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Experts Meeting on “The practice of rights in education:

A renewed commitment to human rights education”

UNESCO Headquarters, Paris 30-31 January 2003

FINAL REPORT

INTRODUCTION

UNESCO organized an expert meeting entitled “The practice of rights in education: A renewed commitment to human rights education”, which took place on 30-31 January 2003 at the Organization’s Headquarters in Paris. The meeting was attended by eleven experts from different background and regions, representatives of National Commissions for UNESCO and Permanent Delegations, as well as representatives of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the Council of Europe (CoE). The list of participants is attached in Annex 1.

The meeting addressed the following items:

- Implementing human rights education (HRE) as part of the right to education in Member

States through: national legislation, national plans of action, including the EFA. - Mainstreaming human rights education into national education systems through: the

curricula; teacher education/training, teaching and learning resources, the learning environment, whole school and extracurricular activities, school management.

- Evaluation of human rights education. - Advocacy and networking for human rights education.

OPENING SESSION

In her opening speech, Mrs Mary Joy Pigozzi, Director of the Division for the Promotion of Quality Education, stressed that UNESCO promotes quality education, the 6th of the Dakar goals, as a human right and supports a rights-based approach to the implementation of all educational activities. She pointed out that the existing international, legal instruments, among others the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the UNESCO Convention Against Discrimination in Education, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, include a web of commitments concerning the right to education as well as to HRE, which refer to both the quantity and quality of education. She continued by saying that quality education addresses all aspects of learning (learner, content, processes, environment) and allows for learning throughout life as expressed by the four pillars of learning identified by the Delors Report: learning to know, learning to do, learning to live together and with others and learning to be. She further stressed that quality education can be monitored and measured. Although

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many indicators of quality exist, additional indicators need to be identified and operationalized. She concluded that UNESCO’s vision of quality education is based on human rights, i.e. universal human values. It is a unifying approach; it is not only education about human rights but also education for human rights. Mr Edouard Matoko, Chief of the Section of Education for Universal Values, explained to the participants the purpose of the meeting which was to advise UNESCO on the elaboration of the Human Rights Education Strategy and its inclusion in the Overall UNESCO Strategy on Human Rights. He further presented the objective of the meeting which was to renew the approach and the understanding of HRE to make it holistic. Within this holistic approach, HRE should constitute the basis for the democratization of education systems in the context of national education reforms with a view to integrating the learning and practice of human rights. This implies fundamental change of education structures, the management of the education system, teaching/learning practices, the revision and adaptation of learning materials, the adequate preparation of educational personnel, etc.

Mr Vladimir Volodine, Chief of the Section of Human Rights and Development, presented the current stage of work on the Overall UNESCO Strategy on Human Rights, inspired by the UN reform programme. The Secretary-General of the United Nations underlined that human rights are a central tenet of UN activities. In drafting the elements of the Strategy, the main idea is that mainstreaming of human rights in all UNESCO activities will be the task and commitment of the organization. At its last session (October 2002), the Members of the Executive Board reconfirmed UNESCO’s commitment to human rights and requested to accord particular priority to education and research in the field of human rights. He further informed the participants, in order to elaborate the final strategy, consultations have been undertaken with Member States, UN Organisation like the OHCHR and ILO, as well as NGOs and UNESCO Chairs.

In his introductory remarks, Prof. Alan Smith, Moderator of the two first sessions of the meeting, mentioned three main reasons why HRE is of central importance.

1. Education is a human right, as it laid down in many international normative instruments. In this context, access to education provides protection to young people. Mentioning particularly Article 29 (1) of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which deals with the aims of education, he pointed out that the Right to Education is more than access to education, each child has the right to receive a quality education which includes respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. The way in which access to education provides protection to young people.

2. Education is an important tool for human development as it was stressed in the World Education Forum in Dakar, in April 2000. Education For All is an investment in the development of important life skills and the capacity of countries to tackle poverty and injustice. Education also provides important protection for vulnerable children.

3. Education can at the same time be part of the problem as well as part of the solution. There are many examples where education has been used e.g. to maintain inequality, as a weapon of war, and as a tool of cultural repression or ideological indoctrination.

In his overview of a differentiated education system, he explained in detail the integrated

and holistic view of HRE. In this connection, he stressed the following points: • One of the key areas that need attention from UNESCO is how to develop stronger and

greater political commitment for HRE.

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• Another issue to be taken into consideration is to what extent politics can have an impact on educational administration, that can lead to inequality of access, inequality in the allocation of resources, political interference in appointments, governance issues at school level, etc.

• Arguments for decentralised and differentiated systems are often made in terms of their ability to create better transparency, participation and democratisation. However the reality is often one of a centralised Ministry with responsibility for many functions.

By taking a holistic view we can see that simultaneous actions is required on many

fronts to fully integrate human rights education into national education systems. These include: ! Issues about curriculum and curriculum policy. Many people argue that enquiry-based

curricula with participatory methods and multiple resources are superior to content-based, transmissional models;

! Every area of the curriculum has relevance from a human rights perspective, particularly in terms of values and identity issues, medium of instruction, gender, religion, teaching of history, etc. There are related issues about evaluation and assessment;

! Implications for the development of multiple resources, including textbooks and other media, and training in their use;

! There are implications for teacher education, including issues of recruitment, quality training and retention;

! The need for stronger partnerships with NGOs and civil society in supporting human rights education within schools and through community education.

Finally, he stressed that questions arise in all of these areas about the strategy UNESCO

should adopt to support processes within and between Member States. Three possible lines of action are identified in the document 165 EX/10 (paras 31-33): ! Advocating for HRE as an integral part of national legislation ! Supporting the integration and implementation of HRE into national education systems in

practice ! Networking and mobilising for HRE Participants were encouraged to provide advice and concrete suggestions for UNESCO’s Human Rights Education strategy in these areas, bearing in mind the 5 main functions of UNESCO: ! As a think-tank for ideas ! Setting standards and norms ! Clearing house for gathering, sharing and disseminating information ! Capacity building in Member States ! Catalyst for international cooperation.

Before starting the discussions on the first session of the meeting, the participants asked some clarifications on the elaboration of the strategy, as well as on the outcomes of this meeting and the methods of work. Ms Pigozzi gave some clarification on the role of education in relation with the Human Rights Strategy. She pointed out that, concerning the Education Sector, the HRE, as part of the Human Rights Strategy, is an integrated part of the Goal N° 6

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of Dakar (“Improving every aspect of the quality of education, and ensuring their excellence so that recognized and measurable learning outcomes are achieved by all, especially in literacy, numeracy and essential life skills”), but often people don’t understand this, as they think that this Goal is only about academic performance. She asked the participants to help UNESCO and advise on how to articulate better and push the agenda forward on the fact that human rights and HRE are part and parcel of quality education, so that there is really an understanding that this is not new and different but it is embedded in the commitments already taken by the international community through the different instruments adopted.

SESSION I - Implementing human rights education as part of the right to education in

Member States through: national legislation and National Plans of action, including EFA

After rich discussions and different ideas and proposals exchanged, the participants made the following recommendations:

Monitoring of international normative instruments on the right to education and HRE • Within the context of the UN Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004),

UNESCO could carry out a review of how Member States have ensured that national legislation (both laws and administrative regulations) is in compliance with normative instruments on HRE, as well as how these obligations have been put into reality.

• Following the above-mentioned review, UNESCO could advise and provide technical

assistance to governments to improve national legislation. Furthermore, these national practices should be compiled and published in order to help Member States who did not yet comply with the ratified obligations.

• UNESCO should consider the UN Treaty Monitoring Body system in order to improve its

own monitoring system in the area of education and particularly the right to education and create possible links. The work of the UNESCO(CR)/ECOSOC(CESCR) Expert Group on the Right to Education could lead to some improvement in this respect.

• Since the ratification of international instruments is a necessary, but not sufficient

condition, the extent to which the States Parties respect these norms must be continuously monitored. In this context, UNESCO must also monitor and disseminate the concluding observations of the UN Treaty Bodies with respect to education issues and provide, if necessary and financially possible, technical assistance on their follow-up within the framework of EFA.

• In order to be more efficient in monitoring, UNESCO should build strategic partnerships,

together with its National Commissions, with professional groups and NGOs which guarantee the awareness and competence to assess national legislation and practice and to propose, if necessary, the adoption of new ones. Partnership with the parliamentary committees in charge of education laws, as well as constitutional courts should be sought.

• The issue of reservations to treaties, in particular to the Convention on the Rights of the

Child and the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, should be

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critically addressed. In this context, the universality of human rights should be reaffirmed. The conduct of studies by national research institutes on how the universal values of human rights are embedded in the national and local culture(s) should be supported in this regard.

EFA and Human Rights Education National Plans • In relation with national plans of action, special reference should be made to the values

related to human rights, namely the universality, indivisibility, interrelationship and interdependence of all human rights as it was adopted in the framework of the World Conference on Human Rights (Vienna, 1993). It will be necessary to design a general framework in order to help national authorities to map out the links between EFA strategies and HRE national plans. In the forthcoming ICE, where Ministers of Education come together, they could be sensitised to follow such a holistic approach of the right to education and human rights education in their national planning and legislation.

• Decision-makers in charge of EFA planning and implementation, and those responsible

for HRE plans must be brought together in workshops in order to guarantee integration of HRE into EFA planning. Guidelines to Member States in a form of a manual which describe the step-by-step process for inclusion of HRE into EFA plans should be developed. In this context, examples of the successful integration within the EFA action plans of the Pacific States, should be fully illustrated. This manual should be designed in a way to be able to assist Member States to transform the legislations into educational tools and the international instruments in policy documents at the implementation level.

• In the framework of the EFA funding, including the Fast-Track Initiative of the World

Bank, it would be necessary to have as an additional criteria for funding whether there is a human rights approach to the planning of EFA in a given country. The participants agreed that to integrate a human rights approach to EFA planning is crucial as it is one of the most powerful means and the appropriate platform for human rights to become an integral part of planning and thinking on education policy in general. It was proposed that this recommendation be included as an item of the agenda of the next High-Level Group on Education for All.

SESSION II: Mainstreaming human rights education into national education systems in

Member States through: the curricula; teacher education/training, teaching and learning resources, the learning environment, whole school and extracurricular activities, school management

During this session, the participants had fruitful discussions and exchanged a wide range of opinions and views concerning a renewed definition of quality education from a rights-based approach and how such an approach can be mainstreamed within the national education systems. They have issued the following considerations and proposed different recommendations: Quality and human rights education: Basic considerations • Given the fact that the Goal N°6 of Dakar is narrowly defined, UNESCO should

cooperate with its partners in the UN system in order to elaborate a broad comprehensive

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definition of quality education based on a human rights approach in line with the Delors report and the results of the 46th ICE. The model of quality education presented in the global EFA Monitoring Report 2002 (page 81) needs to be adjusted to reflect the centrality of human rights to quality education.

• A guiding framework for quality education should be elaborated and include among

others, the types of changes expected, as well as the impact and outcomes of the learning process to be achieved. This framework should be based on international normative instruments such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

• HRE must be seen as a broad concept based upon UNESCO’s 1974 Recommendation

concerning Education for International Understanding, Co-operation and Peace, and Education relating to Human Rights and Fundamental Freedom and the Declaration and Integrated Framework of Action on Education for Peace, Human Rights and Democracy (adopted in 1995), thus including inter alia peace education, peaceful conflict resolution mechanisms, anti-racism and tolerance education, citizenship education, education for international understanding and for sustainable development.

• HRE should be understood as a comprehensive process which develops human rights

knowledge, skills and attitudes, in order to make human rights a “life skill”. Thus, in learning processes a shift should be made from “what I learn” to “what I can do”.

• Mainstreaming HRE must take into account the diversity of cultures, historical

developments and the history of education in each country, and should build on those backgrounds. However, the principle of universality, indivisibility, interrelationship and interdependence of all human rights should be recalled.

Strategic partnerships: crucial for the implementation of the strategy • Strategic partnership should be established at national and international levels to

overcome the problem of scarce resources. Such partners should be identified in the strategy in terms of “who for what purpose” and could include IGOs and NGOS, professional associations, teachers’ trade unions, school principals’ associations, civil society organizations and institutions of higher education.

• In order to make interventions with a meaningful impact, the stakeholders at all levels

(regional, national, local) must be identified and involved in a coherent manner. Based upon the common set of human rights values, and taking into account the tendency in many national education systems towards a decentralization process, coalitions which bring together all actors involved in HRE should be established. UNESCO and its field offices should encourage this process in close partnership with the OHCHR and UNICEF.

Capacity-building: priority to teacher training • The priority for intervention should be teacher education, both pre- and in-service, as it is

the role of teachers to bring alive the spirit of human rights in school practices. Therefore, UNESCO could develop an international teacher training programme in right-based quality education and disseminate it by using ICTs and other resources, organizing related training workshops, elaborating training guides, etc. Among target beneficiaries of these activities should also be principals, curriculum writers and school administrators. In this

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framework, it is important to target teacher training institutions. The initial teacher training curriculum should address both content and methodological issues related to HRE.

• UNESCO should gather and exchange curriculum frameworks for teacher training,

whether they exist within the domain of governments, universities or NGOs. • In partnership with other related organizations, UNESCO could develop a user-friendly

and comprehensive guide for assisting Member States to implement quality education, including HRE, which should include legislation, action plans (including curriculum and textbook revision, learning methodologies, democratic environment, etc.), implementation, measurement of outcomes and programme evaluation through the identification of benchmarks.

Research • Research on quality indicators to facilitate monitoring and evaluation of HRE

programmes, should be undertaken. Furthermore, pilot projects should be launched to test the above-mentioned guide.

• Universities should be considered strategic partners, in particular for undertaking HRE

research. In this framework, competitions at the regional level allowing universities to discuss and present human rights curricula, textbooks, and educational processes and methodologies for various professions could be organized.

Advocacy • “Good practices” of integrated approaches in HRE should be documented and published,

including strengths and problems encountered in order to draw lessons from these experiences.

Funding • New ways of financing these activities must be found; for instance, UNESCO could

participate as a partner in HRE technical assistance programmes of OHCHR and other UN agencies, and attract more financial resources from the funding agencies of the UN system, as well as from bilateral, private and public donors. Special efforts should be made to sensitise Bretton Woods institutions and the business sector to human rights approaches and HRE programmes.

Specific recommendations concerning mainstreaming HRE into national education systems • The child-oriented school approach should be promoted and advise should be given on

how to reform the school including its management based on this approach. The holistic approach used in the project “Escuela Nueva” (web: www.volvamos.org) was given as one of the most successful examples of practice of rights and democratic principles at school level.

• It is observed that the link between the education system and its context is not always

obvious. Citizenship and human rights are learnt better in practice by constantly interacting with the society and the environment. Thus, UNESCO should support activities

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that favour the interaction of the school with its local community in partnership with NGOs that are active at the grassroots level. Furthermore, activities such as the constitution of regional children and young people parliaments, which help young people to understand in practice democratic principles and human rights values, could be organized.

• Concerning the integration of HRE into the curriculum, participants proposed that both a

separate subject and an integrated one be supported through the UNESCO strategy. In this context, textbook revision from a human rights principles and values perspective should be an integral part of HRE programmes and projects.

• Participants also insisted to the fact that UNESCO as a human rights organization should

become a model of applying human rights principles and values within the organization itself. A training programme for UNESCO staff should be elaborated in this regard.

SESSION III – Evaluation of HRE Mr Edouard Matoko, moderator of this session highlighted some points, which could stimulate the discussion among the participants. He pointed out that the evaluation field is vast and complex both for education in general and human rights education in particular. He posed some critical questions: Why to evaluate? What to evaluate - given the fact that UNESCO’ activities touch no more than the 5% of persons enrolled in school by implementing either specific activities of promotion and training or big projects that support systemic change? How to evaluate? For whom to evaluate, for the beneficiaries, the decision-makers, the donors? Does the project have an influence on the education system? What kind of indicators should be used: quantitative, qualitative? All participants agreed that evaluation of HRE is indeed complex and unexplored and different opinions have been exchanged on theoretical and methodological questions related to the evaluation in general and the evaluation of HRE in particular. During the debate, the participants made the following remarks and proposed various recommendations: Why to evaluate ? • UNESCO and its partners need evaluation tools at two different levels:

– On a first level, indicators should be found to assess whether UNESCO and its partners are successful or not in the programmes they implement. These indicators should be qualitative indicators to show whether the kind of impact on attitudes and behaviours, towards social constructive changes that was sought, is actually happening.

– On a second level, UNESCO and its partners need tools to evaluate whether and how governments are abiding to their legal obligations on human rights education under international standard-setting instruments. There is a link between evaluation indicators and political commitment.

• UNESCO should try to develop some basic indicators showing the changes resulting from the implementation or the absence of implementation of HRE. These indicators could then be used as a justification/leverage to introduce HRE into schools.

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What to evaluate ? • Several dimensions should be taken into account to evaluate the integration of HRE into the national educational systems: one is education policy; a second one is the syllabus or curriculum; a third one is the quality of students learning; the fourth one, and the most important dimension, is the quality of instruction, the performance of the teachers; and the fifth one is the quality of school environment and management.

• Considering that the objectives of HRE include having the learners gain notions of human rights and be able to claim their rights through peaceful and established means, thus producing a social dynamic that promotes a culture of human rights ; the evaluation of HRE should consider this social dynamic with indicators which are to be a priori known to all actors involved.

• UNESCO should evaluate the procedures of evaluation implemented by Member States of their national HRE programmes. Thus, it will be possible to weave elements of evaluation into the strategies, planning and implementation of HRE by the State. These elements of evaluation will ensure the presence of self-corrective mechanisms in the whole HRE process in the State.

How to evaluate ? • The EFA Monitoring Report should include human rights and human rights education in the model of quality education presented as part of the monitoring exercise. This model actually identifies inputs in terms of a range of factors to do with the school, the students, the communities as well as a number of processes and outcomes. However, there is no reference to a rights based approach to quality and human rights education. In terms of strategy, if UNESCO is looking at HRE as an essential part of quality education, it needs to have an EFA monitoring report integrating HRE. This is what should be changed and influenced as a matter of priority.

• The evaluation processes have to move from a psychometric perspective to a phenomenological and anthropological approach. Generally, formulating indicators in terms of accomplishment of programme is very difficult. It is even more difficult in the complex reality of human rights woven into the manner of which the education processes unfold. Therefore, there is a need to formulate the indicators in relation with the transformed reality for the child, in the school, in the education system. However, in many parts of the world, the evaluation is using a psychometric perspective and this has to change particularly in the context of a rights based approach to quality education.

• The objectives of the evaluation process must be linked to the different cultural, social and political situations of the countries or regions involved, because the level of effectiveness or success and the period of achievement will vary according to the location of the programme.

• Any evaluation process should be part of an overall learning process. It should be carried out in a very transparent, constructive and participatory way allowing everyone to entrust the process. It should also be done in a way that failures are considered as an outcome to learn and improve the future activity.

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• In the area of HRE, evaluation has to be a continuous process, even though it includes stages. A quality evaluation process has to be about creating a culture of self-assessment, self-examination and continuous improvement, including setting culturally appropriate targets. Such an approach will allow people to learn how to evaluate programmes in an integrated and holistic way to achieve the desired outcomes.

SESSION IV – Advocacy and Networking in HRE The discussions highlighted two important lines of action: on the one hand more transparency and better information-sharing of good practices must be initiated by UNESCO vis-à-vis both the Member States and NGOs; on the other hand better working relationships with the research community must be institutionalized in the form of problem-solving strategies. ADVOCACY Concerning advocacy, discussions were held extensively and different views were exchanged on what is the best way to advocate for human rights and HRE in an education system, in a society, in a country, etc. Different proposals came out which prove that in each region and sub-region different solution should be adopted and adapted in order to be more effective. These different proposals are summarized below:

! Advocacy should be backed up by research studies otherwise it is not efficient, particularly in societies with democratic pretensions.

! In some cases, it is better not to advocate directly for human rights, but rather to focus on practical changes in schools, which are considered as the basic units of change, on methodologies of teaching, the pedagogy, the management of the school, etc. Therefore, supporting bottom-up rather that top-down reforms could be more appropriate in some contexts.

! In order for advocacy to be more relevant, UNESCO should promote the understanding of universally accepted values and principles of human rights as perceived in national or local cultures. Therefore, it is important to undertake national studies in order to find out how the values and principles of human rights are perceived and embedded in the culture(s) of a country. These studies could help to overcome eventual resistance to such values which, in many cases, are considered as imposed.

! However, we have to recall that the international community agreed on basic common standards and orientation with the adoption of the UDHR, and which give important guidance. In this context, in the Vienna Declaration of 1993, it was clearly agreed by the international community that “All human rights are universal, indivisible and interdependent and interrelated. … While the significance of national and regional particularities and various historical, cultural and religious backgrounds must be borne in mind, it is the duty of States, regardless of their political, economic and cultural systems, to promote and protect all human rights and fundamental freedoms”.

! In this context, interregional initiatives should be promoted and supported, like the Euro-Arab strategy which is jointly implemented by UNESCO, the Council of Europe (CoE) and the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (ALECSO).

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! Major means to advocate for human rights and HRE are the media, and media messages should be encouraged in this regard.

NETWORKING One of the major messages and recommendations that came out of the meeting is that UNESCO should establish strategic partnerships in order to be effective to the implementation of a strategy on human rights education. Given the Organization’s limited financial and human resources, the establishment of such partnerships is critical. These partners should be clearly identified and thus the participants made specific proposals in this regard:

! UNESCO should develop and maintain an international network of different actors involved in HRE, including NGOs and other civil society organizations, universities, researchers, etc. In this framework, a roster of experts should also be developed.

! Strong partnerships with NGOs should be promoted as they are the most active actors for advocating and promoting human rights and HRE. In addition, United Nations agencies should provide legitimacy to the HRE work of civil society organizations.

! Concerning established networks such as the Associated Schools Network, the UNESCO Clubs, the Sites of Citizenship of the Council of Europe, etc. It could be envisaged to link these networks together in order to exchange more effectively information and experiences on human rights and human rights education initiatives.

! UNESCO should further its partnership with regional intergovernmental organizations, such as the Council of Europe. In this regard, the envisaged European Year of Citizenship through Education (2005) provides an opportunity.

! Partnerships should be sought with the World Bank Group and Regional Development Banks. They are larger funders of education reforms. UNESCO should succeed to be identified by the banks and bilateral donors as the agency that can provide technical assistance, advise and guidance in quality, including HRE.

Further recommendations were issued by the participants on networking: • Both law and education professionals should be brought together in HRE workshops, in

order to develop common approaches of mutual understanding. • Effective use of ICTs should be promoted. In this framework, UNESCO should further

develop and support innovative approaches to HRE, such as the UNESCO multi-lingual education server Dadalos (www.dadalos.org) for human rights and democracy in Southeast Europe and the multi-lingual electronic network of human rights education experts, teachers, associations, etc. in Latin America.

• UNESCO could create a portal for sharing and disseminating information on curriculum,

teacher training, research, evaluation and “good practices”. • In view of the end of the UN Decade for Human Rights Education, in 2004, the Office of

the High Commissioner for Human Rights and UNESCO should consider jointly conceiving and organizing an International Conference to mark the event. In this framework, the good practices on HRE, as well as an assessment on the elaboration and implementation of national plans of action on HRE in Member States should be published.

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CLOSING SESSION Mr Vladimir Volodine, Chief of the Section of Human Rights and Development, expressed his gratitude to the participants for their valuable advice and recommendations to UNESCO for the further elaboration of the strategy on HRE. In his concluding remarks, he pointed out that education on human rights and for human rights is not limited to the dissemination of knowledge, it should mobilize people to address new challenges in this field and thus, research in this regard is very important. He further continued by agreeing with the participants that UNESCO should use its existing networks in a more effective way. He concluded by informing the participants that over the last three years, there has been a significant improvement of cooperation between the two Sectors: the Education Sector and the Sector of Social and Human Sciences in the field of human rights and HRE. This improvement should continue and should be enlarged to all the Sectors of UNESCO, because without effective internal cooperation, including UNESCO Institutes, the implementation of the Overall UNESCO Strategy on Human Rights will not achieve the expected results. Mrs Mary Joy Pigozzi, Director of the Division for the Promotion of Quality Education, thanked the participants for their important input towards the further development of the strategy. She stressed that it is always difficult when we talk about change and change in education for it to contribute to the establishment of a human rights culture. Education is an enabling right as it enables people to understand and fulfil many other rights. She continued by saying that the key task is to focus on the priority areas in which UNESCO can make a difference. She particularly expressed her appreciation to the participants because they contributed to the question of how to promote a new understanding of quality education. “You helped us immensely to promote the Dakar Goal N° 6, as the way to move this new definition of quality forward.” She agreed with the participants that UNESCO needed to work harder on governments' commitments but this should be linked with the concept of quality education. It is important for UNESCO to be an agency that helps governments understand how to improve their education systems rather than to be perceived as a monitoring agency that punishes them. She then turned to the point that some of the participants made, namely the training of UNESCO staff on human rights and she welcomed this recommendation. She informed the participants that there are funds earmarked from the Organization for training within the framework of the reform. In this context, a training programme on human rights and HRE will be elaborated. She concluded by thanking once more the participants of their valuable contribution for making concrete recommendations to better elaborate the strategy on quality and human rights education.

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SUMMARY OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE MEETING IN RELATION WITH THE FIVE FUNCTIONS OF UNESCO LABORATORY OF IDEAS - UNESCO should cooperate with its partners in the UN system in order to elaborate a

comprehensive definition of quality education based on a human rights approach in line with the Delors Report and the results of the 46th session of the International Conference on Education.

- Develop quality indicators to facilitate monitoring and evaluation of HRE programmes - Research on universal values underpinning human rights and develop strong rationale to

counter resistance to HRE. SETTING STANDARDS AND NORMS - Develop guidelines for the review of legislation and its application in terms of HRE at the

national and international levels. - The Joint Expert Group UNESCO (CR) / ECOSOC (CESCR) should study ways of

harmonizing the reporting and monitoring of the implementation of HRE provisions. - UNESCO should recall the benchmarks of the Vienna Declaration, adopted in the

framework of the World Conference on Human Rights (1993), in particular the “principle of the universality, indivisibility, interrelationship and interdependence of all human rights – civil, political , economic, social and cultural.”

- National bodies should be created with the cooperation of the UNESCO National Commissions, which would monitor the implementation of human rights and would be composed of lawyers, representatives from teachers trade unions and from private and public institutions.

CLEARING HOUSE FOR GATHERING, SHARING AND DISSEMINATING INFORMATION - Effective use of ICTs and creation of networks - Document the “good practices” of integrated approach in HRE including their strengths

and problems encountered in order to draw lessons from these experiences. - Creation of a portal for sharing and dissemination information on curriculum, teacher

training, research, evaluation and “good practices”. - Gathering and exchange curriculum frameworks for teacher education in order to create

case studies of interesting teacher education practices whether they exist within the domain of governments, universities or NGOs.

CAPACITY-BUILDING IN MEMBER STATES - Design a general framework that can help national educational authorities map out the

needed changes to mainstream human rights content and practice into the educational systems.

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- UNESCO, together with its strategic partners, should provide the necessary support to Member States in order for them to be able to monitor the implementation of norms and standards on HRE.

- The priority for intervention should be teacher education, as it is the role of teachers to bring alive the spirit of human rights in school practices.

- UNESCO should develop an international teacher development programme in quality education using ICTs and other resources.

- Develop a user-friendly and comprehensive guide for assisting Member States to implement HRE, which should include the following steps: legislation and action plans, implementation, measurement of outcomes and programme evaluation.

- Develop guidelines for assisting Member States to integrate HRE into the National EFA Plans.

- Continue to produce training materials on HRE. CATALYST FOR INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION - Develop and maintain an international network of different actors involved in HRE. - Promotion of and support to interregional initiatives, such as the Euro-Arab strategy. - UNESCO should further develop innovative approaches to HRE, such as the UNESCO

multi-lingual education server Dadalos for human rights and democracy in Sarajevo. - UNESCO together with OHCHR should organize an International Conference in 2004 to

mark the end of the UN Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004).

ANNEX 1

EXPERT MEETING ON “THE PRACTICE OF RIGHTS IN EDUCATION :

THE RENEWED COMMITMENT TO HUMAN RIGHTS EDUCATION”

REUNION D’EXPERTS SUR « LA PRATIQUE DES DROITS DANS L’EDUCATION :

UN ENGAGEMENT RENOUVELÉ POUR L’ÉDUCATION AUX DROITS DE L’HOMME »

30-31 January 2003/30-31 janvier 2003 UNESCO, Paris, Room VI/Salle VI

FINAL LIST OF PARTICIPANTS LISTE FINALE DES PARTICIPANTS

EXPERTS Mr Michel ABIFADEL Centre de Recherche et de Développemnt Pédagogique Rue Haddadeh, Imm. Basile, 3ème étage BATROUN Liban Tel. (961 6) 741 036 (privé) and 642 908 (prof.) Fax: (961 6) 742 092 Ms Vicky COLBERT DE ARBOLEDA Ex-Vice-Minister of Education Executive Director Back to the People Foundation Calle 39 No. 21-57, Piso 4° BOGOTA, D.C. Colombia Tel: (57 1) 245 2712, or 232 8136/64 Fax: (57 1) 245 2041 E-Mail: volvamos@iname.com, volvamos@express.net.com Ms Joylene Maria de LEO UNESCO APNIEVE Centre RMB 273 Coat Road Ironbank, ADELAIDE 5153 South Australia Tel at home : (61 8) 8388 2121 Fax: (61 8) 8226 1937 E-Mail : Deleo.Joy@saugov.sa.gov.au

Annex 1 – page 2

Ms Hannah FORSTER Executive Director African Centre for Democracy and Human Rights Studies P.O. Box 2728 Serrekunda, Zoe Tembo Building Kerr Sereign BANJUL The Gambia Tel. (220) 462 341/2 Fax: (220) 462 338/9 E-Mail: acdhrs@acdhrs.org Prof. Klaus HUEFNER Former President of the German National Commission Member of the Joint Expert Group UNESCO (CR)/ECOSOC (CESCR) on the Right to Education Brucknerstrasse 46a D-12247 BERLIN Germany Tel: (49 30) 771 8282 Fax: (49 30) 771 4525 E-Mail: khuefner@aol.com Mr Peter LUCAS Peace Education Center Teachers College Columbia University Box 211 525 West 120th Street NEW YORK N.Y. 10027-6696 USA Tel: (1) 212 678 3184 E-Mail: peterfrancislucas@hotmail.com Prof. Shyam MENON Dean Faculty of Education University of Delhi Central Institute of Education 33 Chhatra Marg Delhi 110 007 India Tel: (91 11) 2766 7030 or 2766 6377 Fax: (91 11) 2766 7925 E-Mail: cieidu@nda.vsnl.net.in or shyam.menon@vsnl.com

Annex 1 – page 3

Prof. Alan SMITH UNESCO Chair School of Education University of Ulster Coleraine BT52 1SA Northern Ireland Tel: (44 0) 28 7032 4137 Mob: 079 6772 5260 Fax: (44 0) 28 7032 3021 E-Mail: a.smith@ulst.ac.uk Ms Vedrana SPAJIC-VRKAS Professor University of Zagreb Faculty of Philosophy Department of Education Ljudevita Posavskog 25/3 10000 Zagreb Croatia Tel: (385 1) 6120 185/167, (385 1) 46 49 656 E-Mail: vedrana.spajic-vrkas@zg.hinet.hr Ms Naïma TABET Secréataire générale Commission Nationale du Maroc pour l'UNESCO 3 bis rue Innanouen, Agdal B.P. 420 RABAT R.P. Maroc Tel / Fax: (212 37) 68 2481 or 68 1262 E-Mail: tabetnaima@enssup.gov.ma Ms Fatou THIAM Sub-Regional Centre of the United Nations for Human Rights and Democracy in Central Africa B.P. 836 YAOUNDÉ Cameroon Tel: (237) 221-24-74 Fax: (237) 221-24-75 E-Mail: fatou.thiam@undp.org

Annex 1 – page 4

OBSERVERS / OBSERVATEURS Mme Francine BEST Présidente Comité français de liaison pour la Décennie des Nations Unies pour l’éducation aux droits de l’homme Membre de la Commission nationale française pour l’UNESCO 57 Bvd des invalides 75007 Paris France Tel: (33 1) 42 45 18 11 E-Mail: franbest@club-internet.fr M. Jean-Pierre BOYER Secrétaire général Commission nationale française pour l’UNESCO 57, Boulevard des Invalides 75700 PARIS 07 SP France Tel : (33 1) 53 69 37 80 Fax: (33 1) 53 69 32 23 / 24 E-Mail: jean-pierre.boyer@diplomatie.fr Ms Zabrina HOLMSTRÖM Secretary-General Finnish National Commission for UNESCO Counsellor Ministry of Education and Culture International Relations P.O. Box 29 FIN-00023 GOVERNMENT Finland Tel: (358 9) 1607 7386 Fax: (358 9) 1607 6980/86 E-Mail: zabrina.holmstrom@minedu.fi Mr Traugott SCHÖFTHALER Secretary-General German National Commission for UNESCO 15, Colmantstrasse D-53115 BONN Germany Tel: (49 228) 60 49 720 Fax: (49 228) 60 49 730 E-Mail: schoefthaler@unesco.de

Annex 1 – page 5

Mr Blaine STOTHARD Education Consultant King’s College, University of London c/o 42 Dalyell road London SW9 9QR United Kingdom Tel / Fax: (44 20) 7733 7194 E-Mail: blaine@healthed.demon.co.uk UN/ONU Ms Elena IPPOLITI Human Rights Officer Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights Palais Wilson CH-1211 GENEVA 10 Switzerland Tel: (41 22) 917 9163 Fax: (41 22) 917 9003 E-Mail: eippoliti@ohchr.org COUNCIL OF EUROPE/CONSEIL DE L’EUROPE Ms Angela GARABAGIU Administrator Division of Education for Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education Palais de l'Europe F-67075 STRASBOURG Cedex France Tel: (33 3) 90 21 45 20 Fax: (33 3) 88 41 27 06 E-Mail: angela.garabagiu@coe.int

Annex 1 – page 6

PERMANENT DELEGATIONS TO UNESCO Mr Gojayev AYAZ Attaché Permanent Delegation of Azerbaijan to UNESCO Ambassade d'Azerbaidjan 209, rue de l'Université 75007 PARIS France Tel: (33 1) 44.18.60.20 Fax: (33 1) 44.18.60.25 Mr Souleymane OUEDRAOGO Délégué Permanent Adjoint Délégation Permanente du Burkina Faso auprès de l'UNESCO Maison de l'UNESCO Bureau M7.31 et 32 1, rue Miollis 75732 PARIS Cedex 15 France Tel: (33 1) 45.68.34.66 E-Mail: dl.burkina-faso@unesco.org Ms Dominique LEVASSEUR Political Assistant Permanent Delegation of Canada to UNESCO Maison de l'UNESCO Bureau M8.31 1, rue Miollis 75732 PARIS Cedex 15 France Tel: (33 1) 45.68.35.15 Fax: (33 1) 43.06.87.27 E-mail: dl.canada@unesco.org Mrs Clara INES VARGAS Minister Counsellor Office Permanent Delegation of Colombia to UNESCO 22 rue de l'Elysée 75008 Paris France Tel: (33 1) 42.65.46.08 Fax: (33 1) 43.66.18.60 E-Mail: economico@amb-colombie-fr.com

Annex 1 – page 7

Dr Mohamed Sameh AMR Deputy Permanent Delegate Permanent Delegation of the Arab Republic of Egypt to UNESCO Maison de l'UNESCO Bureau M5.16 1, rue Miollis 75732 PARIS Cedex 15 France Tel: (33 1) 45.68.33.05 / 09 Fax: (33 1) 47.83.41.87 E-Mail: mohamedsam@aol.com Mrs Galina POVAZHNAYA First Secretary Permanent Delegation of the Russian Federation to UNESCO Résidence de la Délégation permanente de la Fédération de Russie auprès de l'UNESCO 8, rue de Prony 75017 PARIS France Tel : (33 1) 42.12.84.30 or (33 1) 45.68.26.77 (33 6) 30.67.84.09 (mobile) Fax : (33 1) 42.67.51.99 or (33 1) 45.68.26.82 Mr Ousmane BLONDIN DIOP Ministre Conseiller Délégué Permanent Adjoint Délégation Permanente du Sénégal auprès de l'UNESCO Maison de l'UNESCO Bureau M6.09 1, rue Miollis 75732 Paris Cedex 15 France Tel: (33 1) 45.68.33.90 Fax: (33 1) 43 06 10 55 E-Mail: dl.senegal@unesco.org Mr Vakur ERKUL Counsellor and Mrs Sebnem INCESU First Secretary Permanent Delegation of Turkey to UNESCO Maison de l'UNESCO Bureau MS1.59/60/61 1, rue Miollis 75732 PARIS Cedex 15 France Tel: (33 1) 45.68.87.33 (Mr Erkul) Tel: (33 1) 45.68.87.33 (Mrs Incesu) Fax: (33 1) 40 56 04 13

Annex 1 – page 8

UNESCO FIELD OFFICES / BUREAUX HORS SIEGE Ms Cecilia BARBIERI Education Officer UNESCO Office Jakarta UNESCO House, Jalan Galuh (II), No.5, Kebayoran Baru, Jakarta Selatan Jakarta 12110 Indonesia Tel: (62) 21-3141 308 Fax: (62) 21-3150 382 E-Mail: c.barbieri@unesco.org Mr Abdallah BUBTANA Director UNESCO Office DOHA Street 57, Al-Jazira Al-Arabia Street Doha, Qatar Tel: (974) 487 10 19 Fax: (974) 486 76 44 E-Mail: a.bubtana@unesco.org Ms Eva IVERSEN Associate Expert and Ms Akiko TAKAHASHI Associate Expert UNESCO Office Dakar, UNESCO Regional office for education in Africa (BREDA) 12, avenue L. S. Senghor, B.P. 3311, Dakar, Senegal Tel: (221) 849.23.23 Fax: (221) 823.83.93 E-Mail: e.iversen@unesco.org ak.takahashi@unesco.org Ms Edna TAIT Director UNESCO Office Apia P.O. Box 5766, Matautu-uta PO Apia, Samoa Tel: (685) 242 76 Fax: (685) 222 53 E-Mail: edna@unesco.org

Annex 1 – page 9

Mr Olof SANDKULL Associate Expert UNESCO Office Bangkok, UNESCO Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education P.O. Box 967, Prakhanong Post Office Bangkok 10110, Thailand Tel: (662) 391 0577 or 391 0879 Fax (662) 391 0866 E-Mail: o.sandkull@unescobkk.org UNESCO HEADQUARTERS / SIEGE DE L’UNESCO UNESCO 7, place de Fontenoy 75352 PARIS 07 SP France Tel : (33 1) 45 68 10 00 Fax : (33 1) 45 67 16 90 Education Sector / Secteur de l'éducation ! Division for the Promotion of Quality Education

Division pour la promotion de la qualité de l'éducation Ms Mary Joy PIGOZZI, Director mj.pigozzi@unesco.org Ms Maria Dulce ALMEIDA BORGES, Senior Programme Specialist Section for Preventive Education and Sports Section pour l'éducation préventive et le sport md.borges@unesco.org Ms Daphne de REBELLO, Senior Programme Specialist Section for Education for Sustainable Development Section de l'éducation pour le développement durable d.de-rebello@unesco.org Ms Malika LADJALI, Senior Programme Specialist Section for Education for Sustainable Development Section de l'éducation pour le développement durable m.ladjali@unesco.org Ms Sigrid NIEDERMAYER, Programme Specialist Associated Schools Project Projet des écoles associées s.niedermayer@unesco.org

Annex 1 – page 10

Mr Paolo FONTANI, Programme Specialist Section of Education for Universal Values Section de l'éducation aux valeurs universelles p.fontani@unesco.org Mrs Antonella VERDIANI, Programme Specialist Section of Education for Universal Values Section de l'éducation aux valeurs universelles a.verdiani@unesco.org ! Division of Educational Policies and Strategies

Division des politiques et des stratégies éducatives Mr Asghar HUSAIN, Director ma.husain@unesco.org Mr Kacem BENSALAH, Chief of Section Section for Support to Countries in Crisis and Reconstruction Section d'appui aux stratégies éducatives nationales k.bensalah@unesco.org Mr Kishore SINGH, Programme Specialist Section for Policy Studies, Research and Information Technologies Section des études et de la recherche sur les politiques et technologies éducatives k.singh@unesco.org Ms Margaret SINCLAIR, Consultant m.sinclair@unesco.org ! Division of Secondary, Technical and Vocational Education

Division de l'enseignement secondaire, technique et professionnel Mr Hiroyuki UCHIDA, Associate Expert Section for General Secondary Education Section pour l'enseignement secondaire général h.uchida@unesco.org ! Diivision of Basic Education

Division de l'éducation de base Ms Ulla KALHA, Consultant u.kalha@unesco.org

Annex 1 – page 11

Social and Human Sciences Sector / Secteur des sciences sociales et humaines ! Division of Human Rights and Struggle against Discrimination

Division des droits de l'homme et de la lutte contre la discrimination Mr Vladimir VOLODINE, Chief of Section Human Rights and Development Section Section droits de l'homme et développement v.volodine@unesco.org Mr Konstantinos TARARAS, Consultant Human Rights and Development Section Section droits de l'homme et développement k.tararas@unesco.org Ms Annali KRISTIANSEN, Assistant Programme Specialist Gender Equality and Development Section Section égalité des genres et développement a.kristiansen@unesco.org ! Division of Ethics of Science and Technology

Division de l'éthique des sciences et des technologies Ms Teresa FUENTES, Chief of Section Ethics of Science and Technology Section Section éthique des sciences et des technologies t.fuentes@unesco.org Communication and Information Sector / secteur de la communication et de l'information ! Division for Freedom of Expression, Democracy and Peace

Division de la liberté d'expression, de la démocratie et de la paix Mr Marcello SCARONE AZZI, Programme Specialist m.scarone@unesco.org Ms Tarja TURTIA, Assistant Programme Specialist t.turtia@unesco.org

Annex 1 – page 12

Culture Sector / Secteur de la culture Mr Guido CARDUCCI, Chief of Section Division of Cultural Heritage International Standards Section / Division du patrimoine culturel Section des normes internationales g.carducci@unesco.org Ms Rosa GUERREIRO, Programme Specialist Division of Cultural Policies and Intercultural Dialogue Dialogue and Cultural Pluralism Section / Division des politiques culturelles et du dialogue interculturel Section du dialogue et du pluralisme culturel r.guerreiro@unesco.org Natural Sciences Sector / Secteur des sciences naturelles Mr Anthony MARJORAM, Programme Specialist Division of Basic and Engineering Sciences Engineering Sciences and Technology Section / Division des sciences fondamentales et des sciences de l'ingénieur Section des sciences de l'ingénieur et de la technologie a.marjoram@unesco.org Sector for External Relations and Cooperation / Secteur des relations extérieures et de la coopération Mrs Marie-Ange THÉOBALD, Chief of Section Division of Relations with National Commissions and New Partnerships Section for UNESCO Clubs and New partnerships / Division des relations avec les Commissions Nationales et des nouveaux partenariats Section des clubs UNESCO et des nouveaux partenariats ma.theobald@unesco.org Central Services / Services centraux ! Bureau of Strategic Planning

Bureau de la planification stratégique

Mr Jean-Yves LE SAUX, Senior Programme Planning Officer Division of Programme Planning, Monitoring and Reporting Division de la planification du programme, du suivi et des rapports jy.le-saux@unesco.org Ms Lydia RUPRECHT, Programme Specialist Section for Women and Gender Equality Section pour les femmes et l'égalité des sexes l.ruprecht@unesco.org

Annex 1 – page 13

Secretariat of the meeting/Secrétariat de la réunion Education Sector / Secteur de l'éducation Division for thePromotion of Quality Education Division pour la promotion de la qualité de l'éducation Section of Education for Universal Values Section de l'éducation aux valeurs universelles Mr Edouard MATOKO, Chief of Section f.matoko@unesco.org Ms Myriam KARELA, Programme Specialist m.karela@unesco.org Ms Céline VANHOENACKER, Consultant c.vanhoenacker@unesco.org Ms Delphine, GOGUET, Intern Ms Megan BURROWS, Intern Mr John SANDERSON, Intern Ms Doris GRATTAGLIANO, Secretary d.grattagliano@unesco.org

ANNEX 2

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Annex 2 – page 1

The practice of rights in education: A renewed commitment to Human Rights Education

I. Introduction

UNESCO has a longstanding experience in the field of Human Rights Education (HRE), a domain in which it has been active since its inception in 1945. Since 1995, UNESCO’s activities have been placed within the framework of the United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004) and are based on different normative instruments adopted by UNESCO and the UN. In the UNESCO Medium-term Strategy (2001-2007) and the Programme and Budget (2002-2003) adopted by the General Conference in 2001, the Member States indicated HRE as one of the strategic priorities for UNESCO action. It is also important to mention that HRE is a means towards the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals.

The elaboration of a “Strategy in Human Rights Education” for UNESCO was requested by Resolution 30 C/16 of the General Conference (November 1999), which also included recommendations for how this should be done. Currently, within the context of the UN reform aimed at mainstreaming human rights into the activities of the UN system1, the Organization is developing « an Overall UNESCO Strategy on Human Rights », including the human rights education strategy.

This meeting is convened to assist the process of elaborating the Human Rights Education Strategy2 for inclusion in the “Overall UNESCO Strategy on Human Rights”. Its objective is to renew the approach and the understanding of human rights education to make it holistic. Within this holistic approach, HRE should constitute the basis for the democratisation of education systems in the context of national education reforms with a view to integrating the learning and practice of human rights.

Human Rights Education is addressed in depth in a number of international instruments, each focusing on different aspects. Therefore, this document is based on the many existing provisions of UN and UNESCO instruments on human rights, as well as on general comments and recommendations made to this effect by the UN Treaty Bodies. It is important for the participants to bear in mind that the legal and social dimensions of HRE, as well as its conceptual development are already well articulated in the above-mentioned texts. However, there is a chasm between the existence of such norms and guidelines and their implementation at national level, and particularly within national education systems.

Thus, the purpose of the meeting is not to redefine the different elements of HRE, but rather to advise UNESCO on how the existing international norms and guidelines can be better implemented.

1 A/51/950 - 14 July 1997 – Renewing the United Nations : a programme for reform : report of the Secretary General 2 The Human Rights Education Strategy will mainly focus on national education systems

Annex 2 – page 2

II. Background

To inform on the process of elaborating the new Human Rights Education Strategy, we will highlight the main steps and milestones (for a more detailed presentation of this process see the Chronology included in the background documents). For the sake of clarity, we will present UNESCO’s action divided into three areas, 1) the main normative-setting instruments and texts of direct relevance to Human Rights Education, 2) the permanent system of reporting, and 3) the plans and strategies adopted within UNESCO.

Most relevant normative-setting instruments and texts

The normative-setting instruments and texts most relevant to HRE include:

– The Recommendation concerning Education for International Understanding, Co-operation and Peace and Education relating to Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, adopted by the General conference in 1974.3

– The Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action for Human Rights adopted by the World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna in June 1993.

– The World Plan of Action on Education for Human Rights and Democracy, adopted in Montreal and endorsed by the General Conference in November 1993.4

– The Declaration of the 44th session of the International Conference on Education and the Integrated Framework of Action on Education for Peace, Human Rights and Democracy respectively endorsed and adopted by the General Conference in November 1995. These texts are considered as the update of the 1974 Recommendation and normative-setting instruments.5

– The Plan of Action of the United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004) adopted in 1995 by the General Assembly. In this framework, UNESCO was called upon « to play a central role in the design, implementation and evaluation of projects under the Plan».

It is also essential to take into account three other key instruments because each of these add to the concept and together they provide a very powerful framework on HRE;

- The Jomtien Declaration and Framework of Action on Education for All, 1990;

- The Dakar Declaration and Framework of Action on Education for All, May 2000;

- The Convention of the Rights of the Child.

Permanent reporting system

In 1985, the General Conference set up a « Permanent Reporting System» in which Member States are to report every six years on the steps taken to implement the 1974 Recommendation. Following the adoption of new instruments in 1995, the General Conference enlarged the scope of

3 Resolution 18C/38 – November 1974 – Recommendation concerning Education for International Understanding, Co-operation and Peace and Education relating to Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (Paris, France, November 1974) 4 Resolution 27C / 5.8 – November 1993 – World Plan of Action on Education for Human Rights and Democracy 5 Resolution 28C / 5.41 – November 1995 - Updating of the 1974 Recommendation on international education: Endorsement of the Declaration of the 44th session of the International Conference on Education and approval of the Draft Integrated Framework of Action on Education for Peace, Human Rights and Democracy

Annex 2 – page 3

the “Permanent System of Reporting”6 which now covers the instruments mentioned in the paragraph above.

As a monitoring mechanism, the “Permanent Reporting System” aims at identifying the general trends and policy development in education for peace, human rights and democracy and their consistency with the instruments. It is also a powerful tool in identifying difficulties and obstacles that Member Sates encountered during implementation. However, this exercise has proven to be obsolete, as the rate of responses of Member States is very low. Thus, improvement of this mechanism is now being considered.

In the context of reporting, UNESCO also contributes to the work of two major UN Committees, namely the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) and the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), by participating to their annual meetings and by providing inputs and comments on specific issues (such as the right to education) and on national reports submitted by Member States.

Implementation plans and strategies adopted within UNESCO

Since 1981 UNESCO has carried out several plans and programmes of implementation in the area of HRE, which also included UNESCO’s specific responsibilities within the United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004). As previously indicated, in 1999, the General Conference adopted Resolution 30 C/16 entitled « Overall Strategy for Human Rights Education » which contained recommendations that should be implemented or taken into account in order to elaborate a Strategy on Human Rights Education.

In October 2002, the document 165 EX/10 entitled « Elements for an overall UNESCO Strategy on Human Rights » was submitted to the 165th session of the Executive Board and the Human Rights Education Strategy is part of it. This document suggests ways of further integrating Human Rights within the Organisation’s programmes.7 During the debate in the Board, all Member States clearly emphasised that Human Rights Education should be considered as priority within UNESCO’s action on human rights and it is reflected in 165 EX / Decision 3.4.1.

III. Purpose of the meeting

Human Rights Education is usually understood from a content perspective. This is not sufficient, however. UNESCO is a human rights organization and the implementation of a human rights approach requests the practice of rights throughout the whole education system and the full range of learning environments.

In light of the above, the Expert meeting will serve as an opportunity to develop and seek concrete ways to introduce this approach into the UNESCO human rights education strategy. However, as it was previously mentioned, the meeting is not meant to redefine the different elements of HRE, but rather to advise UNESCO on how the existing international norms and guidelines can be better implemented.

6 Resolution 28 C / 5.41 – November 1995 7 See annex 165 EX/10 included in the background documents

Annex 2 – page 4

A. Objective of the meeting

• Overall objective of the meeting :

Our objective is to draft a framework for integrating the learning and practice of human rights that should constitute the basis for the democratisation of education systems in the context of national education reforms.

• Specific objectives of the meeting : To assist UNESCO by advising on concrete actions and proposing recommendations to:

- Elaborate the UNESCO Human Rights Education Strategy.

- Develop a UNESCO position paper on this issue.

IV. Context of the meeting

A rights based approach to quality education

In the last decade, the Education for All movement, launched in Jomtien in 1990, focused on access to education, in spite of the far reaching goals and objectives of the declaration8. After a decade of action, the results show that access to education is not enough. The Dakar Framework for Action9, adopted in 2000, affirmed the need to implement a « quality education » within an “expanded vision” of education. The sixth goal of the Dakar Framework is to improve « all aspects of the quality of education and ensuring excellence of all so that recognised and measurable learning outcomes are achieved by all, especially in literacy, numeracy and essential life skills. » More than a right to education, each person has a right to quality education.

In its General Comment 1 on Article 29 (the aim of education), the Committee for the Rights of the Child (CRC), specifically mentions that whilst Article 28 addresses the access in education, the Article 29 underlines the individual and subjective right to a specific quality education, which includes the educational objectives put forward in Article 29(1), namely the full development of the child’s personality, and the development of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. Other articles also addresses aspects of quality.

In this context, a new vision of quality education is essential and current events around the world have demonstrated that quality is not only about literacy and numeracy. There is a growing consensus at all levels that quality education cannot be limited to increasing the material inputs into the school systems or enhancing school effectiveness, important as these are. Quality education has both to be based on a human rights approach, and to address new areas including, but not limited to, , cultural diversity, multilingualism in education, peace and non-violence, sustainable development, life skills.

A Quality Education based on a human rights approach means that the rights are implemented throughout the whole education system and in all learning environments. It means that the education system is oriented towards human values allowing the realisation of peace, social

8 The Jomtien Declaration is included in the background documents 9 The Dakar Framework of Action is included in the background documents

Annex 2 – page 5

cohesion and the respect for human dignity. This implies reforming national education systems to include fundamental change of education structures, the management of the education system, the teaching/learning practices, the revision and adaptation of learning materials, the adequate preparation of educational personnel, etc. This was also reaffirmed by the CRC: “every child has the right to receive an education of good quality which in turn requires focus on the quality of the learning environment, of teaching and learning processes and materials, and of learning outputs.”

In this renewed vision, human rights education constitutes a core element of quality education.

V. Focus of the meeting

1. A holistic approach to human rights education

In all existing human rights instruments, human rights education is considered an integral part of the right to education, as it constitutes one of the educational objectives in the articles 26 (2) of the UDHR, 13 (1) of the ICESCR and 29 (1) of the CRC.10 The treaty bodies responsible for monitoring these instruments consider that an education system which is inconsistent with the educational objectives set in the articles is in violation. And yet, in the national and international programmes and policies on education, the elements embodied in the above-mentioned articles seem all too often to be either largely missing or present only as a cosmetic afterthought.

Therefore, in today’s world, it is crucial to address HRE through a holistic perspective. This means that HRE should constitute the basis for the democratisation of education systems in the context of national education reforms with a view to integrating the learning and practice of human rights. This includes not only the content of the curriculum but also the educational processes, the pedagogical methods and the environment within which education takes place, including management.

It is important to note that the Integrated Framework of Action on Education for Peace, Human Rights and Democracy, adopted by the General Conference of UNESCO in 1995, already mentions such a “comprehensive and holistic” approach. The Framework clearly affirms that « the strategies and forms of action of education systems will clearly need to be modified, as necessary, in respect both of teaching and of administration ».

Human rights education implies the learning and practice of human rights. A holistic approach to HRE means that human rights are implemented at all levels of the education system, and that they are taught through both, content transmission and experiences. Therefore, HRE should not only be theoretic but should provide opportunities for young people to develop and practice the skills to respect human rights and citizenship through “school life”, i.e. all aspects of school as a living, social environment with its collective rules, interpersonal conflicts, time and opportunities for cooperation, and through opportunities for spontaneous initiatives by the pupils outside the actual teaching activities.

10 These articles are stipulating that “Education shall be directed to the full development of human (child’s) personality and shall strengthen the respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.”

Annex 2 – page 6

A significant challenge in all countries is to make the language and concepts of human rights accessible, relevant and applied to real life situations, especially for younger children. The realisation of such a HRE implies the taking into account of the following considerations when addressing national education reforms:

! The education system should deliver outcomes such as personal and social growth and the appropriate conduct of citizens towards each other;

! The education system should provide opportunities for learners to develop critical thinking and life skills.

In the light of the above, changes should be sought in:

# improving the quality of the curriculum by integrating human values allowing the realisation of peace, social cohesion and the respect for human rights and human dignity. In this framework, a more participatory process of curriculum development is essential.

# changing traditional teaching methods in order to become participatory and democratic.

# teacher training should be consistent with the educational objectives. # democratising the internal structure of the school and its management. In this context, the

participation of children in school life, the creation of school communities and student councils, peer education and peer counselling, and the involvement of children in school disciplinary proceedings should be promoted as part of the process of learning and experiencing the realization of rights.

# increasing opportunities for parents and teachers to take decisions on school issues.

# creating mechanisms to foster cooperation and mutual appreciation among all members of the school community and thus promote better relations between teachers and pupils.

# ensuring constructive communication and appreciation of diversity practiced.

# providing the opportunity to practice through real life ‘issues’ and projects and therefore, it is very important to link the school with the local community and the promotion of extracurricular activities.

Thus, the debate of the meeting should also focus on the following issues:

– how UNESCO, its Member States and its partners will implement more effectively all these elements of HRE mentioned in the paragraph above.

– how to promote and integrate this holistic perspective in UNESCO’s strategy and activities. – how to integrate such a holistic conception of Human Rights Education into the reforms of the

national education systems.

2. Questions for the discussion

In the light of the above and keeping in mind the objectives and the purpose of the meeting, the participants are invited to formulate, based on their experiences, suggestions and recommendations for concrete action towards the development of the UNESCO Strategy. The following general questions are provided for guidance and stimulation of the discussions:

– What should be the core content of the UNESCO Human Rights Education Strategy?

– What are UNESCO’s “upstream” and “downstream” roles?

– What are the key areas to maximise the impact of UNESCO’s actions in HRE?

Annex 2 – page 7

– What strategies should be developed by UNESCO to promote HRE at international, regional and national levels?

– What type of activities should be developed by UNESCO to carry out Human Rights Education at the international, regional and national levels in order to improve implementation of the operational projects?

– How can UNESCO develop a system of monitoring and evaluation of HRE programmes and projects?

– What type of partnerships should UNESCO develop in order to undertake meaningful actions in the field?

– How UNESCO can more effectively involve its National Commissions and its networks (e.g. Associated Schools Project Network, UNESCO Chairs, UNESCO Clubs, etc.) in the implementation of HRE

– What could UNESCO do to promote and prioritise HRE in States’ agendas and their national educational reforms?

– How can UNESCO more effectively monitor the implementation of the different provisions included in international and regional human rights instruments?

VI. Technical details of the meeting

A. Methodology of the meeting

• The meeting is convening experts from different regions of the world and from different backgrounds. They are invited to provide inputs, based on their experience, to make recommendations and to suggest concrete actions, in which UNESCO could bring an added value in the implementation of Human Rights Education.

• The meeting will be recorded in order to retain the content of the debate as a useful resource to draft the strategy and the position paper.

B. Date and venue

Date: Thursday 30 and Friday 31 January 2003

Venue: UNESCO, Room VI, 7 place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP, France

Interpretation: English / French

C. Background documents

These documents include provisions of instruments related to HRE and constitute the basis for any action to be undertaken or any strategy to be elaborated. Therefore, it is important for them to be considered together with the working document during the discussions.

UNESCO documents – UNESCO Medium-term Strategy - 31 C/4, paras 67-72.

– The Declaration and Integrated Framework of Action on Education for Peace, Human Rights and Democracy adopted by the General Conference in 1995;

Annex 2 – page 8

– Resolution 30 C/16;

– 165 EX / 10 et 165 EX / Decision 3.4.1 – October 2002 - Elements for an overall UNESCO Strategy on Human Rights;

– Report by the Executive Board’s temporary group on human rights education, 156 EX/43, 17 May 1999;

– Chronology on decisions and resolutions adopted by UNESCO; evolution of positions leading to the Human Rights Education Strategy of UNESCO;

– Briefing on UNESCO’s action on Human Rights Education.

– Evaluation of UNESCO Human Rights Publications and a Tentative Assessment of the Impact of the Regional Conferences on Human Rights Education, September 2002.

– Dakar Framework of Action on Education for All, April 2000

– Jomtien Declaration on Education for All, 1990

UN documents – The Plan of Action of the United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004);

– The Recommendations of the mid-term evaluation of the UN Decade for Human Rights Education;

– Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights;

– Article 13 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights;

– Articles 28 and 29 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child;

– General Comment 1 of the Committee on the Rights of the Child on the aims of education (Art.29).