Previous Fora / 2011
OBORAH, Humphrey
President, African Council for Gifted and Talented
Prof. Dr. Humphrey Oborah was born along the shores of Lake Victoria (Kenya) to peasant African farmers who could only manage one meal per day. His father had to go
fishing in Lake Victoria while himself, the mother and his younger siblings would tend to the farms.
He started school earlier than the normal age at the time (at the age of 4) but did extremely well in Primary School, which was a typical Kenyan Rural School made of iron sheet roof and earthed walls. In such schools, students would sit on the floor and almost noone had shoes. Oborah actually wore his first pair of shoes when attending Secondary School.
His great performance in national examinations at primary school level saw him admitted to a school located far away in another Kenyan Province (Kitui, Eastern Kenya, Matinyani Secondary School) where he again excelled and joined A Level Studies in Nairobi Province (Dagoretti High School) then completed a Bachelors Degree at the University of Nairobi.
In his Bachelors Degree he studied Mathematics, Computer Science and Meteorology (University of Nairobi, 1989-1992). The study of Meteorology and ongoing teaching in schools piqued his interest in educational forecasting.
His first Masters Degree involved the study of Computing (Information Systems, 1993-4, University of Nairobi) and the second Masters Degree involved the study of Curriculum Development (1995-97, St. John’s Curriculum Institute, University of Cambridge).
His PhD (St. John’s Curriculum Institute, Cambridge) involved research on Electronic Curriculum (e-curriculum) with a bias to Gift and Talent Testing (GnT). He researched
extensively on Early Childhood Education especially pedagogy and cognitive skills bridging with e-curriculum and GnT before becoming a professor in the same discipline in 2008.
He worked in various institutions in the UK before considering his return to his home country to start The Digital Advisory & Learning Centre, or simply DALC Education (www.dalcafrica.com). He is also known to have contributed heavily to the establishment of The Centre for Academic Referrals Testing and Management (CARETM – www.caretm.com), The African Centre for Anthropometric Research, Education Testing and Management (ACARETM – www.acaretm.com).
Perhaps his biggest achievement is having been elected as the first President of The World Council for Gifted and Talented – Africa (www.giftedafrica.com), which is an affiliate of The World Council for Gifted and Talented Children (www.world-gifted.org). In this regard, he was instrumental in bringing home the first mini conference in Gifted and
Talented in Nairobi, Kenya 26th March 2010, which was attended by a significant delegation from The World Council for Gifted and Talented and Kenya Government authorities.
He has published a number of moving 21st century educational research articles and he is also a member of a number of local and international organizations, most importantly being the first President of The Council for Gifted and Talented in Africa.
Prof. Oborah has been very instrumental in initiating a number of social responsibilities functions. In this regard he has, through charities, assisted many Orphaned Children Homes and Schools for the poor in Kenya. He has specifically assisted people in great need.