Indian Teacher wins US $1 million Global Teacher Prize 2020

Indian village teacher Ranjitsinh Disale, who transformed the life chances of young girls at the Zilla Parishad Primary School, Paritewadi, Solapur, Maharashtra, India, has been named the winner of the Global Teacher Prize 2020, in partnership with UNESCO.

Ranjitsinh Disale, a primary school teacher from the Solapur village in Maharashtra, won the US $1 million Global Teacher Prize 2020, founded by the Varkey Foundation, and organized in partnership with UNESCO. The announcement was made today in a virtual ceremony hosted by British actor Stephen Fry from the Natural History Museum in London.

Ranjitsinh Disale was one of ten finalists nominated, and he was recognized for his efforts at promoting girls’ education and triggering a quick-response (QR) coded textbook revolution in India. In his winning speech, he announced that he intends to share half of the prize money with the remaining nine teachers from the Global Teacher Prize 2020 finalists.

The Global Teacher Prize is a US $1 million award presented annually to an exceptional teacher who has made an outstanding contribution to their profession. This year’s 10 finalists were selected from over 12,000 applications and nominations from over 140 countries around the world.

Source: UNESCO