11 days till we celebrate the most special day for teachers
Teachers are the greatest influencers in human history. They are the ones who have nurtured and shaped the most brilliant minds of all times. It was necessary to recognize the work of teachers everywhere on the planet, which is why UNESCO declared May 7 as a day dedicated to honoring their invaluable work.
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Book
Book-worms will love this collection. You’ll find images of books that are beautifully bound and designed with intricate details and stunning illustrations. These images are perfect for book enthusiasts who want to add a touch of literary elegance to their designs.
Blackboard
A classroom is nothing without a blackboard. Discover a wide variety of high-quality blackboard images that have been selected just for you and use them for your school assignments, your personal projects, presentations... Get ready to learn!
Teacher
Teachers are the most influential people in the whole world. Have a peek into the work and tasks of lecturers and any other educator thanks to these colorful images. Their high-resolution makes them suitable for any type of project, collage, or campaign.
Chalk
Chalks are a teacher’s best friend. Have a look at these images of the most famous tools of educators and students. These high-quality images don’t only include chalks, but also blackboards, pupils, hands, equations, stationery, backpacks, and lecturers.
Teacher's Day backgrounds
Get ideas from these Teacher’s Day backgrounds for your video calls, for using them as wallpapers, or screensavers. They are filled with many drawings and lovely images of educators and students.
Teacher's Day cards
Have a look at these designs if you are looking for World Teacher’s Day card ideas. They contain lovely images, drawings and doodles of classrooms, educators, apples… Get the one you like the most, print it, and give it to your teacher.
Teacher's Day posters
Take a peek at these cool Teacher Appreciation Day posters and celebrate this day with your students. They are handy to explain more about the history of this day and about anything you want to. They are very sweet and colorful.
Teacher's Day social media posts
There is no better way of celebrating Teacher’s Day than a post on social media. These Teacher’s day Posts are very useful for Instagram, Facebook, or LinkedIn, for example. Share interesting details, launch a marketing campaign, or just say thanks to your teachers.
Symbols
Book
Blackboard
Apple
Ruler
Books have always been key for recording information, serving as indispensable tools for learning. Students of all ages rely on them for their lessons. Before using books, people had other reading and writing materials, such as clay and wax tablets, which were used throughout the Bronze Age. Similarly, other ancient civilizations used papyrus scrolls, as seen with the Egyptians, Phoenicians, and Greeks.
Blackboards are key to spreading knowledge around the world, although they are relatively new. Some other instruments were used centuries ago for this purpose, like wax tablets and writing slates. Wax tablets were used by Romans, ancient Greeks, and during the Middle Ages. Traditionally, they were crafted from wood with a layer of wax. Later on, by the 14th century, people were using writing slates. They were made from slate stones, and they also used slate pencils (usually made of clack) to write. Those were the first and rudimentary versions of today’s blackboards. Blackboards, also known as chalkboards, were already in use by the 16th century for teaching music and composition. Since then, more and more teachers have been using this instrument to help their students.
It seems that there has always been a connection between apples and educators. Showering your favorite teachers with apples is a very common tradition nowadays, but do you know the history behind this practice? During the 16th and 18th centuries, the salaries of the Danish and Swedish teachers were very low. As a way of compensating them, parents gave teachers baskets of apples and other types of food to help them. Something similar happened in the US. As apples were abundant, families and kids gave different types of apples to their favorite teachers as a way of appreciating them. How about you, have you given many apples to your teachers?
Rulers are of great help when you draw lines and measure distances. They are one of the most useful learning tools for students, as they are easy to carry, cheap, and can be commonly found in stores with school supplies. Every school has an abundance readily available for students to use. They are made of different materials: plastic, metal, and, some of them, wood. The oldest preserved ruler dates back to 2650 BC and belonged to the Sumerians. Egyptians, ancient Greeks, and Romans also had their own version of rulers, mostly made of wood. They were more like measuring rods with some marks than the typical image of rulers that we have today.
Dark Sea Green is a light shade of green. It is a subtle hue of spring green that resembles the tints of seawater. Because of its similarity to the tone of the water, this color has always been associated with nature and plants. It has a soothing effect, so it has been widely used in school buildings and furniture. This is so because this type of sea green was a very good indicator for our ancestors: it was a clear symbol of a place with plenty of food and water, making survival possible. Add a touch of Dark Sea Green to your projects, kids and teachers can benefit from the calmness it triggers.
Teachers have been educating their students since the beginning of time. While today’s teachers often work in classrooms with blackboards and large class sizes, the tradition of honoring educators dates back to ancient Greece with figures who symbolized knowledge and wisdom. But when did we officially begin to celebrate and commemorate the work of our educators?
The origin of Teachers’ Day begins with Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan in 1962. Dr. Radhakrishnan was a famous Indian philosopher and politician who worked for the education of women and children, even those belonging to the lower classes. His hard work was rewarded with a lecturer position at the Department of Philosophy at Madras Presidency College. Subsequently, in 1918, the University of Mysore selected him as Professor of Philosophy, a huge achievement for him. Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan’s prestigious academic career led him to become the first vice president of India, and later the president of the country. After his career as a professor, Dr. Radhakrishnan assumed the presidency. Many of the students he had during his academic life proposed that his birthday, September 5, be celebrated. Instead of celebrating his birthday, he preferred celebrating a day devoted to all the teachers in the world.
World teachers’ responsibilities and rights
The publication of the Recommendation Concerning the Status of Teachers was an inflection point for educators. It was a compendium of their rights and responsibilities, among others. This text, published by the UNESCO and International Labour Organization (ILO) committee of experts, also included other issues like training, professional freedom, salaries, working hours, recruitment, and promotions. Another primary aim was to recognize the essential role of educators and their significant contribution to society. The contents of this 1966 text were further elaborated upon by UNESCO, creating the Recommendation Concerning the Status of Higher-Education Teaching Personnel, published in 1997.
Celebrating the anniversary of the Recommendation Concerning the Status of Teachers of 1966
After the recommendations of 1966, the UNESCO committee of experts decided to proclaim World Teachers’ Day on October 5. This way, they could proclaim a day to honor and protect teachers and educators. It was also established as a way of improving teacher’s working conditions and appreciating their value and role in society. Each year, both UNESCO and Education International organize a campaign that focuses on a different theme. For example, in 2018, the theme was: “The Right to Education Means the Right to a Qualified Teacher”. Thanks to the endeavors of UNESCO, more than 100 countries commemorate this day.
Recognizing the teachers’ work and role
Poor working conditions and a lack of recognition and professional development for teachers led UNESCO to push for improvements. Each year, UNESCO presents a theme, and the previous issues were some of the matters listed for the 2022 Teachers’ Day. Apart from that, they considered the efforts made by teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The commitments made by UNESCO on Teachers’ Day are complemented by other initiatives discussed at the United Nations Transforming Education Summit. According to this summit, education needs to be student-centered, creative, and collaborative.
Teachers have always been one of the most important parts of society. Countries and cultures honor educators in many ways and on different dates. Learn more about the history of Teachers’ Day in different places and the important people involved in the process: Eleanor Roosevelt, Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, Confucius, Pope Pius XII, Pedro I…
Teachers’ Day in the USA. The history of Teachers’ Day began in Arkansas. A teacher, Mattye Whyte Woodridge, wrote letters to different political and educational leaders in 1944. Her aim was to establish a day to appreciate educators. One of the leaders she wrote to was Eleanor Roosevelt, urging the 81st Congress to declare a National Teachers’ Day. During the 1970s, the National Education Association, the Kansas and the Indiana State Boards of Education persuaded Congress to make Teachers’ Day a national holiday. March 7 was the chosen date. Later on, in 1984, they pushed the date of National Teacher Day to the first Tuesday of May, which triggered the creation of National Teacher Appreciation Week. Just one year later, the National Education Association (NEA) changed it again and made the first Tuesday of May the National Teacher Day.
In India, Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan and his important contributions are celebrated. Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was a very important teacher, writer, president, and scholar who was key for establishing a national Teachers’ Day in India. Dr. Radhakrishnan was already president in 1962. In that year, some of his students and friends requested to celebrate Radhakrishna’s birthday on October 5. Instead of agreeing to this, he suggested celebrating Teachers’ Day that day. It was the beginning of this yearly tradition. The Indian celebration of Teachers’ Day comprises different competitions such as singing, dancing, and poetry. Apart from that, students also prepare other activities and games to entertain their teachers. Another key part of the celebration involves students giving Teachers’ Day gifts to their favorite teachers, such as flowers, handmade crafts, sweets, chocolate, or cards.
In China, Teachers' Day is celebrated on Confucius’ birthday and is marked with a powerful letter. The first attempts to establish a Teachers’ Day in China took place in the 1930s when it was proposed by some teachers, who chose June 6 as the perfect date for doing so. It was celebrated unofficially until 1949, the year of the founding of the People’s Republic. In 1939 and 2013, some people suggested changing the date to coincide with Confucius’ birthday on September 28, due to his important role as a teacher. September 28 was not a very suitable date for schools, so they decided to push it to September 10. There is another version of the story that involves a bright student named Wang Zikun. When he was a kid, a new teacher came to his small village. This educator introduced modern teaching techniques, so Wang Zikun was able to study Math at Wuhan and Peking Universities, and later earned a doctorate in Moscow. He was so thankful for the techniques of his school teacher that he decided to send a letter to the Beijing Evening News proposing a national day to honor educators… and he succeeded!
Saint John Baptist de La Salle, Pope Pius XII, and President Venustiano Carranza: the three precursors of Teachers’ Day. In Mexico, Teachers’ Day is celebrated on May 15th. This is because of a series of historical events related to Catholicism and the initiatives of a Mexican president. Firstly, there was a saint who was a lovely teacher: Saint John Baptist de La Salle, whose feast is celebrated on October 15th. He founded the Congregation of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, which focused on teaching poor and orphaned children. Pope Pius XII named him the patron saint for educators of youth on May 15, 1945, so this day became the saint’s feast. Leaving religion aside, President Venustiano Carranza also had a lot to do with the celebration of Teachers’ Day in Mexico. President Carranza established Teachers’ Day thanks to the initiative of two people, Enrique Viesca and Benito Ramírez, in 1917. This way, the very first Mexican Teachers’ Day was celebrated in 1918. Happy Teachers’ Day, Mexico!
Emperor Pedro I and the creation of “Primeras Letras.” Teachers’ Day is celebrated in Brazil thanks to a 16th-century emperor, Pedro I. On October 15, 1527, he passed a law to create schools of “Primeras Letras” for the lower classes. Thanks to this law, every city and town had its own school, and most kids had the opportunity to learn how to read and write. On October 15, 1947, more than 400 years later, Brazilians celebrated the very first teacher appreciation day in a little school in Sao Paulo. Because of these two important events related to education and educators, the Brazilian government declared Teacher Appreciation Day (or Teachers’ Day) in 1963. To honor their teachers, students give them cards and gifts. Parents are also involved in this celebration as they, together with schools, organize parties specially for teachers on this special day.
