Right to Education

How It’s Being Denied to Children

Even in the Richest Country in the World

Everyone Has The Right To Education

Everyone

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

• “Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free…”

-Section 1, Article 26

• “Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.”

-Section 2, Article 26

Convention on the Rights of the Child

• Article 28 requires nations to recognize the child’s rights to education, and to make education as accessible as possible to all children.

• Article 29 states that education needs to develop the child’s personality and mental welfare, and prepare them to be responsible adults in a free society.

Article 28, CRC1. States Parties recognize the right of the child to education, and with a view to achieving this right

progressively and on the basis of equal opportunity, they shall, in particular:

(a) Make primary education compulsory and available free to all;

(b) Encourage the development of different forms of secondary education, including general and

vocational education, make them available and accessible to every child, and take appropriate

measures such as the introduction of free education and offering financial assistance in case of

need

(c) Make higher education accessible to all on the basis of capacity by every appropriate means;

(d) Make educational and vocational information and guidance available and accessible to all

children;

(e) Take measures to encourage regular attendance at schools and the reduction of drop-out rates.

2. States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that school discipline is administered in

a manner consistent with the child's human dignity and in conformity with the present Convention.

3. States Parties shall promote and encourage international cooperation in matters relating to

education, in particular with a view to contributing to the elimination of ignorance and illiteracy

throughout the world and facilitating access to scientific and technical knowledge and modern

teaching methods. In this regard, particular account shall be taken of the needs of developing

countries.

Article 28, CRC1. States Parties agree that the education of the child shall be directed to:

(a) The development of the child's personality, talents and mental and physical abilities to their fullest potential;

(b) The development of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and for the principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations;

(c) The development of respect for the child's parents, his or her own cultural identity, language and values, for the national values of the country in which the child is living, the country from which he or she may originate, and for civilizations different from his or her own;

(d) The preparation of the child for responsible life in a free society, in the spirit of understanding, peace, tolerance, equality of sexes, and friendship among all peoples, ethnic, national and religious groups and persons of indigenous origin;

(e) The development of respect for the natural environment.

2. No part of the present article or article 28 shall be construed so as to interfere with the liberty of individuals and bodies to establish and direct educational institutions, subject always to the observance of the principle set forth in paragraph 1 of the present article and to the requirements that the education given in such institutions shall conform to such minimum standards as may be laid down by the State.

Education is supposed to be free

But It Isn’t

In California, Students are being asked to pay for:

• Novels assigned for literature classes.

• Vocabulary workbooks and even some textbooks.

• Gym uniforms that students are required to wear for mandated physical education classes.

• Student identification cards that are required by the schools.

• Lab fees for science classes.

• Art supplies for art classes.

What They’re Not Telling You

• If you can’t afford supplies, they have to provide the supplies for you

• Even if parents are aware of this, schools often delay delivery on purpose so students start out the school year behind their classmates, and are forced to pay for these “provided” supplies.

Pali High isn’t all that free, either

Bussing is no longer provided for free for all students

Some students have to pay$800.00

just to get to school.

How does California rank compared to other states?

• #44 in K-12 spending per student – $2,546 less per student than the rest of the US.

• #50 in students per teacher – 21.3 students per teacher in 2009-10 – 50% more than the US average.

• #46 in students per administrator – 358 students per administrator in 2007-08 – 216 in the US.

• #49 in students per guidance counselor – 809 students per counselor in 2007-08 – the US averaged 440.

• #50 in students per librarian – 5,038 students per librarian in 2007-08 – the US averaged 809 students.

• #41 in graduation rate (62.7%) – LAUSD was 22% below CA average (40.6%), 28% below US average.

What it Means

• California is in the bottom fifth of all these standards

• It ranks last in the ratios of students to both teachers and librarians– And second-to-last in students per counselor– And fourth-to-last in students per administrator

• We also have a low graduation rate of less than 63%– And the LAUSD scored 22% lower than that

• Last year, the LAUSD laid-off 3,000 of its teachers

Markham Middle School

All the worst of budget cuts

All In One School

Students and Teachers

• Recently had to lay off half its teaching staff, 35 teachers

• They were replaced with substitutes who were being paid $173 per day– Which is as much as probationary teachers, but with

no benefits for the subs, and with students’ education taking the brunt of the effects

– Several subs gave all students a C grade because they didn't give enough schoolwork to grade adequately

• 34 teachers, including 10 long-term subs, got pink slips this year

The School

• Before Tim Sullivan became principle, 142 students were arrested around the 1,500-pupil campus– Pali High has over 2,800 students – almost double

their population

• Sullivan had to meet with local gang members to try and lower violence around the school

• Their curriculum has been stripped to the basics – they have no electives

Effects of the Tenure System

• Younger, Newer teachers are eager to work in troubled schools like Markham

• But under the tenure system, your job is only secured after you have been teaching for several years

• That means new teachers who are willing to help despite the trouble in the school are disproportionately fired

– Leaving only the older teachers who are not as eager or capable to enter such troubled schools as Markham

• “Schwarzenegger himself held up Markham as an example of how the teacher tenure system backfires because layoffs disproportionately strike younger teachers”

On the other side of the city…

…is the school that has a lot of money.

Wonderland Avenue Elementary School

The school that has a lot of money, they have:

• full-time art, music and gym teachers

• teaching assistants for each teacher

• elaborate playgrounds

• cutting-edge equipment in classrooms

• field trips

• professional development for teachers

But where do they get the money from?

• The PTA independently raises $350,000 per year in fundraisers

• Parents asked to donate $700 per child…

–…minimum

• Parents often donate significant amount of supplies to the school, and volunteer to help

• The school only has 500 students

In other words, the parents are paying for the education.

You know, the one that’s supposed to be free?

How It’s Affecting Educationin the

LAUSD

Student Performance on Assessment Tests

Math

• Students performing atgrade level: 13%

• Students performing belowgrade level: 49%

English

• Students performing atgrade level: 33%

• Students performing belowgrade level: 32%

Progress and Graduation

• Graduates passing A-G courses with a “C” or better: 29%

• Students who took the SAT or ACT by 12th

grade: 38%

– Students who scored at least a 1400 on the SAT or 19 on the ACT: 34%

Tent Activities and Outfitting Ideas

• Create a sample classroom using materials (notebooks, pencils, desk, chalkboard) and cut a portion out to show a lack of resources

• On a chalkboard write, “Your teacher today is Ms…, tomorrow is Mr…, the next day is…”

• Write the question on a blackboard, “What does the right to education mean.”

• Post school reports showing the disparity between teacher-student ratios, libraries, spending, etc.