The Right To Education

The right to education ensures access to quality schools and to an education that is directed towards the full development of the human personality.  NESRI uses six priority human rights principles in our work that are fundamental to guaranteeing the right to education and are of particular relevance to education reform efforts in the United States:

• Individual Rights: Every individual child must have equal access to a quality education adapted to meet his or her needs.
• Aims of education: The aims of education must be directed toward the development of each child’s personality and full potential, preparing children to participate in society and to do work that is rewarding and reasonably remunerative, and to continue learning throughout life.
• Dignity: Schools must respect the inherent dignity of every child creating an environment of respect and tolerance in the classroom, preventing practices and disciplinary policies that cause harm or humiliation to children, and promoting self-confidence and self-expression.
• Equity: There must be equitable distribution of resources in education across communities according to need.
• Non-Discrimination: The government must ensure that the human right to education “will be exercised without discrimination of any kind as to race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.”
• Participation: Students, parents and communities have the right to participate in decisions that affect their schools and the right to education.

See NESRI fact sheets on the Right to Education.

The Right to Education is protected in:

Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Articles 13 & 14 of the International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights
Articles 28,29 & 40 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child
Article 5 of Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination
Articles 10 & 14 of Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women
Article 12 of American Declaration on the Rights and Duties of Man

In addition, there are United Nations committees made up of experts that oversee the implementation of particular human rights treaties (these committees are known as treaty bodies). These committees oversee the treaties by, among other things, receiving government reports on the implementation of the treaties, making comments to the government reports, and issuing general comments about the treaties or specific right contained therein.

Both the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the Committee on the Rights of the Child have issued general comments on education.

The United Nations Committee on Economic Social and Cultural Rights, see general comment 13

The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, see general comment 1

There are also United Nations Special Rapporteurs who are appointed to investigate human rights issues in countries around the world.  In October 2001, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education made a country visit to the United States and issued a report to the Human Rights Commission about education in the US.

• Report of the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education, Mission to the United States of America, September 24 – October 10, 2001

• The Special Rapporteur came to New York City to visit public schools and hear testimony from advocates and parents.  Following her visit she wrote this report: From the Outside Looking In: Changing New York City’s Education Through the Human Rights Approach, Contribution by Professor Katarina Tomasevski, Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education (former), 15 April 2002.