Pavithra was honoured with the Sarabhai Teacher Scientist National Award (2021-22), the Telangana State Best Teacher Award (2023) and now, the National Best Teacher Award 2025.
HYDERABAD: In a small school at Zilla Parishad High School (ZPHS), Penpahad, Suryapet district, biology isn’t just a subject in a textbook — it’s a card game, a digital app. This is the world shaped by Maram Pavithra, a teacher whose inventive methods have ignited a love for science and earned her a place among the nation’s best. She is the only teacher from Telangana selected for the National Best Teacher Award 2025.
Out of 45 awardees across India, Pavithra stands out for her innovative, hands-on approach. Since beginning her career in 2009, she has transformed biology learning at ZPHS, Penpahad, with app-integrated teaching, card games, digital resources and activities that nurture scientific curiosity and entrepreneurship. Her work has boosted enrolments and reduced dropouts .
Pavithra has gone beyond classroom teaching to connect her students with global peers. Through the Vidyavaradhi programme, coordinated by US-based scientists Ravi Prakash Mayreddy and Latha, her students interacted with Indo-American student Anish from Pennsylvania.
Pavithra has also led awareness projects like seed pens, seed rakhis, clay Ganesh idols, mosquito sticks from chrysanthemum, incense from eucalyptus, seed balls and nutrient-rich teas, initiatives that have featured in science fairs while spreading awareness about sustainability and resource conservation students learn about human anatomy outside the classroom in Suryapet district.
