This year’s World Teachers’ Day theme, “Valuing teachers' voices”, is a powerful reminder that teachers must be central to shaping education policies. This requires genuine social dialogue—ensuring that teachers are consulted and that their pedagogical expertise is trusted.

Teachers need the professional autonomy to lead, innovate and make decisions that shape the future of education. Their insights and expertise are critical for transforming public education systems and fostering more democratic, sustainable, inclusive and just societies.

However, for millions of teachers in crisis settings and conflict zones, there is no platform for social dialogue at all. These teachers lack both resources and a voice despite holding together fragile public education systems and their communities. They are not just educators—they are the hope for the children who strive for and deserve a better future.

While global military expenditure reaches record highs, public education systems in conflict zones are collapsing. Teachers go unpaid, infrastructure is destroyed and children are deprived of their right to education. Still, under unimaginable conditions, teachers continue to support their students. Their voices must be heard.

At Education International’s recent 10^th World Congress, education unions from across the globe adopted a resolution addressing the education and well-being of children during periods of conflict.

The resolution emphasizes that more than 222 million school-aged children worldwide are affected by crises such as war and displacement, with 78 million of them out of school. It also highlights the dire situation teachers face—often unpaid, underpaid or paid late while struggling to secure resources for their students.

Many teachers living as refugees are also denied the right to work in host countries, leaving both children and students who are refugees in host communities without access to qualified teachers.

The resolution also condemns the increasing attacks on educators, students and education facilities, and stresses that governments must be held accountable for these violations.

Stories from the frontline

In Gaza, over a million children’s lives are at risk from war, famine and disease. Schools, which should be safe havens, have become targets of bombing, endangering children and teachers. The trauma of genocide will scar generations.

In Ukraine, students continue their education online while schools are destroyed. Many have been killed, injured or forcibly deported. In Afghanistan, girls are barred from attending school, with many risking their lives to learn in secret.

In Sudan, more than 90% of the country's 19 million school-age children have no access to formal education, exposing them to military recruitment and gender-based violence. In Nigeria, armed groups have abducted 248 children in 2023 alone, primarily targeting schools and putting girls at heightened risk of sexual violence.

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, armed groups were responsible for 281 cases of sexual violence and the recruitment of children from schools, with 3,764 grave violations against children recorded in 2023.

In Lebanon, education unions work tirelessly to keep students and communities safe amid Israeli bombing and escalating violence. Schools have shut down, serving as emergency shelters, and remote learning has become impossible due to power outages and the displacement of 40 percent of the student population. Education unions are calling for a ceasefire. They just want peace to reopen schools and teach without fear.

Supporting teachers in crisis: UN High-Level Panel Recommendations

The United Nations High-Level Panel on the Teaching Profession has made key recommendations to support teachers in conflict and crisis settings. Targeted support for teachers working in emergencies is crucial to ensure their well-being is prioritized and that they receive fair pay and decent working conditions.

The Panel also calls for the facilitation of employment opportunities for refugee teachers, enabling them to teach in host communities. This ensures continuity for displaced students and provides dignified work for teachers.

Additionally, the Global Fund for teachers’ salaries in crisis-affected regions aims to provide financial stability, ensuring education continues even in the most challenging circumstances.

Education as a tool for peace

The call for peace is inseparable from the call for quality public education. Teachers are uniquely placed to foster the critical thinking and compassion needed to challenge oppression and inequality.

As Paulo Freire said: “True peace is only achieved through justice and the transformation of oppressive systems. Teachers, with their students, can become agents of that transformation.”

Public education is key to fostering sustainable peace and democracy. And teachers must be given the tools and support to play this role fully.

Education is a tool for peace. When schools are destroyed, it’s not just about the buildings—it’s the future. Without safe places to learn, entire generations are left behind, trapped in cycles of poverty and inequality that are hard to break.

Governments must act now by implementing the UN recommendations, protecting schools and education facilities, and ensuring that teachers in crisis settings are heard, valued and supported.