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Shri Eswaran - A Force for Quality Education and Teachers

Education research to inform Policy

Using his extensive international expertise and experience, he established a research team within AIPTF and researched extensively on all elements, aspects and challenges of primary education. This included addressing how to contextualise and improve the quality of teaching, government’s management of primary school departments, school infrastructures, primary teachers’ training, and rights. This is evident from the numerous published research articles, policy recommendations, advisory documents, and guidelines for effective action in world bodies such as NCERT-India, ILO, European Union Teachers bodies, and UNICEF. His extraordinary vision and fighting spirit for the cause were always sparkling in numerous original independent research he led through AIPTF. He analysed and presented compelling real-life scenarios, authentic representations of lived experiences, and accurate accounts of challenges faced by various teaching communities. These evidence-based research played key roles in generating reports to inform policy makers, decision-making processes of the governmental bodies and all other stakeholders enabling them to arrive at appropriate solutions.

Global action for Sustainable Development Goals (SDG4)

India passed a landmark legislation on the ‘Right to education’ for all children between 6 to 14 years in 2009. This only came to execution after the long and intense struggles of many national education leaders, such as Shri Eswaran, who led a continuous movement for education through national rallies, awareness campaigns, compelling field work, case study research and several negotiations to make the biggest difference in Indian children’s lives. World education leaders identified this as a game-changing step in modern India for its development and social reform since it involves abolishing child labour nationally and offers universal education access to one of the world’s largest and youngest populated nations.

Commitment to Quality education for all

Shri Eswaran never lost sight of the global commitments, treaties, and covenants India has committed to education in global forums. Therefore, he took it upon as a collective union mission to work towards that cause, steering the massive members of primary school teachers in India to work globally. As a person who started a movement rather than a fight or a task, Shri Eswaran, as a leader, wanted to provide sustainable solutions. Towards the last 8 years of his life, he rallied around India to bring awareness to a noble cause, “Quality education for all.” He rekindled strength, spirit, and commitment from teachers, the government, the public, and all education providers to join hands for ‘Quality education for all’ so that it can be a reality in India then rather than a goal that remains in the Future.

Today, we see most countries around the world resetting and realigning to achieve many of the Global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Shri Eswaran was quite committed and strived to arrive at a general consensus in India to achieve SDG4 – ‘Quality Education and Lifelong Learning’ since its launch as a millennial global vision. This was indeed his life message, which we all can relate to. Quality education imparted with relevance and sensitivity through free education combined with lifelong learning and development for educators and students alike is the greatest gift we could reward ourselves within an increasingly challenging world that is trying to meet self-sustenance and inclusivity.