Past Program

This program focused on three critical factors in the wider future of teaching discussions that will influence education over the next decade:

1. In many parts of the world it is proving harder than ever to recruit new teachers at the same time that existing teachers are leaving the profession in large numbers. The program looked at how expectations about the role of a teacher are evolving and where systems are innovating to meet these challenges. 

2. Artificial Intelligence has the potential to address some of the biggest challenges in education but is also seen as a threat to the profession. There are already exciting examples of teachers using AI in innovative ways, especially to free up more time for teaching. This program looked to learn from these and saw how and where they can be replicated or adapted. 

3. The United Nation’s global Transforming Education initiative has already helped catalyse some powerful policy shifts in countries around the world. To date 143 UN members states have shared national statements of commitment. The national statements help make visible interesting trends in how systems are evolving and give a good indication of what policymakers are prioritizing. However, in many cases it is unclear how involved the teaching profession has been in developing the national statements. This program looked at the voice of the profession in the Transformation process and exploreed avenues that enable teachers to connect directly with policymakers.  

• In what ways have expectations about teachers’ roles changed in the last few years? 

• How are systems responding to chronic teacher shortages? 

• How is AI impacting on teaching?  

• What examples exist to show how teachers and AI can collaborate?  

• How should this program connect with parallel endeavors such as the International Summit on the Teaching Profession, New Professionalism & The Future of Teaching (OECD / CERI) or the UN high level panel on the Teaching Profession?  

• How is the teaching profession involved with and responding to the global movement around Transforming Education?   

The goal of this program was to provide participants with a supportive space to exchange experiences and adaptable practices, share lessons learned, be mutually inspired to work together to shape the future of teaching. 

The in-person program was envisioned to produce tangible outputs, including a Salzburg Statement or Manifesto that will contribute significantly to the expanding body of literature on the future of teaching. Participants also had the opportunity to contribute to an essay collection, providing a diverse range of insights on the program's central themes. The specific nature of additional outcomes is still being decided collectively by the program participants. 

All images are available for download. Please credit Salzburg Global Seminar/Christian Streili. Unwatermarked images are available on request.

During the program, Salzburg Global Fellow and co-founder of Kizazi, Romana Shaikh delivered the 2024 Salzburg Global Center for Education Transformation Lecture.