Today (24/01/2022) is the fourth International Day of Education.
Started by the United Nations in 2018, this initiative aims to promote education as a human right, as well as a key contributor to global peace and development. As the UN notes, unfortunately, some 617 million children and young people across the world remain illiterate, whilst 258 million children and young people do not attend school.
This poses a significant obstacle to creating a fairer society: without universal access to education, there is little hope of achieving gender or economic equality. The Covid-19 pandemic has created further challenges, with the closure of schools and colleges in many countries. As a result, the International Day of Education serves as an important reminder that education should be available to everyone: it is a right, not a privilege. Drawing on UNESCO’s recent ‘Futures of Education Report’ (published in November 2021), the theme of this year’s event is ‘Changing Course, Transforming Education’.
For more information about this event, and to read the report in full, check out UNESCO’s official site: https://en.unesco.org/commemorations/educationday
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Image supplied by Kisat Entertainment / Shutterstock and obtained from the United Nations website amended at British Online Archives.