JOHANNESBURG - World Teachers’ Day celebrates the noble work of educators the world over.
It also commemorates the adoption of the 1966 ILO/UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers. That document established global standards for teachers' rights, responsibilities and working conditions.
This World Teachers’ Day highlights how teachers are transforming education and demands a review of the support they need to best perform their duties.
Unicef said of the occasion: "On this World Teachers’ Day, Unesco, ILO, Unicef and Education International call on governments, partners and the international community to make a collective commitment to ensuring that collaboration is recognised as a norm within the teaching profession – because it is only through effective cooperation at all levels that we can build truly inclusive, equitable and resilient education systems worldwide."
Teachers play vital roles in education systems, driving learning, inclusion and innovation in schools and societies. Yet many work without structures that support their pedagogy, agency, professionalism or well-being.
In many systems, the profession remains marked by isolation, fragmented structures and limited opportunities to build networks with peers, mentors and school leaders, affecting both educational quality and teacher retention.
The theme this World Teachers’ Day is “Recasting teaching as a collaborative profession”. It highlights the transformative potential of collaboration for teachers, schools and education systems.
Reframing teaching as inherently collaborative – supported by policies, practices and environments that value mutual support, shared expertise and joint responsibility – is essential to strengthening teaching, learning and teachers’ professional fulfilment.
A global celebration will take place in the framework of the Pan-African Conference on Teacher Education (PACTED) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
The programme will open with statements from high-level representatives of the co-convening partners – UNESCO, UNICEF, the International Labour Organization, and Education International – followed by a ministerial panel, moderated by the African Union, on the topic “From isolation to collective strength: Re-envisioning the teaching profession through the lens of collaboration.”
Other celebrations are also planned around the world.