As a child living in the northern Afghan province of Baghlan, Seema had to cross an unstable bridge in order to get to school every day. Despite the difficult journey to and from school, she loved learning, and dreamed of teaching others one day.

Today, many years and hardships later, Seema is fulfilling that childhood dream. She now works as a Master Trainer, helping teachers-to-be hone their skills. The educator training program is an initiative of the Aga Khan Foundation’s education project, which is funded in part by NetAid World Schoolhouse partners and supporters.

During Taliban rule, Seema’s world was saturated with widespread violence. In 1999 her husband, a physician, provided treatment to a female patient—a crime punishable by the government. As a result, he was severely beaten. Concerned about additional repercussions, the incident forced Seema and her husband to seek refuge in neighboring Pakistan. During her years away from home, Seema taught in an Afghan refugee camp in Peshawar, in the country’s northern region.

Now Seema is back in Pul-i-Khumri, her hometown in northeast Afghanistan, where she straddles two distinct worlds: the streets of her city, where women are blanketed in burqas that stretch from head to toe, and the Teacher Training Center where she works. Once she is safely inside the Center, Seema swiftly removes her burqa and concentrates on the task at hand: preparing a new generation of teachers to educate and inspire children.

As a trainer and mentor to the few female teachers in the Afghan school system, Seema’s dual roles also serve dual purposes. As Master Trainer in the Aga Khan program, she is a critical player in rebuilding Afghanistan’s education system — and in empowering women to become active members in their communities. She admits that the biggest challenge is working with the many rural teachers who have only an average Grade 6 education.

“One of our biggest difficulties is to train teachers who have received a very limited education themselves,” she says. “There is a need to devise teacher training courses that are appropriate to the teachers’ different educational levels. We also need to mentor new teachers, spend more time with them in the field, and encourage them to upgrade their skills.”

Seema is conscious of the fact that it will take a lot of hard work and patience to improve the education system, particularly in the rural areas of Afghanistan. Still, she is not discouraged by these challenges.

“I work with many smart teachers who are interested in learning and upgrading their skills,” she says. “Seeing the progress that they have made in a short period of time inspires me to come to work every day.”