Education is the driving force in achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Education equips people with the competences to secure decent jobs (SDG 8), the skills to take action to combat climate change (SDG 13), and the values to build more inclusive and peaceful societies (SDG 16). It carries the potential to reduce inequalities, on condition that inclusion and equity stand at the heart of all policies (SDG 16).

However, as we enter the last decade of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, data collected and analysed by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) and the Global Education Monitoring Report (GEM Report) show a worrying trend. Indeed, the world is not on track to achieve SDG 4.

According their new report, Meeting Commitments: are countries on track to achieve SDG 4?, if the world continues on the current trends, 220 million children and youth will still be excluded from school in 2030 and one in three young people will not complete secondary education.

This worrying trend is coupled with the data showing that the proportion of trained teachers has also been falling. In sub-Saharan Africa, only 50% of teachers meet the minimum required training at secondary level, and 64% in primary, because since 2000, the focus has been on solving the teacher shortage and schools have been hiring contract teachers without qualifications to close the quantitative gaps at lower cost.

Teachers are at the heart of inclusive and equitable education. This lack of trained teachers results in poor learning outcomes for students and threatens the achievement of inclusive, equitable, quality education for all.

In light of these worrisome trends, The International Task Force on Teachers for Education 2030 reiterates its belief that holistic national teacher policies including the widest range of interlocking dimensions affecting teachers and teaching are the most efficient approach to improve teacher quantity and teaching quality.

A complementary publication prepared by the GEM Report calls for countries to ensure their education plans match their commitments. Titled Beyond Commitments: how countries implement SDG 4, the report encourages countries to focus their work on six key policy areas in order to achieve SDG 4, two of which recommend clear focus on teacher development. This is emphasised by the SDG-Education 2030 Steering Committee which lists “adequate training and support for teachers” as one of the six areas requiring systematic policy attention.

The Teacher Task Force believes that it is every learner’s right to be taught by qualified, motivated and empowered teachers. We also believe that teachers should be working within well-resourced, efficient and effectively governed systems to achieve inclusive and equitable quality education for all. It is our mission to mobilize governments and other stakeholders for the achievement of these goals through the implementation of comprehensive policies backed by sound data as outlined in our 2018-2021 Strategic Plan.

For this reason, the Teacher Task Force supports the call made by UNESCO, the SDG-Education 2030 Steering Committee and the global education community at large, on the occasion of the High-Level Political Forum to #CommitToEducation.

The High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) will take place from 9 to 18 July 2019 at United Nations Headquarters in New York, under the theme “Empowering people and ensuring inclusiveness and equality”. The HLPF is the main United Nations platform on sustainable development and it has a central role in the follow-up and review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals at the global level.

For more information, visit the HLPF 2019 UNESCO webpage and the SDG-Education 2030 Steering Committee website.

#CommitToEducation campaign is available at the following link.

Achieving Education 2030 targets and commitments requires efficient and accurate systems to measure progress. International learning assessments are important contributions to the collection of cross-national data that can assess progress towards these targets.UNESCO partnered with the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) on a joint report to exemplify ways in which data from a cross-national learning assessment can help monitor progress towards Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4).

Measuring progress

Progress in International Reading Literacy (PIRLS) is an international assessment of reading comprehension at fourth grade level that has reported trends in student achievement every five years since 2001.

Using the data from the fifty countries who took part in the 2016 PIRLS, the report provides internationally comparative data and analysis on SDG 4 targets 4.1 on primary education, 4.2 on early childhood development, 4.4 on skills for work, 4.5 on gender equality and inclusion, 4.a on effective learning environments, and 4.c on teachers.

What did we learn?

The PIRLS data revealed that students have access to well-qualified reading teachers. In most countries and dependent territories, reading teachers held at least a Bachelor or equivalent degree. But there is variability both within and across countries and dependent territories. In some countries, large numbers of grade 4 students are taught by reading teachers reporting only an upper secondary education certificate as their highest level of formal education completed. Teachers’ levels of formal qualifications have implications for the quality of education provision. To improve teacher quality, countries can support teachers to upgrade their qualifications through needs-based professional development.

We also learned that formal teacher education does not adequately address specialized skills required to ensure reading achievement for all children. While nearly two-thirds of grade 4 students are taught by reading teachers who report having studied reading pedagogy or teaching methods specific to reading instruction, only 18% and 23%, respectively, of grade 4 students were taught by reading teachers who reported having studied second language learning and remedial reading instruction. This means that teachers may not be appropriately prepared to ensure inclusive and equitable quality learning for all. In countries where the classroom language is different from the home language, teachers with specialized training can help close reading achievement gaps.

PIRLS is a useful instrument for monitoring progress on SDG 4 targets and can be used to gain an in-depth understanding of the effects of policies and practices. By monitoring teachers qualifications and pedagogical needs, countries can make evidence-informed decisions, such as reforms to improve initial teacher education and how best to allocate resources for teachers’ professional development based on needs.

The joint UNESCO-IEA booklet can be accessed here and the full PIRLS 2016 results can be accessed here.

How do the top-ranked countries in education achieve outstanding school performance? What are the reasons behind the rise of their school performance? This was the discussion subject of a conference organized by the Permanent Delegation of Argentina to UNESCO in March. As teachers constitute one of the key elements behind students’ and schools’ performance, a large focus was put on discussing what makes a good teacher. Experts from around the world gathered to share their countries’ perspectives on how to train teachers, analyse their performance and motivate them. 

Teacher training: what type and for how long?

The UNESCO Institute for Statistics defines a trained teacher as a “teacher who has fulfilled at least the minimum organized teacher-training requirements (pre-service or in-service) to teach a specific level of education according to the relevant national policy or law.” However, there is no universal agreement on what being a trained teacher means or what the minimum requirements to qualify as a teacher are.

Experience from top-ranked education systems, though, shows consistent patterns regarding teacher training and education. They all normalized pre-service training as a university course sanctioned by a degree, some of them even requiring having obtained classroom experience prior. Dr Huihua He, Associate Professor and Deputy Director, College of Education - Shanghai Normal University, indicated that it takes the completion of a four-year programme followed by one-year in-service training to become a qualified teacher. It is impossible to practice as a teacher in Shanghai without this certification.

She also underlined the importance of providing students with information and guidance on professional development. The university, to this end, integrated a “teacher professional development” course into other courses so that students have an understanding of the career ladder.

Should teachers be evaluated?

Another aspect of ensuring students are taught by good teachers is through evaluation. Ms Sonia Guerriero - Senior Programme Specialist, UNESCO – stated that teacher evaluation is necessary, as they need to keep their knowledge up to date on theory and practices as well as develop knowledge on new skills needed. Performance evaluations can be used to identify areas where teachers may need additional training.

However, there is an ongoing debate regarding what means can be used to determine a teacher’s performance. Is it through the evaluation of the students learning outcomes or through teacher evaluations?

There are several arguments against the use of students’ learning outcomes as the only means of teacher evaluation. Indeed, there are several factors that can affect students’ test scores outside of teachers’ performance, such as parental support, resources, curriculum content, and learning materials. Children’s economic and social background also play a role in their learning achievement.

Mr Hong Joon Chae – Director of the Education Budget Division, Ministry of Education, Republic of Korea – indicated that, in Korea, teachers in primary and secondary education are evaluated every year. This evaluation includes both a performance evaluation and an expertise evaluation to determine their knowledge on the subject they teach. It also includes an evaluation of the classroom climate and the teacher’s attitude.

Ms Guerriero debated that a more effective means of teacher evaluation would be to use classroom observation with mentoring and feedback by peers. Through observation, the focus can be placed on instructional practice, on-the-spot decision making, maintaining high-functioning and nurturing classrooms, content focus and depth of instruction. Evaluations can also include peer reviews of teaching through interviews and analysis of videotaped instruction. Indeed, teachers are not only there to share knowledge with their students but to also develop their skills.

Evaluation, especially through peer reviews, can also influence classroom practices, through informal in-service training. In Japan, for instance, there is a strong culture of seniority, with mentoring of younger teachers within schools. This includes evaluation of those young teachers’ performances by senior teachers, leading to teachers learning from and supporting each other.

Impact of incentives on teachers’ performance

Mr Chae underlined that, in Korea, teachers are very well paid. Indeed, teacher pay in Korea is higher than the average calculated based on OECD countries. Therefore, it is not a crucial variable for improving teachers’ performance. He noted that amongst surveyed teachers, autonomy in the classroom and professional development opportunities were indicated as affecting teachers’ performances.
This is also the case in Finland, where an important emphasis has been put on teachers’ autonomy. Indeed, Ms Jaana Palorjävi – Director, International Relations, Ministry of Education and Culture, Finland – explained that a lot of leeway is given to teachers in how to organize the school day, based on a skeleton framework provided to them.

It was also noted that teacher development programmes should focus on allowing teachers to go further than transmitting knowledge. Dr Makito Yurita – Senior Researcher, National Institute for School Teachers and Staff Development, Japan – described the teacher as a learner, a thinker and an enquirer. He also further explained that as teachers are not just preparing students for the job market but also preparing future citizens, they should be encouraged to participate in discussions on the goal of education.