Back Call for Schools to include Activities and Lessons concerning Vulnerable Children

Schools should include activities and lessons about and with children in all types of vulnerable situations, including those from minority groups, from refugee, internally displaced or migrant families, those with absent parents and those who are disabled or are from homes without the resources to pay for proper meals. This is part of a package of proposals put forward by education experts specialising in human rights and citizenship education at their last meeting, run by the Council of Europe in Baku, in the framework of Azerbaijan’s Chairmanship of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers (14 May - 13 November 2014).

Participants at the 21st meeting of the network of coordinators for citizenship and human rights education (held from 20-21 May 2014) recommended that the Council of Europe Programme on Citizenship and Human Rights Education should promote the integration of themes related to children in vulnerable situations in the curriculum, promote educational activities which raise awareness of children in vulnerable situations (with the participation of such children), pay special attention to children in vulnerable situations in its work on child participation and teacher training and facilitate exchange of good practice within and across countries.

Mr Jeyhun Bayramov, Deputy Minister of Education of the Republic of Azerbaijan, recalled that education was one of the top priorities of Azerbaijan’s Chairmanship, which had started and would end with a focus on education. Mr Bayramov stressed the importance of education in building bridges – and not barriers – between different countries. Mr Sjur Bergan, Head of the Education Department of the Council of Europe, recalled that the Organisation’s Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland had stated in his recent report that low investment in democratic culture and education was one of the key challenges to democracy in Europe today. More needed to be done, and the Council of Europe was committed to providing continued support for its member states. Mr David Lallemand, who delivered an address on behalf of Mr Bernard De Vos, Ombudsman for Children, Belgium, and Chairperson of the European Network of Ombudspersons for Children (ENOC), stressed that, even though 2014 was the 25th anniversary of the UN Convention on Children’s Rights, children rights were often not respected. He pointed out that the consequences of the economic crisis were particularly devastating for children, which would be the theme of the ENOC’s work in 2015.

Ms Gaye Doganoglu, Vice-President of the Council of Europe’s Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, shared information on the European Local Democracy Week and stressed the interest of the Congress in citizenship and human rights education. Further opportunities for cooperation between local and regional authorities and the coordinators for citizenship and human rights education will be explored during the 22nd meeting of the Network to be held in Strasbourg from 21 to 23 October 2014, which will focus on the role of local and regional authorities in supporting citizenship and human rights education.

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Baku (Azerbaijan) 20-21/05/2014
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