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# Secretary Cardona’s Remarks at the Closing Session of the International Summit on the Teaching Profession

# Secretary Cardona’s Remarks at the Closing Session of the International Summit on the Teaching Profession

October 21, 2021

**Contact:  **press@ed.gov

                                    -        
The past three days have been an engaging experience as I’ve  listened and learned alongside all of you. From Canada, America’s close neighbor  to the north, to our Asian colleagues in Singapore and China, to our many  friends in Europe, it’s been a privilege to sit at this virtual table with all  of you and our international cohosts at Education International and the Organization  for Economic Cooperation and Development.

  With our close partners at the American Federation of  Teachers, the Council of Chief State School Officers and the National Education  Association, the delegation from the United States has been able to roll up our  sleeves and work together here in Washington, D.C 

  We’ve had a productive time together. Across the countries  we represent, some of our educational systems are quite large and others are  more compact. Some make more decisions at the national level and others are  more decentralized. Education financing varies across our nations. But as we’ve  seen, our common challenges outweigh our differences as we come together to  learn and problem solve.  This is the  power and promise of the *International Summit on the Teaching Profession*.

  We are at a real crossroads, at a decisive moment worldwide,  when we must *reimagine the future of education*and provide all children  with the opportunity to grow and thrive. As we’ve discussed over the past few  days, we cannot squander this moment by going back to the education systems we  had before the pandemic. The pandemic has made inequities for students,  families, educators, and communities starkly visible and, in many cases, exacerbated  them. We truly need to *build back better* with a focus on the *whole  child* and every student’s well-being.

  For me, one of the biggest takeaways from the last few days  is the importance of intentional collaboration – at all levels of the education  system and with other key agencies that support student, family, and teacher  well-being. We know, for example, that the pandemic reinforced how crucial  health and nutrition are in supporting students’ learning and growth. Without  deep, deliberate collaboration with all relevant partners, we will not be able  to ensure educational equity and student success. 

  Andreas Schleicher’s presentation illuminated this point. He  showed that high-performing education systems, with strong frontline capacity  and resilience, were much better at maintaining operations even in severe  disruptions caused by the pandemic. And the quality of the relationship between  governments and teacher unions played a central part in this.

  I’m proud that the discussions over these last couple days  have centered on supporting student and educator wellbeing and advancing educational  equity.  

Like all of  you, the U.S. delegation has committed to working together in several key areas  over the coming months and years.   Listening to all of you has helped us to hone our ISTP commitments.  

  As we  discussed in the previous session, the U.S. is committing to do three things. 

  First, we will build and sustain structures and  systems that promote and enhance intentional collaboration at all levels of  education and across relevant agencies to foster student success. We know that  none of us can do this vital work of elevating the teaching profession and  supporting our educators alone.

  Second, we will promote and support schools as hubs of  the community with inclusive, safe, and welcoming environments in which all  students, families, and educators thrive, collaborate, create, and excel. Our  schools are more than simply places to learn. They are centers of promise and  potential.

  Third, we will improve systems and supports that value  and elevate educators as respected professionals. We understand that to do this  work, we must actively support, recruit, and retain excellent educators and  diversify our teaching profession.

  We are all  stronger when we collaborate and work together. I am personally invigorated by  the conversations we’ve had over the past few days. We must do everything we  can to support our teachers and to further excellence and equity for all  students.  Thank you. 
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