Minister of Education Huai Jinpeng attended the UNESCO World Summit on Teachers and the 2030 High-Level Steering Committee (HLSC) Meeting in Santiago, Chile, from August 28 to 29.
Huai delivered a speech at the opening ceremony of the summit, and spoke at the plenary entitled “Toward transformative teacher education and professional development.”
Huai noted that China is pushing forward the integrated development of education, science and technology, and talent cultivation. He said that China prioritizes the development of a high-caliber teacher workforce so that all students can be taught by good teachers. He added that China now has over 18 million teachers as well as 200 teacher training colleges and nearly 600 other higher education institutions with teacher education programs. He described various measures adopted by the Chinese government to support teachers, including regular teacher training and collaborative research activities organized at the national, local, and individual school levels; the National Education Digitalization Action to enhance teachers’ digital literacy; and initiatives to maintain adequate teacher salaries and improve working conditions for rural teachers.
Huai said that, as human society enters the Intelligence Age, teacher education and professional development face unprecedented challenges and opportunities. He proposed proactive measures to address these emerging challenges, such as strengthening collaboration between STEM and humanities education, increasing student problem-solving and cross-cultural communication skills, and empowering teachers to play a central role in this transformation by enhancing the next generation’s adaptability and creativity.
Huai proposed several specific measures: increasing policy dialogues to prioritize teacher-related issues in the education agenda; establishing new teacher training standards suitable for the Intelligence Age; and improving global collaboration to mobilize more resources for teacher empowerment related to professional development. He said that China is willing to provide support to developing countries in areas such as teacher training, digital education, and vocational education through the Institute of Global Teachers Development and other platforms.
At the HLSC Meeting, Huai shared China’s experience of increasing government spending on education and improving global education monitoring. He also made recommendations on the formulation of the global education agenda beyond 2030.
Chilean President Gabriel Boric, UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay, and UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed, among others, attended the World Summit on Teachers and the HLSC Meeting. A total of 400 people, including education ministers and vice ministers from 16 countries, heads of relevant international organizations, and teachers, participated in the meetings.
