BUILD.org Knows The Key To Success. Spoiler: It’s Teachers

Studies now prove what teachers have known for decades: learning gamification can boost motivation, enhance memory recall, and improve student performance. Weaving together fun with hands-on learning helps students feel empowered, retain information, and accomplish their goals in and outside the classroom. 

But bringing new education technology into classrooms is nowhere near as easy as 1-2-3. Introducing tools to entire school districts can mean navigating complex, slow-moving contracting and procurement processes. Beyond that, teachers are already strapped for time, and student privacy considerations mean that getting their feedback — an essential piece in launching any technology product — can be daunting.

So how can a company overcome those feedback challenges to bring new products into classrooms that create lasting, impactful change? Together, BUILD.org and DonorsChoose took a grassroots, teacher-centric approach to this question, and it paid off — big time. 

Understanding the true value of frontline wisdom  

BUILD.org is dedicated to empowering kids in under-resourced communities with the career skills, entrepreneurial mindset, opportunities, and connections they need to achieve economic power and freedom. Their newest offering, FamBiz, is a CEO simulation game for 7th-12th graders that transforms entrepreneurship skill-building into a gamified adventure. As students play, they shape their own entrepreneurial journey by navigating critical choices in team dynamics, product development, consumer research, and more. Made free and accessible to all thanks to a partnership under Comcast NBCUniversal’s Project UP Initiative, FamBiz has the potential to inspire students’ entrepreneurship, leadership, and grit.

DonorsChoose shares BUILD’s mission of student empowerment. In the 2023-24 school year, nearly a quarter of a million teachers used DonorsChoose to request what their students needed, and since our founding in 2000, 89% of US public schools have at least one teacher who’s requested materials through our site. By connecting teachers and classrooms in need with a community of over 6 million donors and sponsors, DonorsChoose proves every day that we won’t stop until every student has what they need to succeed.

A grassroots approach to product adoption

Both BUILD.org and DonorsChoose understand that teachers are the key to any meaningful change in the classroom. They’re excellent word-of-mouth marketers — teachers trust each others’ recommendations above everything else. BUILD.org knew that if they wanted to encourage long-term adoption of FamBiz, they’d need to engage teachers and get their direct feedback to make that happen. BUILD.org also recognized DonorsChoose’s reputation with teachers and district leaders alike — if DonorsChoose recommended FamBiz, teachers would be excited to try it out. 

BUILD.org began by tapping into DonorsChoose’s active and engaged audience of innovative teachers. As an incentive and thank-you, participating teachers would receive a $300 DonorsChoose gift card, provided by Comcast, that they could use to stock their classrooms. 

With just one email, DonorsChoose inspired 888 teachers to sign up for FamBiz in advance of the launch.

Leveraging feedback to create lasting change

Building on that success, BUILD.org then leveraged DonorsChoose’s robust feedback mechanisms to iterate and improve their product for future users. 

BUILD.org tapped into three feedback streams: Teachers wrote questions to DonorsChoose Customer Support. Upon receiving their questions, our team identified trends to share back with BUILD.org, leading to informed improvements in user experience.

1. After leading their students through FamBiz, teachers reported their experience and the tool’s impact on their students to DonorsChoose via a survey.
2. Integrated student reflections and end-of-experience student surveys provided immediate feedback on student learning and student engagement.

In return, not only did the BUILD team receive crucial user feedback on FamBiz, but teachers used their DonorsChoose gift cards to bring learning materials to students in hundreds of classrooms. A new learning tool crossed the daunting bridge of receiving classroom input, and teachers received the help they needed.

We’re totally blown away by what can be accomplished when we let teacher wisdom guide product development and roll-out. The partnership between DonorsChoose, BUILD.org, and Comcast highlights that when we listen to teachers about what classrooms need, we can help be a part of a brighter future for all students. We’re so grateful to our partners at BUILD.org and Comcast for putting their community values into practice to create lasting change!

Visit our Partner Center to learn how you can work with DonorsChoose to achieve your organization’s goals.