KADAPA: For Jawahar Munneer Shaik, 56, an SGT at MPPS, Lingareddy Nagar, Proddutur town, sees teaching as more than a profession. For her, it is a lifelong mission built on compassion, creativity and the belief that every child has the potential to excel. Her journey in education reached another milestone when she was honoured with the prestigious State Best Teacher award 2025.
Born into a family of educators, Jawahar was inspired by her parents, Rahamthunnisa Begum and Masthanvalli, both teachers. Masthanvalli received the State Best Teacher award in 1992, while Rahamthunnisa was honoured with a District-level Best Teacher award. Their dedication laid the foundation for Jawahar’s own career.
Jawahar entered the teaching profession on 26 October 1998 under the Janmabhoomi Act at Thuvvapalli. Since then, she has devoted herself to educating, encouraging and empowering generations of children. Her teaching philosophy emphasises making students active participants in the learning process. She has a particular passion for using low-cost and no-cost teaching-learning materials (TLM) and encourages children to prepare and use them. “I always try to see how moral values can be incorporated into school education, how children can use teaching-learning materials related to the topic and how low-cost and no-cost TLM can help overcome learning gaps and achieve learning outcomes,” she says.
Jawahar’s leadership skills were evident during the Nadu-Nedu programme, launched to improve infrastructure in government schools.
Between 2019 and 2021, she worked tirelessly to complete development works at her school within tight deadlines and budgets. She lost her husband during this period and continued working through the COVID pandemic. Her commitment earned her the 2021 Nadu-Nedu Best Headmaster award, making her the only headmaster from Kadapa district to receive the honour that year.
Her achievements continued to build on her family’s legacy in education. She received the District Best Teacher award in 2016, followed by Best Teacher honours from the Rotary Club and Inner Wheel Club, Delhi, in 2024. On 8 March 2025, she was honoured by Samskruthi Swachhanda Samstha and Vikasitha Foundation, and later that year received the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad award. The crowning achievement came in 2025 when she received the State Best Teacher award from Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu and Education and IT Minister Nara Lokesh.
Jawahar’s selection among Andhra Pradesh’s best teachers for an educational visit to Finland from 17 to 26 August marked another milestone. Supported by the government under Minister Lokesh, the visit exposed teachers to Finland’s student-centred. For Jawahar, the trip was both an honour and an opportunity to learn. After decades of experimenting with innovative classroom practices, she hoped to study international approaches and adapt ideas for government schools in Andhra Pradesh.
For her, the true measure of teaching lies in a child’s transformation — understanding a difficult concept, gaining confidence, learning a value or developing aspirations. Inspired by her teacher-parents, she has built her own legacy through passion and service.