ISN Live · December 2025
Leading in Times of Uncertainty
An International Schools Network panel on holding a school steady when the map keeps redrawing itself — I joined school leaders from Beijing, Kalba and the UK.
Chișinău, Moldova
Tatiana Popa
Educator · Deputy Academic Director, Heritage International School
I teach one classroom in Chișinău — and connect it to the whole world, through global projects, hybrid learning and a stubborn belief that every student deserves a seat at the global table.
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years in education
Top 0
global education influencer — Edruptors 2023, ISC Research
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educators live at Heritage online conference, moderated by me
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international ambassadorships
Networks · partners · press
L6
DigComp
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45A Dacia Blvd · About
A teacher who helped move a
whole country online
I am an English and Cambridge Global Perspectives teacher and Deputy Academic Director at Heritage International School in Chișinău, where I lead global education strategy, international partnerships and hybrid learning across the school.
When the 2020 lockdown closed Moldova's schools, I shared my remote-teaching practice with the Ministry of Education, trained the trainers, and helped cascade that knowledge until an entire national school system was learning online.
An English philologist by training (MA, Moldova State University) and one of the first educators in Moldova certified as a school leader by University College London (NPQSL), I write and speak internationally on global learning, sustainability and technology in education — and I keep bringing NASA-sized opportunities to my students.
- LanguagesRomanian (native) · English C2 · Russian C1 · German B1
- NetworkseTwinning Europe · T4 Education · Global School Alliance · TAG Climate Action Project
- BoardsSLT member, Heritage · ISN Advisory Board · Teach First Moldova board member
“Until we reach Mars, we must first learn to keep our own little corner of paradise in good shape.”
Itinerary · 2007 — today
The journey so far
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2022 —
Deputy Academic Director
Heritage International School, Chișinău
Senior Leadership Team member. I liaise with the Ministry of Education and Research, COBIS, embassies and international organisations; lead curriculum strategy for sustainability, digital, creative and global learning; build the school-wide CPD plan and mentor new teachers.
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2020 —
Hybrid Learning Coordinator & Online Safety DSL
Heritage International School
I designed the school's online safety policy, run its Google Classroom ecosystem and keep families connected to learning — wherever it happens.
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2019 —
Head of Global Education
Heritage International School
I built the school's international partnerships, grants and awards pipeline, coordinate eTwinning for all schools, and bring my students into global projects, competitions and challenges across continents.
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2017 —
English & Cambridge Global Perspectives Teacher
Heritage International School
My IGCSE Global Perspectives students achieve some of the school's best results — and learn to argue about the world with evidence and empathy.
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2008 — 2017
English Teacher
Gheorghe Asachi High School, Chișinău
Nine years of lessons, exam classes and competitions — the long apprenticeship behind everything that followed.
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2007 — 2008
English Teacher
Technical University of Moldova
My first posting: teaching English to future engineers while completing my MA in English Philology.
Education & certification
- NPQSL, University College London — among the first educators in Moldova certified as school leaders by UCL
- Cambridge International Education — IGCSE Global Perspectives teacher, extension
- MA English Philology · BA English & German — Moldova State University
Published in London & beyond
Writing & press
Essays and columns I have written for the international education press — and my decade-old blog, The Global Educator.
Essays & columns
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Cambridge · Partnership for Education
How do we equip and empower teachers to develop their digital literacy?
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Cambridge · Partnership for Education
Prompt the future: humans at the heart of education — report contributor
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TES Magazine
How a simple Twitter message led to NASA speaking at our school
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TES Magazine
What happened when the education ministry came for tea?
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TES Magazine
Teachers must share their best ideas with the world
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COBIS
Why we should place sustainability at the heart of the curriculum
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ISC Research
Bringing sustainability into our core priorities for a successful learning experience
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Global School Alliance
ChatGPT and the use of AI in the classroom
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Global School Alliance
Letter from Moldova: how one school answered the war in Ukraine
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Global School Alliance
COP26: how schools can join in for the sake of our planet
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Global School Alliance
Global educational projects for a better world
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Global School Alliance
Back to school: diary of an English teacher in Moldova
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Global School Alliance
What three years of the Global School Alliance meant to me
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ISN
Why sustainability projects are no longer optional
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ISN
Why education has changed for the better during the pandemic
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Fieldwork Education
Heritage International School: winning the School of Excellence award
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OECD · Global Teaching InSights
On training peers — my insights for the OECD, 2021
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Radio Europa Liberă
Jurnal săptămânal — my weekly diary from a country learning online
From my blog
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The Global Educator
Why go to the Nobel Prize Teacher Summit?
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The Global Educator
International Education Week 2023 at Heritage
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The Global Educator
A very (un)usual week at Heritage International School
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eTwinning Moldova
End-of-year reflections: eTwinning onsite course, Slovakia
In the media — coverage & interviews
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Svenska institutet
“Teachers need inspiration and perspectives that help learners build a better world”
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ISC Research
Edruptors 2023: named among the Top 20 education influencers of the year
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School Management Plus
Who are the biggest influencers in international education?
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LYIS News
A first in education in Moldova: educational leaders certified by UCL
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#diez
Premieră pentru educația din Moldova — lidere educaționale certificate de UCL
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PRO TV Chișinău
O profesoară din Moldova, în top 20 influenceri în educație la nivel mondial
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Moldova 1
În top 20 de influenceri în domeniul educației la nivel mondial
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TVR Moldova
Promovează educația prin metode interactive — top 20 mondial
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ea.md
#ProfesorCOOL — an interview about the love of teaching
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Vocea Basarabiei
School–family collaboration is vital for a child's success
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School Management Plus
Spotlight on a school: Heritage International School, Moldova
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eTwinning Plus Moldova
Representing Moldova at the international eTwinning seminar in Bratislava
On air · from Chișinău to the world
Talks & conferences
ISN Training Forum · August 2026
International Schools in 2030
An extended panel with Rob Ford and John Rolfe MBE on the challenges international schools have to address today if they still want to matter in 2030.
Heritage online conference · July 2020
Getting Back to Global for the 2020s
I organised and moderated this conference single-handedly in the first pandemic summer: four hours on the future of international education, with 1,000+ educators live and 10,000 watching after.
Watch the recording →British Council · Education Exchange
Embedding resilience · Remote learning · Schools Now!
A regular voice in the British Council's global webinar series, 2020–2022.
Watch →BETT London · TeachMeet Global
Teaching the SDGs through project-based learning
On the BETT stage among global educators, January 2021.
Programme →Future Classroom Lab · Brussels
Teaching in the time of corona
FCL Talks, 20 March 2020 — one of the first European accounts of a school gone fully remote.
Watch →Nobel Prize Teacher Summit · Stockholm
Swedish Institute scholarship holder
I represented Moldova among the educators invited to the Nobel Prize Teacher Summit.
My story →Ministry of Education · Moldova
National teacher trainer
Trainer of trainers for the national move to online learning; speaker at ministry conferences and national forums.
More recordings
- Schools Now! — global collaboration at Heritage · British Council, 2021
- Sustainability and the SDGs through project-based learning · COBIS webinar
- Studiu de caz: Școala Internațională Heritage · Educație Online fără Hotare, 2020
- Internetul — punte către posibilități nelimitate · Moldcell webinar
- Proiecte globale pentru sustenabilitate · Conferința „Educație online prin parteneriate”
- Virtual Museum Tour · International Museum Day
Recognition
Marks on the map
2023
Top 20 Edruptors
ISC Research's list of the world's most influential voices in international education — after Top 75 in 2021.
2021
Global Teacher Award
AKS Education's recognition of outstanding teachers worldwide.
2024
Among the first two UCL-certified school leaders in Moldova
I completed the NPQSL with University College London — a first for the country, covered by national press.
2019 —
Ambassador, four networks
eTwinning Europe, T4 Education, Global School Alliance and TAG's Climate Action Project.
Digital competences · DigComp self-assessment, 2024
Next stop
Let's connect your classroom
to the world
For conferences, training, global projects and press — I am one message away.