Teaching on the Frontlines

On World Teachers’ Day, ECW honors the courageous, collaborative spirit of teachers working on the frontlines of crises around the globe.

By Education Cannot Wait

October 5^th, 2025

This World Teachers’ Day, Education Cannot Wait (ECW) celebrates the extraordinary educators working in the world’s toughest contexts – from inside makeshift refugee settlements, damaged classrooms and communities torn apart by war, climate disasters and displacement. These teachers are not only educators, but also leaders and agents of hope.

Since 2023, ECW and its strategic partners have supported more than 144,000 teachers – 56% of them women – with training in inclusive education, disaster preparedness, mental health support and new teaching methodologies. Thousands more are receiving financial assistance and other forms of support to help them stay and grow in this vital profession. These efforts are laying the groundwork for stronger, more inclusive education systems, one classroom at a time.

This year’s World Teachers’ Day theme, “Recasting teaching as a collaborative profession,” is a powerful reminder that teachers must be supported not in isolation, but through collective structures that foster peer learning, professional development and shared resilience.

A teacher works with students during an e-learning session at an ECW-supported Makana at El Gox gathering point in Sudan. © UNICEF/Mohamdeen

Teaching is, and has always been, a collaborative profession. It’s rooted in relationships – between teachers and students, with families and the wider community – and relies on robust support systems.

Yet in crisis-affected areas – from Uganda to Bangladesh and South Sudan to Syria – these systems are often under severe strain or missing altogether. Overcrowded classrooms, minimal training, lack of pay and limited mental health and psychosocial support turn an already demanding role into an uphill battle.

To date, and thanks to the unwavering commitment of teachers worldwide, ECW investments have reached 14 million crisis-affected girls and boys with the protection, opportunity and hope of a quality education.

Today, we spotlight five inspiring teachers working on the frontlines. Their stories reflect not only personal resilience, but a collective determination to build a more connected, compassionate and capable teaching force – one that can shape a generation and help fulfill the promise of education for all.

Joselyn, Uganda

Joselyn Atyang in her office at Bidong Primary School, Uganda. © ECW

“Teaching is not a one-person job. Working together to improve our students’ education is essential.”

As headteacher of Bidong Primary School in Uganda’s Kiryandongo Refugee Settlement, Joselyn Atyang leads more than 2,500 learners – many of them refugee children fleeing conflict in South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. With support from the ECW-funded programme and partners like Save the Children and UNHCR, Joselyn is working to transform her school into a space where students and teachers alike can thrive. Through targeted teacher training, mental health support and safe learning spaces, she’s helping to rebuild hope in one of Africa’s largest refugee-hosting countries.

A teacher since 2003, Joselyn knows firsthand the challenges of educating in crisis – overcrowded classrooms, language barriers, limited resources – but she also sees the power of perseverance and teamwork. “The ECW-supported initiative has empowered us to give more to our students,” she says. Now, Joselyn is not only nurturing a new generation of learners, she’s training other educators to lead with purpose, resilience and heart.