Teachers and educators are some of the most unsung heroes of our times. This year, the iHub through its Teachers’ Lounge joined the world on 9th October 2020 to celebrate these heroes on the international day of teachers also known as World Teachers Day.
Following 2020 UNESCO theme “Teachers; Leading in Crisis, reimagining the future” the event saw teachers and educators from various schools across Kenya, edtech leaders from eLimu, Eneza Education and Think Global School converge to praise and recognize the daily patience, understanding and lifelong dedication of the teachers.
The guests at the celebration shared stories of their past experiences in school in the hands of the teachers. One experience that drew laughter from the crowd was on the much trust and belief young children have for their teachers and would always refer to the teachers in case they needed clarity on life in general despite having parents.
The forum also recognized the teachers’ efforts during the pandemic. One of the biggest challenges during the COVID outbreak as shared by the teachers’ guest speaker Richard Njiiri of Uthiru High school was the short and unprecedented transition to online teaching in spite of the poor connectivity and lack of proper teaching devices. He however, applauded the teachers for being at the forefront of the crisis not only to keep learning going to as many students as they could, but also providing social support to learners whose homes were faced with violence, hunger and abuse.
One challenge that the teachers addressed was a ‘decline in the status of the teaching profession globally, and respect for teachers. Families no longer systematically support teachers’ authority attributed to teachers’ low level of qualifications and training’. Going forward, the teachers in the World Teachers’ Day celebration event noted that for them to reimagine the future, they were willing and ready to relearn their way of life in class by taking up more professional development courses.
As the event came to a close, iHub announced its continued commitment in supporting teachers in Africa by offering teachers free professional development courses to equip them with 21st-century skills at its Teachers’ Lounge. The culmination of the event was awarding all teachers who participated in the Teachers’ Lounge training with shopping vouchers as a way to celebrate them!
If you would like to participate in our physical or virtual training sessions on any of our teachers professional development courses, please reach out to relearn@ihub.co.ke.
