Pakistani teacher wins new Dedicated Teacher Award
Cambridge University Press has named a teacher from Pakistan the winner of the first Dedicated Teacher Awards – a new prize recognising inspirational teachers around the globe.
After a public vote, Ahmed Saya, from Cordoba School for A-Level in Karachi, Pakistan, has today been announced the winner. Saya competed against 4,000 educators for the title of world’s most dedicated teacher2019, winning a trip to Cambridge, UK, continuing professional development (CPD) opportunities for his school, and a host of other prizes.
The Dedicated Teacher Awards, a global competition in which people of all ages nominate teachers who have made a difference to their lives, ran from 1 October to 7 December 2018. A panel of educational experts chose their top six finalists from the thousands of nominations, and a global public vote to decide the winner was held from 21-27 January 2019. Saya’s nomination was the clear favourite, securing a staggering 80% of the public vote.
As well as teaching international O Level and A Level maths and accounting for almost 18 years, Saya is a teacher trainer and works at the Bridge School, Karachi for underprivileged students. He was nominated for going above and beyond for all of his pupils.
‘Teaching is not a job, it’s a responsibility and this responsibility does not end when the class ends,’ explained Saya. ‘I don’t just want to cover the syllabus; it’s my responsibility to also teach students character, ethics and morality. I believe that every child deserves a brighter future and I am grateful for whatever role I can play in helping them to achieve this.’
‘The Dedicated Teacher Awards are a chance for us to join with thousands of people around the world to say thank you,’ explained Kirsty Walford, Global Head of Brand at Cambridge University Press. ‘We’ve been overwhelmed by the amount of heart-warming stories. We fully appreciate all the hard work teachers do daily and so in the coming year, we will be sharing these stories to help teachers get the recognition and thanks we believe they truly deserve.
Saya is one of six finalists who will appear on a thank you page in all of Cambridge University Press’s new education publishing in 2019.
The other finalists are Abhinandan Bhattacharya, the JBCN International School Oshiwara, India; Anthony Chelliah, Gateway College, Sri Lanka; Candice Green, St Augustine’s College, Australia; Jimrey Dapin, University of San Jose-Recoletos, Philippines; and Sharon Kong Foong, Sunway College, Malaysia.
Nominations for the Dedicated Teacher Awards 2020 will open later this year.
To read all the 2019 finalists’ stories, and for more information about the Dedicated Teacher Awards, go to dedicatedteacher.cambridge.org.
For more information please contact [email protected]
