The United Nations (UN)’s International Day of Education (IDE) is annually observed across the globe on 24 January to celebrate the role of education in peace and development.
- 24 January 2025 marks the 7th observance of the IDE.
- The International Day of Education encourages reflections on the power of education to equip individuals and communities to navigate, understand and influence technological advancement.
Theme:
The 2025 theme of IDE is “AI and education: Preserving human agency in a world of automation”.
- The theme focuses on how education can help people understand and control Artificial Intelligence(AI). It aims to ensure AI is used in ways that respect human rights and support the Sustainable Development Goals.
Note: In India, National Education Day is celebrated on November 11 every year in honour of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, the first Education Minister of independent India.
Background:
i.On 3 December 2018, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted the resolution A/RES/73/25 proclaiming 24 January of every year as International Day of Education.
- The resolution was co-authored by Nigeria and 58 other UN Member States.
ii.The 1st ever International Day of Education was celebrated on 24 January 2019.
Education: A Key to Sustainable Development
i.In September 2015, the international community adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, highlighting education as key to achieving all 17 goals. Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 focuses on ensuring inclusive, quality education and lifelong learning for all by 2030.
ii.Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights guarantees the right to education, requiring free and compulsory elementary education.
iii.The 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child adds that countries must make higher education accessible to all.
UNESCO dedicates the IDE 2025 to Artificial Intelligence
AI is becoming more common in education, with over two-thirds of secondary students in high-income countries already using generative AI for schoolwork.
i.A UNESCO survey (May 2023) found only 10% of schools and universities have an official AI framework. By 2022, just 7 countries created AI frameworks for teachers, and 15 included AI training in their national curricula.
ii.In the field of education, UNESCO published the first-ever Guidance for Generative AI in Education and Research in September 2023, as well as two AI competency frameworks for students and teachers in 2024.
iii.These publications include the suggestion to set an age limit of 13 for the use of AI in the classroom.
iv.Around 244 million children and adolescents worldwide are out of school, and 617 million cannot read or do basic math. In sub-Saharan Africa, less than 40% of girls finish lower secondary school, and 4 million refugee children and youth are out of school. This violation of their right to education is unacceptable.
2025 Events:
On 24 January 2025, UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning hosted the webinar ‘Lifelong learning in the age of AI’ in Paris, France.
About United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO):
Director-General (DG)- Audrey Azoulay
Headquarters– Paris, France
Member Nations- 194
Established–1945
