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World Teachers’ Day 2024

World Teachers' Day

World Teachers’ Day 2024 is on Thursday, 5 October 2024.

Teachers’ Day is a global observance and is not a public holiday. The celebration date of world Teachers’ day may vary according to the country. For instance, the United Nations (UN) along with a number of countries celebrates this day annually on October 5, while the United States on Tuesday during the first full week of May, and Australia observes it on the last Friday of October.

More than 100 countries commemorate World Teachers’ Day and each country holds its own date for celebrations of this event.

Importance of Teachers’ Day

On World Teachers’ Day, the services of teachers and their contributions to education are acknowledged and their role and importance for the development of students and society are appreciated.

Teachers’ Day is an occasion that pays a tribute to the teachers and tends to resolve some of the issues regarding their profession and hence tries to attract the brightest young minds towards this profession.

Various organizations like UNESCO, Education International (EI), UNICEF, UNDP, the International Labor Organization (ILO), etc. organize campaigns and conferences to achieve this goal. UNESCO allocates a Theme for this Day every year and campaigns focus on this theme.

The UNESCO Hamdan bin Rashid Al-Maktoum Prize the amount of US $300,000 for Outstanding Teachers is awarded every two years at World Teachers’ Day. (Details)

World Teachers’ Day Theme

The Theme of  World Teachers’ Day 2024 is “The transformation of education begins with teachers”. The United Nations (UNESCO) presented this theme for teachers’ day in respect of their determined and diligent efforts in the crucial stages of the Covid-19 pandemic.

As the world is progressing rapidly, the mode of education has changed from conventional teaching to technical, skilful, professional and virtual education. The United Nations (UNESCO) recommended this theme to honor the efforts made by those teachers during the pandemic COVID-19. The schools, colleges, and universities remained closed and all the people were depressed and scared. However, it could not destabilize the dedication and courage of our teachers. Our teachers knew that there would be no physical classes during the Pandemic so they transformed their medium of education altogether. The students and teachers stayed home and yet education never took a pause.

Further, with the help of teachers, we also established the idea that we do not need to worry about the educational loss of our children during future disasters. Whatever the mode of education is, we will always require the services of our teachers. Hence this theme is an appreciation and admiring certificate to all the teaching communities around the globe.

Teachers Day Themes for the previous years

2021

“Teachers at the heart of education recovery”

2020

“Teachers: Leading in crisis, re-imagining the future”.

2019

In 2019, World Teachers’ Day celebrated teachers with the theme,
“Young Teachers: The future of the Profession.”
This day provides an occasion to celebrate the teaching profession and to resolve some of the issues for attracting and keeping the brightest young minds in this profession.

2018

In 2018, UNESCO adopted the theme:
“The right to education means the right to a qualified teacher.”

2017

“Empowering Teachers” was the theme for 2017.

UNESCO World Teachers’ Day Celebrations

This year the official events of World Teachers’ Day will take place in conjunction with the meeting of the Joint ILO-UNESCO Committee of Experts on the Application of the Recommendations concerning Teaching Personnel (CEART), which will be running from 5 to 7 October 2022. there will be a series of national, regional and global events throughout the week.

The UNESCO-Hamdan bin Rashid Al-Maktoum Prize

The UNESCO-Hamdan bin Rashid Al-Maktoum Prize for Outstanding Teachers was created in 2008.
The Prize is generously supported by Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum of the United Arab Emirates.
The prize amounts to US $300,000, which is equally divided between the three winners. The winners are selected by an International Jury.
The Prize was awarded for the sixth time at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris on 5 October 2020. The 7th prize distribution ceremony will be held on World Teachers’ Day 2022.
The deadline for submitting applications for the 2021-2022 Prize was 15, February 2022.

Applications can be emailed to [email protected](link sends e-mail) with the mention in the subject “UNESCO-Hamdan Prize application”.
To submit an application, please download the guide, the application form, and the nomination form.

Download the Statutes of the UNESCO-Hamdan Prize.

Activities of World Teachers’ Day

Teachers’ Day celebrations in school

  • On Teachers’ Day students perform different activities at schools and colleges to pay gratitude and to amuse their teachers like poems recitation, mimicry of pedagogical skills of their teachers, singing, and teachers=children playing games together.
  • Students offer gifts to teachers. Students can give a hand-written card or flower to their teacher.
  • On this day the relationship between teacher and student may be enjoyed by meeting them or messaging them to make their day memorable.
  • Teachers are respected and honored on the eve of teachers’ day. Awards should be given to meritorious teachers.

Teachers' Day

10 Facts of World Teachers’ Day

  1. World Teachers’ Day is a global observance. It is not a public holiday.
  2. UNESCO allocates a Theme for this Day every year.
  3. More than 100 countries commemorate World Teachers’ Day and each country holds its own celebrations.
  4. First World Teachers’ Day was held on 5 October 1994, on the occasion of the anniversary of the 1966 ILO/UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers. This Recommendation narrates the rights, responsibilities, standards, recruitment, and teaching and learning conditions of the teachers.
  5. In 1997, during the 29th session of UNESCO, a recommendation to cover teaching and research personnel in higher education was adopted
  6. UNESCO has made the supply of well-trained and qualified teachers as one of its top priorities.
  7. According to UNESCO, A trained teacher is one who has the prescribed qualification and has received at least the minimum organized pedagogical teacher training, required for teaching at the relevant level in a given country.
  8. World Teachers’ Day is an opportunity to promote the teaching profession.
  9. In 2002, Canada honored World Teachers’ Day by issuing a postage stamp.

Background and History of World Teachers’ Day

On 5, October 1966 UNESCO/ILO organized an inter-governmental conference in Paris, France, to elaborate on the status of teachers and at the end of the conference representatives of UNESCO and ILO signed the Recommendation of this Conference. For the first time, this Recommendation narrated the rights, and responsibilities of teachers and various aspects of the teaching profession across the world.
On 5 October 1994, UNESCO created the first World Teachers’ Day to focus attention on the participation and development of teachers, and to highlight teachers’ issues and priorities regarding education. The date of October 5 was selected to internationally celebrate teacher’s day because it was the anniversary of the adoption of the 1966 ILO/UNESCO Recommendation. In adopting this recommendation, governments realized the importance of qualified, competent and motivated teachers.
On November 11, 1997, during the 29th session of UNESCO, a Recommendation to cover teaching and research personnel in higher education was adopted

World Teachers’ Day Speech

Teachers’ Day Essay

Teachers are one of the most influential forces for quality education and development.
They are a source of awareness and enlightenment. They nourish their students with their wisdom.  Moreover, a teacher teaches children the real skills of a successful life. Their es-cheats help us to discover the precise path across life.
Despite the true pillars of a successful nation, they are not awarded with the warm gratitude that they deserve, their status and working conditions remain preoccupying.
This Day is a golden opportunity to accolade them for their services.
In the present age of the early 21st-century teaching is not an easy profession. While once teachers were highly respected, valued, and role models for young people.
Indeed, in societies, that tend to glorify celebrities, like artists, and sportsmen than outstanding teachers, there are, without doubt, considerable challenges to the status of the teaching profession worldwide.
A decline in the respect of teachers is being noticed in certain western countries. More generally, families no longer support the teacher’s authority over their students in the classroom. Teachers can face threats of violence from their students and their family members
As we celebrate World Teachers’ Day, we must look at the future of the profession and prepare the young dedicated teachers for the 21st-century challenges of ‘teaching in diversity’ and ‘diversity in teaching. Attracting bright-minded young teachers to the teaching profession is becoming challenging across the world.
For many potential young candidates, the world of work is now a much different place. In years past, young school graduates were pleased to adopt teaching as their first career choice. Now, they seek higher-paid jobs in more lucrative sectors at home and abroad.
For those who do join the profession, the issues for instance low salaries, feelings of being unappreciated, employment terms and conditions and constant pressures make them disappointed with this job. These matters are a question mark for attracting and keeping young people in the teaching profession.
Now the dialogue might begin with: how to plan more dynamic recruitment and training strategies, and how to make the teaching profession more attractive overall.
The placement of young qualified women in this profession and the adjustment of men in the early childhood education system is still a matter of course. All of these issues require a rapid solution so that we may not miss the young creative minds to become educators, particularly in countries where they are needed the most. Governments also need to take bold steps for financial rewards to the teachers to keep them motivated in their profession.

Teacher’s Day Dates List for Various Countries

Afghanistan 14 Mezan, October 5
Albania, Kosovo 7 March
Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia, Yemen 28 February
Argentina 11 September
Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cameroon, Canada, Croatia, Estonia, Georgia, Germany, Kuwait, Lithuania, Maldives, Mauritius, Moldova, Mongolia, Myanmar, Netherlands, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Pakistan, Papua New, Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom 5 October
Australia Last Friday in October
Belarus The first Sunday of October
Bhutan, Iran 2 May
Bolivia 6 June
Brazil 15 October
Brunei 23 September
Chile 16 October
China, Hong Kong 10 September
Colombia, South Korea, Mexico 15 May
Cuba, Costa Rica 22 December
Czech Republic, Slovakia 28 March
Dominican Republic 30 June
Ecuador 13 April
El Salvador 22 June
Greece 30 January
Guatemala 25 June
Honduras 17 September
Hungary First Sunday of June
India Full moon day of Ashadha (June–July), and 5 September
Indonesia 25 November
Iraq 1 March
Israel 23 Kislev
Jamaica 6 May
Kazakhstan The first Sunday of October
Laos 7 October
Latvia The first Sunday of October
Lebanon 9 March
Malaysia 16 May
Nepal Full moon day of Ashadha (June–July)
New Zealand 29 October
Oman 24 February
Palestine 14 December
Paraguay 30 April
Peru 6 July
Poland 14 October
Puerto Rico 20 May
Singapore First Friday of September
Somalia 21 November
South Sudan
Panama
1 December
Spain 27 November
Sri Lanka 6 October
Syria Third Thursday of March
Taiwan 28 September
Thailand 16 January
Turkey 24 November
Ukraine The first Sunday of October
United States National Teacher Day is on Tuesday
in the first full week of May.
Uruguay 22 September
Uzbekistan 1 October
Venezuela 15 January
Vietnam 20 November

WORLD TEACHERS’ DAY DATES

Year Date Day
2023 October 5 Thursday
2024 October 5 Saturday
2025 October 5 Sunday
2026 October 5 Monday
2027 October 5 Tuesday