Abed Ahmed, known on Twitter as @stammer_teacher, was told he could never be a teacher owing to the fact he has a stammer.
Now in his third year of teaching, not only is he producing good results in his maths department at Washwood Heath Academy, Birmingham, but he runs stammer support groups, in his school and others, where he helps pupils to accept their stammer, become confident and be happy.
He also runs groups for adults and gives basic training to school staff about how to support pupils who stammer. His work has been recognised nationally, including by politicians.
Mr Ahmed, who hopes to become a headteacher one day, says that teaching is not always about results but about making a child grow into a good person.
Judges described him as a “phenomenal guy”, and were impressed by the testimony of a friend who revealed Mr Ahmed’s dedication to teaching. “I know that he has struggled to get to where he is,” said the friend. “He was rejected for many of his ITT applications but persevered and went back to train as a teacher at the school he attended.”
“He is going from strength to strength, and is flourishing in his new role as teaching and learning lead within his own maths department.
“He acts as a role model to young people who stammer and does many fun, confidence-building activities like role play and interview techniques. He gives them a chance to get anything off their chest.”
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