Education research shapes how governments, donors, and school systems decide which programs to invest in and which interventions are likely to improve learning outcomes. These interventions shape approaches used by those who directly interact with children, like  teachers and administrators. As such, policymakers look to evidence to ensure they choose the best approach—the method or model that research suggests will most effectively help children learn.

Once a new policy or technique is selected, teachers are responsible for translating it into classroom practice. In low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), this work unfolds amid heavy workloads, overcrowded classrooms, administrative demands, limited materials, and multilingual contexts. Even as teachers demonstrate strong professional agency and commitment to improving practice, sustaining high-quality implementation – particularly as Catch Up has scaled – requires systemic support to address variation in motivation and fidelity.

Teaching at the Right Level (TaRL) is a prime example. The TaRL method requires that teachers group learners by level rather than age/grade and provide targeted instruction. Rigorous evaluations from India and Sub-Saharan Africa showed that the TaRL method significantly improved foundational skills. This evidence led to national and state-level adoption in India and to large-scale adaptation in countries such as Zambia, Côte d’Ivoire, and Kenya. Yet despite being a strong approach backed by rigorous evidence, implementation at scale remains uneven. Teachers and government staff have shown strong commitment to the TaRL method and work hard to deliver it despite systemic challenges, highlighting the importance of external support to strengthen implementation fidelity. 

For years, the dominant approach to teacher support has been workshops—short, intensive sessions where teachers are introduced to a new method and then expected to apply it immediately in their classrooms. But one-off training rarely leads to long-term change. Teachers do not become experts simply because they attended a two-day session. They need sustained, contextually relevant support to translate ideas into practice. 

To a lesser extent, mentoring, refresher training, and professional learning circles also play a role in TaRL. For example, the program in Zambia intentionally links teacher support systems to existing structures, such as SPRINT. Though gaps remain in providing teacher support, government investment in these systems shows that teacher training is a priority.

Continuous professional development ( CPD) offers an alternative to one-off training and uneven support. CPD recognizes that teaching is a complex skill that develops over time. It emphasizes ongoing coaching, opportunities for practice, observation, feedback, and reflection. Most importantly, it acknowledges that teachers, like all professionals, improve when they receive ongoing personalized, actionable support.

From 2022 to 2024, Busara, TaRL Africa and VVOB, in close collaboration with the Government of Zambia, conducted research to understand the contexts in which Zambian teachers facilitate TaRL classes. We set up labs in Eastern, Southern, and Lusaka Provinces and invited teachers to participate in experiments aimed at understanding the circumstances under which they make mindful teaching-related decisions. These randomized control trials revealed a key finding: When systems are set up to give teachers timely, detailed feedback on their teaching decisions in TaRL classrooms, they reflect on and update their practices (read the report here). 

On the surface, this seems obvious. However, it has several implications for intervention planning and implementation. First, policy must treat teachers as individuals with their own motivations, experiences, and ways of learning. Human-centered research approaches help uncover these differences. When we understand what drives teachers, what frustrates them, and what they aspire to, we can design support that meets their needs. 

Second, the system must enable this support. Teachers cannot receive high-quality feedback if no one in the system is accountable or empowered to give it. Supervisors and mentors need clear mandates and time to observe classrooms and provide feedback. Headteachers need autonomy and resources to prioritize instructional leadership. District officials must have incentives that reward support beyond compliance. Policies must leave space for iteration and adaptation. When systems fail to provide these structures, responsibility shifts unfairly to teachers, and interventions struggle to take hold.

Finally, we need to pay attention not just to what works in education, but how it works. Zambia’s experience illustrates both the promise and the complexity of scaling government-owned, evidence-based programmes. It shows that knowing that a method is effective is not enough. We need to understand how teachers internalize new techniques, how they integrate them into existing workloads, and how the system shapes their ability to succeed. Education reform must go beyond copying a model and focus on creating the conditions that allow it to succeed

References

1. Banerjee, Abhijit; Banerji, Rukmini; Berry, James; Duflo, Esther; Kannan, Harini; Mukherji, Shobhini; Shotland, Marc; Walton, Michael. Mainstreaming an Effective Intervention: Evidence from Randomized Evaluations of “Teaching at the Right Level” in India, J-PAL / Pratham, August 2016
2. Maruyama, T., & Igei, K. (2025). Developing collective impact to improve foundational learning: Evidence from Madagascar (The Journal of Development Studies). Taylor & Francis. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2025.2525849
3. Angrist, N., Piper, B., Banerji, R., Hamza, H., Poswell, L., & Hwa, Y.-Y. (2025, January 22). Six insights on implementation challenges at scale – and how to fix them. What Works Hub for Global Education.
4. Mubanga, R. M. (2012). School program of in-service training for the term (SPRINT) program in Zambia: A case of collaboration towards self-reliant education development (Japan Education Forum IX). Director General, Education and Specialized Services, Ministry of Education, Zambia. Retrieved from https://cice.hiroshima-u.ac.jp/wp-content/uploads/Forum/JEF9/Ruth-Mubanga-e.pdf
5. Jang, Chaning; Koki, Edel; Nyaga, Robert; Okafor, Arize; Singh, Jaspreet; Wendel, Steve. The Busara toolkit: leveraging behavioral science for development. Busara Groundwork No. 10 (Research Agenda). Nairobi: Busara, 2024. DOI: doi.org/10.62372/WQSB6195