AI for educational equality: to teach makes personalized learning possible

How a start-up wants to modernize education and make it fairer. to teach supports over 100,000 teachers in lesson planning, preparation and the creation of differentiated teaching materials.

When Felix Weiß was still in the classroom as a student teacher and preparing new lessons every day, he quickly realized that teachers are under enormous pressure. Not only do they have to prepare the right material for each class and adapt it individually - there is often little time to really respond to the needs of individual pupils. Together with his school friend and co-founder Marius Lindenmeier, a computer scientist, Felix decided to develop a solution to this problem. This idea gave rise to teach - a platform that uses artificial intelligence to relieve teachers and make personalized learning easier than ever.

The mission of the two founders: to modernize education and make it fairer by digitizing everyday teaching and helping teachers use their time more efficiently. Since its launch in 2023, to teach has become an indispensable tool for over 100,000 teachers worldwide. Felix and Marius are thus focusing on a practice-oriented technology that offers real support instead of overburdening teachers with additional tools.

Digital education in Germany - a mammoth task

Germany is lagging behind when it comes to the digitalization of education. While other countries have long been relying on AI-supported platforms and interactive content, many German teachers are still struggling with outdated technology and a high administrative burden. The often emphasized demand for more individual support becomes a real challenge in everyday school life: too many pupils, too little time and hardly any technical support. Felix Weiß knows these problems from his own experience and recognized early on the enormous potential that artificial intelligence could have for education.

Teachers need real relief, not additional tools. to teach is designed to make everyday life easier - we want to help, not overwhelm

Felix Weiß, co-founder of to teach

From vision to implementation: the idea behind to teach

The foundation stone for to teach was laid in 2018. Felix and Marius, who knew each other from school, originally wanted to develop an augmented reality app for math lessons. But the deeper they delved into the world of educational technology, the clearer it became: Teachers need a solution that covers all aspects of everyday teaching. In 2019, they founded thea GbR, which later became thea GmbH, and developed the first digital applications for schools.

Through the close exchange with teachers and the increasing demand for digital support, thea to teach was finally created in 2023 - an AI-based platform that offers everything from lesson planning to material creation from a single source. Thanks to pre-seed funding and the merger with fobizz | 101skills GmbH in early 2024, the team was able to pursue its vision in an even more targeted manner and quickly make its AI applications available to teachers. Teachers and schools around the world are now using to teach to make their lessons more flexible and efficient.

Efficiency in lesson preparation in the classroom: how to teach works

to teach is simple and intuitive - which is exactly what makes the platform so attractive. Teachers log in, enter the topic for the next lesson and the AI does the rest. The platform creates a detailed lesson plan, adapts the content to the respective curriculum and suggests suitable materials. The teacher can further adapt the process or get started straight away - without hours of preparation or AI knowledge.

Our platform saves time without sacrificing quality. Teachers can concentrate on the essentials: their students.

An example: An English teacher wants to teach the topic "Present Perfect Tense". to teach generates a complete lesson, including an introduction, exercises and a conclusion. Suitable worksheets, presentations or explanatory videos are available at the touch of a button. The materials can be used directly or adapted further - either digitally or as a printout for the classroom.

Individual support made easy

Another key feature of to teach is the ability to tailor the content to the individual class. The platform takes into account the learning status and performance level of the students and can present content in a differentiated way. This means that high-performing learners are given more challenging tasks, while others receive targeted support without the teacher having to make any additional effort.

We want to promote educational equity by supporting teachers in providing the best possible support for every child.

To teach is designed for teachers with no prior technical knowledge. No extensive training is required to use the platform. The intuitive user interface ensures that to teach can be easily integrated into everyday teaching - whether for elementary school, secondary schools or vocational schools.

Support from the teaching community

For Felix and Marius, feedback from teachers is a key source of inspiration. In conversations with users, they repeatedly hear which functions are actually helpful in everyday life. For example, the function for creating individual QR codes that students can use to download tasks to their devices, such as PCs or tablets, was created at the suggestion of teachers.

Our community gives us valuable feedback that flows directly into the further development of the platform. to teach is not static - we are constantly developing it further.

A look into the future: digitalization as the key to educational equality

With to teach, Felix Weiß and Marius Lindenmeier have created a platform that shows how digitalization can relieve the burden on schools and promote equal opportunities. However, the two founders agree that the potential of digitalization in education is far from exhausted. They see their work as just the beginning of a movement that could fundamentally transform the education system. In the long term, to teach is intended to support schools and teachers not only in Germany, but worldwide and simplify access to high-quality learning content.

We want to offer a solution that can be used internationally and creates real added value for all learners, because education is the basis for equal opportunities.

to teach provides teachers with exactly what they need: a platform that simplifies lesson preparation and saves valuable time. Instead of digital overload, there is real support - from automated lesson plans to differentiated materials that cater to the needs of each individual pupil. With to teach, Felix and Marius have created a technology that is practical and user-friendly and puts the focus back on the essentials in the classroom: individual support and the students' learning success.