World Teachers' Day 2020: Importance amid Covid pandemic, theme, and more

Celebrated on October 5 every year, World Teachers’ Day commemorates the anniversary of the adoption of the 1966 ILO/Unesco recommendation concerning the status of teachers. The Recommendation sets benchmarks regarding the rights and responsibilities of teachers and standards for their initial preparation and further education, recruitment, employment, and teaching and learning conditions. World Teachers’ Day is co-convened in partnership with Unicef, the International Labour Organization and Education International.

Here's all you must know about World Teachers' Day

Importance of World Teachers' Day

World Teachers' Day 2020 assumes significance amid the coronavirus pandemic. In a joint statement, Unesco, ILO, Unicef and Education International said, “In this crisis, teachers have shown, as they have done so often, great leadership and innovation in ensuring that #LearningNeverStops, that no learner is left behind."

"Around the world, they have worked individually and collectively to find solutions and create new learning environments for their students to allow education to continue. Their role advising on school reopening plans and supporting students with the return to school is just as important.”

According to Unesco, with the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goal 4 on education, and the dedicated target (SDG 4.c) recognising teachers as key to the achievement of the Education 2030 agenda, World Teachers' Day has become the occasion to mark progress and reflect on ways to counter the remaining challenges for the promotion of the teaching profession.

World Teacher’s Day history

Marking October 5 as World Teacher’s Day was a big step. On this day in 1966 a special inter-governmental conference called by Unesco in Paris adopted the Unesco/ILO recommendation regarding the status of teachers, in cooperation with the ILO.

World Teacher’s Day 2020 theme

The theme for World Teachers' Day 2020 is ‘Teachers: Leading in crisis, reimagining the future’. As the Covid-19 pandemic affected the education process, it created challenges for teachers across the world. It created a need to revisit the method of giving education. Teachers have had a significant duty in providing remote learning and making education accessible.