Kayode Adewale: Mathematics Teacher and Global Teacher Prize Finalist

Recognised by Nkuzify as Leading Teacher and Educator of the Year.

World Teachers' Day
Happy Teachers' Day from all of us at Nkuzify.

Some mathematics sounds harder than it is, simply because of the language it is spoken in.

Kayode Adewale decided to say it in the languages his students speak at home. He teaches at Imagbon/Imaka Comprehensive High School in Ogun State, in a semi-urban community where most students come from low-income farming families.

Mathematics in Yoruba and Hausa

He built lessons that explain difficult ideas using Yoruba and Hausa, with culturally tailored videos and practical examples drawn from his students' own lives. The language gap that made equations feel foreign began to close.

A graduate of a famous name

He is a proud alumnus of Tai Solarin University of Education in Ijagun, named after the same Tai Solarin whose story you can read on this blog.

Teaching the teachers

Through his Transformation1090 Initiative he has trained over 30,000 teachers to bring technology into their lessons. His Ogun517GoToSpace programme connects students with global professionals, including NASA experts, to spark interest in space science. He also leads tree-planting projects and climate change simulations, and he presents a radio programme for young people.

The world noticed

In 2025 he was named among the top 50 finalists for the Global Teacher Prize, the only Nigerian that year and one of seven finalists from Africa. Ogun State made him its Education Ambassador and rewarded him with 5 million naira and a bungalow. He had earlier been named Ogun State's best senior secondary school teacher in 2020 and second runner-up for Best Teacher in Nigeria.

Why Nkuzify celebrates him

Adewale proves that a good teacher meets students where they are, in the language they speak at home. That is the heart of Nkuzify. Our name comes from the Igbo word for teaching, and we believe African children learn best when learning feels like their own.

Read more in Nigeria's Education Heroes: Pioneers, Prizewinners and Unsung Teachers, or make a free Thank You card for your own teacher.