Ei-iE

AP / vide
AP / vide

Achieving Sustainable Development Goal 4

In 2015, all countries committed to achieving 17 Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. Education International played a critical role in securing a stand-alone goal for education - Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4): Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. Significantly, SDG4 recognised that quality education can only be delivered by qualified teachers.

However, at the current pace, governments will fail to achieve SDG 4. The COVID-19 pandemic poses additional challenges, and risks reversing years of progress on education. Urgent and decisive action is imperative.

Together with our member organisations around the world we are working to ensure that governments live up to their promise to achieve SDG 4 and all its targets by 2030.

  • We monitor progress and hold governments accountable.
  • We advocate for enhanced domestic financing for public education through fair and progressive taxation and international aid.
  • We oppose corporate interests that treat education as a market instead of a public good accessible to all.
  • We promote quality education that is free from violence, develops the “whole child”, builds tolerance, understanding, democracy, respect for human rights and active citizenship for sustainable development.
  • We promote the achievement of the “teacher target” (target 4.c), underlining every students’ right to be taught by a trained and qualified teacher.

Our work in this area

  1. News 3 September 2015

    Argentina: making quality early childhood education for all a priority

    The Confederación de Trabajadores de la Educación de la República Argentina has criticised a bill adopted by the country’s Chamber of Deputies that it says undermines the social right to early education of all children.

    Argentina: making quality early childhood education for all a priority
  2. News 25 August 2015

    India: court urges state officials’ children to attend governmental schools

    The National Coalition for Education has welcomed the recent judgement of the Allahabad High Court in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh “historic” for urging governmental officials to send their children to governmental school.

    India: court urges state officials’ children to attend governmental schools
  3. News 25 August 2015

    UK: outstanding 2015 GSCE results to be backed up by additional governmental measures

    Education unions have commented on the General Certificate of Secondary Education’s results, demonstrating the value of the UK public education system, and urged the Government to take further action to sustain the positive results.

    UK: outstanding 2015 GSCE results to be backed up by additional governmental measures
  4. News 18 August 2015

    United States: Education Support Personnel hit hard by budget cuts

    The educaction community in the United States highlights a worrying trend: shrinking budgets or ending grant money push Education Support Personnel (ESP) into unemployment, reducing overall education employee capacity.

    United States: Education Support Personnel hit hard by budget cuts
  5. News 13 August 2015

    Australia: widening gaps in achievement between advantaged and disadvantaged schools

    The Australian Education Union has deplored the results of the latest National Assessment Program–Literacy and Numeracy showing huge gaps between advantaged and disadvantaged students and called for targeting funding allocated to schools.

    Australia: widening gaps in achievement between advantaged and disadvantaged schools
  6. News 12 August 2015

    Germany: focus on inclusion and schooling of refugee children is a must

    The teacher’s union Verband Bildung und Erziehung has urged public authorities in the German State of North Rhine-Westphalia to bring more attention and financing to inclusive and refugees’ education.

    Germany: focus on inclusion and schooling of refugee children is a must
  7. News 7 August 2015

    Quality Education For All: Hopeful SDG Signs from New York

    Barring unforeseen changes, the United Nations post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals will include education as a standalone goal alongside such critical matters as poverty, hunger and health.

    Quality Education For All: Hopeful SDG Signs from New York