Mobilising Teachers

Never in history has an entire generation of children been educated. This fact serves as a reminder of how much more we can achieve as human race, and a challenge for governments, international aid organisations and all concerned individuals.

Ideally, those concerned individuals would be all of us, as education is commonly accepted as the most powerful tool towards a democratic, sustainable world of justice and equality. I would like to comment though, that it is learning in general and not education that matters the most for creating a sustainable future.

It is the engagement of the children by teachers, families and communities; the connection of learning to the global reality and the required change, as well as the development of social and emotional skills.

These skills far outweigh in importance any of the cognitive learning, or the deposit of informational knowledge. We all ought to learn tolerance, empathy and respect first, before we learn to analyse and critically think about our global challenges and solutions.

Then, we need to learn many different life skills, that would help us sustain a fruitful life in a constantly changing future. We also must adapt to our age and gain the so called “21th century skills” like critical thinking, problem solving, and digital literacy. We must develop the courage necessary for living in a seemingly hopeless world, while at the same time aflame and sustain our creativity.

In this way, we will manage to see a way forward. Only when we manage to support and encourage the mobilization of ourselves and others, only when we manage to see both the economic and humanitarian value behind global solidarity, only then we will achieve change. But we need to know better. And the teachers among us, the concerned individuals should be the first to show the way. Teachers, we are to lead by example, and to trace the way for the ones to follow.