An Earlier Conversation with Sister Zeph | How Can We Overcome Discrimination in Education?
Update: This video was aired on 5th September 2021, before Sister Zeph was awarded the prestigious Global Teacher Award by UNESCO, 2023. (The Global Teacher Prize, organised by the Varkey Foundation in collaboration with UNESCO, recognised her work among thousands of nominations and applications from around the world. Global Teacher Prize)
Tune in to this in-depth conversation with Sister Zeph, an educator and education activist from a semi-urban community in Gujranwala, Pakistan. In this conversation, she reflects on her journey as a teacher, her work to expand access to education, and the challenges she has encountered while working with children and families in her community.
At the time of this conversation, Sister Zeph was running a school in her neighbourhood, providing education to around 200 children. Today, her school provides free education to more than 200 underprivileged children.
This dialogue was the first conversation in Ibtidah for Education's series, “Understanding Invisible Barriers to Education.” The series seeks to explore the challenges that teachers encounter on the ground and how they navigate social stereotyping, exclusion and discrimination, particularly when working within communities that experience marginalisation.
In this conversation, we explore questions around:
- How do teachers confront discrimination within and beyond the classroom?
- What are the invisible barriers that affect children's access to education?
- How do teachers respond to social stereotyping and exclusion?
- What does it mean to teach and advocate for education from within a marginalised community?
- How can education become a means of building greater understanding, dignity and social inclusion?
Sister Zeph's work had already received significant recognition before her Global Teacher Prize. Her earlier honours include the Lynn Syms Global Prize (2014), the Bioneers Changemaker Award (2015) and the Outstanding Performance Award from Eternal Life Ministry of Pakistan International (2018). ZWEE Foundation.
We hope this conversation remains a useful learning experience for those working in education, human rights, peacebuilding and social justice, and for anyone interested in understanding the lived realities behind educational inequality.
Originally aired: 5 September 2021
If you have questions, comments or reflections, please feel free to contact:
Zeeba T. Hashmi
Founder & CEO, Ibtidah for Education
zeeba.hashmi@gmail.com
info.ibtidah@gmail.com
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