Written by: Tanya Cotter, Amy Lightfoot, Zhanna Sevastianova and Nahla Sulaiman.
Education plays a crucial role in promoting equity and inclusion and fostering the tolerance, empathy and understanding required for us to live in more socially cohesive and peaceful societies. Classrooms are spaces where children from different communities and backgrounds can interact, learn about each other’s lives and, hopefully, appreciate and understand their differences and diversity as well as what they have in common. They can also develop the important skills they need to deal with adversity and challenging circumstances. Teachers are critical frontline workers who enable this, acting as vital role models for young people and often as agents of change. Multiple Nobel Peace Prize laureates are educators: former teachers Desmond Tutu (1984) and Mother Teresa (1979), Malala Yousafzai (2014) who has actively highlighted the right of education for all and Leymah Gbowee (2011) who stated simply, ‘I don't think you can talk peace without teachers’.
Our experience working with teachers in diverse contexts has taught us that education reform cannot wait for the perfect conditions. By investing in teachers, we are not only improving educational outcomes and life chances for students today, but building more peaceful, resilient and prosperous societies for future generations.
Two partnership projects now approaching completion demonstrate how placing people, particularly teachers, at the heart of education initiatives delivers a strong return on investment, especially in contexts affected by conflict and crisis. Central to each was recognising that effective teaching cannot exist without prioritising teacher wellbeing. This was supported through the intentional creation of safe, supportive spaces where educators under considerable pressure in prolonged crises could reconnect, share experiences and rebuild a sense of professional purpose. Pa Even in times of crisis, supporting these pivotal professionals remains one of the most powerful pathways to recovery and hope. rticipants spoke of gaining not only new methodologies but renewed motivation, learning how to teach in ways that support students academically whilst acknowledging trauma and uncertainty with empathy and care.
Pre-service and In-service Teacher Training (PITT) in Sudan
When conflict forced schools and universities across Sudan to close, the risk was not only disruption to learning, but also the potential loss of a generation of teaching capacity. The PITT programme funded by the European Union under the Education Quality Improvement Programme (EQUIP) II, implemented by Expertise France and delivered by the British Council, set out to strengthen teacher professional development in Sudan while the education sector and the teachers within it were under extraordinary strain. From the start, strong collaboration with ministries, universities and the National Teacher Training Centre embedded project ownership within national structures to facilitate sustainable progress over time. Over 2,400 educators, including teachers, headteachers, supervisors, university lecturers and student teachers engaged in training aligned to Sudan’s new intermediate curriculum. The teacher training and support structures were designed to meet both the academic and more holistic needs of both teachers and learners living in a conflict-affected context. This collective effort has done more than transfer knowledge; it has rebuilt professional confidence and reconnected educators isolated by conflict and displacement.
Through PITT, more than 1,500 teachers have returned to their schools equipped with learner-centred, enquiry-based methods, influencing teaching practice in their classrooms and schools. PITT has built teacher capacity to deliver the new curriculum as well as to support the well-being of conflict-affected students.
Professional communities supporting teachers in Ukraine
Recognising this increased need for connection and support at times of crisis, the SWITLO (Skills and Well-being in Teacher Learning Opportunities) project harnessed our experience of supporting the development of professional communities of practice in multiple countries and contexts. Following a period of more traditional workshop-based, trainer-led off-site training, this format provided an appropriate level of flexibility given the turbulent circumstances, and meant that teachers were able to self-organise and quickly rearrange plans if necessary. This ownership meant they could design their development based on their specific needs.
Working in partnership with the Ministry of Education, these groups were established by offering training to 900 self-selected facilitators who then set up over 500 groups. Today, more than 5,000 teachers meet regularly across the country for their professional development sessions, learning with and from one another. Feedback from our evaluation shows that the participating teachers highly value these opportunities as a way of building community and helping each other to navigate through the crisis. As one participant summarised:
‘Teaching during challenging periods, including quarantine and then war, has tested even the most experienced and resilient educators. [This] made it difficult for me to help my learners. […] I have become more aware of teaching strategies for difficult times and received support from my facilitator and colleagues. I have noticed that new strategies are effective and very helpful. […] I feel confident, inspired, and motivated to continue teaching.’
The role of the teacher will continue to evolve – both in response to the needs of teachers’ specific contexts and to broader challenges. The demands placed on teachers in our divided world increase the need for continuing professional development. Opportunities for teachers to build connections can foster trust, facilitate the exchange of knowledge and empower them to work collectively to develop innovative solutions to the challenges they face both in times of stability and in times of crisis. In turn, they are then better able to support their learners also grappling with these issues and encourage a collective appreciation for and drive towards a more inclusive and peaceful world.