Education International - Staying united

…@eduint updates…stories on #CFHE & global counterparts #united4ed

As 2013 comes to an end, the Unite for Quality Education campaign is picking up steam! Education International's affiliates and partners are lining up events and actions that will show the world the continuing importance of quality education. For example, in the United States, the American Federation of Teachers and the National Education Association, together with a coalition of labour, civic and civil rights organisations, have called for a National Day of Action on Education to voice concerns about increasing privatisation and deteriorating support for public schools. In Spain, the three EI affiliates, FECCOO, FETE-UGT and STEs, as well as students' organisations, parents' associations and movements for educational reform, took to the streets to draw attention to a proposed reform that will not further quality education but instead promotes a type of education that will exacerbate inequalities. In Australia, 1996 Nobel Prize winner Peter C. Doherty wrote an opinion piece on the importance of quality education, which was picked up by newspapers around the world and published on December 10, the date of this year's Nobel ceremonies in Stockholm and Oslo. At EI, we're gathering information about national, regional and global events - like the ones above - on the campaign hub, www.unite4education.org, and especially on the campaign map. Take a look at http://www.unite4education.org/in-your-area to browse through the hundreds of events already on there, and don't hesitate to drop us a line at unite@ei-ie.org to have an event in your area listed. Last but not least, take a few minutes to watch our interview with Michael Davidson, the OECD's Head of Early Childhood Education and Schools, about what the recently published PISA results mean for quality education – namely, that for an education system to be successful, it needs confident, high-quality teaching professionals.