The final ceremony for the Teacher of the Year and Teacher of Tomorrow competitions took place at the Royal Castle in Warsaw on Wednesday.
Thirteen teachers from different subjects and types of schools across Poland were nominated for the main award.
Ordza said that student curiosity is the foundation of teaching. He believes learning should start with experiences outside the classroom, such as visiting a nearby park or town, observing, exploring and talking, and using those experiences as the basis for projects.
His teaching focuses on environmental education. Students conduct investigations and experiments, carry out field projects, make films and e-books, and organise social campaigns.
He uses Inquiry-Based Science Education (IBSE), an approach to science teaching based on investigation and inquiry.
He also uses educational robots and 3D printing, including to explore animal migration routes and ecological relationships.
Two other teachers received special commendations alongside the main award: Anna Smaga-Trojanowska and Dr Mirosław Brozis.
Smaga-Trojanowska, a Polish-language and philosophy teacher at a secondary school in Limanowa, has helped more than 20 students become winners or finalists in national academic competitions in those subjects. She is known as a “talent hunter”.
Brozis, a physics and STEM teacher in Słupsk, has helped students build mini-satellites and create a school planetarium used by other schools in the region. He has coordinated his school’s participation in a NASA education programme since 2010.
Grzegorz Szczechla was also named Teacher of Tomorrow. He teaches biology at a secondary school in Cieszyn and involves students in volunteering at sporting events he organises, helping them develop responsibility and teamwork.
Szczechla also runs biology and survival workshops and uses data from sports training to make biology more tangible. He combines his passion for cycling with education and fundraising.
He rode 620 kilometres from Wisła to Gdańsk in one day, racing against the setting sun. The fundraiser has collected more than PLN 150,000 (EUR 34,200), which is intended for a scholarship fund for the school’s most talented students.
The honorary Friend of the School title went to Agnieszka Sikora, founder of the po DRUGIE Foundation, which has supported young people experiencing homelessness since 2011.
The Educational Initiative of the Year award went to NASK, Poland’s National Research Institute, for Dyżurnet.pl, a project that identifies illegal online content and works to have it removed.
Education Minister Barbara Nowacka praised teachers for opening up a world of knowledge and reflection for students, combining empathy with high expectations.
The Teacher of the Year competition was held for the 24th time. It has been organised by the Głos Nauczycielski weekly since 2002, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education this year.
The Teacher of Tomorrow competition has been run by the weekly and the Orange Foundation for six years.
(sp)
Source: PAP