Ever heard of a woman who seamlessly balances multiple roles? Meet Blessing Bliss Coab Frimpong popularly know as Teacher Blessing, a journalist, who has a sharp eye for storytelling. Her work doesn’t stop as TV presenter, as she also dedicates her time to teaching others, focusing on improving their English language skills and boosting their confidence. Her teaching is rooted in the belief that language empowerment leads to broader opportunities. In addition to her journalism and teaching, she is a strong advocate for SDG 4, which focuses on ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education for all.
In this interview, you will enter into Teacher Blessing’s world and see how she breaks the cycle of poverty through education, giving a voice to those who are often unheard. Her ability to juggle these different commitments reflects her dedication to empowering others and her belief in education as the cornerstone of a better future.
Who Is Blessing And Why “Teacher Blessing”?
Firstly, Blessing is a broadcast journalist and a TV show host at GHOne TV in Ghana. Aside from being a journalist, I am a content creator and I advocate SDG4, which is focused on accessibility to and quality of education. When it comes to my activism, I focus on SDG4 which is all about education. I started by getting a degree in communication studies, Bachelor of Arts in the university, after which I started as a journalist at GHOne Tv, almost 5 years in journalism out of which ”Teacher Blessing” came about.
Naturally, I love teaching, and my friends know me for this. Also, my family is a family of teachers, my mother retired as a head teacher, our eldest sibling is a teacher in a high school, and two sisters are also teachers. In fact, when I finished high school, I was told to study English under education but I refused and said, “I’m not going to be another teacher in this family, I want to do something else as I’m tired of seeing another teacher in this family”. I have always loved English and communications which is why I decided to study journalism.
There was a time when my mum called me and said, “I told you to study education but you didn’t, and now you are calling yourself Teacher Blessing”. I told her I am proud to be calling myself a teacher and happy to have gone through all of that as it has defined the brand. I’ve always loved to share knowledge, if I know something, I want others to know too. It might be misconstrued as someone who is an exhibitionist, always wanting to prove that they know. My friends know that I will always correct any mistake made when speaking even if you are crying but in a polite manner. I’ve always had an interest in sharing knowledge. It started from my WhatsApp status where I share knowledge. I looked at the commonly mispronounced words and grammatical errors, I posted it as a text of what to say, what not to say and the reason. A very close friend of mine, Ruky, a Nigerian whom I met at the University and who was my roommate for about two years called me from Nigeria to ask if I was on TikTok, and I told her I was. Then she asked why I was not active there, I told her it is either you can dance or are funny but I was none so I’d rather go there to watch and leave. She replied, “People are cashing out on TikTok and you are here giving excuses”. She told me to join other creators’ live sessions, speak, meet people and get people to follow me but I was rather thinking of how I could stand out. I can dance to save my life and be funny but not to the point of getting people to follow me daily. So I decided we rather transfer the text to a video since I already started on WhatsApp and people were enjoying it. I also started with text on Instagram and Facebook, people were not very interested but the first day I posted the video, I was surprised at the reactions and that was when the views kept growing.
The name, “Teacher Blessing” came because I wanted something people could remember. My name is Blessing and anyone who teaches or gives you knowledge, you either call them “madam” or “teacher” and for education, teacher is very common in every country so I settled with it since it is relatable and easily remembered. I also thought of creating a better impression about teachers and teaching in Ghana, Africa and beyond. A lot of thought went into it, I looked at the presentation angle since teaching has always been thought of as boring, when a conventional teacher is speaking, many will skip it, which was how the presentation angle came in. I also want to look like a TV presenter so I know to dress well and not like the conventional teacher who wears white, blue with some brown or black shoes. I didn’t want to look that way because as a communication student, I know that communication is not about audio only but also visuals, people get attracted by what they see before they pause to listen, same on social media.
I needed that thing to catch, I needed people to ask, “Who is that Teacher Blessing girl?” I needed people to see the makeup, dresses and stop to see and ask “Why is she called Teacher Blessing and not look like other conventional teachers”. I thought of the visual appeal and how important it is to look well as a communicator. Lastly, I knew what exactly I wanted to achieve. I have had this for so long and my friends knew and wouldn’t be shocked that I am Teacher Blessing. The fact that I am able to share something for someone to know and say I taught them, gives me so much happiness. The brand is all about sharing knowledge, English speaking, public speaking, and building confidence.
How Do You Blend Your Profession As A Journalist, Your Brand As Teacher Blessing And Your Foundation?
Luckily, they go hand in hand. They are not independent of each other. Doing the Teacher Blessing video is just like hosting a show. On days I host my shows, I make sure I create content for teacher Blessing. And because I was conscious of my looks, I made sure I looked appropriate not like someone you don’t want to watch. So I kill two birds with a stone. I either create content before my show or after it if I’m late. Somedays I create two videos that cover for the two days already in a week during the 2 days I have my show in the week. That’s four days already covered, other days are for posting my pictures or advertising something or other projects I am doing. And since they all cover information, they complement each other.
For the foundation, I don’t know how it started but I knew I had it in me. Before I started the teacher Blessing outreach, I used to have a foundation called Aya Network. In our first project, we fed street children, we called it Breakfast On Street. Our next project was on menstrual health, we went to a deprived school, and we taught about menstrual health. We were shocked that some of them didn’t know anything about pads, others would stay at home just because they were on their period and return after they were done. So we came in and encouraged them. I put that aside when I became Teacher Blessing but because I had that in me, I knew I had to do something in return to impact the community since my classes already started, the following and feedback were coming in, so I started the Teacher Blessing Outreach.
We have two main projects, one is the Read With Teacher Blessing and the other is the Free School Uniform Project. We decided to do them annually since there are other projects that might come in during the year. In a year, we go to deprived communities, visit schools and gift children who are in old or tattered uniforms, some do not go to school at all. I currently do this with Gamel Clodin.
The other project is done every October since my birthday is in October. My birthdays were just normal before but I believe God brought these ideas. I realized that reading boosts confidence, boost articulacy in the English language and confidence, and to bridge the gap, I decided this would be a great move. I am a product of a public school and I see when the alumni of private schools talk about how they made sure they read books but no single teacher in public school encouraged us to read story books except for English teachers who made sure we read for English comprehension topic. I thought of public schools that do not have these opportunities. The Outreach is for public schools, orphanages and private schools without libraries. And because they are done annually, everything was prioritized equally. My classes are on the weekends which are my off days, the morning and evening sessions. My students are also adults and because they work during the week, they prefer the weekend.
How Have You Been Able To Build Confidence Over The Years?
When I was a child, I was that stubborn girl and felt the boys explored compared to the girls who were afraid so I was friends with the boys. But in the classroom, it was a different ball game. If a teacher came into the classroom and asked me to stand up and mention my name, I would start crying. I could not mention my name to save my life, that was how bad it was. I just didn’t want to be under the spotlight. I was always thinking about the what-ifs. I was running away from being seen, you wouldn’t know if I were or weren’t in school. I fought with an inferiority complex all the time which affected my confidence.
Everything changed in senior high school. My parents made me choose the school my brother, the firstborn taught at the time after I finished junior high school because I was stubborn. Immediately after my junior high school exam, I was taken to my brother’s. He was the firstborn and was called pastor growing up, we were all shy of him just by looking at him, we would all cooperate so they knew he was the solution for my stubbornness. Definitely, God used him to change me because he would go to church on Sundays, Monday Bible study, Thursday Revival hour, and Saturdays for orchestra practice since he was the head. I was practically in the church all week and I believe when you are exposed to something, you become that thing. That was when I decided to give my life to Jesus since I didn’t have a choice anymore. There was this freshness, the first love the Bible talked about, zeal, passion, faith to do all things and that is what fueled the change in my life. I wanted to be better.
Luckily, I found myself in a room in my brother’s flat where my brother stored books since he sold them. That was where I was exposed to great writers like Dale Carnegie, and Creflo Dollar. The home was boring if I was not going to church with my brother, so I started reading books from that state, starting with the dictionary which is why I was interested in the English language. Before I entered senior high school, the school my brother taught, I knew all I had to do was to say what I knew, it wasn’t easy since I started with a shaky voice but I will say it and ask questions. I began becoming the teacher’s favourite not because I was smart but because I was inquisitive. It got to a time when I was called broniba meaning white man’s child, in Nigeria, “oyinbo’s daughter”. I could express myself better because I studied the dictionary. All I needed was to participate. I remember my first debate in church, I was shaky but people were impressed and knew me because of that and would call me for a debate. It took a while for it to go but the more I did, the more I was refined. I believe there is more to do but people believe I am already there.
What Do You Think Is The Major Challenge For African Women To Scale Their Careers?
At the moment, from my Instagram analytics, 66.4% of my followers are women and 33.5% are men. Accra is leading, the next is Lagos when it comes to demographics and it is a slim difference between the two. The major issue we have in Africa is confidence in every aspect. Depending on where you were raised, you were taught to be silent and that you were second due to social construct. Some women are eloquent but they would pass the chance to speak to a crowd and so men take over. I am happy that in Ghana, we recently passed the affirmative law where a gender equality committee ensures it is 50:50 in leadership for both genders in every workplace but it was not so until this year. What we first lack is confidence and identity.
Social media platforms have created different narratives that don’t even relate to our reality. So when we hear influencer, we think of someone who dresses nicely, shows nudity, travels abroad, shows expensive stuff without showing what they do to get that and if a woman is not in that category, she has no say in those spaces and is seen as unfulfilled. We define celebrities as people who have beauty, success and impact by that standard. This is a global issue, especially in Africa. The narrative has been changed thanks to technology which is helping and not helping at the same time. The woman is exposed to different things that are not helping them harness their confidence. Conversations that help rarely receive much likes compared to those of relationships and controversies. So these conversations get tougher but are still there. We don’t discuss important things that empower the woman.
Organisations are there and the talking has been done but there are no actions. We speak to the woman but no opportunity to practice. There are a lot of women who can perform but have no confidence to come out and speak. You will see women going for second place like the vice president, deputy, etc. It comes out of fear of seeing women who have done it but scrutinized about marriage and being slut shamed, calling them a witch or ashawo because of what they wear or say but a man is never called that. And so those sitting and watching don’t want to experience the same thing. They will talk about her hair and makeup. Women also contribute to this shaming but a man will never go through such. In India, the woman marries the man, she has been empowered from scratch by the culture, they already think it is the right way.
African women are beautiful, talented, and up to the task, but because of the culture, stereotypes, attitude, socialization, things we have been doing before now, they are not able to step out. Stakeholders must do something also by raising the confidence of women and erasing their fears, not only the government with its law. We must go to various homes because it starts from there, from the parents to the children at home, it is hard for us to disabuse the mindset but it will take a while, else, it will take those who don’t care about changing anything to step out.
What 5 Practical Steps African Women Should Engage In?
First of all, Know God, you have a purpose, God knows what will work for you and He will direct you. It doesn’t have to be a dream but a thought or an idea just as Teacher Blessing came out of a conversation with my friend from Nigeria and my friend who told me to have online classes as Teacher Blessing, now we have over 200 students from 20, I see God behind all of it. Have a close relationship with God and you will know if it is from God when it comes
Secondly, people know their purpose but don’t find out how it can be fulfilled. I was called to be a teacher but I went to Ghana Institute of Journalism to get here not through going to teachers college like the normal way. It was from journalism I learnt how to communicate well, to be lively, to have fun, you need to make people feel entertained when they are actually being taught, Teacher Blessing wouldn’t have been exciting without journalism. Finding out is research, talking to people, getting a mentor, or someone to help you, experimenting, starting from nothing to know something. You need to know how to get there,
The next thing is consistency. If you are not consistent, you won’t be taken seriously. I came on people’s screens and kept on appearing. If I wasn’t consistent, the old and first video people saw of me would have kept showing and they get tired. The video keeps ringing the name, “Teacher Blessing” in the minds of people which made many come to me today. You need time, you need to study. I used the iPhone 10 when I started with Snapchat filters at first but I was told to use what I have as it made it original. The consistency will reveal the growth, a lot has changed since I started till now. Strangers will tell you the truth and they don’t have to like you at first, meet friends and mentors.
After consistency, pay attention to the feedback. When I started, I took my time to talk about myself before saying what I had. The intro was always there till people told me that it was too long and I was wasting their time but I knew I definitely had to introduce myself so I made it shorter. Pay attention to the feedback, the consumers are the observers.
The final one is to pray, hard times will come but never ever do anything without prayer. When I started, I had twenty students and thought I couldn’t go above but towards the end of 2023, The Holy Spirit gave me a word from the scriptures, “Open your mouth wide and I will fill it” and at the beginning of 2024, I started with 50 students which made me start wanting more, now we divide the classes into groups with cumulative total of over 200 students. I got those things from prayer. Stay with God and keep praying when it gets tough or better.
Where Do You See Teacher Blessing In 10 Years?
I see myself where God wants me to be. I know Teacher Blessing may not be doing the videos but there will be something done around children, this will just be the foundation. We have big plans for children, especially with the projects we have going on.
I want to be known for the impact not just the name or popularity alone so that other women will see it in 10 years and be encouraged to do so. Sometimes I get too excited but I love how God hides the name. I know that impact is there and since He has called me, He will use me to do more. The name, “Teacher Blessing” should be known for its impact on education and even more, spanning women’s rights and empowering African women.