The statement accompanies their joint message to mark World Teachers’ DayHeld every year on October 5.
The international community is committed to transforming education – a process that must be led by teachers.
An important partner
That is the firm belief of Ms. Audrey Azoulay, Director General of the United Nations Educational and Cultural Agency, UNESCO; Gilbert F. Houngbo, Director General of the International Labor Organization (ILO); Catherine Russell, Executive Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and David Edwards, Secretary General of International Education.
They said: “Today, on World Teachers’ Day, we celebrate the important role teachers play in transforming learners’ potential by ensuring they have the tools they need to take responsibility for their lives. yourself, for others and for the planet.
“We urge countries to ensure that teachers are trusted and recognized as knowledge producers, reflective practitioners and policy partners.”
Fulfill a promise
The COVID-19 The pandemic has revealed that teachers are the central engine of the global education system, the statement said.
Without them, it is not possible to provide inclusive, equitable and quality education for all learners. Teachers are also essential for pandemic recovery and to prepare learners for the future.
However, unless we change the conditions for teachers, that promise of education will be out of reach for those who need it most.
They recall that Education Transformation Summitheld last month at United Nations Headquarters, reaffirmed that transformation requires having the right number of empowered, motivated and qualified teachers and education staff in the right places with the right skills. suitable ability.
Students participate in the Accelerated Education Program at Kashojwa Learning Center, Uganda.
Downgraded, dropped out of school
However, in many parts of the world, classrooms are overcrowded and teachers are too few, alongside overwork, incompetence, and under-support.
As a result, an unprecedented number is leaving the profession. The number of people learning to become teachers has also decreased significantly.
“If these issues are not addressed, the loss of a professional teaching staff could be a fatal blow to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 4,” they warn, referring to the global effort to ensure quality education for all, by 2030.
Furthermore, teacher loss disproportionately affects students in remote or poor areas, as well as women and girls, as well as vulnerable and marginalized populations. social margins.
Global shortage
The partners point to recent estimates that an additional 24.4 million primary school teachers will be needed globally, along with approximately 44.4 million secondary school teachers, if the world is to achieve universal basic education by the end of the year. this decade.
Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia alone will need 24 million more teachers, almost half the number of new teachers needed in developing countries.
These regions have some of the most overcrowded classrooms in the world, and many of the most overburdened teachers and understaffed education systems. Notably, 90% of their high schools face severe teaching shortages.
“As a result, bringing qualified, supported and motivated teachers into the classroom – and keeping them there – is the single most important thing we can do to improve student learning and wellbeing. birth and community,” said the partners.
“The valuable work that teachers do must also be translated into better working conditions and pay.”
Education Innovator Award
Relatedly, three innovative programs from Benin, Haiti and Lebanon have been recognized for their efforts to enhance the role of teachers and transform education, both in their communities and beyond.
These projects are the recipients of 2022 UNESCO-Hamdan Prize for Teacher Development, will be presented at a ceremony in Paris on Wednesday.
They are run by the Graines de Paix Foundation, the Global PH4 Foundation, and the University of Beirut of America, who will share a $300,000 grant to further support their initiatives.
Promote peace, prevent violence
Graines de Paix organizes a program in Benin called Apprendre en paix, Enseigner sans violence (Learning in Peace, Education Without Violence) provides educational solutions that focus on how to stop all forms of violence and prevent radicalization.
The project also promotes happiness and a culture of peace, security, equality and inclusion. More than 4,500 teachers have been trained and more than 250,000 children have been reached.
Through it Training teachers for Haitian conversion P4H Global strives to improve the quality of education in the Caribbean country by training teachers as well as school superintendents, parents and community members.
Strategies for success
The goal is to transform teachers’ methods into effective student-centered strategies that cultivate critical, collaborative, and creative thinking. These are reinforced through measures that include personalized responses through social media and messaging apps.
More than 8,000 educators and 350,000 students across Haiti have benefited from the program.
Within the framework of the TAMAM Project on School-Based Education Reform, university researchers and educators in Lebanon work together to devise strategies based on the region’s socio-cultural context. Arabic.
The initiative includes 70 schools in 10 countries in the region and has benefited 1,000 education partners, with 100 innovation projects initiated over the past 15 years.
About the award
The UNESCO-Hamdan Prize for Teacher Development was established in 2008 to support the improvement of teaching and learning in accordance with Sustainable development goals.
The award, given every two years, is supported by the Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation for Academic Excellence.
