Special needs teacher from Fujairah in top 50 shortlist for $1m Global Teacher Prize 2020

Special needs teacher Mohamed Mohtady Mohamed from Anas Bin Al Nadr School for Basic and Secondary Education, Fujairah, UAE, has been included in the top 50 shortlist for the Varkey Foundation Global Teacher Prize 2020 in partnership with UNESCO. Now in its sixth year, the US$1 million award is the largest prize of its kind.

Mohamed Mohtady Mohamed, shortlisted for the Global Teacher Prize 2020, was selected from over 12,000 nominations and applications from over 140 countries around the world.

Mohamed Mohtady Mohamed teaches boys from sixth to twelfth grade at a school in a remote area of Fujairah, UAE, where there are many obstacles to effective learning – including language barriers, a higher than average rate of disabilities, and undiagnosed health problems. To tackle these obstacles, Mohamed treats each student as unique and responds to their individual learning style. Therapeutic teaching is given to students with anxiety, and established strategies are used with students who have an attention deficit or lack of focus. With students that are visually impaired, Mohamed pursues a mixture of individual learning, sound recording, and converting visual lessons to audiobooks using iPads and tablets.

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A core part of Mohamed’s teaching practice is sharing knowledge among the teaching profession. He is a member of the UAE teacher training team for ordinary and special education – helping achieve the government’s vision of improving education by applying modern learning strategies – and has contributed to creative sessions at the UAE Ministry of Health and Education to generate innovative ideas. Mohamed has organised student participation at events like the Khorfakkan International Championship for the Disabled, as well as programmes for the cleaning and protection of beaches and nature reserves. A number of his students have also won prizes at national mathematics and school Olympics competitions, and as a result of Mohamed’s contribution to education and the children he has helped, he has been recognized with many awards and is honoured to chair the Special Education Committee of the Teachers’ Council at the UAE Ministry of Education.

The top 50 shortlist has representatives from 37 countries and by highlighting their stories the Varkey Foundation hopes that the public will be able to join in passionate debates about the importance of teachers.

It was also announced that the Global Teacher Prize ceremony will now move to new host cities, spreading its message into every corner of the globe. This year’s winner will be announced live on stage at a red carpet ceremony taking place at the Natural History Museum in London on the evening of Monday 12th October 2020.

Sunny Varkey, Founder of the Varkey Foundation, said:

“We’d like to thank His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai, for creating such a powerful platform to celebrate the world’s teachers. Nurtured in Dubai over the last six years, the global teacher prize ceremony has become a great gift to the world, which will now move to new host cities, spreading its message into every corner of the globe.

”Now, more than ever, we must celebrate the world’s teachers. As we start this new decade, the world is facing some of its greatest challenges – from climate change and conflict to growing inequality and global pandemics. Only by teachers sparking the light of curiosity as well as passing on knowledge and wisdom will we shape a better future for everyone.”