There are teachers who teach children to read and write—and in doing so, they weave the future every single day. 

With this conviction, Teachers Who Weave the Future was born: an alliance that this year brought together the Tinker Foundation and the Fraternidad Medellín Foundation around a shared purpose—to strengthen rural education and open more learning pathways for children in Eastern Antioquia.

True to its mission of promoting a more equitable, sustainable, and productive society in Latin America, the Tinker Foundation decided to join this project, which places at its center those who make education possible: teachers. By strengthening their pedagogical, methodological, and collaborative capacities, the initiative seeks to improve foundational learning—starting with early literacy—where it is needed most.

The project combines in-person meetings and virtual spaces to support preschool and primary school teachers, enhancing early literacy models and revitalizing rural micro-centers or communities of teaching practice as living spaces for ongoing professional development, knowledge exchange, and collective construction. These are places where teachers learn together, listen to one another, share experiences, and recognize themselves as part of a network that transforms.

Throughout the process, teachers will participate in training cycles, pedagogical workshops, inter-municipal exchanges, regional bootcamps, and dialogue spaces with experts. Each encounter is designed to strengthen the teaching of reading and writing through approaches grounded in scientific evidence—such as the phonics method—and to promote classroom practices that foster equity, trust, and meaningful learning. 

Scope of the Initiative 

• Duration: 2 years

• Coverage: Approximately 288 teachers participating in 9 rural micro-centers or communities of practice

• Territorio: 9 municipios del Oriente antioqueño: San Vicente Ferrer, San Rafael, San Luis, San Carlos, Marinilla, El Peñol, El Carmen de Viboral, El Santuario y Granada. 

The program, implemented by the CTA, began with in-person and virtual meetings with municipal Secretaries of Education—a key first step to present the project, build collective commitment, and reaffirm the fundamental role of school principals and leadership teams as allies and guarantors of the process.

Because when a teacher is strengthened, a classroom is transformed. 
And when teachers weave the future together, rural education flourishes. 💚