World Teachers’ Day 2021: Theme, history, significance

Shailaja Tripathi
World Teachers’ Day 2021: World Teachers’ Day or commonly known as International Teachers’ Day is observed every year globally on October 5. The day raises the issues and concerns related to the teachers and teaching. World Teachers’ Day is an annual initiative that celebrates and recognizes teachers’ contributions and efforts in everyone’s life. The support and guidance received from the teachers are highlighted and noted on this day.
International Teachers’ Day strives to evaluate and assess educators worldwide and also devise ways to enhance their skills, resources, and contributions. World Teachers’ Day 2021 is celebrated in around 100 Nations around the world and various programmes and ceremonies are also organized in colleges and schools to honour the teachers.
World Teachers’ Day 2021 gives an opportunity to appreciate teachers for their contributions towards students and to focus on the changes required for teachers around the world.
The theme of World Teachers’ Day 2021 is ‘Teachers at the heart of education recovery.’
As per the joint statement from ILO, UNESCO, UNICEF, “On World Teachers’ Day, we are not only celebrating every teacher, we are calling on countries to invest in them and prioritize them in global education recovery efforts so that every learner has access to a qualified and supported teacher. Let’s stand with our teachers!”
World Teachers’ Day is being observed since 1994. World Teachers’ Day was created in 1994 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNICEF) to celebrate the role of teachers in the development of each individual.
The day acknowledges the anniversary of the adoption of the 1966 International Labor Organisation/ United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation recommendation concerning the status of the teachers.
The recommendation concerning the status of the higher education teaching personnel was adopted in 1997 in order to complement the 1966 recommendation.
Significance
International Teachers’ Day acknowledges the service of the teachers and their contributions to education. The day showcases the challenges related to the teaching profession and how many of them go unnoticed. World Teachers’ Day is an occasion to put efforts to resolve the issues regarding the teaching profession and to recognize the responsibility and rights of the teachers. As per the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), in 2021, a five-day series of regional and global events will showcase the effect that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the teaching profession, highlight effective and promising policy responses. It will aim to establish the steps that are needed to be taken to ensure that teaching personnel develops their full potential.  
Courtesy Jagran Josh