The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), a member of the Teacher Task Force (TTF) network, recently published the results from its 2024 Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS). A key tool in amplifying teachers’ voices and opinions, the results of the new TALIS are critical to better understand the current state of the teaching profession, the various stresses teachers endure daily, and the importance of collective thinking.
As staff shortages, funding deficits, and digital technologies continue to alter the educational landscape, the teaching profession has shifted in tandem. As we know from our 2024 Global Report on Teachers, currently, 44 million primary and secondary teachers are missing from the teaching profession, and in order to ensure equitable education for all by 2030, this gap needs to be filled. According to TALIS, 23% of teachers reported working in a school affected by the shortage of qualified teachers, thus limiting their school’s capacity to offer quality instruction.
Funding has continued to remain an issue, both affecting broader investments in education systems and teacher salaries. Investing not only financially, but in building new technological competencies has also been at the forefront of educational evolution. Even years after the COVID-19 global pandemic, hybrid and online teaching modalities have been maintained, with over 16% of teachers reported having taught at least one online or hybrid lesson. Further technological innovations, such as artificial intelligence, also emerge as a key facet to address in teacher training and development. According to TALIS, 29% of teachers feel that AI should be included in professional development resources.
Overall, 90% of teachers report that they are satisfied with their jobs, but their work is not free from pressure. Leading a classroom is one of the many demands teachers must encounter each day, and other elements of the job such as administrative work, lesson planning, marking and grading, maintaining discipline, and more have surfaced as substantial sources of stress. In fact, 50% of teachers reported excessive administrative work as a source of work-related stress.
Additionally, as classrooms are becoming more diverse, some teachers, particularly younger teachers, have found it challenging to adapt. 37% of teachers report that modifying lessons to support inclusive education is a source of stress, and novice teachers are more likely to be exposed to classrooms in which 10% of students have difficulties understanding the language of instruction. Therefore, it is essential that both initial teacher training and continuous professional development highlight ways to support students of various backgrounds, ensuring quality and equitable education for all.
Countless initiatives, such as the Global Report on Teachers and Santiago Consensus, reaffirm the importance of teacher voices and call for their contributions in policy- and decision-making; however, involvement of teachers in school-level policy decisions is declining. According to TALIS, less than 4 out of 10 teachers work in schools that engage them in defining school improvement policies.
Teachers that feel a greater sense of empowerment and autonomy over their work are often more satisfied with their jobs, leading to more confidence in the classroom. This includes designing lessons, selecting teaching methods, and implementing different curricula with flexibility, overall allowing for a more tailored experience for learners.
As emphasized in our latest World Teacher’s Day fact sheet, collaboration forms the foundation of professional growth and quality education. The 2024 TALIS finds that teachers today feel that they are spending more time working together compared to 2018. Four in five teachers work in a school with a mentoring program, yet only one in four teachers are assigned a mentor.
Positive professional relationships, whether with other teachers, principals, parents and guardians, or students, have resulted in higher well-being and job satisfaction. Opportunities to further promote this stem from continuous professional development and other initiatives, such as team teaching, joint activities across classes, classroom observation feedback, and collaborative professional learning.
Encouraging participation in continuous professional learning (CPL) keeps educators engaged and offers the opportunity to build new skills while sharpening old ones, especially as new digital competencies rise, such as the use of AI. Even though nearly all teachers surveyed were actively involved in CPL, only half of them found activities to have a positive impact. These results call for greater attention towards better tailoring CPL to meet the needs of teachers and including teacher voices in development planning.
Despite CPL efforts, teacher attrition continues to threaten the future of the teaching profession and is highest amongst those under the age of 30 and over 50. 22% of teachers under the age of 30 intend to leave the career within the next five years, and these statistics are often linked to how valued teachers feel.
While salary satisfaction has increased, there are more elements that comprise a teacher’s overall job satisfaction. Only 1 in 5 teachers agree or strongly disagree that their profession is valued by policymakers. Therefore, moving forward, teachers must be prioritized in the education agenda and engaged in decision-making processes. Revalorizing the profession remains an important part of the Teacher Task Force’s mission and is essential in maintaining and further attracting motivated and qualified teachers.
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Photo credit: OECD
Celebraremos la presentación del «Decálogo del Profesorado», un documento elaborado conjuntamente por la Fundación SM, UNESCO, y el Equipo Especial sobre Docentes que recoge las condiciones esenciales para que la profesión docente impulse una educación de calidad, inclusiva y transformadora.
En este encuentro se abordarán las claves globales para revalorizar la profesión docente y fortalecer su papel transformador en la sociedad. Los participantes podrán integrarse en una comunidad internacional comprometida con hacer de la docencia un verdadero motor de cambio, y se analizará cómo la redefinición del rol del profesorado contribuye a la mejora educativa global. La entrada es libre hasta completar aforo. ¡Contamos contigo!
Regístrese para el evento aquí.
Celebraremos la presentación del «Decálogo del Profesorado», un documento elaborado conjuntamente por la Fundación SM, UNESCO, y el Equipo Especial sobre Docentes que recoge las condiciones esenciales para que la profesión docente impulse una educación de calidad, inclusiva y transformadora.
En este encuentro se abordarán las claves globales para revalorizar la profesión docente y fortalecer su papel transformador en la sociedad. Los participantes podrán integrarse en una comunidad internacional comprometida con hacer de la docencia un verdadero motor de cambio, y se analizará cómo la redefinición del rol del profesorado contribuye a la mejora educativa global. La entrada es libre hasta completar aforo. ¡Contamos contigo!
Regístrese para el evento aquí.
The International Task Force on Teachers for Education 2030 will take part in the international seminar organized by the APPRENDRE programme from 28 to 29 October 2025 in Dakar, Senegal, on the theme “How to attract, train and retain teachers in the profession?” On this occasion, the Secretariat of the Task Force will present a forthcoming paper on the role of effective implementation of Teacher Management Information Systems (TMIS) in strengthening teacher planning and management across sub-Saharan Africa. The paper highlights how reliable, up-to-date data on teachers can help address shortages and imbalances in teacher quantity, quality and diversity, and support evidence-based policymaking.
The seminar, which will be conducted in French, will bring together research teams, ministries of education, institutional representatives and international partners, including AFD, the World Bank, the Global Partnership for Education, CONFEMEN and UNESCO. Over two days, participants will discuss the results of 11 research projects carried out in nine African countries, focusing on factors influencing teacher motivation, retention and professional development.
By taking part in this dialogue, the Teacher Task Force reaffirms its commitment to supporting countries in developing effective teacher policies and systems, ensuring that every learner is taught by a qualified, motivated and well-supported teacher, in line with Sustainable Development Goal 4.
For more information about the seminar and its programme, please visit the APPRENDRE website.
Education stakeholders from around the world gathered for the World Summit on Teachers in Santiago de Chile to address the global challenge of teacher shortages and advocate for the sustained support for teachers through global action, financing and policy alignment, especially in the midst of a rapidly changing digital era.
The World Summit on Teachers took place from 28 to 29 August 2025 in Santiago de Chile in conjunction with the SDG4 Education 2030-High Level Steering Committee’s Leaders Meeting. Organized by UNESCO and the Government of Chile, the event hosted participants from across the globe and culminated in the adoption of the Santiago Consensus, highlighting the irreplaceability of teachers and urgent call for revalorizing the profession. The Teacher Task Force played an instrumental role in the Summit, through consulting its network on the Santiago Consensus, as well as the active participation of Secretariat staff, network members and Steering Committee representatives.
After two days of engaging and thought-provoking dialogue, the Summit concluded with the delivery of the Santiago Consensus, which underlines the indispensable role of teachers as the cornerstone of education. Developed through a consultative process involving the Teacher Task Force network, the consensus calls for strengthening comprehensive national teacher policies, advancing continuous professional development, encouraging the inclusion of teachers in policymaking, mobilizing education funding, and boosting digital and AI competencies. Central to these commitments is imperative to uphold strategies that reaffirm inclusion, equity, and gender equality in all facets of education.
A crucial moment at the Summit was the launch of the new Teacher Task Force and UNESCO background paper, Costing and financing the teaching profession: a strategic investment in education. Through examining a myriad of global data and country case studies, the paper highlights the essential role of domestic resource mobilization, the risk of overreliance on external and short-term funding, and the potential of progressive fiscal reforms to secure sustainable investment in teachers.
Two of the thematic sessions at the Summit were moderated by Teacher Task Force representatives: Examining the Impact of AI on Teacher Development and Pedagogical Practices and Financing the teaching profession.
Artificial intelligence (AI) emerged as a key theme of the Summit, and Erin Chemery, member of the Teacher Task Force Secretariat, chaired a discussion about the dual impact of AI on teacher development and pedagogical practices. Though the benefits of supporting teachers in lesson planning, feedback, multilingual instruction, and personalization stand as compelling rationales for its integration, leaders in education have raised critical questions about AI’s potential to erode, rather than enhance, teacher professionalism, pedagogical autonomy, and human connection.
In a later session of the Summit, Carlos Vargas, Head of the Teacher Task Force Secretariat, orchestrated a conversation about financing the teacher profession. Sustainable teacher financing builds quality, equity, and resilience in education systems, especially in low- and lower-middle-income countries. Many of the major costs come from employing teachers, such as salaries, recruitment, professional development, deployment, and working conditions. The 2024 TTF & UNESCO Global Report on Teachers found that the need for 44 million primary and secondary teachers comes at a cost of US$120 billion. The session further emphasized the need for governments and partners to improve education financing through better planning and innovative mechanisms.
While the Summit has come to a close, there is still more work to do. Looking ahead, the Teacher Task Force will continue supporting countries in implementing the recommendations from the Santiago Consensus, as well as providing guidance on teacher policies that strengthen the profession globally. Overarching messages from the Consensus will pave the way for future efforts and initiatives, all following the same theme: we must invest in teachers now more than ever.
Photo credit: UNESCO
As artificial intelligence (AI) reshapes classrooms around the world, a new position paper champions a simple but powerful principle: teachers, not technology, must lead this transformation. Launched by the International Task Force on Teachers for Education 2030 (TTF) during UNESCO’s Digital Learning Week, the position paper highlights how AI can be a powerful ally for teachers when guided by sound policy, ethical principles, and well-designed professional learning.
The paper, Promoting and Protecting Teacher Agency in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, emphasises that teachers must remain at the heart of education and of the emerging technologies influencing its future. It sets out how AI can ease administrative burdens, provide new teaching resources in multiple languages, support inclusive education, and help tailor learning to students’ needs if steered by teachers themselves. It calls for promoting human-centered pedagogies and safeguarding diversity by valuing teachers’ voices. Crucially, it also highlights the need to invest in teacher competencies so that educators can engage with AI critically and confidently to shape the future of learning.
“Teachers are the real drivers of innovation in education. AI can support them by creating more time for meaningful interactions with learners and by expanding access to quality resources. But it is teachers’ judgment, creativity, and empathy that nurture the relationships on which learning depends,” noted April Williamson, Director, Global Projects, at Digital Promise.
The paper also showcases emerging practices that demonstrate how AI can benefit teachers and students alike. For example, AI-powered tools are helping teachers to develop lesson plans aligned with national curricula, provide personalised feedback to learners, and translate materials into local languages to reduce barriers for second-language speakers. In contexts where there are severe teacher shortages, AI can also offer supplementary support to both teachers in the classroom and students while reinforcing, rather than replacing, the central role of qualified teachers.
The position paper reflects the shared perspectives of TTF members – policymakers, practitioners, and civil society – working across diverse global contexts. It was developed through a consultative process with the new TTF thematic group on Digital Education and AI, established in early 2025. The drafting process was led by Mutlu Cukurova, who prepared an initial version presented during a consultation webinar. Group members then enriched the draft through live discussions and written feedback, ensuring that the final paper carried the shared voice of the TTF. It emphasized the need both to mitigate risks to teachers and to strengthen their critical role in preparing the next generation to use AI safely and effectively.
The position paper was launched at Digital Learning Week at UNESCO in Paris and brought together educators and researchers from all regions to share concrete experiences. These ranged from frameworks that guide teachers in reviewing AI-generated feedback, to co-created tools that help students better define their learning needs, to large-scale programmes showing how generative AI can reduce teacher workload while strengthening inclusion in teaching practices.
“Placing teachers at the centre of AI development and adoption is not just the right thing to do, it is the only way to ensure that technology genuinely contributes to quality education. When teachers are empowered to lead on technology adoption, these tools become supports to building more equitable and resilient education systems,” affirmed Carlos Vargas, Head of the Teacher Task Force Secretariat and Chief of UNESCO's Section for Teacher Development.
By foregrounding teachers’ agency, the TTF position paper offers a practical roadmap for governments, institutions, and partners to support teachers as leaders of innovation in the age of AI. Its recommendations include governments developing comprehensive AI competency frameworks for teachers, supporting collaboration through professional networks, and aligning national policies to enable teacher agency in the digital age.
As AI continues to evolve, this new position paper makes clear that the future of education will be shaped not by technology alone, but by how effectively teachers are enabled to harness its potential. The message from Digital Learning Week is resounding: investing in teachers is the most effective way to ensure that AI contributes to quality, inclusive, and sustainable education for all.
Click here to read the position paper.
Image credit: UNESCO/Taek OH
In the build-up to the Global Disability Summit 2025 to be held on 2-3 April in Germany, the Inclusion and Equity in Teacher Policies and Practices Thematic Group are delighted to invite you to attend three knowledge exchange learning sessions on policies and practices on teachers with disabilities.
This is the last of three learning sessions. The session will be interactive and participatory. Three members will make short presentations on the topic and participants will be invited to share their experience, evidence and learning in breakout rooms. The session will be facilitated in English; however, we will welcome if there any volunteers who would like to facilitate breakout sessions in different languages. We will use Team's chat function which allows to translate the conversation in different languages.
In this session, we are going to focus our discussion on policies and practices on continuing professional development opportunities and career paths for teachers with disabilities.
As an output of this session, we will produce a knowledge brief.
Please register here.