If you had to describe Mpho in one word, it would be change-maker. Not the kind who just tweaks a lesson plan, but the kind who walks into a classroom, sees the potential in every learner and doesn’t stop until that learner believes it too.
Mpho’s journey started at the University of Pretoria, where she majored in Life Orientation, IsiZulu and Tourism. After beginning her career at Spark Schools, Mpho moved to Tlakula Secondary School in 2021, where she has been teaching for the past four years. It was here that she truly flourished, earning the prestigious Teacher of the Year Award in 2024 – a testament to her dedication and impact.
For Mpho, the real award is the lives she impacts every day. She is driven by a passion for people -young minds, future leaders – and ensuring that her students don’t just pass their exams, but thrive in every aspect of their lives.
Teaching Beyond the Textbook
For Mpho, education isn’t about rushing through a syllabus. It’s about developing the whole child academically, emotionally and socially. She has championed financial literacy, critical thinking and self-awareness in her classroom, and her students have excelled in competitions like the JSE Schools Challenge, taking both first and fifth place. Mpho also founded the ZaZi Programme, a student-led initiative focused on personal growth.
At the heart of Mpho’s work is a belief that every child deserves a safe and supportive learning environment – one where they don’t just memorise facts but learn how to think, adapt and believe in themselves.
The Keller Effect: Creating Safe Spaces for Learning
Mpho has embraced the Keller Methodology to strengthen her relationships with students and create a classroom where everyone feels valued. She uses the Keller Journals to encourage reflection and self-awareness, helping learners to express themselves beyond the curriculum. Check-in and check-out conversations are now a staple in her lessons, ensuring every student starts and ends the school day feeling seen.
Mpho’s approach is rooted in the foundations of Mind Brain Education Science: the understanding that learning happens best when students feel safe, connected and engaged. For Mpho, this isn’t just a theory; it’s something she applies daily to transform her classroom into a space where learners are not only taught but truly understood.
The Heart of an EduHero
Ask Mpho what drives her, and she’ll tell you: change. She isn’t here just to teach— she’s here to transform. To guide students beyond the classroom. To help them see their worth, their capabilities and their future. Educators like Mpho don’t just teach, they empower. Mpho is shaping a generation of learners who don’t just succeed academically, but grow into confident, capable individuals who are ready to take on the world.
And that’s exactly why we’re celebrating her today.
If, like Mpho, you believe in teaching beyond the textbook, in creating classrooms where every learner feels valued and in education that transforms lives, then you just might be our next EduHero. Email home@keller.education to join the movement today!