Including Transformative Education in Pre-service Teacher Training: A Guide for Universities and Teacher Training Institutions in the Arab Region

Transformative Education (TE), which includes concepts such as Global Citizenship Education (GCED) and Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), is an essential approach to provide learners with the tools to act for more just, peaceful and sustainable societies.

Between 2021 and 2023, the experts of the UNESCO Arab Transformative Education Network identified the creation of a course on Transformative Education for teachers’ pre-service training as a key step to (i) provide teachers with the needed skills to promote Transformative Education as part of the national curriculum as well as though their daily teaching practices, and (ii) to support the reform of pedagogies more broadly, by making them more interactive and focused on critical thinking, and thus positively contributing to improving learners’ overall learning outcomes.

This guidance document is addressed to all entities in charge of pre-service teacher training (e.g. departments of education within higher education institutions and teacher training institutions) in the Arab region interested in including Transformative Education as part of their programmes. The guidance document particularly supports faculty deans and academia in defining the scope and the key parameters to consider while developing a course on Transformative Education, including defining course objectives, format, content, and pedagogy, as well as choosing the right facilitator(s) to deliver the course.

The document also provides useful references to other guides and tools which can further support the reflections around Transformative Education and how it can be concretely applied and promoted at the higher education level.