Teachers are the backbone of education systems and the key to reaching learning goals, regardless of context and situation. Within the COVID-19 crisis, they are on the front line in ensuring that...
Teachers, school leaders, and education stakeholders are invited to apply for Semester 2 of the Academy courses offered by the Global Institute for Shaping a Better Future, taking place from 11 June to 11 July 2025. These free, fully funded courses, workshops, and fellowships are designed to support educators in reimagining classrooms, schools, and education systems to better equip students to lead positive change in their communities and beyond.
These offerings may be of particular interest to members of the Teacher Task Force network, especially those seeking to strengthen teacher development, leadership, and system transformation efforts. Of note this semester are:
Teacher Coaching as Collective Leadership (Morayma Jimenez & Smitha Ganesh, Teach For All)
Humane Education: Solutionary Frameworks for Teachers and Systems Change Agents (Dr. Julie Meltzer & Rene Neune, Institute of Humane Education)
Unlocking Secrets of System Leaders (Radha Ruparell, Alex Beard & Jared Hove, Teach For All)
The Academy offers a unique opportunity for teachers and teacher educators to deepen their practice, exchange with peers worldwide, and explore innovative approaches to teaching and learning that drive system-wide change.
Key dates:
Applications for courses close on 11 July 2025.
Workshops have staggered registration, opening one month before they begin.
For more information, click here, or contact globalacademy[at]teachforall.org.
This blog post is co-authored by Sophia Ashipala, Head for Education at the African Union Commission, and Quentin Wodon, Director of UNESCO’s International Institute for Capacity Building in Africa.
Education remains a top priority for Africa. As part of work carried under the Year of Education in 2024, the African Union conducted a review of the Continental Education Strategy for Africa 2016-2025 (CESA 16-25) and prepared a new strategy for 2026-2035 (CESA 26-35). The new strategy was approved at the African Union’s summit in February 2025 and is now available on the website of the African Union. Separately, the African Union also approved a new strategy for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), also now available online.
CESA 26-35 comprises of four parts: (1) A brief investment case; (2) A review of selected challenges; (3) A framework for action; and (4) A discussion on governance, communications, and monitoring. Part I for the investment case considers (i) Human rights, peace and sustainable development, including considerations related to gender, equity, and inclusion; (ii) Health and social benefits; and (iii) Labor market benefits. Part II reviews progress (or the lack thereof) for schooling and learning, as well as the links between both. It also provides a summary of key findings from the CESA 16-25 review. Part III is the core of the strategy. It provides a framework for action with six strategic areas of focus and 20 objectives. Part IV is about governance, communications, and data for monitoring and evaluation (M&E).
Teachers are at the core of CESA 26-35, with three objectives under the second strategic area in the strategy that focuses on teachers. These three objectives are: (1) Improve teacher policies, education, professional development, and accountability; (2) Increase the attractiveness of the teaching profession; and (3) Invest in school leadership including the share of female leaders where needed. The other five strategic areas under CESA 26-35 focus on (i) Resources and the enabling environment; (ii) Pre-primary to secondary education, with a focus on early learning and foundational, socio-emotional, and 21st century and labor market skills; (iii) Higher Education and TVET; (iv) Second chance programs and lifelong learning; and (v) Gender, equity, and inclusion. Several cross-cutting themes are also mentioned, including (1) digitalization and AI; (2) greening education; and (3) education in emergencies.
A simple visual aims to facilitate communications around strategic areas. The Figure below conveys the idea that education systems must be built, like a house or structure. The first two strategic areas, including the area focusing on teachers, are the foundations, followed by three pillars combined into one strategic area. These pillars relate to the foundational, socio-emotional, and 21st century skills that learners must acquire, especially through pre-primary to secondary education. Those skills also need to be emphasized at higher levels of learning, as well as in second chance programs and lifelong learning, but the period from pre-primary to secondary education is essential. Next come educational opportunities through Higher Education and TVET, and programs for children and youth out of school and for lifelong learning for adults. The roof and outside walls that encompass the whole system must ensure gender-transformative approaches, equity, and inclusion. Finally, the text at the base of the structure highlights a few critical mega-trends that education systems must adapt and respond to.
In total, CESA 26-35 has 20 objectives, a smaller than the Action Areas (AAs) in the previous strategy for 2016 to 2025 (CESA 16-25), in part to convey prioritization. For each objective, the strategy provides a brief explanation of the importance of the objective and links to guidance related to promising interventions and approaches for achieving the objective. UNESCO IICBA played an important role in working with the African Union to draft the strategy and conduct an extensive consultation process before its approval.
As CESA 26-35 is now approved and available online, the next steps will consist in planning its dissemination and implementation. A first implementation meeting with members of the CESA task force was organized in Nairobi in May 2025. On matters related to teachers, the CESA teacher professional development cluster is in the process of providing additional guidance. For example, along CESA 26-35, a separate strategy was adopted by the African Union on mental health and psycho-social support (MHPSS) for teachers in Africa.
In future articles for this newsletter, we will provide more details on the MHPSS strategy and the broader implementation plans for CESA 26-35, especially as they pertain to the teaching profession in Africa.
The Teacher Task Force is pleased to announce its participation in the upcoming webinar “Adult Educators as Lifelong Learners and Facilitators of Lifelong Learning,” hosted by the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL) within the framework of the joint research project Teachers as Lifelong Learners, in collaboration with Shanghai Normal University. The webinar will take place on 25 June from 13:00 to 15:00 CET.
Carlos Vargas, Head of the Teacher Task Force Secretariat and Chief of UNESCO's Section for Teacher Development, will join the event to speak on the topic of global teacher policies and the question of adult educators, drawing on the Teacher Task Force’s extensive work advocating for teacher policy development worldwide.
In today’s rapidly evolving societies, educators - especially adult educators - face a multitude of shifting demands. They not only facilitate knowledge acquisition, but also support learners’ personal development, encourage critical thinking, and adapt to diverse needs and contexts. This webinar will offer a space to rethink the role of adult educators through the lens of lifelong learning, and to explore how policies, technologies and training can better support their professional development.
Objectives of the webinar include:
Exploring practical strategies and innovations that empower adult educators to be both users and facilitators of lifelong learning;
Discussing the implementation and impact of global and national policy initiatives related to adult education;
Identifying opportunities for adult educators to engage in continuous professional learning, including through the use of emerging technologies.
Programme Highlights:
Opening remarks and personal testimony from an adult educator
Presentation of UIL’s thematic paper on adult educators as lifelong learners
Intervention by Carlos Vargas on global teacher policies and adult educators
Case studies and research from Latin America, Kenya, and India
Moderated Q&A and closing reflections
This webinar will bring together policymakers, researchers and practitioners to share insights and innovations that elevate the status and capacity of adult educators in lifelong learning ecosystems.
UNESCO and the Government of Chile are pleased to announce the World Summit on Teachers, to be held in Santiago de Chile.
Taking place on 28 and 29 August 2025, with a “Day Zero” on 27 August for socio-cultural activities, visits, and pre-accreditation, the Summit is organized in conjunction with the SDG 4 High-Level Steering Committee meeting.
Building on the recent global events and reports that forged a global consensus on the need to invest in dignifying the teaching profession, the Summit aims to address the global challenge of teacher shortages and to advocate for sustained support for teachers in a challenging economic and socio-political context.
It will bring together ministers, teacher representatives, international organizations and key education stakeholders for high-level dialogue on teacher policies, financing, innovation and inclusion.
Official invitations to ministries will follow shortly.
We will be updating this page regularly.
Useful links:
UNESCO and the Government of Chile are pleased to announce the World Summit on Teachers, to be held in Santiago de Chile.
Taking place on 28 and 29 August 2025, with a “Day Zero” on 27 August for socio-cultural activities, visits, and pre-accreditation, the Summit is organized in conjunction with the SDG 4 High-Level Steering Committee meeting.
Building on the recent global events and reports that forged a global consensus on the need to invest in dignifying the teaching profession, the Summit aims to address the global challenge of teacher shortages and to advocate for sustained support for teachers in a challenging economic and socio-political context.
It will bring together ministers, teacher representatives, international organizations and key education stakeholders for high-level dialogue on teacher policies, financing, innovation and inclusion.
Official invitations to ministries will follow shortly.
We will be updating this page regularly.
Useful links:
A webinar titled Low-tech, high impact: Training teachers where they are - Scalable Mobile-based Teacher Training Solutions: Lessons Learned and Perspectives will take place on 4 June at 15:00 CET (GMT+2) via Zoom.
Organised by the International Teacher Task Force, its Thematic Group on Digital & AI, co-led by MESHGuides and Digital Promise, and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), through GIZ, the webinar aims to showcase innovative low-tech training approaches that enable in-service teacher professional development in low-resource and crisis-affected contexts.
Click here to register for the webinar.
Background
With an estimated global need for 44 million new teachers by 2030 to meet SDG 4 targets, effective and scalable training solutions are critical. Conventional models often fail to reach teachers in remote or crisis-affected areas. The COVID-19 pandemic further underscored the urgency of equipping teachers with foundational and 21st-century skills needed for resilient and inclusive education systems. Low-tech mobile solutions, such as SMS and WhatsApp-based training, offer flexible, accessible, and scalable opportunities that meet teachers where they are.
Speakers and programme highlights
Carlos Vargas, Head of the Teacher Task Force Secretariat, will provide the welcome and background introduction.
A representative from GIZ will introduce the presented solutions.
ProFuturo, a leader in digital teacher training, will share insights and lessons learned from implementing teacher training programs in low-resource contexts.
The Future Teacher Kit (a joint initiative by GIZ, UNESCO, and UNICEF) will be presented, highlighting mobile-supported teacher training tailored for remote and crisis-affected settings. This segment will include contributions from the Jamaican Teaching Council, Ministry of Education Ecuador, UNESCO Ecuador, UNESCO Jamaica, and UNICEF’s Helsinki Global Innovation Learning Hub.
The webinar will also include Q&A sessions and a moderated discussion facilitated by the co-leads of the TTF Thematic Group on Digital Education and AI. Discussion topics will address key future skills for teachers, challenges and successful strategies in teacher training, as well as barriers and enablers for scaling mobile-based approaches and partnerships.
Objectives
Expected outcomes
Participants are expected to gain a deeper understanding of mobile-based teacher training approaches and to be inspired to adapt and scale such models in their own national contexts.
Additional information
The webinar will be conducted in English only; interpretation will not be available.
Registration
Please register here.
A webinar titled Low-tech, high impact: Training teachers where they are - Scalable Mobile-based Teacher Training Solutions: Lessons Learned and Perspectives will take place on 4 June at 15:00 CET (GMT+2) via Zoom.
Organised by the International Teacher Task Force, its Thematic Group on Digital & AI, co-led by MESHGuides and Digital Promise, and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), through GIZ, the webinar aims to showcase innovative low-tech training approaches that enable in-service teacher professional development in low-resource and crisis-affected contexts.
Click here to register for the webinar.
Background
With an estimated global need for 44 million new teachers by 2030 to meet SDG 4 targets, effective and scalable training solutions are critical. Conventional models often fail to reach teachers in remote or crisis-affected areas. The COVID-19 pandemic further underscored the urgency of equipping teachers with foundational and 21st-century skills needed for resilient and inclusive education systems. Low-tech mobile solutions, such as SMS and WhatsApp-based training, offer flexible, accessible, and scalable opportunities that meet teachers where they are.
Speakers and programme highlights
Carlos Vargas, Head of the Teacher Task Force Secretariat, will provide the welcome and background introduction.
A representative from GIZ will introduce the presented solutions.
ProFuturo, a leader in digital teacher training, will share insights and lessons learned from implementing teacher training programs in low-resource contexts.
The Future Teacher Kit (a joint initiative by GIZ, UNESCO, and UNICEF) will be presented, highlighting mobile-supported teacher training tailored for remote and crisis-affected settings. This segment will include contributions from the Jamaican Teaching Council, Ministry of Education Ecuador, UNESCO Ecuador, UNESCO Jamaica, and UNICEF’s Helsinki Global Innovation Learning Hub.
The webinar will also include Q&A sessions and a moderated discussion facilitated by the co-leads of the TTF Thematic Group on Digital Education and AI. Discussion topics will address key future skills for teachers, challenges and successful strategies in teacher training, as well as barriers and enablers for scaling mobile-based approaches and partnerships.
Objectives
Expected outcomes
Participants are expected to gain a deeper understanding of mobile-based teacher training approaches and to be inspired to adapt and scale such models in their own national contexts.
Additional information
The webinar will be conducted in English only; interpretation will not be available.
Registration
Please register here.