# BORN WITHOUT ARMS, NARSINGDI TEACHER DEDICATES HIS LIFE TO EDUCATING 450+ CHILDREN

> Born without arms, Narsingdi teacher Altaf Hossain refused to let physical challenges define his future. After struggling to find permanent employment, he founded a private school with support from fellow teachers. Toda…

Published: 2026-10-06 · Desk: Latest · Source: BD News 24 · By: SADIA ALAM ARMIN

In Narsingdi, Bangladesh, a teacher named Altaf Hossain is showing that determination can overcome challenges that may seem impossible to others. Born without arms, Altaf has faced physical limitations throughout his life. Yet, rather than allowing his disability to define what he could or could not achieve, he chose to build a life around education, perseverance, and service to his community.

From an early age, Altaf understood that his journey would be different from that of many others. Everyday activities that most people take for granted required patience, creativity, and determination. Despite these challenges, he continued pursuing his education and worked toward building a meaningful future for himself.

Like many people seeking financial independence, Altaf hoped to secure permanent employment. However, finding stable work proved difficult. His physical condition created additional barriers in an already challenging employment environment. Repeated difficulties could have discouraged him, but Altaf refused to give up on his ambitions.

Instead of waiting for an opportunity to come his way, he decided to create one.

With support from other teachers, Altaf established a private school in his local community. What began as an effort to build a sustainable livelihood gradually became something much larger: an opportunity to provide education to hundreds of children who live in the surrounding area.

Today, more than 450 children of different age groups attend the school. For these students, the school is more than just a place to attend classes. It is a space where they can learn, develop their abilities, and work toward their own futures.

At the heart of the school is Altaf himself.

Despite being born without arms, he teaches his students using his foot. Standing in front of the classroom, he carefully holds a piece of chalk between his toes and writes on the blackboard with remarkable precision. His movements may be different from those of other teachers, but his commitment to his students remains the same.

For the children sitting in front of him, Altaf's way of teaching has become a powerful lesson in itself. Every line he writes on the blackboard reflects years of practice, patience, and determination. His classroom demonstrates that limitations do not necessarily determine a person's ability to contribute, teach, or inspire others.

Altaf's story is not simply about overcoming a physical disability. It is also about creating opportunities when conventional paths become difficult to follow. When permanent employment remained out of reach, he did not allow that setback to end his professional journey. Instead, he turned toward education and created a school that now serves hundreds of children.

The support of fellow teachers has also played an important role in making the school possible. Their cooperation helped Altaf turn his idea into a functioning educational institution. Together, they have created a learning environment for children from the local community.

The school's students come from different age groups, bringing different needs, abilities, and aspirations into the classroom. By continuing to teach them, Altaf has taken on a responsibility that extends beyond his own personal circumstances.

His experience also challenges common assumptions about disability. Physical differences are often viewed primarily through the lens of limitation. Altaf's life offers a different perspective. His disability has certainly presented obstacles, but it has not prevented him from becoming an educator or from building something valuable for his community.

His ability to write with his foot is particularly striking because it represents more than an unusual skill. It is evidence of the adaptability people can develop when circumstances require them to find alternative ways of doing everyday things. Through years of determination, Altaf has learned to use his foot with enough control to write clearly on a blackboard and conduct lessons for his students.

For the more than 450 children who attend his school, Altaf is not defined by the absence of his arms. He is their teacher. He stands before them, explains lessons, writes on the board, and encourages them to learn.

His journey from struggling to find permanent employment to running a school demonstrates the power of persistence. Rather than allowing repeated setbacks to determine his future, he chose to take responsibility for creating a new path.

There is also a deeper message in Altaf's story. Success does not always come through the opportunities people initially hope to receive. Sometimes, when one door remains closed, a person has to build another. Altaf did exactly that.

By establishing his own school, he found a way to support himself while also contributing to the education of children in his community. His work has therefore created an impact that reaches far beyond his personal achievements.

Every day, when Altaf picks up chalk with his foot and writes on the blackboard, he is doing more than teaching a lesson. He is demonstrating resilience in a way his students can see for themselves.

His life is a reminder that circumstances can shape a person's journey without having the final say in where that journey leads. Born without arms and faced with difficulties in finding permanent employment, Altaf could have allowed those challenges to define his future. Instead, he chose education, built a school, and devoted himself to teaching hundreds of children.

In Narsingdi, his classroom has become a quiet example of perseverance. More than 450 children now have an opportunity to learn because Altaf refused to let physical limitations determine the boundaries of his dreams.

His story ultimately shows that sometimes the most powerful form of inspiration is not found in words, but in action. Altaf teaches his students with his foot, but the lesson he leaves with them is much bigger: challenges may change the way we move forward, but they do not have to stop us from moving forward.

Original reporting: https://www.instagram.com/p/DeHhFyyoC3g/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&stkn=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==
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