Peter Tabichi

Peter Mokaya Tabichi, OFM (born 1982) is a Kenyan science teacher and Franciscan friar at Keriko Mixed Day Secondary School in Pwani, Nakuru County. He is the winner of the 2019 Global Teacher Prize. Tabichi was cited as one of the Top 100 most influential Africans by New African magazine in 2019.[1]

Peter Mokaya Tabichi, OFM
Tabichi visiting the Oval Office, 2019
Born1982 (age 38–39)
Nyamira County, Kenya
Alma materEgerton University
OccupationTeacher
Parent(s)Lawrence Tabichi
AwardsGlobal Teacher Prize (2019)

Early life and education

Tabichi was born in rural Kenya.[2] He said he was inspired to become a teacher because of his family, "I admired the impact they had in the society, and wanted to better their script".[3] He started his teaching career in a private school.[3]

Career

Tabichi is a Franciscan friar. He joined the Keriko Mixed Day Secondary School in 2016, where he teaches maths and physics.[4] The school is a semi-arid village in the Rift Valley Province, a region impacted by famine and drought.[5][6] Tabichi donates 80% of his salary to supporting pupils in the Pwani Village.[7] The school population is made up of seven different tribes, with around 95% of students living in poverty and one third live with only one parent.[8] Keriko Mixed Day Secondary School only has one computer, intermittent access to the internet and a student-teacher ratio of 58:1.[8][9][10] Tabichi launched the Talent Nurturing Club, which has dramatically improved attendance.[8] He also established a peace club, uniting representatives who have been involved with violence.[11] He engages with local communities; teaching residents how to grow crops that can resist famine.[11] Tabichi and his students work on renewable energy and devices which can support people with disabilities.[9] Under Tabichi's influence, his students have reached the finals of the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair and won an award from the Royal Society of Chemistry.[11][12][13] In only a couple of years, Tabichi has doubled the number of students attending university.[12]

In 2019 Tabichi was awarded the $1 million Global Teacher Prize.[8][14][15][16][17] The award receives over 10,000 nominations.[18] Tabichi travelled on an aeroplane for the first time to collect the prize in Dubai.[18] He was presented the prize from Hugh Jackman, and congratulated by Uhuru Kenyatta:[19]

"Peter – your story is the story of Africa, a young continent bursting with talent. Your students have shown that they can compete amongst the best in the world in science, technology and all fields of human endeavour.”[20]

On winning the prize, Tabichi said;

"Africa will produce scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs whose names will be one day famous in every corner of the world. And girls will be a huge part of this story,"[21]

In April 2019, Tabichi was appointed as Champion for Children in Conflicts and Crisis.[22]

References
  1. Nyasio, Venessa (2019-12-03). "Kipchoge, Lupita and Tabichi named among 100 most influential Africans". Tuko.co.ke - Kenya news. Retrieved 2021-01-15.
  2. "Kenyan teacher wins $1 million global teaching prize". The National. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  3. Chebet, Caroline. "Peter Tabichi: World's best teacher donates 80% of his salary to the poor". Standard Digital News. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  4. "Franciscan Brothers Mountbellew". Franciscan Brothers — Mountbellew. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  5. "World's best teacher can call any time, says last year's winner". Evening Standard. 2019-03-25. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  6. "Kenyan Teacher Who Aids Poor Wins $1 Million Global Prize". The New York Times. Associated Press. 2019-03-24. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  7. Coughlan, Sean (2019-03-24). "Kenyan science teacher wins global prize". Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  8. Dockrill, Peter. "Kenyan Science Teacher Who Gives 80% of His Salary Away Just Won a $1M Global Prize". ScienceAlert. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  9. "Global Teacher Prize: Man who gives away 80% of his salary wins $1m award". 2BR. 2019-03-25. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  10. "Kenyan science teacher Peter Tabichi wins global prize". www.thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  11. "A Kenyan monk who gave away most of his earnings just won a $1 million teaching prize". MNN - Mother Nature Network. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  12. Andrew Watt (2019-02-22). "Kenyan and British teachers make Global Teaching Prize top 10". Brits in Kenya. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  13. Global Education & Skills Forum (2019-03-24), A World where Every Class is a Masterclass - Peter Tabichi, retrieved 2019-03-25
  14. TES News (2019-03-24), Peter Tabichi wins the Global Teacher Prize, retrieved 2019-03-25
  15. "Global Teacher Prize: Man who gives away 80% of his salary wins $1m award". Sky News. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  16. Madison Park. "Kenyan teacher who gives away 80% of his salary awarded $1M global prize". CNN. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  17. "Peter Tabichi, prof de maths au Kenya et " meilleur enseignant du monde "" (in French). 2019-03-25. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  18. iAfrica (2019-03-25). "Africa Top10 News". iAfrica.com. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  19. Bahari News Kenya (2019-03-24), UHURU KENYATTA CONGRATULATES KENYAN TEACHER WHO WON KSH 100 MILLION GLOBAL TEACHER AWARD, retrieved 2019-03-25
  20. "Franciscan friar from remote Kenya village wins global teaching award - 24/7 Catholic News". The home of Catholic news and comment from the UK. 2019-03-25. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  21. Otte, Jedidajah (2019-03-24). "Kenyan science teacher Peter Tabichi wins $1m global award". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  22. Wanzala, James. "Global teacher prize winner Peter Tabichi gets new appointment". The Standard.
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