Opportunity Education was founded in 2005 by Joe Ricketts, an entrepreneur who spent over 35 years founding and leading TD Ameritrade. His vision was to provide engaging, effective, and relevant learning experiences for young people, driven by the belief that better education enables students to drive their futures and create value for themselves and their communities.

The idea for the foundation emerged from a chance encounter during a Tanzania safari. When his guide, Shange Wilson, showed Mr. Ricketts his unfinished nursery and primary school, Mr. Ricketts donated $1,400 to complete the construction. This moment sparked a broader vision for educational impact and his determination to make a meaningful contribution to improving education for children and youth around the world. Applying the same innovative thinking that had transformed stock trading at TD Ameritrade, Mr. Ricketts began exploring how his entrepreneurial expertise could revolutionize education access and quality. To bring this vision to life, the Primary School Programme was subsequently introduced in the same year.

The Primary School Programme, Opportunity Education’s first initiative in Tanzania, operated from 2005 to 2019, beginning at Sotwa Wilson English Medium Primary School in Arusha and rapidly expanding to over 400 schools across nearly every region of the country. Designed to address critical gaps in primary education, the programme provided schools with essential teaching and learning resources, including televisions, DVD-based lessons, classroom supplies, notebooks, counting blocks, and maps, enabling teachers to deliver more engaging and effective lessons and supporting students in achieving academic mastery in core subjects.

Beyond supplying materials, the programme fostered school-to-school collaboration, encouraging peer learning and the exchange of best practices, thereby strengthening teacher capacity and ensuring sustainable improvements in teaching quality and student outcomes across partner schools.

In 2014, Opportunity Education began exploring how technology could revolutionise education access and quality. This led to the launch of the Tablet Programme, a two-year pilot programme that equipped 10 secondary schools and 2,000 students with tablets, digital resources, and teacher training to promote independent, technology-driven learning.

The digital content provided across these schools consisted of free, universal resources sourced globally. Following thoughtful reflection and feedback from partner schools, Opportunity Education recognised the need for a programme that could provide more locally relevant learning materials that would resonate with both Tanzanian students and teachers. This need inspired the development of the Next Generation Learning Programme.

In 2016, Opportunity Education launched the Next Generation Learning Programme, now known as Quest Forward Learning, in response to the need for a more strategic, future-focused approach to teaching and learning. The programme emerged from the recognition that many students were disengaged in traditional, teacher-centred classrooms. To address this challenge, the programme introduced digital Quests, structured lessons presented through a series of activities that provide hands-on, student-centred learning experiences designed to spark curiosity, deepen understanding, and align with national curricula.

Through both in-class and out-of-class sessions, the programme helps students learn independently and in small groups, supported by regular teacher check-ins, feedback, and guidance. Each learning activity is deliberately structured to help students master subject content while also developing the essential skills and mindsets needed for long-term success. Recognising that effective implementation requires strong teacher capacity, Opportunity Education continues to invest in ongoing teacher professional development. This support helps teachers shift from traditional delivery, where the teacher is the primary source of knowledge, to student-centred approaches that empower learners to think critically, collaborate, problem-solve, and take ownership of their learning. The programme continues to grow, emphasising a transformative learning culture that enables students to create value for themselves, their families, their communities, and their country.

In 2017, Opportunity Education launched the Next Generation Learning programme, now known as Quest Forward Learning, at Mtakuja Secondary School in Moshi as the pilot school. The programme began with 61 Form 1 students who became the first class to fully adopt this programme and use the quests as their main curriculum. It introduced personalised, skills-focused learning that helps students develop the knowledge, skills, and mindset needed to achieve their future goals.

From 2017 to date, the programme at Mtakuja Secondary School has impacted over 25 teachers and 411 students across Form 1 – 4. Today, Mtakuja Secondary School remains a flagship partner, a testament to what is possible when a school embraces a transformative learning culture rooted in curiosity, collaboration, problem-solving, and student ownership.

In 2020, Opportunity Education introduced the Pathways Programme to help students identify their interests, strengths, and potential career paths for a meaningful future beyond secondary school.

The programme introduces a set of activities focused on career exploration, goal-setting, financial literacy, self-awareness, life skills, and post-secondary opportunities. In 2020, the programme was launched at Mtakuja Secondary school, Opportunity Education’s pilot school, and a year later (2021) expanded to 10 more schools. Early impacts included improved student confidence in planning for their futures, stronger self-awareness, and increased awareness of career possibilities beyond secondary school.

In 2020, during the COVID-19 lockdown, when students were unable to access classroom learning, Opportunity Education introduced a distance learning participation model that brought together school teachers and parents to support students from home. Teachers created weekly study schedules that supported parents in creating home-study environments for students to complete the lessons and exercises assigned by the teachers. Students completed the quests and exercises at home and, with help from their parents, shared their completed work with their teachers. This model provided a collaborative initiative that enabled all students across the network to continue learning consistently, even when many elsewhere had no means to keep up with their studies.

In 2020, Opportunity Education introduced the Local Resource Server (LRS), which transformed digital learning for partner schools by providing reliable offline access to teaching materials, learning resources, and assessments through quests. This was a game-changer for schools/environments where internet connectivity was limited or costly; the LRS ensured that students and teachers could access high-quality digital content at any time without any limitations.

In the Tanzanian education system, Form 4 national examinations serve as a critical gateway for students. Earning Division I or II is essential for advancing to A-Level studies and accessing stronger academic and career opportunities. To support students across the network in achieving this, Opportunity Education has made intentional efforts to support academic excellence. In the last two years (2023 and 2024), about 70% of both Form 2 and Form 4 students from 17 participating schools scored in Divisions I and II on the national exams.

As of 2024, Opportunity Education’s student-centred digital learning materials for Forms 1–4 have been approved and certified by the Tanzania Institute of Education (TIE), marking the first learning programme with a digital curriculum to achieve this milestone.

TIE approval and certification confirm that the programme aligns with national policies, adheres to proper instructional design procedures, and meets high-quality digital education resources. This recognition ensures that schools using the materials operate within the approved national framework, providing schools with confidence in the programme’s quality and reliability.

This approval marks a significant advancement for digital learning in Tanzania. It demonstrates that a student-centred, skills-based digital programme designed by Tanzanians and tailored for Tanzanian teachers and students can meet national standards while supporting the country’s goals for improved learning outcomes and innovation in education.

Opportunity Education’s effort to ensure all learning and teaching materials are approved affirms a deep and ongoing commitment to partner with the Government of Tanzania to deliver high-quality, nationally recognised learning resources to schools across the country.

In 2024, through a partnership with Midland University (Nebraska, United States), 51 Tanzanian secondary school teachers earned certification in active learning and feedback strategies. This has strengthened classroom engagement and improved teaching effectiveness across partner schools. This professional development has not only enhanced teaching quality but also fostered a culture of continuous learning among teachers, driving innovation and sustained academic improvement across partner schools.

These efforts reflect Opportunity Education’s recognition that sustained, practical, and context-specific support is vital for helping teachers implement student-centred learning with excellence.

Opportunity Education through Quest Forward Learning now supports over 6,000 students and 520 teachers across 45 secondary schools in 10 regions.

This expansion has increased access to high-quality, student-centred digital learning materials aligned with the national curriculum, reaching schools in remote and underserved areas.

The growth has also strengthened teacher capacity, as Opportunity Education’s professional development programmes continue to equip educators with active learning strategies, effective feedback techniques, learning and work skills, and digital teaching skills, fostering more engaging and interactive classrooms.