Inspiration
Swaroop Sampat Rawal, renowned Early Childhood Educationist is a Top 50 Finalist for Global Teacher Prize 2019
It is a proud moment for the nation as Dr. Swaroop Sampat Rawal from India along with Aarti Qanungo, a Delhi government school teacher has made it to the final 50 contenders for the Global Teacher Prize 2019.
It is a proud moment for the nation as Dr. Swaroop Sampat Rawal from India along with Aarti Qanungo, a Delhi government school teacher has made it to the final 50 contenders for the Global Teacher Prize 2019. Dr Swaroop Sampat-Rawal, who earned her PhD at the University of Worcester and last month was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University in recognition of her commitment to education, has been shortlisted from thousands of entries for the highly prestigious award.
Dr. Swaroop Sampat Rawal, following a career on stage as a Bollywood superstar and success as a model – including being crowned Miss India in 1979 – went into teaching to accomplish two goals: to help make children more resilient through life skills education and to bring new methods to teaching that would help students and their teachers reflect, imagine and build their sense of personal worth and agency.
In 2014 she carried out teacher training sessions for the government through a satellite link – an extremely successful program which brought about immense changes in teacher attitude in rural Gujarat. Swaroop also serves as the Non-Government Special Member on the Central Advisory Board of Education. In 2016 she was awarded Most Committed Person of the Year in Inclusive Education at the 4th International Early Childhood Conference of The Early Childhood Association.
If awarded the Global Teacher Prize, she would form a think tank to create and promote special curricula for pre-vocational education (PVE) in primary schools. This will aim to ensure that children are informed about a variety of possible occupations wherever they live in India. This think tank would share findings internationally for use in other countries, where they are directly related to the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.
Ms. Arti Qanungo teaches grades six to ten; she has been employing immersive learning and role-playing to make English learning easy for her students. She has also connected with her students by spreading awareness on issues of menstrual hygiene and provide girl students a safe space to share their thoughts, experiences, and feelings. The multitalented educator has also scripted and directed several street plays on the themes of Challenges of Adolescence and Menstrual Hygiene.
Previously, she has also received many awards such as Teacher Innovator of the Year 2018 award from the University of Roehampton in collaboration with STIR Education, the State Teacher Award 2017 from the Directorate of Education, and the Nation Builder Award in 2016 from the Rotary India Literacy Mission.
She has expressed her wish to start a student exchange programme and create sustainable women entrepreneur groups, once she wins this award.