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Rouble Nagi accepted the award at the World Governments Summit
in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, an annual event that draws
leaders from across the globe.
Her Rouble Nagi Art Foundation has established more than 800
learning centers across India. They aim to have children who
never attended school begin to have structured learning. They
also teach children already in school.
Nagi also paints murals that teach literacy, science, math and
history, among other topics.
The prize is awarded by the Varkey Foundation, whose founder,
Sunny Varkey, established the for-profit GEMS Education company
that runs dozens of schools in Egypt, Qatar and the UAE.
“Rouble Nagi represents the very best of what teaching can be –
courage, creativity, compassion, and an unwavering belief in
every child’s potential,” Varkey said in a statement posted to
the Global Teacher Prize website. “By bringing education to the
most marginalised communities, she has not only changed
individual lives, but strengthened families and communities.”
Nagi plans to use the $1 million to build an institute that
offers free vocational training.
Stefania Giannini, UNESCO Assistant Director-General for
Education, said Nagi's prize “reminds us of a simple truth:
teachers matter.”
In comments carried on the prize website, Giannini said UNESCO
was “honoured to join the Global Teacher Prize in celebrating
teachers like you, who, through patience, determination, and
belief in every learner, help children into school — an act that
can change the course of a life.”
Nagi is the 10th teacher to win the award, which the foundation
began handing out in 2015.
Past winners of the Global Teacher Prize have included a Kenyan
teacher from a remote village who gave away most of his earnings
to the poor, a Palestinian primary school teacher who teaches
her students about non-violence and a Canadian educator who
taught a remote Arctic village of Inuit students. Last year’s
winner was Saudi educator Mansour al-Mansour, who was known for
his work with the poor in the kingdom.
GEMS Education, or Global Education Management Systems, is one
of the world’s largest private school operators and is believed
to be worth billions. Its success has followed that of Dubai,
where only private schools offer classes for the children of the
foreigners who power its economy.
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