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The United Nations' latest session took place this past September from the 13th to the 17th at the UN Headquarters in New York. At the session, the 193 countries discussed current global challenges - especially after the pandemic - and solutions to build global sustainability and resilience.&nbsp;A particular emphasis during these sessions was on UN Sustainable development goal 4, Quality education. So many learners continue to struggle without the right foundation and tools to succeed in a post-pandemic world.&nbsp;Changes are overdue and need to be addressed now.&nbsp;<h2>Why do we need to transform education?</h2><ol><li>Education is a human right.</li><li>Schools must be inclusive, safe, and healthy.</li><li>Learning is critical for development.</li><li>Education must promote sustainable development.</li><li>Education requires investment.</li><li>The digital revolution is key to transformation.</li></ol><h2>Elevating Education in a Post-Pandemic World&nbsp;</h2>Elevating Education is at the top of the global political agenda. Governments understand the needs of children worldwide and aim to create solutions to recover pandemic-related learning losses and transform education. The road to education transformation- starts in our schools.Do you feel access to education was an issue during the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns? - working and learning from home wasn't easy. There was little guidance for schools and learners. In some cases, there wasn't enough support or resources, and many students fell behind. In addition, some learners were more affected than others. Either because they didn't have access to digital tools or because they lacked the support at home.&nbsp;So with this in mind, during the 77th UN session in New York, the "Transforming Education Summit" focused exclusively on finding solutions and developing alternatives for those left behind or out of the conventional educational system.&nbsp;&nbsp;So here is what happened:&nbsp;Gateways to Public Digital LearningLaunched by UNESCO and UNICEF, the Gateway to Public Digital Learning is a multi-partner initiative that aims to create and strengthen inclusive free digital learning platforms and educational content available for all.&nbsp;The objectives are:<ol><li>To have national free resources that complement and support teaching and learning in school. But also open avenues for self-driven education and lifelong learning.</li><li>To secure access to the Internet in all communities.&nbsp;</li><li>For schools and learners to have access to the tools needed - computers and the Internet.&nbsp;</li><li>For schools to have their school curriculum aligned with digital education.&nbsp;</li></ol>"The internet allows unprecedented – although currently underutilized – possibilities for sharing, cooperation, and the pooling of resources that can benefit learners, teachers, and families within countries and also across them." - The United Nations.&nbsp;How will it work?&nbsp;<ol><li>UNESCO will create international norms and standards to help countries ensure the quality of public digital learning platforms and inform national targets and benchmarks.</li><li>UNICEF will develop and showcase best practices, research, and evidence about digital education resources and platforms, across different contexts, focusing on equity, scalability, safety, and impact.</li></ol>The Greening Education Partnership&nbsp;It aims to prepare every learner to acquire the knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes to tackle climate change and promote sustainable development. This partnership is led by UNESCO, Japan, and the United Kingdom. Greening education wants to empower citizens of the future with the skills needed for inclusive and sustainable living.&nbsp;From pre-k to adult education, Greening Education will equip all learners with what they need to understand the complexity of the climate and environmental crisis. Helping us all grow more sustainable cities for the future.&nbsp;These are very exciting times for both learners and educators and anyone involved in providing the platforms we need at a global level to digitalize learning. Also, very exciting time for us as humans to learn, develop, and work toward more sustainable ways of living. &nbsp;

The world has changed beyond recognition in the last 20 years, and our education systems have not kept up. Young people call for an education that is relevant and meaningful to them and fits in with their lives, priorities, and aspirations.  77th Session of the UN General Assembly provided a political opportunity to transform education from a top-down process implemented by adults onto young people into a dynamic process driven by young people for themselves.

Elevating Education Around The World 

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Thinking Caps On:&nbsp;What should the "classrooms of the future" look like?&nbsp;Have a thinking session with a friend or family member and think of everything a classroom should have. Internet? Tablets or all students? Perhaps telescopes?&nbsp;How about the subjects? What subjects interest you the most, and which ones do you think could help you develop sustainable futures together? Perhaps with a focus on technology and sustainability.&nbsp;Then, make a drawing and discuss it with your peers. Or better still, share it with us online and tell us what you think the future of learning looks like.&nbsp;<h2>How to get involved:&nbsp;</h2>Join the conversationEveryone is welcome to join discussions around the Transforming Education Summit. Follow them on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/TransformingEdu">@TransformingEdu</a>, and tag your content with #TransformingEducation&nbsp; &nbsp;

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What is or was your favorite subject in school? Do you have or did you have a favorite teacher? What do you believe was the most important thing that school taught you?&nbsp;Did you know that quality education is a right but in some countries is a privilege? According to UNICEF, an estimated 411 million children cannot reach minimum proficiency levels in reading and mathematics, even though they are in school. This is what quality education in goal #4 aims to grant quality education for all children.&nbsp;Now, let’s review what education vs. quality education is. You’ll get different answers depending on who you ask about what education is and the quality. But, here's the one we agree with; according to UNESCO, education is the process where knowledge is acquired, and quality education deals with the right development of the child for education. One deals only with learning, while the other with education as a whole.&nbsp; How does education affect our lives? Education is a socio-economical transformative tool for everybody. By having a highly educated population, more and more people will access better jobs and opportunities. Education can lift people out of poverty and make them vulnerable by their lack of education.&nbsp;The SDGs were established in 2015 by the UN General Assembly as goals to achieve by the year 2030. All of these goals are traversal and aimed to create a better, more sustainable society. It means to achieve and end economic, social and environmental problems for a better future.&nbsp;Goal 1 - End poverty in all its forms everywhere.Goal 2 - End hunger, achieve food security and agriculture sustainability.&nbsp;Goal 3 - Ensure the well-being of all ages.&nbsp;Goal 4 - Quality education and improve learning opportunities for all. &nbsp;Goal 5 - Achieve gender equality, empowering women and girls worldwide.&nbsp;Goal 6 - Ensure water sanitation and availability for everybody.&nbsp;Goal 7 - Access to affordable and sustainable energy.&nbsp;Goal 8 - Sustainable, inclusive, and productive employment for all.&nbsp;Goal 9 - Building resilient and sustainable infrastructure while fostering innovation.&nbsp;Goal 10 - Reduce inequalities in countries and between countries.&nbsp;Goal 11 - Sustainable, safe, resilient cities and human settlements.&nbsp;Goal 12 - Sustainable production and consumption.&nbsp;Goal 13 - Take action regarding climate change and its effects.Goal 14 - Conservation and sustainable use and exploitation of the oceans.&nbsp;Goal 15 - Protect, restore and use sustainably terrestrial ecosystems, such as forests, and combat desertification and biodiversity loss.&nbsp;Goal 16 - Promote an inclusive, peaceful, and sustainable society. Granting everyone access to justice and building accountable and inclusive institutions on all levels.&nbsp;Goal 17 - Creating partnerships for achieving the goals.&nbsp;&nbsp;For knowing all of this, you are also helping to achieve one goal of the SDGs! The United Nations included in goal #4 of the SDGs that all learners acquire the knowledge to promote sustainable development. Target 4.7 of the Goal #4 is all about creating consciousness between learners and understanding sustainability, social responsibility, and environmental issues.&nbsp; &nbsp;<h1>Why SDGs for younger generations?</h1> Let’s explore some more about education, younger generations, and the SDGs. Learning about the goals is also creating a better world. To be able to have a better future, we need to comprehend what is wrong in the present. Check out our previous blog post <a href="https://contest.diproinduca.com/blog/together-we-can-change-the-world?redirect_to=%2Fblog%3Flimit%3D9%26offset%3D9%23together-we-can-change-the-world">Together We Can Change the World</a> to learn more about your own power.&nbsp;Have you ever mentioned the SDG goals at school? Learning about the SDGs in formal education is an excellent idea for various reasons. Everything we know in our formative years will impact the outcome that we have as adults. Learning, asking questions, and having conversations are essential for being conscious, empathic, and educated adults.&nbsp;But, that’s not all. The new generations, according to the United Nations, have 5 different roles in the accomplishment of the SDGs:&nbsp;&nbsp;<ol><li>Critical thinkers: Being able to be a critical thinker is being able to absorb information and process it. You need to ask questions about the world that surrounds you, the structures that are being imposed, challenge the systems, and expose contradictions.&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Change-Makers: As we saw on COP26, the real protagonists were the young leaders, who were asking for a fundamental change because their future is being jeopardized. Young people can and are a force to reckon with. Now more than ever, with social media, everyone has a voice that can be listened too.&nbsp;</li><li>Innovators: A fresh perspective is needed to create new solutions, but younger generations have a different perspective regarding social and environmental issues that adults can’t have.&nbsp;</li><li>Communicator: This is primarily due to social media and democratization communication. Now, not only the voice of the powerful can be heard, the voice of everyone can be heard. We have seen the rise of influencers in social media who create consciousness about inequality and sustainability.&nbsp;</li><li>Leaders: We are all able to be leaders. You don’t need a big following on Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, or even TikTok. You can be your leader within your friend’s group, community, or family. If you want to go further, you can be part of a youth organization that helps promote the SDG of your choice.&nbsp;</li></ol> &nbsp;<h1>How is education essential to achieving the recent COP26 deal?&nbsp;&nbsp;</h1> Remember we talked about the protests that were taking place in Glasgow for the COP26? If you need a refresher, the demonstrations were happening because young people were asking for fewer promises and more actions. They were so persistent that world leaders had no other choice but to address their concerns.&nbsp;But that was on the COP26; how are they going to help achieve the agreements? They are forces to be reckoned with. They were able to make presidents acknowledge their presence; for their communities, they are heroes. Their campaign for educating other people, communities and making their voices heard means that their influence would translate into more eco-conscious people.&nbsp;If you were given a calculus book to a 1st grader, would he be able to understand it? Most probably, he won’t. The same goes for SDGs; if young generations become adults and talk about environmental, social, and sustainability issues, they don’t have the foundations to understand the point entirely. They weren’t given the tools to understand, which leads them to dismiss the problem. Education is the bridge between apathy and empathy.&nbsp;This is why educating ourselves and others is so important; how can we change if we don’t know what is right and wrong? Educating people on the importance of making changes is going to be essential for accomplishing the promises. The more the people know, understand, and start making pressure for change, the world leaders will need to comply. For now, everything starts with education.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a universal call for action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity. But education is a key factor in making this happen.

Education can save the world

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Thinking capEducation at all levels!Let’s learn how you can help other people! We will be exploring some options that you can do! You can be part of the change.If you can or are mentoring younger people, providing tutorials and homework or delivering a lesson on the Global Goals will help seed the curiosity to learn more and empathize.These are our favorite resources! There’s nothing like playing and learning at the same time.<a href="https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/takeaction/">https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/takeaction/</a><a href="https://worldslargestlesson.globalgoals.org/campaign/climate-changemakers/">https://worldslargestlesson.globalgoals.org/campaign/climate-changemakers/</a><a href="https://climatechangemakers.worldslargestlesson.globalgoals.org/">https://climatechangemakers.worldslargestlesson.globalgoals.org/</a>If you are younger, you can try creating consciousness with your family, friends, and community. Here is one of the best resources to take care of the planet without altering your daily life, just small changes for a big one.<a href="https://www.bookwidgets.com/play/NKY279">https://www.bookwidgets.com/play/NKY279</a>Remember! You can be an ambassador for our planet too! It's never too early or too late to make a difference.

&nbsp;Have you ever considered becoming a teacher or thought about what it takes to become a good teacher?&nbsp;The expectations for teachers are high:&nbsp;<ol><li>We expect teachers to have a deep understanding of what they teach and to keep expanding their knowledge base regularly.</li><li>We want teachers to be passionate, compassionate, and thoughtful and respond effectively to students of different needs, backgrounds, and languages.</li><li>We expect teachers to promote tolerance and social cohesion in the classroom.</li></ol>Teachers can change the world; When you think about it, we spend more time with our teachers at school than we do with our parents at home during the school period.&nbsp;A good teacher can transform the way we think and how we decode the world around us. A successful teacher can help us understand who we are and guide us to reach our fullest potential, but what happens when there aren't enough teachers?&nbsp;The UN goal 4 focuses on Quality Education, and one of its main targets is to increase the supply of qualified teachers in developing countries by the year 2030. But what is a qualified teacher, and why does it matter?&nbsp;&nbsp;<h1>Becoming a Teacher</h1>In many countries, to become a teacher, one must:&nbsp;<ol><li>Graduate from university with a bachelor's degree program.</li><li>Demonstrate basic competence and skills&nbsp;</li><li>Participate in student teaching or active teaching in a school</li><li>Take a teacher certification test.</li></ol>Teachers must also be patient, hard-working, have good communication skills, and have high empathy. According to the United Nations, in 2019, 81% of primary school teachers were trained, although that proportion was lower in sub-Saharan Africa (65%) and Southern Asia (74%). A poorly trained teacher can impact a pupil's behavior, and it can also change the way pupils perceive learning.&nbsp;Not everyone learns the same way; different people learn in different ways. These ways of learning are called "learning styles." For example, you can be either a visual learner, an auditory learner (by hearing), a kinesthetic learner (by touching and doing), or a reading/writing learner. Have you ever noticed you learn a subject better or faster by doing any of these activities? That is the reason why you might be better at some subjects and not as great at others. Your teacher's teaching style should adapt as much as possible to your learning style. However, this is not always possible, and it is even less common when teachers are not trained to deal with learning/teaching styles or don't know the subject matter.&nbsp;Untrained or poorly trained teachers may have the best intentions at heart. Still, they sometimes may result in children learning the same misconceptions they learned growing up and perpetuating myths.&nbsp;&nbsp;<h1>Teacher Training Around the World</h1>Teacher training must also take into account the realities of student life. A student's regular day in the United States will be very different from a student in a developing country. For example, access to transportation, food, the internet, and clean drinking water will impact students' learning experience.&nbsp;Imagine if you didn't have access to the internet. How would this affect the way you learn and research information? Your teacher would have to adapt the lesson to meet your needs and access to resources; otherwise, learning becomes impossible and unfair.&nbsp;Teacher training should also include creating a curriculum that can offer life skills to improve students' everyday lives. In other words, not all 8th grades are or should be the same around the world. Different countries will require different sets of skills. For instance, in Europe, American history isn't necessarily part of the curriculum. Different countries will also teach different secondary languages at schools depending on neighboring countries or countries they often trade with.&nbsp;Teacher training also should be continuous through access to professional development. Unfortunately, studies have shown that only a small minority of American teachers receive the kind of sustained, ongoing professional development that research indicates can change teaching practice and improve student achievement.&nbsp; &nbsp;

Teachers can change the world; When you think about it, we spend more time with our teachers at school than we do with our parents at home during the school period. 
A good teacher can transform the way we think and how we decode the world around us.

Teachers can Save the World 

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Thinking Cap On:&nbsp;Make a list of qualities you think a teacher should have and why. Can you match these qualities to any teacher or teachers you've had? Do you think teachers in all grades need the same skills, or do they differ depending on the student's ages?&nbsp;Interview one of your teachers and compare and contrast your list pre-interview with the findings you gather after interviewing your teacher. What did you discover?