Announcing Winners of 2019 TFCN Teacher Prize for Literature

We are delighted to announce the winners of 2019 TFCN Prize for Literature. We received a large number of entries from across the country compared to 2018 and were able to make a shortlist of four distinguishable entries:

1. Olaposi Halim from Holy Innocents Secondary School, Ugboha
2. Kingsley Opara from Princeton Model College, Owerri, Imo State.
3. Adaeze Michael from The NAOWA College, Abuja
4. Endurance Smart from Oghareki Grammar School, Oghareki, Delta State

Each work was judged and approved by a member of the board of trustees and after much deliberation, we are pleased to announce the joint winners of 2019 TFCN Prize for Literature:

1. Endurance Smart
2. Kingsley Opara

These two teachers were chosen for their participatory approach to teaching, their enthusiasm for the work they do despite limited resources and their genuine interest in the growth of the students they teach. Since 2018, TFCN annually rewards outstanding teachers of Literature who are committed in raising a generation of students who, more than passing exams, are creative, critical and independent thinkers. Endurance Smart and Kingsley Opara have demonstrated this in their application and will therefore be splitting the prize money. In the words of the teachers,

The prize is a great initiative instituted by Teach for Change Nigeria (TFCN) which has made me to appreciate Literature-in-English as a discipline and its contributions to national development. I feel excited winning this award…It is an acknowledgment of a job well done and justification for the hard work that went into winning it. It makes me feel proud, happy, overwhelmed, and delighted… I will continue to promote the study of literature in schools through workshops and conferences. – Kingsley Opara

We want to say a big thank you to iServe2050, the leadership platform that continues to fund this prize. Also congratulations to all the teachers who applied, especially those who made the shortlist. You are doing an important job and we hope you don’t stop. We see you, we celebrate you. Congratulations!