A British teacher who was made an MBE for developing a programme that teaches inclusiveness and diversity has been named a top 10 finalist for the $1 million Varkey Foundation Global Teacher Prize.
Andrew Moffat, a personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education teacher from Parkfield Community School in Birmingham, was one of more than 10,000 teachers nominated from 39 countries.
The shortlist was unveiled by Hollywood star Hugh Jackman, who paid tribute to teachers as “real superheroes”.
In a video, he said: “When I was a kid there were lots of superheroes that I wanted to be.
“But I can tell you right now, from where I stand, with all my experience, the real superheroes are teachers - they’re the ones that change the world.
“My favourite uncle was a teacher, my sister’s a teacher, my brother’s a teacher and I have always felt the most important job in the world is teachers.
“My hope for every single person on the planet is that you have at least one.”
Mr Moffat’s school is near the deprived Bordesley Green area of Birmingham, where more than nine in 10 pupils speak English as an additional language.
He has brought his No Outsiders programme, which he also uses to reduce the potential for radicalisation, to parents through the use of parent-child workshops, and has extended it to schools in other cities in the UK.
He also runs the Parkfield Ambassadors after-school club, which creates opportunities for children at his school, where 99 per cent of students are Muslim, to meet others of different races, religions and cultures around Birmingham.
In 2017, he was made an MBE for services to equality and diversity in education.
Global Teacher Prize: the finalists
The other nine finalists for the Varkey Foundation Global Teacher Prize 2019 are:
Vladimer Apkhazava, a civic education teacher at Chibati Public School, Tbilisi, Georgia;
Débora Garofalo, a technologies for learning teacher at EMEF Almirante Ary Parreiras, São Paulo, Brazil;
Daisy Mertens, an all-subjects teacher at community-based school De Vuurvogel, Helmond, Netherlands;
Swaroop Rawal, a life skills teacher, at Lavad Primary School, Gujarat, India;
Melissa Salguero, a music teacher at P.S.48 Joseph R Drake elementary school, the Bronx, New York, United States;
Martin Salvetti, head of automative studies and adult professional training, at EEST N°5 “2 de Abril” Temperley, Temperley, Buenos Aires, Argentina;
Yasodai Selvakumaran, a history and society and culture teacher, at Rooty Hill High School, New South Wales, Australia;
Hidekazu Shoto, an English language and ICT teacher at Ritsumeikan Primary School, Kyoto, Japan;
Peter Tabichi, a maths and physics teacher at Keriko Secondary School, Pwani Village, Nakuru, Kenya.
