On October 5, 2024, di whole world go celebrate World Teachers' Day, and dis year theme be ‘Valuing teacher voices: towards a new social contract for education.’ Dis special day dey to honour and appreciate di hard work, dedication, and positive impact wey teachers dey have on individual lives and society at large.
World Teachers’ Day be established by UNESCO in 1994 to commemorate di signing of di ‘Recommendation Concerning the Status of Teachers’ in 1966. Dis recommendation set benchmarks regarding di rights and responsibilities of teachers, their training, employment, and working conditions. Since den, World Teachers’ Day dey celebrated every year on October 5, with different themes each year to highlight key challenges or advancements in di teaching profession[5).
Dis year’s theme, ‘Valuing teacher voices: towards a new social contract for education,’ dey emphasize di importance of recognising and amplifying di voices of educators. It also highlight di urgent need to incorporate their perspectives into educational policy and decision-making processes. UNESCO, ILO, UNICEF, and Education International go lead di celebration with an opening ceremony, keynote address, and sessions where teachers go share their perspectives on enhancing educational policies and practices[3).
As part of di celebration, UNESCO go present di UNESCO-Hamdan Prize for Teacher Development to honour exceptional contributions to teacher development. Educators from around di world, including those from India, Maldives, Thailand, Australia, and Sri Lanka, go come together to advocate for increased funding and support for teachers, and to stress di need for a collaborative approach to reshape educational systems where teachers’ voices are heard and valued[5).
YouTube also join in di celebration by highlighting some incredible educators who are making a difference both in di classroom and on YouTube. Many teachers use YouTube as a valuable teaching tool, with 94% of teachers surveyed globally saying dem use YouTube in their role as teachers[4).
