Education as a critical factor of sustainability: Case study in qatar from the teachers’ development perspective

Abstract

Education is considered the primary driver of sustainable development. Teachers play a critical role in the conjunction of ideal, designed, and actual teaching and learning experience delivery. Successful education plays a crucial role in accomplishing the UN Sustainable Development goals (SDGs). Therefore, this research focused on the better preparation of teachers to deliver high-quality education for achieving SDGs in Qatar. To this end, this study investigated teachers’ development needs, including their professional preparation, empowerment, and assessment, by employing semistructured interviews in selected schools. In summary, the findings show a lack of professional development (PD) opportunities, and the current PD approaches have no direction, purpose, or progress. The results also demonstrate that objective and customized assessment methods, a clear and robust career roadmap, and career promotions accordingly would increase teachers’ motivation for their, and thus students’, development. In addition, only a few teachers are aware of the SDGs and their connections with education. Therefore, there is a need to raise their level of understanding and motivation by preparing them with the right set of skills and tools and paying attention to the teachers’ development as a whole at school, society, and policy levels.