NHRC's National Conference on Human Rights Education at School Level

The NHRC, which strongly believes that children must be taught about human rights, has worked closely on this with the Ministry of Human Resource Development, the National Council for Education, Research and Training (NCERT) and the National Council for Teaching Education (NCTE), while sensitising the State Councils for Education and Training about their responsibilities in the preparation of textbooks. On the 20th March in New Delhi, the Commission hosted a national conference on "Human Rights Education at School Level" to assess where matters stand.

The conference brought together jurists, educationists, representatives of academic bodies and NGOs with Members and officers of the NHRC and State Human Rights Commissions. It was divided into three technical sessions, on 'Human Rights Education at School Level: Policies and Perspective', 'Present Status in Respect of Curricula' and 'Textbooks and Plan of Action for Central/State Governments/Education Boards'.

At the inaugural session, explaining why human rights education was important, and what needed to be done, the NHRC's Chairperson, Justice S. Rajendra Babu, made these points:

" If students are sensitized about human rights, they can become instruments for social justice and development
" Human rights education is necessary for the promotion and achievement of stable and harmonious relations among the communities
" Human rights education should include a profound reform in the process of education, including changes in curriculum, textbooks, teaching methodology, class management, pre-service training and organization of the education system at all levels.

Dr. Deepak Nayyar, Member of the National Knowledge Commission, who delivered the key-note address, reminded participants that there could be no rights without duties and both must be internalized, hence the importance of teaching these in school, but he also made the very important point that there were three aspects to the theme of the conference - education as a human right, education for human rights, and human rights in educational institutions. It was important to focus on all three.

Dr. Shantha Sinha, Chairperson, National Commission for Protection of Child Rights, agreed that human rights education must go along with the right to education. The rights and interests of children, already under strain from a heavy curriculum, must be protected, and quality education that instilled the values of democracy, secularism and human rights was preferable to the introduction of a separate subject on human rights. And, if the objective was to steep future generations in these values, human rights education in schools would not serve the purpose unless a framework could be found that would cover child labour, street children, deprived children, and children in juvenile justice homes.

Mrs. Anshu Vaish, Secretary, Ministry of Human Resource Development, emphasized that teachers needed to learn about, practice and internalize human rights as much as their students, and it could not therefore be treated like any other subject. Teacher education and training assumed a special significance, and she commended the NHRC's Module on Human Rights Education for School Teachers. School practices had to reflect democratic, secular values that students could imbibe. She hoped that Parliament would pass the Right to Education Bill at the earliest.

A wide range of views emerged in the discussions:

" A holistic review was needed of the state of human rights education at various levels;
" Human rights education should be introduced in the curriculum at school level in a child-friendly manner;
" Human rights education should be included in the national literacy mission;
" Each state should draft a policy and plan for the implementation and monitoring of human rights education at the school level;
" Ways must be found to reach out to children who are not in school;
" Policy-makers should ensure that teachers are child-friendly;
" Human rights education could be blended into the teaching of other subjects;
" NHRC publications on human rights education at the school level could be used to design a syllabus.