Each 24 January is celebrated as United Nations International Day of Education.
The Thammasat University Library collection includes many books on all aspects of education.
This year’s theme:
AI and Education: Human Agency in an Automated World
Under the theme “AI and education: Preserving human agency in a world of automation”, the 2025 International Day of Education encourages reflections on the power of education to equip individuals and communities to navigate, understand and influence technological advancement.
As computer and AI-driven systems become more sophisticated, the boundaries between human intention and machine-driven action often blur, raising critical questions about how to preserve, redefine, and, ideally, elevate human agency in an age of technological acceleration.
Good schools need good school leaders
Leadership is essential for quality education, seen as the second most important factor influencing learning outcomes. Effective leadership occurs at various levels, including within schools and in government.
The latest edition of the examines the Global Education Monitoring Report requirements for good educational leadership, highlighting how they differ across countries and change over time. It explores the visions driving leadership, practices that lead to improved education outcomes, and the impact of external social, cultural, and governance factors on effective leadership.
Background
Education is a human right, a public good and a public responsibility.
The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 24 January as International Day of Education, in celebration of the role of education for peace and development.
Education is a human right
The right to education is enshrined in article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The declaration calls for free and compulsory elementary education. The Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted in 1989, goes further to stipulate that countries shall make higher education accessible to all.
Education is key to sustainable development
When it adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in September 2015, the international community recognized that education is essential for the success of all 17 of its goals. Sustainable Development Goal 4, in particular, aims to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all” by 2030.
Challenges to achieving universal education
Education offers children a ladder out of poverty and a path to a promising future. But about 244 million children and adolescents around the world are out of school; 617 million children and adolescents cannot read and do basic math; less than 40% of girls in sub-Saharan Africa complete lower secondary school and some four million children and youth refugees are out of school. Their right to education is being violated and it is unacceptable.
Without inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong opportunities for all, countries will not succeed in achieving gender equality and breaking the cycle of poverty that is leaving millions of children, youth and adults behind.
This year’s Global Education Monitoring Report is an Open Access publication available for free download here.
It explains:
Despite significant strides in widening access to education globally over the past decades, this Global Education Monitoring Report reveals that 251 million children are still not in school today. This is a number that has fallen by only 1% since 2015.
Even for those who are in school, the education they receive is not always up to standard: three out of four children in developing countries cannot read and understand a simple text by the age of 10. To advance progress in education, strong leadership is needed at all levels.
Indeed, at its heart, education is an activity centred around people.
Quality education is a collective endeavour that requires qualified human beings, driven by a sense of purpose.
Whether they are policymakers, school directors or head teachers — educational leaders are catalysts for change deserving of greater attention. This report sheds light on their instrumental role in retaining children in school and improving learning outcomes.
Effective school leaders bring out the best in teachers, who in turn deliver the best courses. School leaders are also key figures in ensuring that school environments are safe and inclusive, free from violence and bullying. The responsibilities they bear are heavy. For this reason, it is critical to ensure that they are well selected, trained, trusted and supported throughout their career.
Yet, over a third of countries do not have open and competitive school principal recruitment processes in place. Even in wealthier nations, half of principals do not receive training for their role before they take up their posts.
As in other domains, leadership in education is also marked by significant gender biases. Most teachers are women, while most of school leaders are men. The share of female principals in primary and secondary education is on average at least 20 percentage points lower than the average share of female teachers. This must change.
In addition to challenging gender norms in education leadership, we must also challenge the assumptions of hierarchy that exist in education worldwide.
This report gives clear recommendations to shift from hierarchical and centralized education systems to more inclusive leadership in education that engages principals, teachers, parents, student representatives, and community members. In order to build a shared vision of education that takes into account all of these stakeholders, school leaders must be given space and training.
Many leaders in education are passionate about their work and dedicated to making a difference on the ground, but rigid systems prevent them from striving for excellence.
By enabling them to fulfil their potential, we can bring new energy into educational systems and inspire younger generations whose schooling experience can shape their views of leadership.
On Friday, 24 January 2025 at 7pm Bangkok time, TU students are invited to participate in an International Education Day Webinar: Lifelong learning in the age of AI.
TU students are invited to register for the event at this link:
https://unesco-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0qde-oqzstGdXToGQUZ2S6F-2Ub7y3iyJh
Presented by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the Zoom webinar announcement explains:
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has the potential to address some of the biggest challenges in education and lifelong learning today, innovate teaching and learning practices, and accelerate progress towards Sustainable Development Goal 4. However, rapid technological developments inevitably bring multiple risks and challenges, which have so far outpaced policy debates and regulatory frameworks.
Current policies on AI and lifelong learning often adopt an instrumental and technologically deterministic approach, prioritising efficiency over human development and agency. UNESCO is committed to supporting Member States to harness the potential of AI technologies for achieving the promise of lifelong learning opportunities for all, while ensuring that its application in the learning contexts is guided by the core principles of inclusion and equity.
The webinar will bring together policymakers, practitioners, and researchers to revisit the idea of lifelong learning in the age of emerging technologies, with thematic focus on lifelong learning as a concept, workplace learning, digital competencies of adult educators, and bridging the grey digital divide.
Objectives
- Discuss current trends, in policy, research, and innovative practices in emerging technologies such as AI and its relation to lifelong learning and the concept of agency.
- Highlight the role of adult learning and education, in fostering digital competencies with a focus on adult educators and bridging the grey digital divide.
- Engage educators and participants in interactive discussions and activities to foster a deeper understanding of AI and emerging technologies in adult education settings.
Lifelong Learning in the Age of AI
- Reconfiguring Lifelong Learning in the Age of AI: Insights from policy and research
- Workplace Learning in the Age of AI: Challenges and Opportunities
- Digital Learning for Older Adults: Practice perspective
- Capacity building: Strengthening AI and Digital Competencies of Adult Educators
(All images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)