Check out the teacher campaign of the Global Campaign for Education
Getting all children in school is important. But securing a meaningful education for every child requires good quality teaching – made possible by well-trained and motivated teachers.
A staggering 1.7 million more teachers are needed worldwide to ensure that the 57 million children still missing out on a primary education can enter the classroom by 2015. Another 5.1 million teachers are needed to replace those who retire or leave the profession. These new teachers and all existing teachers need adequate training, development opportunities, job security and salaries to deliver the quality learning to which children are entitled
A new policy paper from the Global Campaign for Education UK calls for focus and momentum to close the global gap in skilled teachers. It advocates for global partners to work together to overcome the shortage of trained teachers, and for a focus on reforming teacher training to improve education quality. It also highlights the central importance of equity and inclusion. Policies must ensure that good teachers are encouraged to work in disadvantaged areas, and that teachers are trained in inclusive approaches which benefit all children, including those with disabilities.
Teacher training must be a top priority
Speaking at a recent event in UK Parliament, the Global Campaign for Education UK’s Young Ambassadors, Millie Wells and Sam Whittingham, urged decision-makers to put training of more teachers as a top priority. Drawing on their first-hand experience of visiting schools in Delhi, they stressed the sobering reality that many children can’t even read one word after a few years of schooling, and that some teachers receive only 20 days of training. They saw that sitting in a classroom means very little when children are not taught essential skills or supported to learn.
Check out the Send My Friend to School Campaign
The voice of the Young Ambassadors is joined by thousands of young people across the United Kingdom. In 2013, around 4,700 schools in the United Kingdom have taken part in the Global Campaign for Education UK’s Send My Friend to School campaign through activities to influence their local Member of Parliament, with students producing colourful ‘ideal teachers’ along with powerful messages to decision-makers.
In light of its new policy paper, and the fast-approaching 2015 deadline for the Millennium Development and Education For All Goals, the Global Campaign for Education UK welcomes the 2013 EFA Global Monitoring Report’s thematic focus on teaching and learning for development. It anticipates that the new report will provide vital evidence of the link between quality education and investing in teacher recruitment and training. The Global Campaign for Education UK also strongly supports the report’s message on equitable teaching and learning – that teachers need to be deployed equitably and trained to provide quality schooling for the most disadvantaged children.
Quality education can’t be achieved without skilled and qualified teachers. Children around the United Kingdom have made their voices heard on the issue – it is now up to leaders and policy-makers to take action.
Download GCE UK’s policy paper.
Download the GCE International and Education International Every Child Needs a Teacher report.