Numerous international conventions have recognized the right to education as a human right, such as the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, which acknowledges that everyone has the right to free primary education, that everyone has an obligation to make secondary education accessible to everyone by introducing free secondary education gradually, and that everyone has an obligation to create equitable access to higher education, ideally through the introduction of free higher education. 171 nations had ratified the Covenant as of 2021.
A significant contributing factor to the revised number of 250 million out-of-school children in 2021 was social inequality. In 2023, 16% of young people worldwide did not attend any kind of school, with 1 out of 10 youngsters not attending basic school. Girls and young women made up 48% of the population that did not attend school. The Human Rights Measurement Initiative calculates each nation's entitlement to education according to its financial level.
Right to Education: Definition
The ability to obtain official institutional instruction is known as education. The phrase is often used in this sense in international documents, and the right to education, as guaranteed by international human rights instruments, mostly relates to education in this specific sense.
In a broader sense, education can refer to any activity that a human group does to pass on to its offspring a set of skills, knowledge, and moral principles that allow the group to survive. In this context, education is the process of passing on the social, cultural, spiritual, and philosophical values of a community to a future generation while also imparting the skills necessary to carry out everyday duties. Article 1(a) of UNESCO's 1974 Recommendation concerning Education for International Understanding, Co-operation, and Peace and Education related to Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms acknowledges the broader definition of education.
In a narrow sense, education is defined by the European Court of Human Rights as instruction or teaching, specifically related to intellectual growth and knowledge transfer. In a broader sense, education is the entire process through which adults in any society try to instill their values, beliefs, and culture in the younger generation.
Role of Education for Individual, the Society and the State
In order to protect everyone's dignity, education—formal, non-formal, and informal—is essential. According to the International Human Rights Law (IHRL), education's goals are all focused on advancing each person's rights and sense of dignity.
Within a society and the state, education's primary function is to:
- Encourage sustainable economic growth;
- Permit the passing down of culture, values, identity, languages, and customs from one generation to the next;
- Encourage peaceful and democratic communities;
- Foster a vibrant cultural life;
- Support social justice;
- Encourage involvement and inclusion in decision-making processes;
- Overcome enduring and entrenched obstacles;
- Encourage sustainable development, including environmental stewardship.
Why is the right to education fundamental?
The right to education benefits society as a whole as much as individuals. It is essential to human, social, and economic growth and is a crucial component of sustainable development and long-term peace. It is an effective instrument for maximizing each person's potential, upholding human dignity, and advancing both individual and group well-being.
In brief:
- It helps marginalized groups escape poverty;
- It is an essential tool for achieving other rights;
- It is an empowering right; and
- It supports the whole development of the human personality.
What is Education and the 4A’s?
Education must be available, accessible, acceptable, and flexible in order to be a real right. One of the greatest methods to evaluate and address the problem is to use the 4A’s, which were devised by Katarina Tomasevski, the former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education.
It should be mentioned right once, though, that these 4A’s are not absolute. Even though they are a very helpful method of describing the right to education in terms of concrete elements, they are not always the norm in all international agreements and should not be regarded as a general, all-inclusive guide to what the right to education means under all laws.
The government, as the primary duty-bearer, is responsible for upholding, protecting, and fulfilling the 4A’s. However, other actors in the educational process also have obligations, including the child, who is the bearer of the duty to comply with compulsory-education requirements; privileged subject of the right to education; who are the child's "first educators"; the child's parents, and professional educators, specifically teachers.
The 4A’s framework may be used as a tool to help individuals consider what the right to education means to them and contrast their actual situation with this ideal setting through a participatory approach.
- Availability: the fact that government-funded education is free, that there is sufficient infrastructure, and that qualified teachers are available to assist in the delivery of education.
- Accessibility: that the system is open to everyone, free from discrimination, and that efforts are made to include those who are most marginalized.
- Acceptability: that the curriculum is high-quality, nondiscriminatory, and culturally relevant; that the school is secure; and that the instructors are qualified.
- Adaptability: the ability of education to change to meet the demands of a changing society, help combat injustices like gender discrimination, and be regionally tailored to fit particular situations.
What are violations of the right to education?
States parties may violate the right to education by direct action (act of commission) or by neglecting to take legally mandated actions (act of omission).
Despite the fact that the great majority of nations have ratified international treaties acknowledging the complete right to education, millions of people worldwide continue to be denied it because of a lack of funding, ability, and political will. Some nations still lack the legislative and administrative structures necessary to guarantee that the right to education is implemented in reality, as well as the integration of the right to education into their national constitution. The majority of people and children who do not fully benefit from their right to an education are members of the most marginalized and disadvantaged social groups, who are frequently overlooked by national policy.
Conclusion
One of the most important human rights that shape people, communities, and countries is the right to education. It involves more than just learning; it involves promoting equality, decency, and sustainable development. Significant obstacles, including social inequity, a lack of funding, and insufficient legal frameworks, still stand in the way of its full implementation even after it has been acknowledged globally by international treaties and conventions. To guarantee that education is available, accessible, acceptable, and flexible for everyone, governments, educators, and communities must work together to address these issues. We cannot empower people, close social divides, and advance a more equitable and inclusive society unless we make a determined effort to protect this right.