Teachers from Morocco and South Africa To Participate In UNESCO’s World Teachers’ Day Celebration in Washington, DC

Photo courtesy of blog.amdsb.ca

Office of the Spokesperson
Department of State
Washington, DC

October 2, 2012

The U.S. Department of State announced today that 68 American teachers and 19 international teachers will be honored on UNESCO’s World Teachers’ Day in Washington, D.C. on October 5. The U.S. teachers participated in the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ Teachers for Global Classrooms program, and the international teachers are currently participating in the Bureau’s Distinguished Fulbright Awards in Teaching Program. The teachers are gathering for a two-day symposium to discuss how they will integrate global content and practice into their classrooms.

U.S. secondary teachers from 32 American states took part in the Teachers for Global Classrooms Program, which sent them to Brazil, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Morocco, or Ukraine for several weeks to globalize their U.S. schools and classrooms. U.S. teachers learned with, and from, their colleagues in other countries to develop international knowledge and skills.

On Friday, the U.S. teachers will be joined by 19 international teachers from Argentina, Finland, India, Israel, Mexico, Morocco, Singapore, and South Africa who are currently studying and conducting research at the University of Maryland for a semester under the Distinguished Fulbright Awards in Teaching Program. This Program sends U.S. primary and secondary school teachers abroad for three to six months and brings international teachers to the United States for a semester.

World Teachers’ Day, designated by UNESCO in 1994, is held annually on October 5 to celebrate teachers worldwide, mobilize support for teachers, and ensure that the needs of future generations will continue to be met.

The Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs promotes international mutual understanding through a wide range of academic, cultural, private-sector, professional, and sports exchange programs. These international exchanges engage youth, students, educators, artists, athletes, and emerging leaders in many fields in the United States and in more than 160 countries. Alumni of these exchanges comprise over one million people around the world, including more than 50 Nobel Laureates and more than 350 current or former heads of state and government.