Tuba Dumlu Güler

Tuba Dumlu Guler, a dedicated teacher from Turkey, has spent her teaching career making a profound impact on her students, their families, and her community. Her journey into education was motivated by a childhood promise to her late father and a deep love for children. Despite facing personal challenges and working in demanding conditions, Tuba has consistently gone above and beyond to support her students. 

Her commitment to helping orphaned and vulnerable students, like herself, has been unwavering. She provided both financial and moral assistance to a traumatized student who witnessed her father's suicide due to poverty. Through collaboration with government agencies, she ensured improvements in the living conditions of this student's family. Tuba's dedication resulted in the student becoming a champion in scientific competitions and pursuing a career in healthcare, bringing happiness to her family. 

For a decade, Tuba worked in village schools in harsh, cold climates where girls were often deprived of education, being forced into early marriages or household work. To address this, she initiated projects and collaborated with role model women to inspire and encourage parents to send their daughters to school. Her efforts bore fruit, with many of her female students now pursuing careers in fields like medicine, architecture, teaching, and law. 

Tuba's compassion extended to students without families, protected by the state. She spent extra hours providing educational support, organized additional classes, and even facilitated visits to orphaned children under state care. Her efforts transcend the classroom, with Tuba taking the initiative to establish a science laboratory, organize science festivities, and publish the region's first science journal. This journal became a valuable resource for teachers and students and helped fund materials for her school. As a science teacher Tuba is strong advocate of of STEM, STEAM and is also providing consultancy on robotic, coding and software projects. When not working full time as a teacher, she is a volunteer project coordinator in order to support teachers and students. 

Tuba's impact reached beyond the confines for her own school to benefit the community level outside, where she played a crucial role in getting a new school built in an underserved village. Her commitment to developing global citizens has been ably demonstrated in her teaching approach, emphasizing universal values and cultural diversity. She has encouraged international connections and participated in global studies related to neuroscience. 

As an advocate for improving the teaching profession, Tuba actively participates in training sessions, both as a student and a trainer, sharing her experiences and innovative teaching methods. She has received numerous awards and recognition, including being selected as the "Best Teacher of the Year" by the Turkish Ministry of National Education and the "Star Teacher" by the Turkish Scientific and Technological Research Council. 

Tuba's dedication to her students, her community, and her innovative teaching all add up to demonstrate that, even in challenging circumstances, teachers can have a lasting impact on the lives of students and society as a whole. Her work in promoting education, supporting vulnerable students, and raising awareness of critical issues like climate change has clearly demonstrated her commitment to creating a better future for all.