Johannesburg - A South African teacher, Marjorie Brown, who teaches history at Roedean School, Johannesburg, was on Wednesday named a top 10 finalist for the Varkey Foundation Global Teacher Prize 2018.

The Global Teacher Prize, which is a one million dollar (almost 12 million) award for a super-special teacher, was announced by business leader and philanthropist Bill Gates.

Brown and the other finalists have been selected from over 30 000 nominations and applications from 173 countries around the world.

The Global Teacher Prize was set up to recognise one exceptional teacher who has made an outstanding contribution to the profession as well as to shine a spotlight on the important role teachers play in society.