Table of Contents
The three laureates were announced during UNESCO’s World Teachers’ Day celebration at its Headquarters in Paris on 5 October 2026. The theme “Standing with teachers: 60 years of protecting the profession, advancing its status and shaping our futures” highlights the 60th anniversary of the ILO/UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers (1966), which has guided policies and programmes affecting teachers for sixty years, and is currently being revised to address changes to the teaching profession.
On this occasion, His Highness Sheikh Rashid bin Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Supreme Chairman of the Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation for Medical and Educational Sciences, emphasized the growing reach of the Prize, noting that “excellence and education are a universal human language, (…) and that teachers, whatever their countries of birth, have one common mission and cause, which is empowering human beings through knowledge in order to build a brighter future for the entire humanity.”
The award recognizes initiatives that strengthen teachers’ professional learning and their capacity to improve education. Each laureate receives US$ 100,000 to further its work.
Ethiopia: Bringing local learning materials into early childhood classrooms
In Ethiopia, Gondar College of Teachers’ Education’s “Maker-Teachers” initiative addresses a practical barrier to quality early childhood education: limited access to affordable learning materials adapted to children’s languages and local context.
Teacher educators, pre-service teachers and local artisans work together to design and produce Montessori-based learning kits aligned with the national early childhood curriculum. Made from locally sourced, durable materials, the kits support Amharic literacy, numeracy, sensory development and practical life skills. Future teachers gain experience in creating educational resources, while practicing teachers receive guidance on using them in their classrooms.
The initiative has reached 98 cluster schools and more than 15,000 pre-primary learners. Teachers report a shift towards more hands-on learning, with greater pupil engagement and participation. In 2026, the project produced 120 additional kits for wider distribution and now plans to help other teacher education colleges establish similar models.
Indonesia: Empowering teachers to lead together
The Guru Belajar Foundation’s “Collective Teacher Leadership Development Programme” helps teachers turn improvements in their own classrooms into wider educational change. Through professional communities, teachers build the skills and networks to share effective practices, support colleagues and collaborate with local partners.
The programme offers three stages of leadership: strengthening individual teaching practice; extending influence beyond the classroom; and leading collaborations with government, civil society and businesses on local education priorities. This progression creates pathways for teachers to contribute to decisions shaping education in their communities.
Since 2021, more than 61,000 teachers have engaged with the programme, and over 20,000 have completed its foundational modules. The programme has documented 866 teachers whose impact extends beyond their classrooms, while around 20 have progressed to leading cross-sector collaboration in their regions. The Foundation is strengthening coaching, mentoring and digital support to sustain these professional networks.
Türkiye: Professional learning by and for teachers
In Türkiye, the Teachers’ Academy Foundation’s “ÖRAV Education Festival – Teacher-Led Professional Learning Ecosystem” creates a free space where teachers share classroom experience, lead workshops and learn from one another.
Educators voluntarily design and facilitate sessions on inclusive education, digital learning, assessment, creativity, social-emotional learning and teacher well-being. Offered in person, online and through hybrid formats, the festival adapts to emerging needs. Following the 2023 earthquakes, it provided pedagogical and psychosocial support to teachers in affected regions.
Since 2015, the festival has reached 38,934 teachers through 1,700 workshops, including 14,908 participants in 2025 alone. Participant satisfaction has consistently exceeded 9.5 out of 10. Teachers report greater professional confidence, stronger peer collaboration, increased motivation to experiment in their classrooms and a deeper sense of belonging to a nationwide professional community.
