VIZIANAGARAM: Kouluri Rajesh, a secondary grade teacher working at Mandal Parishad Primary School, Chenamallupeta in Nellimarla mandal, has won the National Best Teacher Award 2025 for his contribution to making primary education interactive, inclusive and child-friendly through technology. Rajesh has developed a website and an AI-enabled app specifically for K-5 learners in alignment with NEP 2020 and NIPUN Bharat Mission.
The website and app support the 100-day Foundational Literacy and Numeracy goals to ensure every child achieves basic reading, writing and math skills by the end of Class 3. At least 2,472 schools and more than 15,000 students across the Telugu States have been using the Hello Dhriti app. His website has received at least 25 lakh hits in the past 10 years. He was among the 48 educators chosen for the national honour and he will receive the award from the President of India on September 5 on the eve of Teachers’ Day.
Rajesh was born in a middle-class family in Dharmavaram village in Srungavarapukota mandal in Vizianagaram district. His father Sankararao is a carpenter and his mother Ramanamma was an Anganwadi worker. He completed his schooling, Intermediate, DIET, graduation and MA in English in government institutions.
He entered the teaching profession through DSC 2008 and joined as secondary grade teacher at MPP School, Tandrangi in Jami mandal in 2010. He has completed 15 years of service in various schools in rural areas.
As a passionate primary school teacher, Rajesh believed that activity-based teaching bridges textbook content and real understanding. As part of this, he has developed an educational website with 80 lessons, 50 videos and 20 games for Telugu, English and Mathematics in both Telugu and English. He also developed an innovative and cost-effective educational app to serve as an after-school learning companion, transforming passive screen time into a playful textbook-oriented mastery experience.
The content in his website and app is suited to multigrade classroom environments, using visual and hands-on activities to foster curiosity. These resources help teachers deliver lessons more engagingly. Rajesh developed a Competency Based Assessment test with over 6,000 questions to help rural children prepare for entrance exams to Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas Model Schools. By uploading SCERT textbooks on his digital platform, he provides topic-wise explanations, key points and practice quizzes on mobile phones, reducing dependence on costly coaching.
Over 22,000 students statewide have used the assessment, while 11 of 14 students from his MPP School, Chenamallupeta, secured Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya seats this year. He authored four books, contributed to 14 SCERT books, submitted three research papers and created over 100 Pradhan Mantri e-VIDYA content videos. His work earned British Council awards in 2019 and 2023, district best teacher awards in 2023 and 2025, and national recognition for technology-driven rural education.
Speaking to TNIE, Rajesh said, “As a passionate primary school teacher and committed education blogger, I always believe that the classroom is not just a space for instruction but a garden for joyful discovery.
Therefore, I have been giving priority to activity-based teaching with technology. I developed www.rajclassroom.com and AI-enabled Hello Dhriti app to help students master core skills within three to four months.
These platforms incorporate AI-powered voice recognition, text assistance, individual student logins, sequential lesson-unlocking mechanisms and gamified reinforcement modules after every three lessons.
My primary objective is to continue working on initiatives designed to benefit students in rural areas. Securing national recognition is deeply gratifying and this award brings greater responsibility to continue innovating. Leveraging technology to empower rural students has been the driving force behind my journey. I thank the State as well as Union government for recognising my pedagogical innovations.”