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The 14th Amendment Protects the Right to a Public Education

Over the years, the 14th Amendment of the United States Constitution has had an enormous impact on protecting individual rights in public elementary and secondary education. This has occurred through the United States Supreme Court’s interpretation of the Equal Protection Clause, the Due Process Clause, and the incorporation of other rights (like freedom of speech) to the states through the 14th Amendment.

Equal Protection Clause

The Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment provides that a state may not “deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” It applies to public elementary and secondary schools, as they are considered to be state actors. In 1954, the Supreme Court interpreted the Equal Protection Clause’s requirements in  Brown v. Board of Education . In perhaps one of the most famous and important cases issued by the Court, it stated:

We conclude that in the field of public education the doctrine of "separate but equal" has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal. Therefore, we hold that the plaintiffs…are, by reason of the segregation complained of, deprived of the equal protection of the laws guaranteed by the 14th Amendment.

That language, and the Court’s decision, had a dramatic impact on public education. Schools were required to end the discriminatory practice of segregating students based on race. While segregation was more prevalent in some states than in others, all public schools in all states that had segregated students needed to desegregate, or face claims that they were in violation of the 14th Amendment. What followed was roughly 50 years of desegregation efforts in public schools, and numerous court decisions regarding the constitutionality of those desegregation efforts.

Over time, the focus evolved from ending and remedying the vestiges of discriminatory practices to integration efforts that sought to promote the diversity of the student population in public schools. In some instances, these integration efforts were voluntary, meaning they were done by schools that had not segregated students in the past. These integration efforts continue to this day, and the predominant legal issues revolve around the extent to which race can be used as a factor in the assignment of students to certain schools in order to diversify the student body.

The language, and the logic, of the  Brown v. Board  decision also found its way into other types of Equal Protection claims. For example, in the mid-1970s, students with disabilities challenged their exclusion from public school on equal protection grounds. Two very influential lower court decisions,  PARC v Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , and  Mills v. Board of Education of the District of Columbia , relied on  Brown v. Board  and determined that students with disabilities could not be excluded from public school because of their disabilities.

Those court decisions led to a federal statute that imposed similar requirements on all public schools that accepted certain federal funds. That law turned into the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which today applies to all public schools. The law requires public schools to provide all students with disabilities with a  Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) . It also prohibits schools from expelling or suspending students with disabilities for longer than 10 days, when the student’s actions are caused by their disability.

Due Process Clause

Due process is another area of the 14th Amendment that has had a dramatic impact on individual rights in public education. The Due Process Clause says that states may not “deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.” The Supreme Court has interpreted this clause to have substantive and procedural protections. With substantive due process, the 14th Amendment protects a parent’s right to direct the educational upbringing of their child. Because of this right, the Supreme Court ruled that a state statute that prohibited the teaching of foreign language, and a state statute that required all students to attend public schools, as opposed to private schools, violated the 14th Amendment. See  Meyer v. Nebraska  and  Pierce v. Society of Sisters . The Court also ruled that a state statute that required Amish children to attend school past the eighth grade violated the substantive due process rights, and the religious freedom rights, of Amish parents to direct the educational and religious upbringing of their children. See  Wisconsin v. Yoder .

As a result of these substantive due process protections, all states currently have exceptions in their state compulsory attendance statutes that require students of certain ages to attend school. The exceptions allow for attendance at private schools, religious schools, and homeschool to meet the compulsory attendance requirements.

The procedural due process protections of the 14th Amendment have also played an important role in public education, particularly in the areas of student discipline and teacher employment. With student discipline, the Supreme Court has ruled that students have a “legitimate entitlement to a public education as a property right.” See  Goss v. Lopez . That right may not be taken away without first providing due process protections, which are generally notice of what the student is accused of doing, and the opportunity to be heard before the student is disciplined.

The required amount of notice and opportunity to be heard increases as the severity of the discipline increases. With minor disciplinary actions, an informal discussion with the principal may be sufficient to meet the requirements. For more severe discipline, such as expulsion, a more detailed hearing is generally required to give the student a chance to present evidence, and to cross-examine witnesses. As a result of these constitutional due process protections, all states have enacted statutes and regulations that provide due process protections for students during the discipline process.

A similar due process right applies to tenured teachers at public elementary and secondary schools. Once a teacher receives tenured status, they have a property interest in their continued employment, and must be provided with notice and a hearing before it may be taken away from them. See  Perry v. Sindermann .

Incorporation

The third area where the 14th Amendment has impacted public schools is in the application of other constitutional rights to the states through the 14th Amendment, via a concept known as  incorporation . Perhaps the biggest impact here has been the First Amendment’s right to free speech, although other protections like freedom of religion have also made their mark on public education.

In the area of free speech, the Supreme Court has said that students and teachers do not “shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate.” See  Tinker v. Des Moines . While courts do give some deference to school administrators in making decisions about whether to prohibit certain student speech, the First Amendment requires schools to justify their decisions when they infringe on free speech rights. The level of justification required depends on the nature of the speech, and the nature of the restriction.

For example, in  Tinker v. Des Moines , students were protesting the Vietnam War by wearing armbands, and the school disciplined the students for doing so. The Supreme Court ruled that the discipline violated the First Amendment, because the school could not show that the speech could reasonably be expected to cause a substantial disruption with school activities or the rights of others. By contrast, in  Morse v. Frederick , the Supreme Court deferred to a school administrator’s judgment that a sign that said “Bong Hits 4 Jesus” promoted drug use, and upheld the discipline of the students that displayed the sign at a school event.

These are just a few examples of the many ways that the 14th Amendment impacts individual rights in public education. Many of these issues arise on a daily basis in public schools, and the 14th Amendment provides some constitutional protections of individual rights that schools must take into account when addressing them.

Scott F. Johnson

Scott F. Johnson is a Professor of Law at Purdue Global Law School (formerly Concord Law School), where he teaches Education Law and Special Education Law, among other topics. He has written a number of books and articles in the education law area. Professor Johnson’s law practice included education and special education cases, and he currently serves as a special education hearing officer for a state agency.

The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not represent the view of Purdue Global Law School.

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5 Must-Read Essays on the Right to Education

When the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, Article 26 asserted that all people have the right to education. That right appears in other documents such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) and in treaties about women and girls, refugees, migrants, and others. Many constitutions around the world also list education as a right. However, the right to education isn’t always upheld. To understand more about education as a human right, and where and why it’s often not a reality, here are five must-read essays:

“ Girls Can Change The World – But We Have To Invest In Them First ” – Malala Yousafzai

Writing for Time Magazine in 2018, Malala Yousafzai’s essay details the importance of educating girls. It’s short, but like all of Malala’s writing, it’s impactful. She opens with the sobering statistic that 130 million girls are not in school. Despite promises at the United Nations to guarantee that every girl will get 12 years of education by 2030, donor countries either halted or decreased their giving for education. Malala expresses her discouragement, but remains hopeful, drawing attention to the Malala Fund and impact of local activists and educators.

Do you want to pursue a career in human rights?

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The youngest Nobel Prize laureate, Malala is a Pakistani human rights activist, with a special focus on female education. In 2012, the Taliban attempted to assassinate her since she was already a well-known activist, but she survived. The attack and recovery made her a household name, and she won the Nobel Prize two years later. She is a writer and current student at Oxford University.

“ Is Education a Fundamental Right? ” – Jill Lepore

A relatively-unknown Supreme Court Case from 1982, Plyler v. Doe addressed questions about education, immigration, and if schooling is a human right. In her essay, Jill Lepore writes that this case could become much better known as various lawsuits filed on behalf of immigrant children enter the court system. These are the children who are separated from their parents at the border and deprived of education.  Using Plyler v. Doe as a guide along with the other cases both past and present, Lepore explores the issue of education as a fundamental right in the United States.

This essay appeared in the print edition of The New Yorker in September 2018 under the headline “Back to the Blackboard.” Jill Lepore is a professor of history at Harvard University and a staff writer for the New Yorker. Publications include the book These Truths: A History of the United States and This America: The Case for the Nation.

“ How to Improve Access to Education Around the World ” – Jan Lee

In this piece on the Triple Pundit platform, Lee takes a look at how Pearson, an education publishing and assessment service company based in the UK, is making an impact on education access around the world. In the United States, Pearson works on finding solutions for the social and economic problems that lead to low high-school graduation rates. Pearson also invests in low-cost private education around the world. The essay highlights how access to education can be improved through new educational technology for students with disabilities and outreach to underserved communities. Since this article was sponsored by Pearson, it doesn’t look at what other companies or organizations are doing, but it provides a good model for the kinds of actions that can help.

Jan Lee is an award-winning editorial writer and former news editor, whose work can be found Triple Pundit, JustMeans, and her blog The Multicultural Jew. On Triple Pundit, she’s written stories on a variety of topics, such as Leadership & Transparency, Data & Technology, and Energy & Environment.

“ Higher Education Is A Human Right ” – Heidi Gilchrist

It’s established that primary education is a human right, but what about higher education? In her essay, Heidi Gilchrist argues that it is. Looking specifically at the United States, her reason is that in order to access the American dream- which she calls the “ideal it [the country] was founded on” – people need higher education. As global society starts to depend more on technology and other complex systems, more and more jobs will require advanced degrees. In order to truly succeed and achieve their dreams, people will need higher education. Gilchrist offers another perspective on the issue, as well, writing that countries need people with advanced degrees to protect national security. Having higher education remain a luxury means only the wealthy can access it, and that harms a society in every regard.

Heidi Gilchrist is a Lecturer-in-Law at Columbia Law School and an Assistant Professor of Legal Writing at Brooklyn Law. In her previous career, she served as a national security analyst in the federal government, and as a laison to the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force in New York City. She writes on national security and how it converges with human rights law and civil rights.

“ Public schools for private gain: The declining American commitment to serving the public good ” – David F. Larabee

In an essay that is both a history lesson and critical look at the pursuit of education as a “private benefit,” Larabee argues that this new view of schooling is dangerous. While in the past, school had been seen as a community where students of all backgrounds and finances mingle and receive opportunities, it’s morphing into just another capitalist arena. Wealthy parents are choosing private schools and focusing their resources there, while public schools and students struggle. School is becoming “a means of private advancement,” Larabee says, instead of a source of public good. This has serious long-term consequences.

David Larabee is a Lee L. Jacks Professor of Education, emeritus, at the Standard University Graduate School of Education. He describes himself as a “sociologically oriented historian of education.” He is also an author, most recently of 2017’s A Perfect Mess: The Unlikely Ascendancy of American Higher Education.

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Politics K-12 kept watch on education policy and politics in the nation’s capital and in the states. This blog is no longer being updated, but you can continue to explore these issues on edweek.org by visiting our related topic pages: Federal , States .

Should There Be a Federal Right to Education?

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The federal government ceded much of its control over education policy to states and local school districts in 2015 when President Barack Obama signed into law the bipartisan Every Student Succeeds Act.

But some scholars and advocates think that recent NAEP and international test scores showing stagnant outcomes and achievement gaps for U.S. students amid rising costs for K-12 public education signal that the federal government should aggressively intervene by setting new standards and holding school administrators’ feet to the fire when they fail to meet them.

In her new book, A Federal Right to Education: Fundamental Questions for Our Democracy , Kimberly Jenkins Robinson, a law professor at the University of Virginia, collected thoughts from legal and education law scholars about the challenging questions that a federal right to education would bring about. Why should the federal government guarantee all children such a right? What should a federal right to education guarantee? Why are state protections to a right to education inadequate?

Two lawsuits that argue for a federal right to an education are expected to land on the Supreme Court’s dockets in the coming years. A federal lawsuit out of Detroit argues students’ reading scores are so abysmal that graduates of the state-run schools are ill-prepared to vote. A similar lawsuit out of Providence, R.I., coursing its way through federal courts makes a similar argument about that district’s civic education standards. But local and state officials have long complained that decisions about education policy eminating from Washington are too far removed from the classroom.

Robinson began her legal career litigating school finance and constitutional law cases and has written extensively ( including for Education Week ) about the history of the legal right to an education and education federalism. EdWeek chatted with Robinson about her work advocating for a federal right to an “excellent” education. Here is an edited transcript of that discussion.

What role should the federal government have in addressing educational inequities?

Many want to limit the federal role in education because of the shortcomings of the No Child Left Behind Act. They argue that, “we let the federal government do what they want, and they made quite a mess of things.”

There are two answers to that: First, NCLB accomplished quite a bit ... such as the disaggregation of achievement data to show the achievement gap. That was a significant and important shift in our understanding of education in our nation. And that achievement will be something that will be enduring in federal law. We knew from NAEP data and other data that we had a national achievement gap, but now you’re forced to look at it school by school.

Second, part of what was missing in NCLB was a focus on the opportunity gap that drives the achievement gap. We need to examine how we got here and pay attention to the opportunity gap that we never fixed. We never fixed it with desegregation. And so, we’re still living with that legacy, not to mention the fact that we are increasing racial isolation in schools.

But then on top of that, we also need to make sure that we are documenting, measuring, and acting on the opportunity gap. Once you measure the opportunity gap, you then need to close it by giving kids the resources they need. I believe that the federal government should create a set of incentives, and then eventually legislation that requires states and districts to close opportunity gaps.

One of the problems with No Child Left Behind was that it tried to do everything all at once. We increased federal involvement in education, we sought to get rid of the “soft bigotry of low expectations , ” and then mandated that schools fix the achievement gap. But what my work proposes is a far more incremental approach, where we first create incentives for states to do the right thing, which is basically close the opportunity gap, which will lead to closing a large part of the achievement gap. Then once we have a model in place for states and the language that we would need for federal legislation to do this, then you start attaching Title I dollars to these new federal conditions.

The current provisions in Title I that require some attention to the gap are completely eviscerated. Those provisions that say you must have comparable resources—everyone knows the scholarship shows that they are not enforced. You first need incentives and then conditions on the billions of dollars that we spend on education to come with conditions that states and districts are closing their opportunity gaps. And until the federal government does that, it’s enabling states to maintain the opportunity gap because we’re not requiring you to change it. So, the federal government is part of the problem until it becomes part of the solution.

It also is important to understand that local control is not an end of itself. Local control is intended to achieve experimentation that leads to excellence. And if you can’t show that your local control is getting you there, then you don’t need to have it. Either get to excellence, or let someone else be the leader who can do it. These are our kids’ futures we’re talking about. These are not small matters.

What was flawed about San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez [the U.S. Supreme Court case that ruled a school district’s funding mechanism was not a violation of the 14th ammendment Equal Protection clause]? What openings did it leave lawyers?

Rodriguez decided that ... there isn’t a federal right to education, but left the door open for future litigants to argue that the education being provided to children wasn’t adequate to prepare them to exercise their rights to free speech and to vote.

Brown v. Board of Education [ which ruled racially segregated schools illegal] and Plyer v. Doe [which required states to provide an education to children regardless of their immigration status] undocumented immigrant children] made clear that separating education is unlawful and intentionally excluding students is not permissible. But what the court lost is the heart and spirit of Brown because the court moved toward a very heightened focus on returning powers to local control, just as districts were finally starting to require effective desegregation. Milliken v. Bradley [which ruled unconstitutional an effort by Detroit and its suburbs to integrate its school systems] cemented the urban-suburban divide, particularly in the North and the West.

Is school funding fair?

We know children in high-poverty schools need more funds than other students to compete effectively with their more-affluent peers. Many states fail to provide adequate and equitable funding. We oftentimes treat every child the same, but the challenge is that not every kid needs the same amount of resources. For low-income communities, there are is a constellation of things that poverty brings into the classroom. By giving the same funding, we’re clearly disadvantaging those children. Even more so when we give them less funding, and that’s inexcusable. This continues year after year, generation after generation, and then there’s a cumulative adverse impact on test scores and outcomes.

When it comes to the history of America’s public school system, what inspires you? What disturbs you? What inspires me is where we’ve come from. We had slavery, and then Jim Crow. And there was a time when I would not be teaching at the University of Virginia School of Law. I wouldn’t have even been let in the front door.

Unfortunately, however, Jim Crow’s reach remains strong. You know, we still have love letters to Jim Crow, all around our nation with the statues that honor civil war “heroes.” We still have a long, close relationship with Jim Crow that is impacting our society today. And that is one thing that our nation has never recognized. The United States invested heavily in Jim Crow, at the federal, state and local level. However, the dismantling of Jim Crow received much more of a cursory effort, was much more limited in scope, was much shorter, and we invested less. Because of that, Jim Crow continues and lives on and continues to affect things due to our failure to fully dismantle this very elaborate system we put in place.

We still use this mantra of local control, as though that should be one of the premier guideposts of education when it is merely intended to be a means to an end. Local control that leads to excellence—it’s wonderful. But local control that leads to inadequate, inequitable, and substandard educational opportunities is not an American value.

The Supreme Court is often a champion of local control. But what it loses sight of is that local control in and of itself is not the goal. The goal is having well-educated and effective citizens and children who are prepared to engage in our economy. We need a far greater partnership between the federal and state government. We need to have a partnership rather than an approach in which the states are in control and the feds are on the sidelines. That’s not an effective partnership.

So, what you keep referring to is that the feds have an incentive to assure equity between states, between districts, and between schools. What is the incentive here? Why should the feds care about the quality of education for kids?

The federal government should care about it for several reasons. One, it’s costing us a lot of money to have inequitable and inadequate schools. There’s quite a bit of social science data showing that inadequate schools cost us billions in health-care costs, social welfare programs, and in the criminal justice system. It costs us in our tax revenues, when children aren’t reaching their full potential and aren’t earning as much as they could. It is very well established in social science research that the nation is paying for its lack of investment and attention to these issues.

You’re going to pay less now, or pay more later. If you reduce our academic disparities, you would get greater civic engagement and fewer instances of criminal justice involvement. You also could reduce the ancillary costs of criminal justice to the victims and the families and communities that are affected.

I’m recommending actually a more cost-effective way to pay for it, which is investing in education at the outset. And there are some things that can’t be quantified. What is the cost of not having an educated citizenry?

Are you advocating that a federal right to education be enacted legislatively or through the courts?

Just like the civil rights movement took a multifaceted approach, I think we should be pushing every possible avenue for the recognition of a federal right to education. There are litigators who are in federal court now who are seeking to get the right recognized. But the litigation was begun thinking that there would be a court appointed by Hillary Clinton rather than Donald Trump.

Even if the Supreme Court rejects a case arguing that there is a constitutionally protected right to education, Congress certainly still can and should enact legislation that recognizes one. All of those avenues should be pursued. And not just [through the courts and Congress] but also a constitutional amendment that recognizes the right to an education.

Ultimately, in my work, I focused on a congressional right to education in part because you can get the public buy in that you don’t have when the court announces something. A congressional right allows Congress to work out over time with the states what the scope and nature of the right should be. But undoubtedly, the right should guarantee an excellent education for each child.

Finally, I’m wondering if you have any thoughts about the presidential candidates debating education funding. Are you skeptical? Or do you think this is good that presidential candidates are engaging in debate about the federal government and education?

Yes, I think this is a very positive development that the Democratic candidates are talking about engaging the federal government in education, more in part because the president has a unique bully pulpit to push a progressive education agenda. He or she can send the message to the nation over and over and over again that the situation we have is intolerable, and we must do something about it. And both sides of the political aisle have noted that education is an important civil rights issue.

What I really want to see is action, not just talk. I think part of that needs to be preceded by a national conversation about the opportunity gap. And so, to the extent that the candidates are helping to raise attention to education disparities, I think that’s beneficial. States have an important role to play in education to ensure excellent schools, and the federal government can partner along with states to help them achieve that. The great thing about the executive branch is there’s a lot it can do even without Congress acting. The president can call attention to this issue, have a national commission study this issue and make recommendations. That was done under President Obama. But those recommendations never received the adequate attention they deserved.

But at this point, it’s so easy on the campaign trail to talk. It’s much harder to actually take action and do something.

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Education is not a privilege, it’s a legal right

• 5 November 2018 (updated on: 28 July 2022 )
• By: Stefania Giannini

By Stefania Giannini, Assistant Director General for Education, UNESCO

Education is like a seed. And for this empowering right to flourish and grow, it must have the best conditions. Education must not only be accessible to all, it must be of the highest quality. And it is not a privilege to be bestowed by a government, it is a legal right for everyone – children, youth and adults.

This looks good on paper yet is far from being a reality for millions around the world. Today less than 1 in 5 countries legally guarantee 12 years of free and compulsory education.

As we mark the 70th year of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, there are still 262 million children out of school, and more than 750 million youth and adults unable to read and write. This is unacceptable and countries must ensure that the millions of people left behind have access to the powerful seed of education they are entitled to.

That is why UNESCO has launched a new #RightToEducation digital campaign to focus global attention on this crucial issue and make the right to education a priority everywhere.

There are many things blocking the road – legal, economic, social and cultural barriers. We must remove them all and ensure that countries that have signed up to international conventions and agreements are putting them into practice. They must be held accountable.

The 2017/8 Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report showed the importance of accountability in addressing persistent education problems, which starts with governments, as primary duty bearers of the right to education. It stressed the fact that citizens who know about their rights may be able to challenge violations made by governments in court, but found that this is possible only in 55% of countries.

What is happening in your country?

Now you know that education is a human right protected by law and guaranteed to all by the State, how is your country advancing this right? You can check by using UNESCO’s global Observatory which provides valuable data of the right to education in 195 Member States. And you can engage in making education a reality for everyone.

Join UNESCO’s campaign and speak up for the voiceless.

Everyone can make a difference – students, parents, teachers, journalists, policy-makers, lawyers and more – by changing mindsets, sharing powerful messages, influencing decision-making, supporting peers and standing up for the rights of others when it comes to education.

Simple everyday actions can have a big impact. Here are some ideas on how to get involved. Use the power of your social networks to spread the word. Think of creative ways to advance the right to education in your school and community. Above all, make sure that the seed continues to grow and that its fruits are available to everyone, everywhere.

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11 comments.

It is a relevant and well-documented call. Unfortunately, in most countries, political and economic reasons support educational policies aimed at perpetuating the status quo and inequality. The universalization of high quality education as a right for all (not an obligation, only an opportunity), including all levels from pre-school to postgraduate, should be a global challenge led by organizations such as Unesco.

In America, even though we avoid this question, Education is not a constitutional right. There are many Conservatives who believe it is an earned privilege, which is why they have been emphasizing home schooling, vouchers, charter schools et al—to create an educational system for students who are sufficiently advantaged or who have earned admittance to programs by their demonstrated ability. This leaves the most economically and socially disadvantaged students in dire educational situations—failing situations—and their are Republican state legislators in our country who believe we should stop “wasting taxpayer dollars” on these failing schools. American Conservatives, the vast majority of whom claim to be Christians, will continue to turn their backs on the poor, and there is nothing to stop them legally. In the USA, education is NOT a legal right.

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Itis not enough to put these rights in delaratinos orlaws,put more important than that is to have the powerful will and determination to put it inpractice and make it a-daily-felt realty.

I completely agree with you, education is not a privilege, but a legal right. It’s very important that everyone can get it, as this is the key to a successful future. In our time in the field of education, there are many changes and innovations to make the educational process easier and more effective. There are many applications for learning languages ​​and other subjects, as well as services that make reviews of student assistance companies, like this one https://pickthewriter.com/ All this to make children and students feel safe and supported in the educational process.

Perfect..”Education is not a privilege, it’s a legal rights”. But many peoples or counties makes education is a profitable business and they are running or ruling in this sector.

I support that education is our passport cause tomorrow Wait’s for no man..

Our ancestors didn’t have education. They were hunter gatherers in Africa and sure they told legends and stories but why do I have to go somewhere I don’t want to be when I could be doing better things.

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Absolutely agree. I would like to share that Indonesia commits to provide access to education for all citizens, including those who live in remote places and islands. In the past, we may hear ‘students go to schools/colleges’, but now it becomes the schools/colleges go to student houses” through distance learning system.

Education is not a privilege, it’s a legal right!!! Absolutely agree.

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The right to education

Introducing articles 28 and 29.

Home > The Rights Respecting Schools Award > The Right to Education

The Right to an Education is one of the most important principles in becoming a Rights Respecting School.

Education is a key social and cultural right and plays an important role in reducing poverty and child labour. Furthermore, education promotes democracy, peace, tolerance, development and economic growth. There are a number of articles in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child  that focus on a child’s right to education.

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

Articles 28 and 29 focus on a child’s right to an education and on the quality and content of education.  Article 28 says that “State Parties recognise the right of children to education” and “should take all appropriate measures to ensure that school discipline is administered in a manner consistent with the child’s human dignity.” Article 29 focuses on the aims of education and says that governments agree that “the education of the child shall be directed to:

• The development of the child’s personality, talents and mental and physical abilities to their fullest potential.
• The development of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms and the principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations.
• 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 civilisations different from his or her own.
• 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.
• The development of respect for the natural environment.

The 1990 World Declaration on Education for All  described education as consisting of essential learning tools such as literacy, numeracy and problem solving combined with knowledge, skills, values and attitudes required by human beings to survive, develop potential, to improve the quality of their lives, to make informed decisions and to continue learning.

General Comment on the aims of education

In 2001, the  Committee on the Rights of the Child , the body of experts that monitors the implementation of the Convention, published a paper (called a General Comment) that explained and elaborated on the right to education.

The General Comment 1 on the aims of education provides a very clear overview of what the right to education means in practice. It said that:

• Education must be child-centred and empowering. This applies to the curriculum as well as the educational processes, the pedagogical methods and the environment where education takes place.
• Education must be provided in a way that respects the inherent dignity of the child and enables the child to express his or her views in accordance with article 12 (1) and to participate in school life.
• Education must respect the strict limits on discipline reflected in article 28 and promote non-violence in school.
• Education must include not only literacy and numeracy but also life skills such as the ability to make well-balanced decisions; to resolve conflicts in a non‑violent manner; and to develop a healthy lifestyle, good social relationships and responsibility, critical thinking, creative talents, and other abilities which give children the tools needed to pursue their options in life.

It’s important to remember that the  Convention must be seen as a whole  and so articles 28 and 29 should not be looked at or considered in isolation. Particular regard should be paid to the General Principles and other closely related articles for example: article 16 : protection of privacy, article 24 health (including health education), article 31 rest, leisure, play, recreation and culture.

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Right to education

This page is about the right to education and how it must be put into place for every child as a fundamental human right.

What is the right to education, how many people are denied the right to education, why does it matter, what do we mean by a right to education, who is responsible for enforcing the right to education, ​what do governments need to do to about the right to education​, what must countries do to meet their obligations.

Education is a basic human right for all and is important for everyone to make the most of their lives. Other human rights include the right to freedom from slavery or torture and to a fair trial.

Having an education helps people to access all of their other human rights. Education improves an individual’s chances in life and helps to tackle poverty.

According to the the most recent figures available from the  UNESCO Institute for Statistics in July 2016 , 263 million children and youth are out of school.

This includes 61 million children who should be in primary school, 60 million of lower secondary school age (ages 12 to 14) and 142 million who are aged between 15 and 17.

Girls and children from sub-Saharan Africa are most likely to be missing out on their education.

Armed conflict also means that children struggle to get an education – 22 million children of primary school age are affected by this. 75 million children and adolescents have had their education directly affected by conflict and emergencies.

Education reduces poverty, decreases social inequalities, empowers women and helps each individual reach their full potential.

It also brings significant economic returns for a country and helps societies to achieve lasting peace and sustainable development. Education is key to achieving all other human rights.

Every person is entitled to a quality education without discrimination, which means:

• A compulsory free primary school education for every child
• Secondary school (including technical training) must be available to everyone – states must work towards providing this for free
• Higher education must be equally accessible, with countries working towards the goal of making this free
• Fundamental education for those who missed out on primary school should be encouraged and available

It also means parents have the right to choose schools for their children and for individuals and organisations to set up schools that meet minimum standards.

Theirworld also believes that every child should have access to two years of free, quality pre-primary education.

Governments must provide good quality education and make sure all children can access it, without discrimination.

This is an international legal obligation and governments can be held accountable for failing to provide education for all its citizens.

Education has been recorded as a basic human right in international law since 1948. It is included in many documents and treaties including:

• Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)
• Convention Against Discrimination in Education (1960)
• International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966)
• Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979)
• African Charter on Human and People’s Rights (1986)
• Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989)
• World Declaration on Education for All: Meeting Basic Learning Needs (1990)
• The Dakar Framework for Action: Education for All (2000)
• Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006)
• UN General Assembly Resolution on the Right to Education in Emergency Situations (2010)

Governments must guarantee that education in their country or state is:

• Available.  There must be adequate materials, classrooms, trained teachers and so on – so that a quality education is available to every child.
• Accessible.  Schools must be within reach, suitable for disabled children and fit for purpose. They must be affordable for all children. There must be no discrimination for gender, race, religion or any other reason.
• Acceptable.  Education must be of a high quality and include relevant information that is appropriate. Children with disabilities have the right to the same quality of education.
• Adaptable.  Schools and school systems must be suitable for the communities they serve.

Governments have to make sure all children can get the education they are entitled to by doing the following:

• Removing anything that prevents access to quality education, such as repealing laws that cause discrimination
• Preventing individuals or groups from stopping children from being educated
• Taking steps to make sure children can get a quality education – this could include building schools or training teachers

The international community knows that achieving the full extent of the right to education will take time and resources.

Governments must put plans in place to meet the minimum standard of free, compulsory primary education and then take steps to extend the right to education to every child.

The right to education without discrimination is part of the minimum standard and must be created immediately.

It’s very important that governments continue to work towards the full right to education and don’t allow plans to stall or be delayed.

As well as governments, other organisations and individuals play a part in making sure that all children can access quality education. These include intergovernmental agencies such as UNESCO, international financial institutions, businesses, civil societies and parents.

Essay On Right To Education

500 words essay on right to education.

Education enables individuals to put their potentials to optimal use. Moreover, it makes them a thinker and correct decision-maker. This is possible because of getting access to knowledge from the external world. Thus, education opens new windows to the outside world. Through an essay on right to education , we will discuss its importance and benefits.

Importance of Right to Education

Education is an essential condition to free individual development. It is what can make a person fit for the tasks of citizenship. Moreover, when you are not educated, you will hardly understand politics or stay vigilant about national interests.

Thus, participation in state affairs is going to be negligible only. In other words, a citizen like that will be no less than a slave to others. This will prevent them from rising in the stature of their personality. Usually, others will make decisions for that person.

Consequently, it will be a failure of democracy. The right to education is a civil right that safeguards individuals from all this. While it does not guarantee an identical intellectual training of everyone nonetheless, it does provide provisions for that type of education.

Without the right to education, people won’t be able to get live their life as they wish to, especially those who cannot afford it. It ensures that everyone gets an equal right to education so that we all can develop as a society without leaving anyone section out.

Thus, the right to education can be life-changing for people who wish to change their lives and break the old-age cycle. It helps individuals to get equal access to education like any other citizen without any discrimination.

Benefits of Right to Education

There are many benefits which the right to education provides us with. Firstly, it has brought many changes in society in terms of ease of education. Further, it ensures a consistent fee structure for all.

In other words, schools cannot make any sudden hikes in fees so people don’t suffer from it. After that, it also ensures that everybody gets an education easily by making it available to everyone.

A lot of underprivileged students cannot find ample resources despite having talent. Thus, it ensures that they can rightfully pursue their education. Consequently, it increases the literacy rate of a nation.

This is without a doubt a great advantage for any country. Moreover, it removes any kind of discrimination especially for people belonging to different economic backgrounds. Similarly, it applies to disabled people as well.

Most importantly, it ensures that schools offer seats to those who cannot afford to pay their fees. Thus, it helps the underprivileged people to partake in it thereby making education reach all sectors of society.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

Conclusion of Essay on Right to Education

All in all, every citizen must get a chance to get access to education which will enable them to judge, weigh and make decisions for themselves. It is a life-changer for many people all over the world especially those belonging to the underprivileged sector to outshine.

FAQ of Essay on Right to Education

Question 1: Why is education important for child development?

Answer 1: Education offers children to learn with diversity. Thus, children will develop healthy social interaction by blending in with other kids belonging to different cultures and backgrounds. Moreover, it can boost their self-esteem and self-confidence.

Question 2: Why is the right to education important?

Answer 2: The right to education is essential as it is a human right and indispensable for the exercise of other human rights. Quality education strives to guarantee the development of a fully-rounded human being. Similarly, it is one of the most powerful tools which can lift socially excluded children and adults out of poverty.

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What you need to know about the right to education

Why is it important to have the right to education formally enshrined in law and other instruments   .

Around 244 million children and youth are deprived of education worldwide as a result of social, economic and cultural factors. 98 million of whom are in Sub-Saharan Africa, the region with the highest out-of-school population. Yet only 70 per cent of the world’s countries legally guarantee 9 years or more of compulsory education. And an estimated 765 million young people and adults lack basic literacy skills, of which two thirds are women

Education is an empowering right in itself and one of the most powerful tools by which economically and socially marginalized children and adults can lift themselves out of poverty and participate fully in society. To unleash the full transformational power of education and meet international markers of progress such as those of the Sustainable Development Agenda, everyone must have access to it. Binding countries to certain standards by way of law is one way of ensuring access to quality education is widened. Legal guarantees and protection of the right to education are not time-bound (unlike policies and plans). They also ensure that  judicial mechanisms  (such as courts and tribunals) can determine whether human rights obligations are respected, impose sanctions for violations and transgressions, and ensure that appropriate action is taken.

What are the key legal documents and instruments?  

Education as a fundamental human right is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) and many other international human rights instruments . UNESCO’s foremost standard-setting instrument is the Convention against discrimination in education  which dates from 1960 and has so far been ratified by 107 States. It is the first international instrument which covers the right to education extensively and has a binding force in international law. The Convention also acts as a cornerstone of the Education 2030 Agenda and Sustainable Development Goal 4 for education adopted by the international community. SDG 4 is rights-based and seeks to ensure the full enjoyment of the right to education as fundamental to achieving sustainable development.  

How does UNESCO work to ensure the right to education?  

Through its programme on the right to education, UNESCO develops, monitors and promotes education norms and standards in relation to the right to education to advance the aims of the Education 2030 Agenda. It provides guidance, technical advice and assistance  to Member States in reviewing or developing their own legal and policy frameworks, and builds capacities, partnerships and awareness on key challenges especially in light of the  evolving education context .  

It also supports and monitors States in their application of legal instruments, conventions and recommendations through periodic consultations , its online Observatory on the right to education and the interactive tool, Her Atlas, which shows where in the world and to what extent women and girls have their educational rights protected by law. As part of the monitoring, UNESCO also works closely with the UN system and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.   

In addition, it advocates for and promotes the right to education through communication actions  as well as research and studies on specific components of this right such as on pre-primary education, higher education , and digital learning .  

UNESCO mobilises, develops and fosters global partnerships to raise awareness on key issues such as the right to education of climate-displaced persons , non-state actors in education  and the right to education of vulnerable groups .  

Who does UNESCO partner with to ensure the right to education?

UNESCO has the lead role and responsibility in the field of the right to education in the United Nations system and cooperates with the following United Nations human rights bodies in monitoring the implementation of treaties and conventions relating to that right:

• Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
• UN Human Rights Committees
• Universal Periodic Review
• UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education
• International Labour Organization

UNESCO also acknowledges the importance of non-governmental organizations (NGOS), associations and the intellectual community in international cooperation and has built a network with organizations in its fields of competence including:

• The Right to Education Initiative  promotes mobilization and accountability on the right to education and builds bridges between human rights, development and education.
• The International Organization for the Right to Education and Freedom of Education, OIDEL  - a non-profit NGO promoting and creating novel educational models and policies and financing options for schools.  

More on UNESCO's partners for the right to education .

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Women and girls, aa_78838_india_girl.jpg.

Today more girls than ever go to school. However, despite progress, women and girls continue to face multiple barriers based on gender and its intersections with other factors, such as age, ethnicity, poverty, and disability, in the equal enjoyment of the right to quality education. This includes barriers, at all levels, to access quality education and within education systems, institutions, and classrooms, such as, amongst others:

• harmful gender stereotypes and wrongful gender stereotyping
• child marriage and early and unintended pregnancy
• gender-based violence against women and girls
• lack of inclusive and quality learning environments and inadequate and unsafe education infrastructure, including sanitation

The international community has recognised the equal right to quality education of everyone and committed to achieving gender equality in all fields, including education, through their acceptance of international human rights law. This means that states have legal obligations to remove all discriminatory barriers, whether they exist in law or in everyday life, and to undertake positive measures to bring about equality, including in access of, within, and through education.

According to the latest available global figures (UIS/GEM Report Policy Paper 27/Fact Sheet 37, 2016: p. 1), 263 million children and youth are out of school—that’s 19% of all girls and 18% of all boys.

At the primary level 61 million children are out of school (a global out-of-school rate of 9%), 32.1 million of whom are girls (53%). Where out-of-school rates are higher, the gender gap tends to be wider. For example, in Sub-Saharan Africa 21% of children are out of school—23% of girls do not go to school compared to 19% of boys. Girls are also more likely to be completely excluded from primary education: 15 million girls will likely never enter a classroom compared to 10 million boys.

From a global perspective, as the level of education increases, girls tend to fare slightly better in terms of participation. At the lower secondary level 60 million adolescents do not go to school (an out-of-school rate of 16%), girls making up 48.5% (29.1 million) and boys just under 52% (31.1 million). Of the 142 million youth out of school (an out-of-school rate of 37%) at the upper secondary level, 69.1 million are girls (48.7%) and 72.7 million are boys (51.2%).

These statistics, however, mask disparities at the regional and country level. For example, in Western Asia, 20% of adolescent girls remain excluded from lower secondary education compared to 13% of boys. In sub-Saharan Africa, the female out-of-school rate is 36% compared to 32% for males. Young women are also more likely to be excluded from upper secondary education in the Caucasus and Central Asia, Northern Africa, Southern Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, and Western Asia.

Global figures also neglect the historical exclusion of girls and women from education, reflected in the statistic that two thirds of the world’s 758 million illiterate adults are women .

Despite gains in rates of girls’ enrolment in primary school there are disparities in completion rates. In sub-Saharan Africa, gender parity exists among the richest 20% who have completed primary education but among the poorest 20%, 83 girls completed primary education for every 100 boys, dropping to 73 for lower secondary and 40 for upper secondary ( UNESCO, 2016 ). At current rates, the poorest boys in sub-Saharan Africa will achieve universal primary completion in 2069, but this will take nearly 20 years longer for the poorest girls .

Many countries that demonstrate higher retention rates at the primary levels are failing to transfer these gains toward transitioning of girls to the secondary level. For example, in Tanzania, near universal enrollment for girls at the primary level has been achieved with a retention rate of 89.2%, yet girls’ transition rate to secondary level is only 32.3% ( GPE, 2013 ).

Inequalities and discrimination linked to location, poverty, and gender intersect to compound disparities in completion and transition rates. In 2013 in Nigeria, for example, over 90% of adolescents from rich households, whether urban or rural, boy or girl, were likely to complete lower secondary education whereas only 3% of poor rural young women completed lower secondary school, compared with 17% of poor rural young men ( UNESCO, 2016 ).

Participation, completion, and transition statistics, however, do not tell the whole story and certainly do not capture the ways in which girls are discriminated against within education systems and the myriad barriers that girls must overcome to complete their education, particularly regarding the quality of education they receive.

The right to education on the basis of non-discrimination and equality is a recognised right under human rights law. Provisions relating to gender equality in education can be found in both general and specific international treaties, as well as treaties concluded in most regions of the world.

At this point it may be useful to refer to our page education as a right , which explains the normative content of the right to education, that is what rights-holders are entitled to (education must be acceptable, accessible, adaptable, and available ) and states’ legal obligations to realise that content, including obligations of immediate effect, minimum core obligations, and progressive realisation, which are key to understanding the content laid out below.

To summarise, all provisions related to non-discrimination carry immediate obligations and are considered a minimum core obligation, which means states must take immediate action as a matter of priority. Provisions related to achieving substantive equality, if they are not concerned with eliminating discrimination, and achieving the right to quality education for all ( with some exceptions ) are subject to progressive realisation . This means that states have an obligation to take deliberate, concrete, and targeted steps, according to maximum available resources, to move expeditiously and effectively towards the full realisation of the right to education.

The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979, CEDAW) is the only legally binding treaty at the international level focusing exclusively on women’s rights. It interprets and applies the right to education in a way that considers the specific needs and circumstances of women and girls. Article 10 of CEDAW is the most comprehensive provision on women and girls' right to education in international law. It sets forth the normative content in relation to the elimination of discrimination against women and ensuring equal rights with men in the field of education, including:

• the same conditions for access to studies and diplomas at all educational levels, in both  urban and rural areas

the same quality of education

the elimination of any stereotyped concept of the roles of men and women (see below)

the same opportunities to benefit from scholarships and other study grants

the same access to programmes of continuing education, including literacy programmes, particularly those aimed at reducing the gender gap in education

the reduction of female student drop-out rates and programmes for women and girls who have left school prematurely

the same opportunity to participate in sports and physical education

access to educational information on health, including advice on family planning

A number of other CEDAW provisions are also relevant to gender equality in education.

Article 1 defines discrimination against women as:

any distinction, exclusion or restriction made on the basis of sex which has the effect or purpose of impairing or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment or exercise by women, irrespective of their marital status, on a basis of equality of men and women, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil or any other field.

Article 2 sets out the legal and policy measures states should undertake to eliminate discrimination against women and therefore applies to the totality of rights found in CEDAW. This includes legal and policy measures related to the implementation of the right to education on a non-discriminatory basis.

Article 3 requires states to take all appropriate measures in the political, social, economic, and cultural fields to ensure that women can exercise and enjoy their human rights on a basis of equality with men.

Article 4 sets out the conditions for the use of temporary special measures to accelerate de facto equality between men and women.

Article 5 requires states to take appropriate measures to eliminate gender stereotyping (see below), prejudices, discriminatory cultural practices, and all other practices which are based on the idea of the inferiority or the superiority of either of the sexes or on stereotyped roles for men and women.

Article 7 is on the right to participate in public and political life. These rights are fundamental in ensuring that gender perspectives and issues are considered when laws, policies, and other measures affecting gender equality in education are designed, formulated, and implemented.

Article 11 (1) (c) provides for the right to vocational training and retraining, including apprenticeships, advanced vocational training, and recurrent training.

Article 14 (d) sets out the right to education of rural women, which includes the right to obtain all types of training and education, formal and non-formal, including that relating to functional literacy.

Lastly Article 16 sets out the rights of women with respects to marriage and family life. Article 16 (2) expressly prohibits child marriage and requires states to set a minimum age of marriage (see below). 

The UNESCO Convention against Discrimination in Education (1960, CADE) prohibits all forms of discrimination in education, including on the basis of sex. CADE defines discrimination in Article 1, which is more specific than CEDAW’s definition, as it applies solely to education, for example, it refers to discrimination in both access to and quality of education and to gender-segregated schools.

Article 2 (a) of CADE permits the establishment or maintenance of gender-segregated educational systems or institutions, provided they offer equivalent access to education, teaching staff with the same standard of qualifications, infrastructure and equipment of the same quality, and the opportunity to study the same or equivalent subjects. Article 2 (c) permits the establishment or maintenance of private education institutions as long as the ‘object of the institutions is not to secure the exclusion of any group’.

A number of other international human rights treaties also guarantee girls’ and women’s right to education combining general provisions on non-discrimination with specific provisions on the right to education.

The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966, ICESCR) guarantees the right to education of everyone on the basis of equality and non-discrimination (Articles 13 and 14) and expressly prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex (Articles 2 (2) and 3). In its general comment on the right to education , the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights applies obligations under Articles 2 (2) and 3 to the right to education, clarifying, inter alia , that temporary measures to bring about de facto equality between the sexes in relation to education are legitimate as long as such affirmative action does not lead to the ‘maintenance of unequal or separate standards for different groups, and provided they are not continued after the objectives for which they were taken have been achieved.’ The Committee also provides that states ‘must closely monitor education–including all relevant policies, institutions, programmes, spending patterns and other practices–so as to identify and take measures to redress any de facto discrimination. Educational data should be disaggregated by the prohibited grounds of discrimination.’

Article 2 (2) of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989, CRC) prohibits discrimination on the grounds of sex. When read with Articles 28 and 29 on the right to education and the aims of education, respectively, there is a clear legal obligation to ensure equality and non-discrimination in education. In addition, the aims of education, provided for under Article 29 (1), include: ‘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’.

Article 6 Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006, CRPD) recognises that girls with disabilities can be subject to multiple discrimination and obliges states to ‘take all appropriate measures to ensure the full development, advancement, and empowerment of women’ regarding CRPD rights, including the right to education , guaranteed under Article 24. The Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in its interpretation of Article 24 in General Comment 4 provides that states must identify and remove barriers and put in place specific measures to ensure that the right to education of women and girls with disabilities is not hampered by gender and/or disability-based discrimination, stigma, or prejudice. Article 8 (1) (b) recognises that gender stereotypes can intersect with stereotypes about people with disabilities, and requires states to: ‘adopt immediate, effective and appropriate measures to combat stereotypes, prejudices and harmful practices relating to persons with disabilities, including those based on sex and age, in all areas of life’.

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1996, ICCPR) has an autonomous non-discrimination clause (Article 26) which applies to ‘any field regulated and protected by public authorities.’ The Human Rights Committee has explained that: ‘when legislation is adopted by a State party, it must comply with the requirement of article 26 that its content should not be discriminatory. In other words, the application of the principle of non-discrimination contained in article 26 is not limited to those rights which are provided for in the Covenant.’ On this interpretation, under the ICCPR, there is an obligation to ensure that education laws and regulations do not discriminate against women and girls.

Women and girls face different barriers in relation to their education in different regions of the world. The right to education, although universal, takes on specific meanings when interpreted and applied in light of shared regional customs, traditions, cultures, values, etc. Regional human rights treaties, therefore, guarantee the right to education in an adapted form–one that acknowledges the barriers common to the region, as well as reflecting the universal and region-specific aims of education.

Africa is the only region that has a human rights treaty dedicated specifically to women and girls. Article 12 of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (2003) tasks States parties with eliminating all forms of discrimination against women in education, including obligations to:

eliminate gender stereotypes in textbooks, syllabuses, and the media

protect women and girls from all forms of abuse, including sexual harassment in schools and other educational institutions, and provide for sanctions against the perpetrators of such practices

provide access to counselling and rehabilitation services to women who suffer abuses and sexual harassment

integrate gender sensitisation and human rights education at all levels

Under the Protocol states must actively promote:

literacy amongst women

education and training at all levels, in all disciplines, particularly in the sciences and technology

enrolment and retention of girls in formal and non-formal education settings, including fundamental education programmes

The Protocol also commits States parties to taking action on a number of issues affecting women and girls' right to education, including to:

eliminate discrimination against women (Article 2)

ban female genital mutilation (Article 5 (b))

set the minimum age of marriage for girls at 18 (Article 6 (b))

ensure the effective participation and representation of women in decision-making (Article 9 (2))

guarantee reproductive and health rights (Article 14)

​ The right to education of girls is also comprehensively protected by a number of other African treaties.

Article 13 of the African Youth Charter (2006, AYC) sets out the right to education as applied to African youth (defined by the AYC as every person between the ages of 15-35 years), including provisions:

requiring that curricula include information on cultural practices that are harmful to the health of young women and girls (Article 13 (3) (f))

that girls and young women who become pregnant or get married have the opportunity to continue their education (Article 13 (4) (h))

on the introduction of scholarship and bursary programmes to encourage entry into post-primary school education and into higher education for outstanding youth from disadvantaged communities, especially young girls (Article 13 (4) (l))

to establish and encourage participation of all young men and young women in sport, cultural and recreational activities as part of holistic development (Article 13 (4) (m))

to promote culturally appropriate, age specific sexuality and responsible parenthood education (Article 13 (4) (n))

Article 11 of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (1990) requires States parties to take special measures to ensure equal access to education for girls (Article 11 (3) (e)) and to take ‘all appropriate measures to ensure that children who become pregnant before completing their education shall have an opportunity to continue their education on the basis of their individual ability’ (Article 11 (6)).

For further information, see the African Union Commission’s and OHCHR’s Women’s Rights in Africa (2016).

In the Arab region, the Arab Charter on Human Rights (2004) guarantees equality between men and women and non-discrimination in Article 3 and the right to ‘compulsory and accessible’ primary education without discrimination of any kind in Article 41.

In Asia , the non-legally binding ASEAN Human Rights Declaration (2012) guarantees the right to education in Article 31 and non-discrimination as a general principle, but not as a human right.

In Europe , the European Convention on Human Rights (1950) guarantees the right to non-discrimination in Article 14 which read with Article 2 of the Protocol to the European Convention on Human Rights (1958) on the right to education, prohibits discrimination in education on the basis of sex. In addition, Protocol 12 to the European Convention on Human Rights (2000) prohibits discrimination in the enjoyment of any legal right as set out in national laws.

The European Social Charter (revised) (1996) prohibits discrimination under Article E, provides that the state takes all necessary measures to provide for free primary and secondary education and encourage regular attendance under Article 17, and the right to vocational guidance (Article 9) and training (Article 10).

The Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (2011, Istanbul Convention) identifies education as a key area in which to take measures to eliminate gender-based violence and its causes, and requires states to take:

the necessary steps to include teaching material on issues such as equality between women and men, non‐stereotyped gender roles, mutual respect, non‐violent conflict resolution in interpersonal relationships, gender‐based violence against women and the right to personal integrity, adapted to the evolving capacity of learners, in formal curricula and at all levels of education.

The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (2010), which applies to EU institutions and bodies and EU member states when they are acting within the scope of EU law, guarantees the right to education (Article 14), non-discrimination (Article 21), and equality between women and men (Article 23).

In addition, the Council of Europe has a non-legally binding Recommendation of the Committee of Ministers to member states on gender mainstreaming in education (2007).  

In the inter-America region the Additional Protocol to the American Convention on Human Rights in the Area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights 'Protocol of San Salvador' (1988) prohibits discrimination under Article 3 and the right to education under Articles 13 and 16.

Articles 34, 49, and 50 of the Charter of the Organization of American States (1948) guarantee various aspects of the right to education.

The Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of Violence Against Women (1994, Convention of Belém do Pará) states that all women have the right to be free from violence which includes the right to freedom from all forms of discrimination and the right to be ‘educated free of stereotyped patterns of behavior and social and cultural practices based on concepts of inferiority or subordination’ (Article 6).

Lastly, the Inter-American Democratic Charter (2001) calls for the elimination of gender discrimination (Article 9) and states that ‘a quality education be available to all, including girls and women’. (Article 16).

When a state ratifies a human rights treaty which guarantees the right to education, without discrimination of any kind (see the three sections above), they are under a legal obligation to implement these provisions in their jurisdiction. This means that states cannot just ratify a treaty guaranteeing human rights without taking the necessary steps to make it a reality for its’ citizens. Such steps include administrative, legal, policy, and economic measures. The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women’s General Recommendation 36 on girls’ and women’s right to education elaborates such measures and lays out precise and actionable legal and policy recommendations that would bring states into compliance with obligations flowing from Article 10 and other relevant provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).

States’ legal commitment to CEDAW, the Unesco Convention against Discrimination in Education (CADE), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)—the four foremost treaties guaranteeing the right to education of women and girls—is relatively widespread. As of December 2017, 189 states have ratified and acceded to CEDAW which is 96% of UN Member States, CADE has 110 States parties , ICESCR has 166 States parties , and the CRC has 196 States parties . According to our research (forthcoming), which classifies states by level of legal commitment to gender equality in education based on the treaties they have ratified, nearly half of all states (87; 44%) have the highest possible legal commitment and the majority of states cluster around the two highest levels (out of six levels) (144; 73%). However, despite this, universal domestic implementation of the right to education for all women and girls is far from being achieved, which represents a major structural barrier to the realisation of gender equality in education. Below is a map showing which states constitutionally protect the right to education of women and girls.

For more information on the legal status of the right to education of girls and women in specific countries, see:

RTE’s background paper for the Global Education Monitoring Report’s 2017 Gender Review which includes information on how legally committed each state is to achieving the right to education of women and girls free from discrimination

UNESCO’s global database on the right to education (searching by the themes ‘non-discrimination’ and ‘gender equality’)

In addition, UNGEI has produced useful guidance aimed at country and regional-level education planners to assist in developing gender-responsive Education Sector Plans.

Women and girls are rights-holders and as such are entitled to the full exercise and equal enjoyment of the right to education. However, in addition to being a fundamental right in and of itself, the right to education is a ‘multiplier right’ and is, therefore, instrumental in enabling them to benefit from and claim other key rights, such as those related to work, property, political participation, access to justice, freedom from violence and health, including sexual and reproductive health and rights.

Girls who receive more education are less likely to marry as children and to become pregnant and young mothers. According to Plan, a girl in a low income country receiving seven years of education marries four years later on average, and has fewer and healthier children. According to UNESCO, children of literate mothers are over 50% more likely to live past the age of five . There are also significant health benefits for girls and women, with considerable evidence that an increase in a mother’s education reduces the likelihood of dying in childbirth .

Ensuring quality education for all girls also increases how much they can earn and counters the continued feminisation of poverty. According to the World Bank Group (WBG), one year of secondary education for a girl can mean as much as a 25% increase in wages later in life. The benefits of this are passed on to their children as women tend to reinvest 90% of their income in their families.

Studies have consistently shown that educating girls leads to significant and wide-reaching benefits not only to women themselves and their families but also to their societies and economies. Girls’ education is proven to have a powerful impact on economic growth. According to WBG a one percentage point increase in the proportion of women with secondary education raises the average gross domestic product (GDP) by 0.3 percent . Education can improve the opportunities for women to work, which in turn can impact on poverty reduction. For example, in Latin America, when women’s participation in the labour market increased 15 percent in just one decade, the rate of poverty decreased by 30 percent (WBG). 

Girls and women face specific forms of discrimination in accessing education, within education systems, and through education. The accordions below explain the most common barriers woman and girls encounter around the world. Each of these obstacles is underpinned by harmful gender stereotypes about the role of women and men in society.

Although sex is an expressly prohibited grounds of discrimination under international human rights law, it is important to recognise that women and girls are highly heterogeneous. Gender inequality and discrimination to, in, and through education is experienced in varying forms and at all levels by women and girls, depending on their personal, local, and national context. But every woman and girl who has attended school has likely encountered some form of discrimination in education at some point in her life.

Intersectional discrimination recognises that women and girls face discrimination in different ways. The interaction between gender and other factors, such as poverty, living in rural areas, and/or characteristics, such as physical or mental impairment, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and gender identity often exacerbates the discrimination women and girls face regarding their right to education.

For example, according to the 2016 Global Education Monitoring Report’s 2016 Gender Review (p. 19), in 2011 in India, upper secondary completion rates of rich urban girls and boys averaged 70%. For poor rural males the average was 26% but the rate was much lower for poor rural females, suggesting it is not their gender or wealth status or where they live that affects their enjoyment of their right to education but the intersection of being female, identifying as a women or girl, coming from a low income family, and living in a rural area.

Girls and women can face discrimination in all areas and throughout all stages of their life. Eliminating discrimination in education is an important start, but women and girls will often continue to face discrimination upon leaving school. Discrimination, in all its forms, whether it happens in public or private , needs to be tackled in a comprehensive and holistic manner (cross-sectorally and through various measures that take into account how discrimination and inequality aggregate throughout a woman’s life) and at all levels in order to ensure that women and girls enjoy and benefit from their education. Common challenges include:

the gender pay gap–women, on average, earn less than men ( 59% according to the World Economic Forum )

unequal political participation and representation (according to the Inter-Parliamentary Union only 23% of parliamentarians and 5.7% of world leaders are women)

under-representation in certain fields, such as in science, technology, engineering, maths (STEM), as well as sports, in particular in leadership positions

lack of flexible working arrangements, parental leave, and maternity benefits

lack of access to healthcare and enjoyment of sexual and reproductive health and rights

exposure to gender-based violence against women, including harmful practices

paid and unpaid care work which continues to be disproportionately borne by women and girls ( ActionAid report that a woman will do an average of four years extra work compared to her male peers over her lifetime)

Gender stereotypes and gender stereotyping underpin or exacerbate many of the obstacles faced by women and girls in enjoying their right to education. Ideally, education systems should be focal points for action to combat gender stereotypes and gender stereotyping. However, in some cases, the education system, and particularly the curriculum, textbooks , and teachers, play a role in perpetuating harmful gender stereotypes, which has wide ranging effects on girls throughout their lives, from the course options and subjects they take, which influences their employment prospects, to their ability to make informed decisions about their sexual and reproductive health.

According to Cook and Cusack (2010, p. 9) a gender stereotype is a generalised view or preconception about attributes or characteristics that are or ought to be possessed by, or the roles that are or should be performed by women and men. According to a OHCHR report (2013, p. 18), a gender stereotype is harmful when it limits women’s and men’s capacity to develop their personal abilities, pursue their professional careers and make choices about their lives and life plans.

Gender stereotyping is the practice of ascribing to an individual woman or man specific attributes, characteristics, or roles by reason only of her or his membership in the social group of women or men. Gender stereotyping is considered wrongful when it results in a violation or violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms.

Harmful gender stereotypes and wrongful gender stereotyping can affect girls before they step into a classroom and may even prevent girls from going to school. For example, stereotypical views that girls are domestic, homemakers, and caregivers may lead families to question the point of sending their daughters to school if they are to become wives and mothers, whilst the stereotype that men should be breadwinners means that boys are prioritised when it comes to education. Even when girls do go to school, some are still expected to juggle domestic responsibilities, such as cleaning, cooking and fetching water, on top of their school work.

Harmful gender stereotypes and wrongful gender stereotyping also affect girls in the school environment. For example, stereotypes about the different physical and cognitive abilities of girls and boys, leads to certain school subjects and teaching methods being gendered. Boys are considered better suited to maths, technology, the sciences, and sports whereas girls are considered better suited to the arts and humanities. This has the effect of excluding girls and boys from certain subjects (sometimes, particularly in gender-segregated schools, certain subjects are not even offered to female students) but also has a detrimental effect on girls’ further educational and employment opportunities, as girls and boys go on to study different subjects at university, where ‘male’ subjects tend to lead to more lucrative and influential careers. Gender inequality is then perpetuated through hiring practices that further disadvantage women .

International human rights law imposes specific obligations on states to eliminate harmful gender stereotypes and wrongful gender stereotyping. See our legal factsheet on gender stereotypes and the right to education for further information.

The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (the Committee) defines gender-based violence against women (GBV) as ‘violence that is directed against a woman because she is a woman or that affects women disproportionately’ ( General Recommendation 19 , para. 6). Such violence takes multiple forms, including: ‘acts or omissions intended or likely to cause or result in death or physical, sexual, psychological or economic harm or suffering to women, threats of such acts, harassment, coercion and arbitrary deprivation of liberty’ ( General Recommendation 35 , para. 14).

The Committee considers GBV to be a form of discrimination, under Article 1 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979, CEDAW). The Committee’s legal interpretation of GBV as a human rights violation can be found primarily in General Recommendations 19 and 35 .

Gender-based violence against girls , for instance, rape, domestic violence, sexual harassment and assault, corporal punishment, and harmful practices such as child marriage (see above) and female genital mutilation can keep girls out of school temporarily or indefinitely. Evidence collected by the World Bank Group (2015, p. 1) shows that in Nicaragua, ‘63% of the children of abused women had to repeat a school year and dropped out of school on average four years earlier than others.’ And in Zambia, ‘girls who experienced sexual violence were found to have more difficulty concentrating on their studies, some students transferred to another school to escape harassment, and others dropped out of school because of pregnancy.’

GBV often occurs in schools, known as ‘school-related gender-based violence’ (SRGBV), which Unesco defines as: ‘acts or threats of sexual, physical or psychological violence occurring in and around schools, perpetrated as a result of gender norms and stereotypes, and enforced by unequal power dynamics’ (2016, p. 13). SRGBV can often lead to girls under-performing and/or dropping out of school altogether.

SRGBV commonly affects girls on the journey to and from school, where there is little to no supervision, for example, in Japan female students have reported being sexually assaulted on public transportation . The World Bank Group report that parental fears for the safety of girls in traveling to school impact female enrolment rates in Africa, South Asia, and the Middle East.  

SRGBV also occurs on school premises making the school environment unsafe and not conducive for learning. It can be perpetrated by both teachers and other students. A 2010 survey in the Côte d’Ivoire found that 47% of teachers reported initiating sexual relations with students. In Kenya, after a confidential helpline was set-up, over 1000 teachers were dismissed for abusing girls , mostly in poor, rural areas. Examples of SRGBV also includes bullying by fellow students . SRGBV is not confined to primary and secondary education. At universities and colleges around the world, female students are victims of physical and sexual violence including rape, bullying, and harassment. End Violence Against Women report that 1 in 7 female students in the UK experience serious physical or sexual assault during their time as a student.

SRGBV is increasingly taking place online, through digital technologies, for instance, instant messaging and social media. Gender-related forms of cyberbullying and harassment include being sent inappropriate photos and being coerced into sending sexual images.

SRGBV also includes attacks on girls for accessing education , motivated by ‘fears surrounding the potential role of education as a catalyst for social, cultural, economic and political transformation’ (OHCHR, 2015, p. 4). Prominent examples include the abduction of nearly 300 schoolgirls in April 2014 by Boko Haram in northeast Nigeria and the 2012 shooting of education activist Malala Yousafzai by members of the Taliban in Pakistan (p. 3).

International human rights law prohibits GBV in all settings, including in education. This includes acts or omissions by state actors and bodies, such as public authorities and officials, as well as by non-state actors, for example, partners, family members, teachers, etc. States have specific responsibilities under human rights law dependent on the perpetrator which are well explained in paragraphs 21-6 of CEDAW General Recommendation 35 .  

See our legal factsheet for specific provisions of international and regional law relating to gender-based violence against women . 

For further reading, see Unesco and UN Women (2016) Global guidance on school-related gender-based violence . See also Global Education Monitoring Report’s blog Teachers are central to any effective response to school-related gender-based violence ( part 1 and part 2 ).

Child marriage is any formal marriage or informal union where one or both of the parties are under 18 years of age. According to Girls Not Brides , every year 15 million underage girls get married. Globally, it is estimated that there are 720 million women alive today who were married before the age of 18—that’s 10% of the world’s population. Child marriage happens everywhere but is most prevalent in south Asia (45% of girls married by 18; 17% married by 15), sub-Saharan Africa (39%; 12%), and Latin America and the Caribbean (23%; 5%).

Child marriage violates multiple human rights , including the right to education, making it a particularly egregious practice. Children who get married are more likely to drop out of school and children who are not in school are more likely to get married. Statistics from the World Bank and International Center for Research on Women reveal that 10-30% of parents, depending on country, reported that their child dropped out of secondary school due to child marriage and/or pregnancy. Their research also indicates that for every year a girl marries before the age of 18, the likelihood she completes secondary education decreases by 0.22 years on average. In Latin America and Asia, girls who marry before the age of 12 have a reduced likelihood of 21% of completing their secondary education.

Although permissible under international law, marriages that occur after the age of 18 may also affect a girl’s education, particularly her ability to access higher education or other forms of tertiary education.

Linked to child marriage is early and unintended pregnancy. Girls Not Brides report that 90% of adolescent births in low and lower-middle income countries are to married girls. Pregnancy and motherhood often has profound impacts on girls’ education. Pregnant girls are often banned from attending school and sitting exams, and mothers often lack access to bridging programmes which allow girls to catch-up on their missed education in order to reenter mainstream education. Further, lack of free early childhood care and widely held beliefs that child rearing is the primary responsibility of the mother, means that women and girls often do not reenter education.

Pregnancy and motherhood can also occur independently from child marriage, as a result of rape, which is particularly common during conflict and other emergencies (see the case of Sierra Leone which saw an increase in teenage pregnancy during the ebola crisis due to the closure of schools). Teenage pregnancy and motherhood is also a product of a lack of information about sexual and reproductive health and a lack of access to contraception (birth control). See for example, our photo essay on the right to education of pregnant girls in Kenya . 

So what does international law say about child marriage and what obligations do states have to ensure the right to education of married and/or pregnant girls?

The Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women have stated, in a Joint Recommendation , that the minimum age for marriage should be 18 for both men and women. However, the committees take the view that a balance must be struck between recognising that child marriage is a harmful, discriminatory practice and respecting that in exceptional cases some children may be mature and capable enough to make informed decisions for his/herself regarding getting married, provided the child in question is at least 16 years old and such decisions are assessed by a judge ‘based on legitimate exceptional grounds defined by law and on the evidence of maturity, without deference to culture and tradition’ (para. 20).

This limited exception, however, does not in any way dilute states’ obligations to eliminate child marriage and early or unintended pregnancy, and to protect the human rights of child brides and mothers, including the right to education.

In order to prevent child marriage states must establish and enforce a minimum age of marriage of 18. Often, minimum legal ages for marriage are set, but the law is inconsistent (see Tanzania , for example), customary law, such as Shari’a or tribal law applies, or the law allows girls to be married in certain situations, for example, if she is pregnant or has parental permission. Under international law, exceptions such as these are prohibited.

In Africa, regional human rights law is strong and mandates that states enact legislation that sets the minimum age of marriage at 18 without exception (Article 6 (b), Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa [2003]; Article 21 (2), African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child [1990]. For further information on the interpretation of these articles, see the Joint General Comment of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child on ending child marriage ). 

The map below illustrates that very few states have set the minimum age of marriage at 18. This is particularly true of the Americas, sub-Saharan Africa, and South East Asia—all regions with high child marriage prevalence rates. It should also be pointed out that child marriage is permissible by law in a number of ‘global north’ countries, notably the US .

Under international law, states are not allowed to refuse access to school by expelling girls on the basis of marriage, pregnancy, or having given birth as this would constitute discrimination. This includes a prohibition of mandatory pregnancy testing, which has been documented in various African states , including: Tanzania, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.

Further, in order to rectify the negative impacts of child marriage and early pregnancy on the right to education, for example, if a girl misses any of her primary education, states must provide fundamental education, that is education that replaces missed primary education for girls who become married or pregnant at primary school age (Article 13 (d), International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights). However, most child marriages and early pregnancies occur during secondary education. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979, CEDAW) adapts the fundamental education provision to include obligations to make efforts to keep girls in school and to organise ‘programmes for girls and women who have left school prematurely’ (Article 10 (f)). Programmes that allow girls to re-enter education are known as ‘re-entry programmes’. Successful examples of reentry programmes include Zambia and Uganda.

Given the prevalence of child marriage and pregnancy in African countries, African human rights law also makes provision for fundamental education and reentry programmes but protections are inconsistent.

The African Youth Charter (2006) requires states to: ‘Ensure, where applicable, that girls and young women who become pregnant or married before completing their education shall have the opportunity to continue their education’ (Article 13 (4) (h)).

Article 12 (2) (c) of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa is less specific and urges states to ‘promote the enrolment and retention of girls in schools and other training institutions and the organisation of programmes for women who leave school prematurely’.

Article 11 (6), African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, requires states to take ‘all appropriate measures to ensure that children who become pregnant before completing their education shall have an opportunity to continue with their education on the basis of their individual ability.’ Although this provision would seem to provide for re-entry programmes, the caveat that such opportunity is based on ‘individual ability’ falls short of international standards.

International law also seeks to empower girls to make decisions for themselves regarding unintended pregnancy and requires that sex, reproductive health, and responsible parenthood education is given to both boys and girls. See, for example, Article 10 (h), Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and Article 13 (4) (n), African Youth Charter. Below is a video explaining the importance of comprehensive sexuality education.

Lastly, international law requires states to dismantle the social, economic, cultural, and political conditions that facilitate the pervasive nature of this practice. A holistic approach is required to eliminate child marriage and pregnancy because its causes are varied and deeply entrenched. However, evidence suggests that any approach must include efforts to ensure girls enjoy and can exercise their right to education. Girls Not Brides states that girls with a secondary education are six times less likely to marry than a girl with little or no education.

For more information on preventing child marriage and early and unintended pregnancy through education, see Unesco’s Early and unintended pregnancy: Recommendations for the education sector (2017).

A bad school environment can deter girls from attending school and also negatively impact on the quality of education girls receive. The school environment refers not just to the physical infrastructure of the school premises but also the wider learning environment.

According to international human rights law, the school environment must not impair the right to education and it must also contribute to the aims of education and the right to a quality education by creating an inclusive and quality learning environment (see paras 10, 19, and 22 of the Committee on the Rights of the Child’s General Comment 1 ).

Common barriers regarding the learning environment, include:

discriminatory curricula, learning materials , and teaching methods (pedagogies) (see above sections on international human rights law and gender stereotypes)

a culture of bullying (see above section on gender-based violence against women and girls)

school regulations and sexist dress codes , including the banning of religious symbols in schools

Perhaps one of the most significant barriers to an inclusive and quality learning environment is the lack of female teachers particularly in low and middle income countries, which is itself a manifestation of the historical lack of access to education and harmful gender stereotypes about the role of women. A Unesco brief highlights (2008, p. 1-2) that increasing the number of women teachers has a positive impact on girls’ education, because:

in some conservative communities, parents will not allow their daughters to be taught by a male teacher

the presence of women in schools can impact positively on girls’ retention in school and on their achievement

at the school policy level, women teachers may act as advocates for girls, representing their perspectives and needs, and promoting more girl-friendly learning

women teachers provide new and different role models for girls, breaking down harmful gender stereotypes

In respects to the physical school environment, inadequate and unsafe infrastructure, particularly the lack of toilets, gender-segregated toilets, changing facilities, and access to safe drinking water may discourage girls from attending school. Lack of toilets and in particular gender-segregated toilets affects both girls and boys, however given the specific needs of girls, the impact disproportionately falls on girls.

Girls require toilets for menstrual hygiene purposes, this includes access to sanitary products, without which girls often miss school because of the social stigma of menstruation, they are unable to concentrate during classes, amongst other reasons. For example, the Guardian reports that girls from low income families in the UK often miss schools because they cannot afford sanitary products and do not ask for them because of the social stigma attached to menstruation .

Within the school premises, toilets, especially non-gender segregated toilets, tend to be where girls are most vulnerable to school-related gender-based violence because they are often unsupervised.

Poverty is the biggest factor determining whether a girl accesses education. According to the Global Education Monitoring report , in all regions except sub-Saharan Africa, children from rich families, whether boy or girl, will most likely attend all levels of basic education. However, girls from poor families in sub-Saharan Africa, Northern Africa and Western Asia, and Southern Asia, which are less likely than their male peers to attend school and this lack of participation increases at higher education levels (2016, p. 10).

A number of factors contribute to girls from poor families not being able to attend school, the biggest of which is the lack of free education , particularly in the formative years. This may be because governments do not have legal and policy frameworks in place to make free education a reality or they do but it is not effectively implemented, or it may not be adequately resourced, or there may be corruption which draws resources away from their intended use.

Lack of free education results in an added financial burden on families, which may come in the form of school fees (or other direct fees) or indirect fees such as for school uniforms, exam fees, security, school transportation, etc. Such fees are a direct barrier to school attendance for many girls, either because families cannot afford these costs or the costs may force families to select which of their children to send to school. In such instances, it is usually boys who are favoured because of the low social and economic value placed on the education of girls. To mitigate this, international human rights law requires states to guarantee free and compulsory primary education, progressively free education at all other levels, and targeted measures for groups at risk of dropping out (for instance, school transportation for students living in rural areas). Human rights law, however, neglects the importance of free or accessible early childhood care and education (ECCE)/pre-primary education. ECCE has positive impacts on child development and targeted ECCE interventions ‘can compensate for vulnerability and disadvantage, regardless of underlying factors such as poverty, gender, ...’ (EFA Global Education Monitoring Report 2007: Strong foundations , p. 113). For further information on states’ human rights obligations, see our page on free education .

Lack of free education is closely linked with government priorities reflected in fiscal policy. Ostensibly because of the 2008 financial crisis, there has been a trend in governments reducing spending on public services, including education, by decreasing the amount they collect through taxation. Such austerity measures have had a disproportionate impact on women and girls, particularly as it is the most marginalised in society who tend to benefit from public services.

One of the consequences of austerity and the failure of states to effectively formulate, implement, resource, and enforce free education legal and policy frameworks as per their human rights obligations is the growth of private education providers, mainly in low and middle income countries, but the phenomenon has increasingly been observed in high income countries (see for example, the UK , US , and Sweden ).

The privatisation of education poses several human rights concerns that may negatively impact girls’ education , for instance: it may encourage further divestment in public education, gradually eroding the public education system and its capacity to reach the most marginalised, particularly girls with disabilities and private providers can indirectly discriminate against girls by levying fees which have a disproportionately negative impact on girls’ participation in education, due to parental favouring of boys’ education.

International human rights law imposes obligations on states to ensure that private providers do not impair the right to education. See our page on the privatisation of education for further information.

Finally, global action to tackle poverty through sustainable development has also focused on gender inequality and education. The international community has, through the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development , recognised the importance of inclusive and quality education ( sustainable development goal 4 ) and gender equality and women’s empowerment ( sustainable development goal 5 ) in achieving sustainable development and has adopted various goals, targets, and indicators that are largely aligned with human rights law. See our page on Education 2030 for more information. See also our contribution to the Global Education Monitoring report 2017-8 Gender Review (forthcoming).

International

• Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women  (1979, Article 10; General Recommendations 19, 25, 28, 35, and 36)
• International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Right s (1966, Articles 2 and 13; General Comments 13 and 16)
• Convention on the Rights of the Child  (1989, Articles 2, 28 and 29; General Comment 1)
• International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights  (1966, Articles 2, 3, 24, 25 and 26; General Comment 28)
• UNESCO Convention against Discrimination in Education  (1960, Articles 1-4)
• African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights  (1981, Articles 2 and 17)
• African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child  (1990, Article 11)
• Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa  (2003, Article 12)
• African Youth Charter  (2006, Article 13)
• European Convention for the Protection of Human Right and Fundamental Freedoms  (1948); Optional Protocol 1  (1952) and Optional Protocol 12  (2000) (Article 14 of the Convention, Article 2 of the First Protocol and Article 1 of the Twelfth Protocol)
• European Social Charter (revised)  (1996, Articles E, 7, 10 and 17)
• Recommendation on Gender Mainstreaming in Education  (2007)
• Charter of Fundamental Freedoms of the European Union  (2000, Articles 14 and 23)

Inter-America

• Additional Protocol to the American Convention on Human Rights, Protocol of San Salvador  (1998, Articles 13 and 16)
• Inter-American Democratic Charter  (2001, Article 16)
• Arab Charter on Human Rights  (2004, Article 41)

For more details, see International instruments - Girls and women's right to education

Other Issues

• IAS Preparation
• UPSC Preparation Strategy
• Right Education Act Rte

Right to Education Act (RTE) - Indian Polity Notes

The Right to Education Act (RTE) is important legislation that marks a watershed in the education system in India. With its enactment, the right to education has become a fundamental right in the country. In this article, you can read all about the RTE, its significance, provisions and challenges for the UPSC exam .

Read about important acts in India in the linked article.

Right to Education Act

The Act is completely titled “the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act” . It was passed by the Parliament in August 2009. When the Act came into force in 2010, India became one among 135 countries where education is a fundamental right of every child.

• “The State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of 6 to 14 years in such manner as the State, may by law determine.”
• As per this, the right to education was made a fundamental right and removed from the list of Directive Principles of State Policy.
• The RTE is the consequential legislation envisaged under the 86th Amendment.
• The article incorporates the word “free” in its title. What it means is that no child (other than those admitted by his/her parents in a school not supported by the government) is liable to pay any kind of fee or charges or expenses which may prevent him or her from pursuing and completing elementary education.
• This Act makes it obligatory on the part of the government to ensure admission, attendance and completion of elementary education by all children falling in the age bracket six to fourteen years.
• Essentially, this Act ensures free elementary education to all children in the economically weaker sections of society.

A few important articles that a candidate must read to cover the notes on the topic, ‘Education,’ comprehensively are linked below:

RTE Provisions

The provisions of the RTE Act are briefly described below. The Act provides for:

• The right of free and compulsory education to children until they complete their elementary education in a school in the neighbourhood.
• The Act makes it clear that ‘compulsory education’ implies that it is an obligation on the part of the government to ensure the admission, attendance and completion of elementary education of children between the ages of six and fourteen. The word ‘free’ indicates that no charge is payable by the child which may prevent him/her from completing such education.
• The Act provides for the admission of a non-admitted child to a class of his/her appropriate age.
• It mentions the duties of the respective governments, the local authorities and parents in ensuring the education of a child. It also specifies the sharing of the financial burden between the central and the state governments.
• It specifies standards and norms for Pupil Teacher Ratios (PTR), infrastructure and buildings, working days of the school and for the teachers.
• It also says there should be no urban-rural imbalance in teacher postings. The Act also provides for the prohibition of the employment of teachers for non-educational work, other than census, elections and disaster relief work.
• The Act provides that the teachers appointed should be appropriately trained and qualified.
• Mental harassment and physical punishment.
• Screening procedures for the admission of children.
• Capitation fees.
• Private tuition by the teachers.
• Running schools with no recognition.
• The Act envisages that the curriculum should be developed in coherence with the values enshrined in the Indian Constitution, and that which would take care of the all-round development of the child. The curriculum should build on the knowledge of the child, on his/her potentiality and talents, help make the child free of trauma, fear and anxiety via a system that is both child-centric and child-friendly.

Significance of RTE

With the passing of the Right to Education Act, India has moved to a rights-based approach towards implementing education for all. This Act casts a legal obligation on the state and central governments to execute the fundamental rights of a child (as per Article 21 A of the Constitution). 

• The Act lays down specific standards for the student-teacher ratio, which is a very important concept in providing quality education.
• It also talks about providing separate toilet facilities for girls and boys, having adequate standards for classroom conditions, drinking water facilities, etc.
• The stress on avoiding the urban-rural imbalance in teachers’ posting is important as there is a big gap in the quality and numbers regarding education in the villages compared to the urban areas in the country.
• The Act provides for zero tolerance against the harassment and discrimination of children. The prohibition of screening procedures for admission ensures that there would be no discrimination of children on the basis of caste, religion, gender, etc.
• The Act also mandates that no kid is detained until class 8. It introduced the Continuous Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) system in 2009 to have grade-appropriate learning outcomes in schools.
• The Act also provides for the formation of a School Management Committee (SMC) in every school in order to promote participatory democracy and governance in all elementary schools. These committees have the authority to monitor the school’s functioning and prepare developmental plans for it.
• The Act is justiciable and has a Grievance Redressal mechanism that permits people to take action when the provisions of the Act are not complied with.
• This provision is included in Section 12(1)(c) of the RTE Act. All schools (private, unaided, aided or special category) must reserve 25% of their seats at the entry level for students from the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) and disadvantaged groups.
• When the rough version of the Act was drafted in 2005, there was a lot of outcry in the country against this large percentage of seats being reserved for the underprivileged. However, the framers of the draft stood their ground and were able to justify the 25% reservation in private schools.
• This provision is a far-reaching move and perhaps the most important step in so far as inclusive education is concerned.
• This provision seeks to achieve social integration.
• The loss incurred by the schools as a result of this would be reimbursed by the central government.
• The Act has increased enrolment in the upper primary level (Class 6-8) between 2009 and 2016 by 19.4%.
• In rural areas, in 2016, only 3.3% of children in the 6 – 14 years bracket were out of school.

Criticism of RTE Act

Even though the RTE Act is a step in the right direction towards the achievement of making education truly free and compulsory in India, it has met with several criticisms. Some of the criticisms are given below:

• The Act was drafted hastily without much thought or consultation being given to the quality of education imparted.
• Children below 6 years are not covered under the Act.
• Many of the schemes under the Act have been compared to the previous schemes on education such as the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, and have been plagued with corruption charges and inefficiency.
• At the time of admissions, many documents such as birth certificate, BPL certificate, etc. are required. This move seems to have left out orphans from being beneficiaries of the Act.
• There have been implementational hurdles in the 25% reservation of seats for EWS and others in private schools. Some of the challenges in this regard are discriminatory behaviour towards parents and difficulties experienced by students to fit in with a different socio-cultural milieu.
• In case a student fails in the annual exam, he/she is given extra training and made to appear for a re-exam. If this re-exam is not passed, the student can be detained in the class. 
• This amendment was made after many states complained that without regular exams, the learning levels of children could not be evaluated effectively. 
• The states which were against this amendment were six states with higher learning outcomes due to their effective implementation of the CCE system as mandated in the Act. (The six states were Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Goa, Telangana and Maharashtra.)
• It has been found that many states find it difficult to move to the CCE system of assessment. This is chiefly due to a lack of teachers’ training and orientation.
• Another criticism levelled against the Act is that instead of increasing the standards and outcomes of the public education system in India, it passes the buck to private schools with some respect.

Making the right to education a fundamental right took more than 6 decades after independence. Now, the government and all stakeholders should focus on the quality of education, and gradually move towards having a single educational system and platform across the country for all sections of society to foster equality, inclusion, and unity.

Kickstart your UPSC 2024   Preparation today!

Right to Education Act (RTE) – Indian Polity:- Download PDF Here

UPSC Questions related to the Right to Education Act (RTE)

What are the basic features of right to education act.

Some of the basic features of the RTE are:

• Free and compulsory education for all children in the age group 6 to 14.
• There will not be any detention or examination until elementary education is completed. However, there has been an amendment to this (as mentioned above in the criticisms of the Act).
• This makes providing education a legal obligation of the governments.
• It also makes it mandatory for all private schools to reserve 25% of their seats for the EWS and disadvantaged groups.

What is the age limit for RTE?

All children between the ages of 6 and 14 have the right to free education under the provisions of the Act.

What is Article 21 of the Constitution?

Article 21 deals with the right to life and personal liberty. It is a fundamental right. To know more click on Right to Life (Article 21) – Indian Polity Notes .

What is the importance of the right to education?

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Essay On Right To Education | Right To Education Essay for Students and Children in English

February 14, 2024 by sastry

Essay On Right To Education:  Education is the most effective tool and medium for human development. Education changes the mindset through a continuous process involving, research, experiment and innovation. Without such practices a nation cannot expect the future citizens of its country to be informed and creative.

You can read more  Essay Writing  about articles, events, people, sports, technology manymore.

Long and Short Essays on Right To Education for Kids and Students in English

Given below are two essays in English for students and children about the topic of ‘Right To Education’ in both long and short form. The first essay is a long essay on Right To Education of 400-500 words. This long essay about Right To Education is suitable for students of class 7, 8, 9 and 10, and also for competitive exam aspirants. The second essay is a short essay on Right To Education of 150-200 words. These are suitable for students and children in class 6 and below.

Long Essay on Right To Education 500 Words in English

Below we have given a long essay on Right To Education of 500 words is helpful for classes 7, 8, 9 and 10 and Competitive Exam Aspirants. This long essay on the topic is suitable for students of class 7 to class 10, and also for competitive exam aspirants.

“Education is a must thing” quoted modern political activist Malala Yousafzai. This quotes further justifies Aristotle’s words, “The educated differ from the Uneducated as much as the living differ from the dead.” These two quotes show the importance of education in everybody’s life. According to the Indian Sages, the aim of education is second birth.

We are born into the world of nature and necessity, we must be reborn into the world of spirit and freedom. This significance gave rise to Right To Education. The Right To Education is a Fundamental Right and is accorded the same legal status as the right to life as provided by Article 21A of the Indian Constitution. The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 is “An act to provide for free and compulsory education to all children of the age 6 to 14 years”.

The right of children to free and compulsory education came into force from 1 st April, 2010. According to the Act, every child in the age group of 6 to 14 years will be provided 8 years of elementary education in an age appropriate classroom in the vicinity of his/her neighbourhood.

According to the Act, any cost that prevents a child from accessing school will be borne by the state which shall have the responsibility of enrolling the child as well as ensuring completion of 8 years of schooling. No child shall be denied admission for want of documents; or shall be turned away if the admission cycle in the school is over and no child shall be asked to take an admission test.

This would apply to all schools, private or even Navodaya schools. The act restricts schools to claim special category status because it indulges in screening procedures at the elementary level. Moreover, if the number of children applying to a school exceeds the available seats, an open lottery system shall be used to fill the seats. This applies to all categories of schools.

Children with disabilities will also be educated in the mainstream schools. Section (10) of the Act makes it the duty of the parents to ensure that their children go to schools, without prescribing any punishment. Special provisions are laid for children not admitted to school or who have not completed elementary education; a child so admitted to elementary education will be entitled to completion of elementary education even after 14 years.

“Tens of millions of children will benefit from this initiative ensuring quality education with equity,” said Karin Hulshof, UNICEF representative of India. This right will propel India to greater heights of prosperity and productivity. However, for child labour and street children, the government would have to ensure that they are not compelled to work and schools are provided to them, along with residential facilities to provide them with an appropriate environment to enable them to continue their education.

This means parents and communities who traditionally forbid their adolescent girls from going to school or indulge in child marriage would have to be persuaded, or the child marriages act would need to be invoked against them.

Short Essay on Right To Education 250 Words in English

Below we have given a short essay on Right To Education is for Classes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. This short essay on the topic is suitable for students of class 6 and below.

On the basis of the Act, no school, governmental or private, can detain, fail or expel any child at the elementary stage. On 7 th April, 2010, the Delhi High Court gave a verdict against St. Xavier’s School, Delhi, which had to take back all the children they had declared failed and expelled from the school. Moreover, all private schools shall be required to enroll children from the weaker sections and disadvantaged communities in their class to the extent of 25% of their enrolment, by simple random selection. While no seats in this quota can be left vacant, these children will be treated at par with all the other children in the school and would be subsidised by the state at the rate of average per learner costs in the government schools.

The act also prescribes norms and standards for all schools and any school that does not fulfil these standards within 3 years will not be allowed to function. All private schools will have to apply for recognition, failing which they will be penalised up to ₹ 1 lakh and if they still continue to function, they will be liable to pay ₹ 10,000 per day as fine. In addition, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has been mandated to monitor the implementation of this right.

It has been observed that the Hindi speaking states: Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar have been the most half-hearted when it comes to implementation of the RTE (Right To Education) Act, despite the fact that most of out-of-school children (upto 67%) are from these states. Regarding this Indian Constitution clearly says that it cannot be left to the states to provide people their rights. It is clearly not lack of funds that is a hindrance in the implementation of RTE Act, but lack of intent and political will. To effectively implement the RTE Act, the Human Resource Development Ministry, Labour Ministry, Women and Child Development Ministry, Panchayati Raj Ministry and Rural Development Ministry have to work together to reach towards this goal. School management committees should take it upon themselves to spread awareness about the Act at the community level so that people are encouraged to send their children to school.

“Education is the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world”, said Nelson Mandela. So it is important for the country to nurture their children and young talent with the right education, so that India emerges as a strong and prosperous country.

Right To Education Essay Word Meanings for Simple Understanding

• Innovation – advancement, a new method or idea,
• Sages – (especially in ancient history) a profoundly wise man
• Elementary – basic, starting level
• Mainstream – typical, normal
• Propel – drive or push something forward, to urge onwards
• Prosperity – success, being wealthy,
• Forbid – stop, ban, prevent
• Expelled – disqualified, officially make (someone) leave a school or other organisation
• Mandate – directed, go- ahead, commanded
• Hindrance – barrier, obstacle, difficulty
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