Abu Dhabi - Rashed Hashem was selected from over 10,000 nominations.
Published: Fri 14 Dec 2018, 9:51 PM
An Emirati teacher from Abu Dhabi is among the top 50 contestants short-listed for the $1-million Varkey Foundation Global Teacher Prize for 2019.
Rashed Hashem, who teaches physical education and health at Al Moatasem Public School for Boys in Baniyas, Abu Dhabi, was selected from over 10,000 nominations and applications from 179 countries around the world.
"I am happy. I am very happy. I want to be the best for my country and bring the spotlight on the UAE's efforts to promote innovative teaching," Hashem told Khaleej Times.
"My aim is to be in the top 10 and then, God willing, win the prize. I want to break the stereotype that teaching is not meant for men. There is a general misconception and I hope my win will attract more men to join teaching," said Hashem, who is the first Emirati teacher appointed as a Goodwill Ambassador by the United Nations. He won the Mohamed Bin Zayed Award for Best Gulf Teacher in 2018, and also received the UAE Medal in 2015 from His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
In its fifth year, the Varkey Foundation Global Teacher Prize is the biggest of its kind and was set up to recognise one exceptional teacher who has made an outstanding contribution to the profession as well as to shine a spotlight on the important role teachers play in society.
Going by that criteria, Hashem is a shining example of how a teacher can single-handedly transform the learning experience of his students. With a doctorate in physical education from the UK, he was nominated to the top 50 slot for contributing to the teaching profession by establishing non-traditional learning environments and improve students' learning levels through mobility.
"I wanted to make learning fun and exciting for students, and sports and physical movement is a great medium to engage students and help them retain the knowledge they acquire," said Hashem.
With that aim, he set up the Zayed Centre for the Mind Industry at his school campus, which he claims is the first educational centre of its kind in the Middle East.
"I spent money from my own pocket to establish this centre. I wanted to invest in my own country and in its people."
Hashem said there are nine different kinds of labs at the centre, like the laboratory of hyperactivity to help children who are hyperactive, and the Smart Carpet laboratory, which promotes learning by motion through an interactive digital application.
"Students have to learn and answer a question by choosing a particular movement, for instance by pushing their right leg or moving their hands. What I discovered was that when children are kept in motion, they are more engaged in learning," said Hashem.
He said his methods have had a significant impact on improving student learning and these innovations contributed to an improvement in his school's assessment from 15 per cent to 67 per cent in 2018.
If he wins the top prize, the teacher said he wants to establish a special education centre in Dubai "to teach and treat students using physical education".
anjana@khaleejtimes.com
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