A Message from Humyra on Teach 2030

Written by Humyra Maliha

Hello everyone, I am Humyra Anjum Maliha from Bangladesh and I work as a Teach 2030 Ambassador. Undoubtedly, by joining the Teach 2030 team, I am improving myself daily because I am in a continuous learning process. In this piece of writing, I would like to share my experience with the Teach 2030 team and I hope it will encourage you to join the team and contribute to the field of education in your own communities.

I have been working as an online elementary teacher at Kidpass (NY, USA) since 2020. Additionally, I hold a TESOL certificate issued by Arizona State University and have one year of ESL teaching experience to adult learners. However, I graduated in English from BGMEA University of Fashion and Technology, and during my undergraduate study, fortunately, I got the opportunity to study in the field of education and was involved in research projects. Throughout my research, I came to know that there are many issues that should be developed for a better educational system. For example, teachers in my country – particularly in rural areas – are still applying traditional teaching methods in their classrooms, which is an obstacle to effective learning. Moreover, gender discrimination is the primary barrier to equal education, which is the main reason for lower economic growth. These facts inspired me to be a Teach 2030 Ambassador and work on the progress of the schooling system in my community.  

I believe that the major development of a nation is based on education and for this reason, great people of different eras gave importance to education. For example, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the great leader, and Founding Father of Bangladesh stated:

“No investment could be better than investment in education.”

According to the great leader of South Africa, Nelson Mandela:

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”

Another great leader, Napoleon Bonaparte implied:

“Give me an educated mother, I shall promise you the birth of a civilized, educated nation.”

The Teach 2030 Ambassador programme is an initiative that will help to bring a positive change in the field of education because it will connect teachers. We have ambassadors from Bangladesh, Nigeria, India, South Africa, and so many other countries and work together to be better teachers. By being a Teach 2030 Ambassador I hope to inspire teachers to develop their teaching, and, as a result, make a difference in educational systems.  I want to support the teachers so that they can engage in their Continuing Professional Development (CPD), otherwise known as Teacher Professional Development (TPD).

I came to know about Teach 2030 courses from one of my UN Volunteer projects and I have taken a total of 5 courses which I found helpful, especially the course ‘Growth Mindsets’ that differentiates a traditional teacher from an interactive teacher, and the importance of the continuous growth of a teacher. I enjoy the short Teach 2030 workshops every month which are very informative and interactive. For example:

In the last workshop on “Open and Closed Questions”, I learned the importance of the open question for making a class more engaging. I applied it in my own classes and according to the parents, my classes are more interactive than before.

Moreover, the weekly teacher tips are very useful to improve our teaching.  

To conclude, I strongly believe that the Teach 2030 platform is very advantageous because it gives the support and guidance that a teacher needs for professional growth and that’s why I would like to advise all the teachers to join the Teach 2030 team. It is not only a platform that contains a bunch of courses – but it will also guide you to become a better teacher, with higher pedagogical knowledge, while encouraging you to build your professional network. I believe that our growth can be possible when we exchange our knowledge. In my opinion, learning alone is not enough for teachers, they should apply the learning to the classroom for the highest result. 

I would like to thank the Teach 2030 team for starting this wonderful initiative to help teachers, particularly those from developing countries. But of course, every teacher should participate willingly in this professional development process.

Let’s try and bring positive change to the field of education together!

References

Mannan, Abdul (2022). Bangabandhu’s Thought on Education. Daily Sun. https://www.daily-sun.com/printversion/details/513626/Bangabandhu%E2%80%99s-Thought-on-Education

Loo, Connie (2018). Top Nine Nelson Mandela Quotes About Education. The Borgen Project. https://borgenproject.org/nelson-mandela-quotes-about-education/

Quotefancy. https://quotefancy.com/quote/870283/Napoleon-Give-me-an-educated-mother-I-shall-promise-you-the-birth-of-a-civilized-educated