Recasting teaching as a collaborative profession: A global call on World Teachers’ Day
The call to action comes amid mounting evidence that persistent inequalities in accessing continuing professional development are preventing many teachers from participating in the collaborative learning necessary to improve their practice and remain motivated
On World Teachers' Day, four of the world's leading organisations — UNESCO, International Labour Organization (ILO), UNICEF, and Education International (EI) — issued an influential joint message urging governments and the international community to embed collaboration as a fundamental norm within the teaching profession.
On this World Teachers' Day, UNESCO, ILO, UNICEF and Education International call on governments, partners and the international community to make a collective commitment to ensuring that collaboration is recognized as a norm within the teaching profession – because it is only through effective cooperation at all levels that we can build truly inclusive, equitable and resilient education systems worldwide
The global appeal, marking this year's theme, "Recasting teaching as a collaborative profession," warns that without collective commitment, the world risks failing to build inclusive and resilient education systems.
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The joint statement reads: "On this World Teachers' Day, UNESCO, ILO, UNICEF and Education International call on governments, partners and the international community to make a collective commitment to ensuring that collaboration is recognized as a norm within the teaching profession – because it is only through effective cooperation at all levels that we can build truly inclusive, equitable and resilient education systems worldwide."
A new fact sheet by the Unesco Institute for Statistics (UIS) starkly revealed the policy gap, estimating that only 14% of low-income countries have mandatory continuing professional development policies for primary school teachers.
The call to action comes amid mounting evidence that persistent inequalities in accessing continuing professional development are preventing many teachers from participating in the collaborative learning necessary to improve their practice and remain motivated.
This lack of support severely undermines educational quality and equity, exacerbating a global shortage that requires 44 million additional teachers by 2030 to achieve universal primary and secondary education.
The lack of collaborative structures means teachers, who are often leaders in promoting innovation, carry out their work without the necessary framework to support their pedagogy, professionalism, and well-being.
Collaboration is deemed vital at every stage of a teacher's career, from co-teaching for newcomers to forming communities of practice for shared problem-solving among veterans. However, the recent UNESCO Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report revealed that only about half of countries emphasise collaboration in their school leadership standards, further highlighting the policy gap.
The international community, through the recent Santiago Consensus, has already affirmed that teaching is an inherently collaborative profession built on collective empowerment. By including teacher unions and professional associations in consultation and co-design, education policies can gain legitimacy by remaining grounded in classroom realities. The global celebration for World Teachers' Day 2025 was held on October 3 in Addis Ababa, hosted by the African Union.
