The Norm Goble Award
Highlighting the teaching profession
Ottawa, October 5, 2022 – On this World Teachers’ Day, the best things do come in threes as education unions in Uganda, Togo, and the Gambia are named as this year’s Norm Goble Award recipients.
The successful organizations proposed various activities and events to highlight the teaching profession on World Teachers’ Day (WTD).
The Uganda National Teachers’ Union (UNATU), Togo’s Fédération des Syndicats de l’Éducation Nationale (FESEN), and the Gambia Teachers’ Union (GTU), stood out among the field of nine applicants for the annual award presented by the Canadian Teachers’ Federation (CTF/FCE).
Created in 2014, the Norm Goble Award is offered annually to encourage the CTF/FCE’s international partners to organize activities on WTD. Each recipient will receive $1,500 CAD to implement their activities. One of the award criteria is the relevancy to the CTF/FCE 2022 WTD theme: “The Answer Begins with Teachers.”
Award Recipients Activities
The UNATU is holding a symposium with student and teacher leaders, officials from the Ministry of Education and Sports, and other stakeholders to address the effects of school closures during the last two years, and to generate ideas to promote a better teaching and learning environment. “UNATU will take this opportunity to pay tribute to the important role that teachers play in shaping the future,” said Filbert Baguma, General Secretary of the UNATU.
The FESEN is celebrating and highlighting the work of teachers by holding a series of events to engage various sectors/groups. Among the activities planned are speeches and debates, a 10 km teachers’ run, distribution of posters and other materials, community football matches, and a family/community picnic.
The GTU is hosting a radio program in all regions of the Gambia to honour teachers and to raise the profile of the profession. The radio program is a live 2-hour event and will be organized by the Regional Executive Committees who will participate with local hosts to take calls from the public.
The Norm Goble WTD Award is attributed to Dr. Norman Goble, who served as the CTF/FCE Secretary General from 1970 to 1982, and the World Confederation of Organizations of the Teaching Profession Secretary General from 1982 to 1988. Dr. Goble’s contributions to education in Canada and throughout the developing world are credited for his work in the initiation of WTD.
Working with Education International, the CTF/FCE advocated for the creation of WTD. In 1994, UNESCO inaugurated WTD to focus attention on the contributions and achievements of teachers, and to highlight teachers’ concerns and priorities regarding education. October 5 was selected as the date to internationally celebrate teachers because on the same day in 1966, a special intergovernmental conference adopted the UNESCO recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers. In adopting this recommendation, governments unanimously recognized the importance for society to have competent, qualified, and motivated teachers.
The Canadian Teachers’ Federation
Founded in 1920, the CTF/FCE is a national alliance of provincial and territorial teachers’ organizations that represent over 365,000 teachers and education workers across Canada. The CTF/FCE is also an affiliate of Education International, which represents more than 32-million educators.
Media contact
Andrew King,
Canadian Teachers’ Federation (CTF/FCE)
Contact
Mobile: 819-213-7847
