirrors the gradual release of responsibility framework used in our classrooms: moving participants from understanding a concept, to observing it, to practicing it, and finally reflecting on it. They also model the way we engage students in the classroom, demonstrating joyful learning in action, not just in theory.

Luminos’ Standardized Training Sessions:

This sequence is cyclical rather than linear—each round deepens understanding and builds confidence as key concepts are reinforced in increasingly in active ways. By the end of training, participants have not only seen good instruction modeled but have practiced it multiple times and reflected on how to make it their own.

“The training was comprehensive, clear, participatory, and highly beneficial. The session types were thoroughly explored and assessed through practical activities and micro-teaching, which helped create a clear understanding of each session and illustrated the gradual release of responsibility through the ‘I do,’ ‘We do,’ and ‘You do’ approach.”

Muluken Paulos, Government Teacher Trainer in Sidama, Ethiopia

Preparing Trainers Through Immersive Practice

In the Training of Trainers in Ethiopia, the first three days put trainers in “teacher mode,” experiencing the training modules as teachers would and engaging in micro-teaching sessions with peers. This immersion allows them to develop a deeper understanding of the teaching and learning materials so they can later guide teachers with confidence and clarity.

On day four, trainers shift into “trainer mode,” focusing on balancing theory with practice; explaining key content and pedagogy; facilitating discussions and synthesizing participant contributions; managing time; and delivering modules effectively using the various session types. Each day ends with reflection on observations, what they will implement, and what could be improved. By the time trainers lead their own sessions, they have already practiced—and reflected on—the entire training journey.

Scaling the Standardized Training Model

We first piloted the Luminos standardized training approach in Ghana in the third phase of the 2024-25 school year with a clear intention: to design trainings that were practical, focused, tailored, and ongoing—aligned with global best practices emphasizing modeling, practice, and feedback. Encouraged by early results, in the 2025-26 school year we applied the same structure across all three training phases in Ghana, strengthening consistency and deepening familiarity with the approach. We also adapted this structure for the government-run accelerated learning classrooms using the Luminos Method in Ethiopia.

Early evidence from implementation reinforced the value of this approach. In Ethiopia, data on teacher training quality showed strong fidelity: 91% of trainers were observed as following the training manual with accuracy, and 98% effectively modeled teaching lessons from the Luminos-developed Teacher’s Guide. Luminos’ country teams also noted that the model brought consistency across trainings and clarified trainer-teacher roles, supporting stronger transfer from training to classroom practice.

of trainers followed the training manual with accuracy

of trainers effectively modeled teaching lessons

“Our partners and trainers now have a clearer understanding of the training pattern, including how the content is organized and how the various sessions are interconnected. This has helped streamline the process, creating more opportunities to scaffold learning, check for understanding, and identify challenging areas where targeted support can be provided to better achieve the overall training goals.”

Suwaida Aziz, Luminos Program Manager (Ghana)

The Mirror of Structured Joy

There is often a perception that standardization stifles creativity and flexibility. At Luminos, we have found the opposite to be true. Standardization has not made us complacent; if anything, it has made us more reflective. When every training venue operates with the same underlying logic and structure, this enables us to clearly see what works, strengthen it, and intentionally weave those lessons into future trainings. In doing so, we move from isolated success to a shared system of excellence that grows stronger with every iteration.

The clarity we build behind the scenes becomes the clarity students ultimately experience, as our trainings are intentionally designed to reflect the structured, joyful learning we seek to cultivate in every classroom.

This reflection and preparation reveal their impact when a teacher stands at the front of a classroom on the first day of a new instructional phase, heart racing just a little, and realizes they are ready. They know how to begin. Why? Because they have practiced the lessons in the Teacher’s Guide repeatedly. They may have stumbled but they have been coached, reflected on the material, and tried again. Most importantly, they have seen what good teaching looks and feels like—not in theory, but in practice.

As a result, when students walk into that classroom, they are met with warmth, understanding, joy, and a clear plan for learning from the very first minute. They encounter a teacher who is not only backed by a program that believes in them deeply, but a teacher who has experienced a joyful, engaging learning environment themself.

That is the mirror. And in that reflection, futures quietly begin to change.

Neha Raheel is Director of Teaching and Learning at the Luminos Fund where she leads the development of high-quality teaching and learning materials grounded in the latest evidence from the science of teaching. She also designs and delivers impactful training on foundational learning and strengthens the capacity of colleagues and partners to help every child learn. Prior to joining Luminos, Neha worked at the World Bank, where she supported the Education Global Practice team on curriculum, instruction, and learning, focusing on foundational learning.

Empowering Educators: A Global Workshop on Foundational Literacy

May 15, 2025 | Luminos Fund | In the News, Luminos Method

By: Aishwarya Kaple

Over a decade ago, my journey as an educator began in an overcrowded classroom in an urban Mumbai slum. As a Teach For India Fellow, I had little more than a blackboard and my voice—and a deep commitment to helping my students learn. They were bright and eager, but the challenges were immense.

That formative experience left a lasting impression. It taught me that practical, empowering teacher training is not just helpful, it is essential. To bridge deep educational gaps in the most marginalized communities, teachers need more than dedication—they need support, tools, and guidance to navigate the complex realities of the classroom.

Aishwarya Kaple, Luminos Program Analyst

And this is not just my story. Globally, UNESCO estimates that nearly 69 million teachers must be recruited by 2030 to achieve universal education. But recruitment is only the first step. When education systems are stretched thin, the teachers we do have often lack the resources they need to succeed in the classroom. Overcrowded classrooms, outdated materials, and minimal professional development are common, making it difficult for even the most dedicated educators to help their students thrive.

Today, my work at the Luminos Fund builds on those early experiences. Luminos is committed to supporting teachers and ensuring joyful, foundational learning for the most vulnerable children. This mission recently took shape in a new way through a powerful partnership between Luminos and Teach For All.

Through Teach For All’s Global Institute Academy, we delivered a three-part online workshop series: Teaching Foundational Literacy to Develop Students Holistically.

Drawing over 120 participants per session, the series explored how foundational literacy is a cornerstone of effective teaching, and shared evidence-based practices from the Luminos Method that teachers can apply in their classrooms.

I had the privilege of co-facilitating this effort alongside Nangamso Mtsatse, an esteemed member of the Luminos Advisory Board and the Head of Foundational Learning at Teach For All. Together, we designed the series to speak directly to the needs and realities of primary school teachers and teacher trainers working in under-resourced settings across the Global South.

Foundational Learning Workshop Screenshot

Workshop Series at a Glance

At Luminos, we believe how children are taught is just as important as what they are taught. We’ve seen that children learn best when they are happy—an essential truth that underpins all our work. Research shows that phonics instruction is most effective when it is systematic and explicit, and embedded in a broader instructional approach that includes oral language development, vocabulary building, and reading comprehension. This is especially critical for students who are the first in their families to attend school and learn to read.

This workshop aimed to:

Strengthen participants’ technical knowledge of foundational literacy;
Share low- or no-cost phonics instruction activities from the Luminos Method that teachers can immediately implement; and
Emphasize the importance of joyful learning as a core element of effective teaching.

Session 1: Building Blocks of Reading
The first session introduced the key principles of foundational literacy, emphasizing the critical role of phonics in reading comprehension. Using the Simple View of Reading (Gough and Tunmer, 1986) framework, we explored how strong early literacy skills support student agency and leadership. Participants also practiced a hands-on phonics activity from the Luminos Method designed to build phonemic awareness and strengthen letter-sound connections—an approach that has helped unlock transformational learning outcomes among Luminos students.

Session 2: From Sounds to Words
This session focused on the skill of blending, essential for early reading development. Through interactive demonstrations and breakout rooms, teachers practiced joyful, phonics-based approaches—emphasizing practical skill-building for teaching students how to decode and read simple words. These techniques are easy to implement, even in classrooms with limited materials.

Session 3: Phonics in Practice
In the final session, participants presented phonics strategies they plan to implement, many in their own languages of instruction. This peer-led exchange reinforced the relevance of the workshop, as educators showcased how they were adapting insights to fit their unique contexts.

Reflections

Throughout the series, participants’ reflections and questions underscored a shared commitment to continuous improvement. Many emphasized the value of the practical, actionable strategies shared during the workshop—strategies that met them where they are and addressed real classroom needs. While theoretical training has its place, what teachers often need most are tools they can adapt and implement right away.

That need felt especially real in my own classroom in 2015, where many of my students couldn’t read basic texts or spell their names. As a new teacher, I had passion, but not always the resources to meet their needs. With time, experience, and support, I saw them begin to thrive. Years later, many went on to pass their Grade 10 exams—becoming the first in their families to do so.

While many factors shaped their journey, their success is a powerful reminder of what’s possible when educators are empowered to build children’s foundational skills and ensure learning for all.

That’s what makes this kind of workshop so meaningful. It is a chance to turn lived experience into professional growth. For me, this series was also personal—a chance to contribute to the kind of support I once yearned for as a new teacher.

I’m grateful to Teach For All for creating this platform to equip and uplift educators—and proud to stand alongside passionate teachers and educators around the world who are lighting the path to learning for the next generation.

If you’re a teacher, trainer, or education leader committed to improving foundational learning in under-resourced contexts, we invite you to explore and adapt the Luminos Method!

Explore all nine elements of the Luminos Method, available in interactive web pages with videos and downloadable resources!

Explore the Luminos Method

Aishwarya Kaple is a Program Analyst on Luminos’ Teaching and Learning team where she manages and leads various projects and processes related to the development of teaching and learning materials, program design and delivery, and fundraising. She supports country teams on project management and implementation, helping streamline and strengthen Luminos’ evidence-based teaching and learning approaches across programs. Aishwarya brings over six years of experience in education, including teaching students from disadvantaged communities as a part of the Teach for India Fellowship, working in the conflict-affected region of Kashmir, and assisting with education policy and research at the World Bank and the International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP-UNESCO). She holds an MS in International Education and Development from the University of Pennsylvania, and a BA in Mass Media and Advertising.