– About the Dr. Uche Linda Okpala Dr. Uche Linda Okpala, Principal Education Officer, currently teaching Data Processing at FGC, Daura, Katsina State, Nigeria. She’s a member of Computer Professional Regulation Council of Nigeria. She’s a Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert Fellow and master trainer as Well as a Founder, International Speaker, Co- Author, Robotics Coach/ Mentor. She’s a National Geographic Certified Educator and Ambassadors to various Edu-Tech products and reputable organizations. She’s a volunteer of International Human Rights Commission and a Change Agent. She is one of the educators who has been experimenting with more innovative ways of incorporating technology, sparking empathy and curiosity, cultivating critical thinking and best practices in and outside the classroom. She is a resource person and dedicated to serving humanity, making an impact in the teaching, and learning process. With a purposeful career in the education space spanning over more than 10 years, Uche Linda has dedicated her life towards the promotion of SDG and activity-oriented education. She is a passionate educationist and a thought leader with a background of setting up and leading new age in Federal Colleges in Nigeria. She is passionate about SDGs that is why she founded an initiative, 21stdigiskillz to advocate United Nations & Global Goals Agenda 2030 especially SDG4. Uche Linda ardently believes that the purpose of meaningful education is to develop lifelong learners, creative thinkers, driving learning and making it accessible to her learners, creating media and social literacy, responsible and empowering her diverse learners to be healthy global citizens who are confidently equipped to face the challenges of an uncertain and constantly unfolding future. She’s an enabler of innovation, creativity, problem solving, skilled communication and she also prepares the young learners for future ready jobs. She for one has a strong conviction that technology alone cannot build 21st century skills or global digital citizen in students. We are living in a connected and globalized world; inculcating soft skills to her students and teachers is her mandate. She loves her teaching job and so passionate for her learners to develop the 21st century learning skills to have technological drive and so she facilitates the students to build self-confidence, to become effective citizens. She wants her students to have hands on STREAM Education, to experience cultural diversity, learn virtually, socially, globally, and share their skills among their peer groups. She has trained her students in STREAM – STEM (ROBOTICS) education, they think out of box, brainstorm ideas, did research and built a robot that could perform multiple task/mission, built an automated multipurpose machine that could cure disease (Neck-hump), relax muscles and relief injuries that are being sustained in sport activities. She has demonstrated an exemplary leadership through her work, and under her inspiring and motivating leadership, her team of students (DAURABOTS) qualified for Regional Robotics Championship and National Robotics Championship which landed the squad team in second place overall position in FIRST LEGO League innovation project in all the Federal Colleges, Government, and private schools in Nigeria while she was awarded the outstanding robotics coach/mentor awards 2021. Through her innovative leadership, her students collaborated with 3 Indian schools in the just concluded Microsoft in education international Tech4Good challenge, where her team emerged as the first runners up in the category of good health and wellbeing – United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 3 and we’re tagged as the team who’re addressing the UNSDG3. That was a welcome development because her squad team was the only team from Nigeria who represented the African continent. Her students have executed some projects that address the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. She has also incorporated the use of technology in her school which drives learning and accessibility to the diverse learners. The impact of her work in the use of technology in the classroom has benefited both her students and teachers in many positive ways such as equitable and inclusive learning opportunities, letting students learn at their own pace, and overall preparing students for the future starting in a classroom setting. Her work has influenced her students positively, traveling virtually around the world at the comfort zone of their classroom, virtual field trips, sharing their projects and collaborating with their peers to execute projects has change the dynamics in the teaching and learning process in her class. Her students have improved in their communication skills, research, critical thinking, and have voice through robotics and programming. Her students can download course readings, look up unfamiliar concepts on the flyers and create an accurate, well-organized record of the topic materials at their own pace. Students have been able to learn at their own speed, reviewing difficult concepts or skipping ahead as needed. Also, she has being able to have easily accessible online folders and drives that she can share and have access to at any time that’s convenient. This is all part of the learning process, and it has made it easier with the use of technology in her class. Digital tools have let her students collaborate in new innovative ways, question the world around them, connect their work with the world, create products that demonstrate their understanding, and wonder about new topics they encounter. All these new innovative ways have made projects more interesting, enjoyable, and appealing in her classroom. In 2019, due to her innovative teaching and leadership, she won the Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert (MIEE) paid trip to Educator Exchange (E2) in France – unable to make the trip because she had insufficient money in her bank account. It was a very devastating moment for her at a time because it was a lifetime opportunity, but she was later moved on with her life! She led the use of technology in her school which has a drastic change in both the students and teachers. She led the use of technology in her school with drastic change in the students, their understanding, and to wonder about new topics they encounter. She is now using new devices and methods to connect with students, and beyond to lead school systems in utilizing innovative technology in the classroom. With proper support from the administration, this has been extremely successful. She has been advocating for a change in education. As a change maker in education awarded by Microsoft in education, World pulse, Sustainable development leader in the category of SDG4 by international Internship university, and a highly prolific Edu-tech speaker, regularly invited to numerous national and international conferences, summits, conclaves, and events to share her thought and insights on the futuristic and transformative role of education. She wanted a global advocacy for transformation of quality education in Nigeria, Africa, and world at large, she funded an initiative (21stdigiskillz) registered with Nigerian government under the Cooperate Affairs Commission with primary purpose to promote UNSDG’s especially SDG4 using her platforms to advocate for quality change in education. She has collaborated with some organizations in bridging the gap of digital divide by integrating 21st century learning skills. For as much as she uses her initiative platforms to advocate for change in education and empowering not only African teachers but global teachers. She has initiated multi-linguistic webinars, meetups, talk shows to drive teaching and learning to be accessible to her authentic audience. She has also created diverse groups that will make a powerful counterweight to the stakeholders, inviting Edu-thought leaders, Edu-tech teams, policy makers, educators and connecting parents who need options with the need to understand the transformational change in education in preparing the learners for the future ready jobs and to become members of work force eventually when their wards leave school. She has been promoting a holistic future in education as a way forward and it requires a collaborative effort of all. It’s a rewarding and out of the world experience for her being an innovative teacher to be recognized with numerous awards, conferred honorary doctorate degrees from reputable institutions and organizations. She has built off some of the well-known extrinsic and intrinsic motivational theories which will offer hope for meaningful recognition to the other teachers working to improve student learning outcomes. It will also foster pride and support from the teachers and students, administration, governing board, and public. Teachers are not satisfied with current evaluation processes as they have not led to meaningful outcomes for most of the best teachers in the world. She really deserves more than an award as said by her students because she has left a footprint in the hearts of her students in the use of technology both outside the classroom and her active contribution in building a sustainable ecosystem of lifelong learning and best practices for all. Her wildest dream is to win the global teacher prize, just like her students said in their testimonial video, that she deserves more than just awards! Win for one is win for all. She has contributed positively and massively to the educational sector not just only in Nigeria or Africa but in the world at large. She’s going to celebrate her initiative’s 2nd anniversary and her birthday on 6th August 2022. Her favorite quote “Together we can achieve more”.