More than 170 teachers from Bulgaria and from Bulgarian schools abroad won awards in the national "Unconventional Teacher" contest at Prof. Dr. Asen Zlatarov University in Burgas. The university gave out the prizes for the sixth year in a row, on the eve of 1 November, National Revival Leaders' Day.
Two of the awards are new. One is given by the university's Faculty of Education and Humanities. The other, "Guardian of Bulgarian Identity", is for a Bulgarian teacher abroad. It is given by the university's Department for Qualification and Professional Development of Teaching Specialists, which runs the contest.
The "Guardian of Bulgarian Identity" award went to Plamena Dimitrova of the Ivan Vazov Bulgarian School in Preston, England, United Kingdom, and Pavlina Miteva of the Dora Gabe Bulgarian School in Munich, Germany. The faculty's award went to Ani Avramova-Sheynova of Hristo Maksimov Primary School in Samokov.
The contest has six regular categories: kindergarten teacher, primary school teacher, subject teacher for grades 5 to 12, teacher of theoretical and vocational training, resource teacher, and beginner unconventional teacher.
There are three special awards. Burgas mayor's award went to Yordanka Vasileva and Nurie Mehmedova-Stoykova of the Slaveyche kindergarten in Burgas. The head of the regional education department of the education ministry picked Stanislava Yordanova of the Tsar Simeon the Great private school in the village of Ivanyane, Sofia region. The rector's award went to Tanya Trandeva and Ivelina Slavova of Lyuben Karavelov Primary School in Burgas.
Assoc. Prof. Krasimira Dimitrova, director of the Department, and Prof. Nadezhda Kaloyanova, head of the contest, opened the ceremony. Guests included university rector Prof. Sotir Sotirov. Mihail Nenov, Burgas deputy mayor for education, health, social and youth policy. And Gyulshen Eminova, senior expert in teacher qualification at the regional education department in Burgas.