Chapter 1 Equity and Quality as Aims of Education
Teachers’ Role in Educational Ecosystems
In: Good Teachers for Tomorrow's SchoolsSearch for other papers by Hannele Niemi in
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Abstract
With increasing access to education worldwide, the quality of education, including the development of skills and competences for learning in schools or adulthood, has become an urgent challenge. In this chapter, questions of equity and quality in education are explored from the viewpoint of educational ecosystems. The major aim is to analyze teachers’ role in the system. Teachers are the cornerstones of education, but they cannot improve schools alone. Developing schools’ provision of high-quality learning to all children demands macro-level structures and school conditions where teachers can work as real professionals. Interaction and interconnectedness between and within different levels of the system is also necessary. In the teaching profession, teachers’ commitment to ethical standards provides a basis from which to integrate equity and quality, but it requires both active dialogue between partners at the national and local levels and continuous professional development.