They say do good and good shall surely follow you all the days of your life. In a Country where teachers are apparently paid peanuts by the government despite dedicating most of their time to nature great citizens through books, one selfless teacher used his little salary to support poorer students.
Thanks to his good deeds, the teacher is now 100 million shillings richer and this is not money got from betting.
A Science teacher, Mr Peter Tabachi of the Franciscan religious order won 1 million us dollars after bagging this year’s Global Teacher Prize Award.
Tabichi has been praised for his achievements in a deprived school with crowded classes and few text books.
He wants pupils to see “science is the way to go” for their futures. The award, announced in a ceremony in Dubai, recognises the “exceptional” teacher’s commitment to pupils in a remote part of Kenya’s Rift Valley.
He gives away 80 per cent of his pay to support pupils at the Keriko Mixed Day Secondary School in Pwani village, Nakuru, who otherwise could not afford uniforms or books.
“It’s not all about money,” says Tabichi, whose pupils are almost all from very disadvantaged families. Many are orphaned or have lost a parent.
He wants to raise aspirations and to promote the cause of science, not just in Kenya but across Africa, he says.
The award, in a competition run by the Varkey Foundation, has seen him beating 10,000 other nominations from 179 countries.
But Tabichi says there are “challenges with a lack of facilities” at the school, including not enough books or teachers.
Classes meant to have 35 to 40 pupils are taught in groups of 70 or 80, which, he says, means overcrowded classrooms and problems for teachers. The lack of reliable internet connection means he has to travel to a cyber-cafe to download resources for his science lessons.
Many of the pupils walk more than six km on bad roads to reach the school.
Tabichi says he is determined to give them a chance to learn about science and to raise their horizons.
His pupils have been successful in national and international science competitions, including an award from the Royal Society of Chemistry in the UK.
The teacher says part of the challenge has been to persuade the local community to recognise the value of education, visiting families whose children are at risk of dropping out of school.
He tries to change the minds of families who expect their daughters to get married at an early age – encouraging them to keep their girls in school. The competition is intended to raise the status of the teaching profession.
The founder of the prize, Sunny Varkey, says he hopes Tabichi’s story “will inspire those looking to enter the teaching profession and shine a powerful spotlight on the incredible work teachers do all over Kenya and throughout the world every day”.