Commercialisation and privatisation in and of education will be at the heart of Education International’s agenda for the next four years as the organisation concluded a successful Seventh World Congress in Ottawa, Canada.
It is a “threat that poses great harm to the greatest enterprise of our society: quality public education”, said EI’s President, Susan Hopgood in her closing remarks at the end of five days of debate, networking, and sharing of ideas and best practice. “We leave here united, ready to fight against the scourge of private enterprise in our classrooms.”
If the new global Sustainable Development Goals are to succeed, EI must use its standing to ensure quality education for all finally becomes reality for every child, she said.
Trade union rights
Congress had reaffirmed EI’s commitment to trade union rights, she continued. “They are the foundation on which EI stands. They are the fundamentals of a decent society, which is why our work will never be complete until all of our sisters and brothers enjoy them equally. We have identified where in the world we are faced with our greatest threats. We have heard the stories first-hand from Greece and South Korea. And we are all too aware of our colleagues in Iran who have been denied their rights by their absence here in Ottawa.”
Right to education
There is no more essential right than of a child’s right to a quality education. “This is why safe schools are essential. Schools, teachers, and students should not and cannot be the targets of armed conflicts. We see too often now that schools are being used as a pawn in war. This week we witnessed the murder of innocent students in Turkey, on their way to help children who fled the war in Syria. This must stop.”
Hopgood also praised the work of Education Support Personnel and called for investment in young educators.
Concluding her remarks, she said: “This congress was about values in the world. It was about union values, educator values, and societal values. We are here to make a better world.”
Photo Credit: Gabriel Castro - IEAL