Teacher from Oman short listed for $1m GEMS prize
Gayatri Narasimhan, a transformative educator and advocate for inclusive education, vocational training, and neurodiversity has been selected from over 5,000 nominations and applications from 89 countries around the world for the GEMS Education Global Teacher Prize.
The $1 million Global Teacher Prize, now in its ninth year, is the largest prize of its kind and was set up to recognise one exceptional teacher who has made an outstanding contribution to the profession as well as to shine a spotlight on the important role teachers play in society.
By unearthing thousands of stories of heroes who have transformed young people's lives, the prize hopes to bring to life the exceptional work of millions of teachers all over the world. Since its launch, the Global Teacher Prize has received over 100,000 applications and nominations from around the globe.
The journey of Gayatri Narasimhan began with a life-changing encounter with a child with autism, prompting her to switch from a career in software engineering and management to special education.
In 2021, she founded the Prakramika Vocational Institute (PVI) in India to address a global lack of vocational training for neurodivergent individuals. Her initiative has grown internationally, reaching Oman, the UAE, and the US.
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In 2010, an Air India Express plane overshot a hilltop runway in Mangalore, in the western state of Karnataka, killing more than 150 people. This article originally appeared in
