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Justiciability of the right to education 2013, para. 54
- Paragraph text
- A large number of cases address the rights of minorities and their language rights. The European Court of Human Rights, for instance, has held that the right to education did not guarantee the right to education in a particular language, or for the State to subsidize education of a particular type. However, article 14 read in conjunction with article 2 of Protocol No. 1 was violated because the legislation prevented children from having access to French-language schools in certain areas solely on the basis of their parents’ residence.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Families
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Protecting education against commercialization 2015, para. 99
- Paragraph text
- Regulations must ban for-profit education and prohibit fee-based discrimination because it creates and entrenches social and economic inequalities. Prohibitive regulations can ban the registration of private schools as companies, the recruitment of unqualified teachers or those employed in public schools, the closure of schools during an academic year, indulgence in false commercial propaganda to lure insufficiently informed students and parents, the charging of capitation fees and the extraction from students or parents of any undeclared financial contribution over and above the approved fee. Regulations must prohibit school selection on the basis of ability, social or ethnic origin, or any form of psychometric tests.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
The right to education of migrants, refugees and asylum-seekers 2010, para. 36
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur highlights the issues facing families in conflict-affected areas, especially those on precarious incomes. Pertinent is the comment of a refugee who stated that: “shortage of food forces parents to use their children to work”; and another who stated that: “an empty stomach does not have ears”. In such contexts, food and shelter are prioritized over payment of education fees (where imposed) and indirect costs to quality education.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Normative action for quality education 2012, para. 21
- Paragraph text
- Thus, a holistic conceptual framework of quality education comprises: (i) a minimum level of student acquisition of knowledge, values, skills and competencies; (ii) adequate school infrastructure, facilities and environment; (iii) a well-qualified teaching force; (iv) a school that is open to the participation of all, particularly students, their parents and the community. It is relevant to underline that quality in education cannot be achieved without provision of adequate resources to respond to quality imperatives.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Financing education and update on education in emergencies 2011, para. 62
- Paragraph text
- Increased and more coordinated attention to education among the stakeholders providing humanitarian assistance remains a key concern. The recent partnership between The Sphere Project and the Inter-Agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE) in preparing the companionship agreement guiding the integration of quality education in humanitarian response represents an important step in the promotion of more coherent and dedicated attention to education within the humanitarian community. Traditionally excluded from humanitarian priorities, the restoration of access to education continues to be cited as a priority by families and young people affected by emergencies. Responding to the needs identified by communities affected is an essential component of humanitarian responses, and central to the implementation of the right to education.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Youth
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
Equality of opportunity in education 2011, para. 31
- Paragraph text
- The International Convention on the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families also protects the right to education on a basis of equality. Specifically, article 30 states that “each child of a migrant worker shall have the basic right of access to education on the basis of equality of treatment with nationals of the State concerned.” Articles 43 and 45 further emphasize equality of treatment for migrant workers and members of their families in relation to access to educational institutions, as well as vocational training.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
Normative action for quality education 2012, para. 20
- Paragraph text
- The concept of the “four pillars of education” (learning to know, learning to do, learning to live together and learning to be) provides the basis for a broader conceptual understanding of quality education. A well-qualified, motivated and well-looked-after teaching force is another central aspect of this holistic conceptual framework. Quality hinges upon giving teachers the necessary ability to impart knowledge, values and skills, and upon valorizing their status. Moreover, quality education cannot be successfully imparted without adequate infrastructure and facilities and a school environment in which teachers, parents and communities are all active participants in school life.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Justiciability of the right to education 2013, para. 82n
- Paragraph text
- [Bearing in mind the key importance of the justiciability of the right to education and its enforcement, and with a view to fostering protective as well as promotional role of adjudication mechanisms, the Special Rapporteur would like to offer the following recommendations:] Governments have the primary responsibility to disseminate such information. However, the media and civil society can play an important role in sharing information with disadvantaged groups, and should be engaged and supported where possible. The national education system should also inform students, teachers and parents of their respective rights and obligations, and how violations, when they arise, should be addressed, ranging from parent-teacher interviews and school administrative complaint procedures, to national human rights mechanisms and even international mechanisms where applicable. In particular, low-cost or free mechanisms, including those available through national or regional human rights bodies, UNESCO’s complaints and communication procedure, and the Optional Protocol should be made widely known.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Privatization and the right to education 2014, para. 87
- Paragraph text
- Since education is a social responsibility involving parents, the community, teachers, students and other stakeholders, they can have recourse to complaints procedures and human rights protection mechanisms in cases of violation of the right to education, abusive practices and corruption by private providers. The Special Rapporteur would like to encourage a system that provides the possibility for any entity or individual to initiate legal action in the case of abusive practices by private providers as public-interest litigation.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Protecting education against commercialization 2015, para. 43
- Paragraph text
- Entitlement to education in terms of universal access is an essential prerequisite for the exercise of the right to education. However, privatization breeds exclusion, as those who are disadvantaged are unable to access private schools. This aggravates existing disparities in access to education, further marginalizing the poor. Furthermore, voucher schemes purported to provide economically disadvantaged parents with the means to select a private school in fact promote group differentiation.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
The right to education of migrants, refugees and asylum-seekers 2010, para. 20
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur also draws attention to the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights (art. 26), which views the right to education as comprising: (a) fundamental education, which refers to free, often non-formal education for illiterate people, with a strong collective and cultural emphasis for human development (“community education”); and (b) elementary education, i.e., free compulsory formal education which, while not specifying any particular level(s) or stage(s), normatively integrated free post-primary education. Article 26 of the Declaration, and subsequent international human rights law, also guarantee the right of parents and legal guardians to choose their children’s education in conformity with their religious, moral or philosophical convictions. States, however, are not legally obliged to provide instruction in line with such choices.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Assessment of the educational attainment of students 2014, para. 74
- Paragraph text
- The aptitude of students should be given serious consideration in assessing their attainments. The evaluation of the abilities and aptitudes of children in consultation with parents and teachers can be useful in enabling them to realize their potential, leading to better attainments. In Lithuania, for example, evaluation in primary and basic education is driven by the concept of the assessment of pupils' achievement and progress, encouraging positive personal features and creativity and improving personal achievements. The main idea is assessment for learning, not assessment of learning.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Assessment of the educational attainment of students 2014, para. 78
- Paragraph text
- In this context, it is important to note that, whereas parents and guardians are at liberty to choose private schools for their children, pursuant to article 13 (3) and (4) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, education in such schools must conform to the educational objectives set out in article 13 (1) of the Covenant and "such minimum educational standards as may be laid down or approved by the State". Those minimum standards may relate to issues such as admission, curricula and the recognition of certificates. In their turn, those standards must be consistent with the educational objectives set out in article 13 (1).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Protecting education against commercialization 2015, para. 92
- Paragraph text
- Independent judicial systems and independent human rights mechanisms are necessary for ensuring that laws and regulations are enforced. It is also important that judges be well-versed in the international obligations of States on the right to education. Regulations on private providers should be widely publicized so as to make them better known, especially among parents, teachers and community members and organizations, and should allow for any entity or individual to initiate legal action in cases of abusive or illegal practices by private providers. Supporting public interest litigation safeguarding the right to education against forces of privatization is also important.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Normative action for quality education 2012, para. 81
- Paragraph text
- Prevalent teacher absenteeism bears evidence to the slackness regarding the inspection of schools. Public authorities should tighten monitoring and inspection in order to control this lacuna with disciplinary measures. Some additional aspects deserve special consideration in quality inspections, such as: (i) the way human rights values are promoted in schools; (ii) the overall interaction with parents and the community; (iii) the promotion of dialogue with teachers on child-friendly teaching and learning.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Normative action for quality education 2012, para. 77
- Paragraph text
- Management plays a central role in ensuring schools remain inclusive and safe environments, free from violence and sexual harassment, and work in tandem with the community. Rules and regulations governing school management should ensure that the community, parents, teachers and pupils have a voice and role in the management of schools, and in finding ways and means to improve the quality of the school environment. This is acknowledged in the UNESCO-ILO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers (1966), which specifies that there should be close cooperation between the competent authorities, organizations of teachers, employers and workers, and parents, as well as cultural organizations and institutions of learning and research, for the purpose of defining educational policy and its objectives (para. 10 (k)).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Justiciability of the right to education 2013, para. 82h
- Paragraph text
- [Bearing in mind the key importance of the justiciability of the right to education and its enforcement, and with a view to fostering protective as well as promotional role of adjudication mechanisms, the Special Rapporteur would like to offer the following recommendations:] Children and adults who are primary beneficiaries of the right to education are often unaware of their rights. In many cases, parents, while motivated, may lack information or the financial resources to protect their right to education in courts. Civil society and media can play an important role in disseminating information regarding the right to education to parents, teachers and school administrators, and also in identifying and publicizing violations of the right to education.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Justiciability of the right to education 2013, para. 82j
- Paragraph text
- [Bearing in mind the key importance of the justiciability of the right to education and its enforcement, and with a view to fostering protective as well as promotional role of adjudication mechanisms, the Special Rapporteur would like to offer the following recommendations:] Litigation promoting the right to education is in the public interest. Violations of the right to education may be voiced in the media, but they must also be subject to effective adjudication. For this reason, legal standing should be given the broadest possible interpretation, to allow not just affected children, but also their parents and other education stakeholders to bring complaints before judicial and quasi-judicial bodies. Poor and disadvantaged persons may be unwilling to pursue their rights, out of fear of reprisals, lack of financial resources, or unwillingness to challenge State authorities. Quasi-judicial institutions should be empowered to initiate investigations suo moto, and third parties, including non-governmental actors, should be able to initiate cases before courts and human rights institutions where the available evidence supports them.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Public-private partnerships in education 2015, para. 34
- Paragraph text
- The World Bank and the International Finance Corporation have been key proponents of public-private partnerships and have been particularly instrumental in facilitating the replication of what they consider to be successful pilots or experiments in partnerships between Governments and the private sector. A small cluster of large, powerful, global management firms have taken large interests in such public-private partnerships. Outsourcing education activities to profit-making corporations opens the space for them not only to make a profit, but also to steer education agendas in ways that may not be in the best interest of students, parents and teachers and thus societies as a whole.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Public-private partnerships in education 2015, para. 44
- Paragraph text
- Public-private partnerships in education may take many forms and arrangements, such as contractual arrangements with the private sector for public school infrastructure or school management, to operate public schools or manage certain aspects of public school operations. Public-private partnerships can also involve government purchases of education services delivered by private schools or private entities. Capacity-building initiatives, the training of public school teachers and curriculum enhancement programmes delivered by the private sector are other forms of public-private partnerships. Voucher systems, which provide government grants for students from low-income families to enrol in private schools, also amount to public-private partnerships. Another modality of public-private partnerships is the provision of cash and in-kind resources by private sector partners to complement government funding of public schools or "adopt a school" programmes.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Protecting education against commercialization 2015, para. 41
- Paragraph text
- UNESCO and the International Organization of la Francophonie have expressed concern with sweeping privatization in education reducing education to a commodity: "With diversification in the field of education, the private providers - international or local - are more and more numerous. International consortiums have [become] specialized in 'selling' education. A number of local figures, including many teachers and even educational authorities, are creating schools for profit, turning to rather wealthy families with slogans extolling the quality [of the school] or are turning towards the disadvantaged public with altruistic slogans, which often hide the profit or political character of their endeavours. One can observe, above all, the emergence of a quasi-market phenomenon".
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Protecting education against commercialization 2015, para. 47
- Paragraph text
- The State is primarily responsible for respecting, fulfilling and protecting the right to education. The liberty of parents and guardians to ensure the religious and moral education of their children in conformity with their own convictions and the liberty of individuals and bodies to establish and direct educational institutions provided for in article 13 (3) and (4) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights is not unfettered. Such freedom in education is subject to compliance with minimum standards in education, to which all private educational institutions are required to conform. The failure to ensure that private educational institutions conform to the minimum educational standards required in articles 13 (3) and (4) constitutes a violation of the right to education.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Report on the Post-2015 Education Agenda 2013, para. 76
- Paragraph text
- Education systems of tomorrow need to be designed so that they clearly delineate the roles and responsibility of various stakeholders, which include communities, local bodies, teachers and parents. To that end, a legal framework should be put in place that applies to all providers of education, public and private, and is fully respectful of the right to education as a fundamental human right, with Governments having primary responsibility, in keeping with human rights obligations.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Sexual education 2010, para. 71
- Paragraph text
- One of the fundamental challenges to achieving change in people's behaviour and attitudes through education is the need to involve families and communities, avoiding the false dichotomy between the family and the State as guarantor of the right to comprehensive sexual education. Studies indicate that in some countries, one third of young women and one fifth of young men aged 15 to 19 say that they have never discussed sexuality-related issues with their parents.56 Thus, both real life and international law provide ample reason to oppose movements that seek to relieve States of their obligation to provide sexual education in the name of alleged and often non-existent family education.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Men
- Women
- Youth
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
The right to education of migrants, refugees and asylum-seekers 2010, para. 21
- Paragraph text
- The right to education has subsequently been enshrined in a range of international conventions, including the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966), the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) and, more recently, the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (1990). Specific to refugee concerns are the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (Refugee Convention, 1951) and its 1967 Protocol (arts. 4 and 22), and the Convention against Discrimination in Education (1960, art. 4).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Justiciability of the right to education 2013, para. 78
- Paragraph text
- Courts and even adjudicative bodies may at times insist on the formality of their procedures, severely disadvantaging anyone without legal representation. Procedures to bring claims must be simplified for unrepresented claimants, and kept as informal as possible for quasi-judicial institutions. Rules with respect to legal standing to bring a claim should allow not just a child and their parents, but also third parties to bring a claim based on the alleged violation, in order to ensure that cultural constraints, or threats against the victims, do not prevent cases from emerging.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Privatization and the right to education 2014, para. 40
- Paragraph text
- Another document prepared by the UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning and the International Organization of la Francophonie also highlights similar developments, expressing similar concerns about sweeping privatization in education reducing education to a commodity: "With diversification in the field of education, private providers - international or local - are more and more numerous. International consortiums have [become] specialized in 'selling' education. A number of local figures, including many teachers and even educational authorities, are creating schools for profit, turning to rather wealthy families with slogans extolling the quality [of the school] or are turning towards the disadvantaged public with altruistic slogans, which often hide the profit or political character of their endeavours. One can observe, above all, the emergence of a quasi-market phenomenon.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Public-private partnerships in education 2015, para. 50
- Paragraph text
- Voucher systems, which support parents to send students to public or private schools, amount to public-private partnership arrangements, which promote privatization. The experience of Chile demonstrates the negative consequences of a voucher system in creating social stratification. Education service contracting in the Philippines, providing a public subsidy for each student opting to enrol in eligible private schools, is fraught with similar consequences, exacerbating inequities and social segregation. The Punjab Education Foundation in Pakistan, which sources funds from donors and financial institutions (in mixed loans and grants) and allocates vouchers to selected private schools, allows private individuals to manage government-created foundations as public-private partnerships, which is detrimental to public investment in education.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Public-private partnerships in education 2015, para. 142
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur calls upon civil society organizations and the intellectual community, as well as students, parents and community associations, to expose the negative effects of public-private partnerships in education. He encourages them to voice their concerns more strongly and widely, as an essential function of the social compact for education, in an endeavour to forge a global movement against the negative impact and abusive practices of privatization and public-private partnerships in education, reducing it to a business. Their advocacy work for fostering social justice and equity is valuable to counter market-based approaches in education. Research, events and expert consultations on the effects of public-private partnerships in education and on the exercise and enjoyment of the right to education should be encouraged and supported.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Equality of opportunity in education 2011, para. 59
- Paragraph text
- A number of in-kind incentives, such as school meal programmes, especially in poverty-stricken areas, are implemented in order to ensure that income deprivation or poverty in general does not result in exclusion from schools. In broad terms, State investment in social-protection policies and its contribution to alleviating the burden on families and child poverty plays an important role in the promotion of education.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph