Topic – Children Rights in Schools. A Right’s-based Approach for Communal Action
Securing high quality of life for children is a multifaceted phenomenon, challenging and requires synergies. According to UNICEF (1989) there are two notions that characterize children; youth and vulnerability.
Youth; refers to the period for children to be in school and at play, to grow strong and confident with the love and encouragement of their family and an extended community of caring adults.Vulnerability; implies the necessity to protect children. It means to grant a particular assistance to them and to give a protection adapted to their age and to their degree of maturity.
Youth and vulnerabilityare paramountin order to understand the necessity of community in terms of securing children’s rights, in general, and more specifically in promoting a high quality of life for all children.
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) (1989) played a crucial role in promoting a better quality of life for children globally, declaring that children, at a minimum, have the rights and freedoms that all human beings have i.e. adequate nutrition, health care, education as well as freedom from abuse, violence, and exploitation. Nevertheless, according to UNICEF “still not every child gets to enjoy a full childhood. Still, too many childhoods are cut short. It is up to our generation to demand that leaders from government, business and communities fulfil their commitments and take action for child rights now, once and for all. They must commit to making sure every child, has every right.”
Check here this video to learn more about the UNCRC.
Schools are living systems that depend on various teams to work effectively (e.g. teachers, principals, parents, etc.) and should play an important role on securing children’s rights and promoting a better quality of life for them. A right’s-based approach for CQL is closely connected with the collective society; the community. Each member of this community acts without discrimination, provides protection and assistance to those of its members that are the most vulnerable.
