West Bank educator wins prestigious global teaching award

In a glittering ceremony in Dubai on Sunday, Palestinian educator Hanan al-Hroub claimed the $1 million Global Teacher Prize for excellence and innovation among primary students in the West Bank. Competition for the acclaimed award is stiff, with the winner chosen from more than 8,000 candidates worldwide. Finalists come from educationally elite countries like Finland, Japan, and the United Kingdom.

“For an Arab, Palestinian teacher to … reach the highest peak in teaching could be an example for teachers around the world,” said al-Hroub, who grew up in a Bethlehem refugee camp.

The winning educator is also the author of We Play and Learn, a primary curriculum that promotes trust, respect, and honesty while developing literacy and healthy friendships among children growing up in war-torn regions. The book’s theme of anti-violence runs counter to the bloodshed Palestinian children see on a routine basis.

“In a society torn apart by conflict where children are regularly exposed to violence, Hanan is building trust and supporting children suffering psychological trauma—from the heart of her classroom,” noted the Varkey Foundation, which presents the award, in a social media announcement.

According to al-Hroub, her focus on helping troubled students was borne of personal experience, when Israeli soldiers opened fire on her husband and children while they walked home from school: “My children saw their father injured, which shocked my children and also shocked me. … I felt that I was alone in getting my children through this,” al-Hroub said in a biographical video for the Varkey Foundation. She plans to invest the prize money to create scholarships for Palestinian students who want to become teachers.

The award comes at a time of heightened Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the West Bank. In recent months, a string of shootings, stabbings, and vehicular attacks has attracted global concern. Since September, 28 Israelis and two Americans have been murdered at the hands of ordinary Palestinian citizens. In that time, Israeli forces have killed at least 182 Palestinians, claiming 135 of them were attackers.

Palestinians say the conflict is rooted in frustration from a half century of Israeli military occupation. On Tuesday, news broke that Israel had seized a 578-acre piece of Palestinian-claimed land, one of the biggest plots in the West Bank.

“Instead of trying to claim to situation, the government is adding fuel to the fire and sending a clear message to Palestinians, as well as to Israelis, that it has no intention to work towards peace and two states,” said Israeli anti-settlement NGO Peace Now.

But Israeli officials blame Palestinian leaders and social media for inciting the carnage. When the conflict spiked last fall, the BBC reported a viral swell in Palestinian-posted anti-Israel slogans on YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook.

“[It’s] Osama bin Laden meets Mark Zuckerberg,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said of the social media avalanche.

In addition to ongoing conflict with Israel, the cash-strapped West Bank government also faces internal unrest, with Palestinian security forces quelling some of the largest local demonstrations in recent years. Human rights groups say President Mahmoud Abbas is adopting increasingly authoritarian methods to suppress dissent as his popularity plummets. Earlier this month, 40,000 Palestinian teachers went on strike, protesting their longstanding low income.

“I’ve been teaching for 31 years now, and my basic salary is still just $600,” Nasser Abu Thuraya told al Jazeera, adding that, to feed his seven children, he has worked as a taxi driver by night for the past 20 years.

The day before the Global Teacher Prize ceremony, Abbas agreed to raise teacher salaries by 10 percent, starting in 2017.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.