United Nations Convention On The Rights Of The Child Research Articles

The Political Dichotomy of School Leadership: Policy, Practice, Social Justice - Evidence from Sixteen Countries

Globally, schools continue to face ongoing reductions in budgetary allocations, increase in student numbers, performativity pressures and high stake accountability. Like it or not, schools/ school leaders are operating in rapidly changing national educational policy contexts that are demanding more from less and a much greater contribution to national economic development – leader some commentators and school leaders alike to suggest that schools are being reoriented towards national economic development and less towards social transformation, a fundamental aim of education as set out in the United Nations convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). This dichotomy is the site for several tensions occasioned by the approach to educational policy making, and the policy apparatus of national governments, played out in schools, where school leaders are caught between implementing government policy, delivering an education to students that equips them to reap the espoused benefits of education, and keeping staff engaged and motivated. How do school leaders lead for social justice in contexts where educational policy appear out of sync with social justice? How do school leaders lead in contexts where the good of the national ‘community’ appear to supersede the good of local communities and individuals? This paper examines the dichotomy of school leadership, brought about and sustained by national political actions which, although professing a ‘futures’ orientation, appears to be in conflict with quality school leadership and outcomes consistent with social justice.

Children at the centre of safety: challenging the false juxtaposition of protection and participation

Setting the scene: the principle of indivisible rights In total, 30 years on from the adoption of the United Nation Convention on the Rights of the Child (United Nations, 1989), the indivisible and mutually reinforcing relationship between children’s rights to both “protection” and participation is long-standing. Yet despite its longevity, the practical realisation of this relationship remains significantly under-explored. Child participation is variously understood as having a say, being involved in decision making and achieving influence (through words and actions): within personal lives, communities, practice, research and policy. Children’s rights to participation, enshrined in the 1989 United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), tend to be associated with children’s right to have their views taken into account in matters that affect them (Article 12), the rights to freedom of expression (Article 13), freedom of thought, conscience and religion (Article 14), the right to associate with others (Article 15), the right to privacy (Article 16) and the right to access information (Article 17). Crucially Article 12 as one of the general principles of the UNCRC, should be considered in the interpretation and implementation of all other rights. Meanwhile children’s rights to protection are more often related to rights explicitly focused on children’s physical and psychological safety. They are noted to draw attention to the special status of children due to their relative immaturity and associated dependency, vulnerability and potential defencelessness (Archard, 2004). Centrally this includes the three remaining general principles: children’s rights to protection from discrimination (Article 2), upholding their best interests in decision making (Article 3) and their right to survival and development (Article 6). Further rights address more specific forms of maltreatment and neglect, including physical and mental violence (Article 19), harmful work (Article 32); sexual abuse (Article 34) and cruel or harmful punishment (Article 37). Despite these perceived distinctions the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child helpfully draws attention to the interdependency of all children’s rights. Crucially for this journal, they provide guidance on the implementation of Article 12 (General Comment Number 12) which includes the statement that: Much of the violence perpetrated against children goes unchallenged both because certain forms of abusive behaviour are understood by children as accepted practices, and due to the lack of child-friendly reporting mechanisms […] Thus, effective inclusion of children in protective measures requires that children be informed about their right to be heard and to grow up free from all forms of physical and psychological violence. (United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, 2009, Paragraph 120) Furthermore General Comment 12 states that there can be no assessment of best interests without giving due weight to children’s views.’ Noting for example: Whenever a decision is made to remove a child from her or his family because the child is a victim of abuse or neglect within his or her home, the view of the child must be taken into account in order to determine the best interests of the child. (Paragraph 53)

Representation of Children’s Views in Finnish Newspaper Media Across Three Decades

As the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) celebrates its thirtieth anniversary, it is relevant to explore how understandings of children’s rights have appeared during these three decades. As a key public actor in society, the media provides an interesting field in which to study the salience of children’s rights in societal and public discussions. Thus, in this article, we examine how children’s views are represented in «Helsingin Sanomat», the main national newspaper of Finland, in 1997, 2007, and 2017. This examination is based on articles 12 and 13 of the UNCRC, where it is stated that children have the right to express themselves in all matters affecting them. The data collection for this article was based on a systematic random sampling method of these issues in the years mentioned above, and a systematic content analysis was also applied. The results show that, somewhat surprisingly, in 2017, less than a third of news stories concerning childhood and children reported children’s views on the matter, while in 2007, almost half of news stories reported on children’s views. Based on the data, it appears that macro-level issues remained within adults’ sphere of discussion during these years. English abstract Representation of Children’s Views in Finnish Newspaper Media Across Three Decades As the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) celebrates its thirtieth anniversary, it is relevant to explore how understandings of children’s rights have appeared during these three decades. As a key public actor in society, the media provides an interesting field in which to study the salience of children’s rights in societal and public discussions. Thus, in this article, we examine how children’s views are represented in «Helsingin Sanomat», the main national newspaper of Finland, in 1997, 2007, and 2017. This examination is based on articles 12 and 13 of the UNCRC, where it is stated that children have the right to express themselves in all matters affecting them. The data collection for this article was based on a systematic random sampling method of these issues in the years mentioned above, and a systematic content analysis was also applied. The results show that, somewhat surprisingly, in 2017, less than a third of news stories concerning childhood and children reported children’s views on the matter, while in 2007, almost half of news stories reported on children’s views. Based on the data, it appears that macro-level issues remained within adults’ sphere of discussion during these years.

Establishing a framework for listening to children in healthcare.

The principle that children and young people are capable of forming their own views, have the right to express those views, and are entitled to have those views taken seriously was introduced by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in 1989. The implications for the delivery of healthcare are clear; however, children and young people continue to experience difficulty in having their views heard and taken seriously during healthcare encounters and the effectiveness of the UNCRC, in particular Article 12 appears to be limited. This article will discuss how, 30 years on, significant barriers continue to impede the full implementation of Article 12. In recognition of the limited awareness of its scope or even existence by health professionals working with children, a framework that can facilitate a better understanding of the concept of voice, and articulate healthcare organisations' full responsibilities when it comes to Article 12, is presented.

An analysis of UNCRC article 22 and implications for the recognition of rights of refugee children

연구목적: 본 연구는 전쟁피해 난민아동의 권리보장을 위해 UNCRC에서 보장하는 4가지 권리를 고찰하고, 22조를 분석함으로써 전쟁피해 난민아동의 인권을 강화하기 위한 목적으로 이루어졌다. 방법: 첫째, Honneth의 인정이론에 근거한 사회적 인정관계 구조를 적용하여 UNCRC의 4가지 권리를 고찰하였으며, 둘째, Honneth의 3가지 인정유형을 적용하여 UNCRC 조약 중 전쟁피해 난민아동에 대한 내용이 담긴 22조의 각 조항을 분석하였다. 결과: 주요 분석결과는 다음과 같다. 첫째, Honneth의 인정규범이 전쟁피해 난민아동에게 적용되기 위해서는, 일국가주의를 지양하고 초국가적 관여가 요청되기 때문에 유입국가와 유엔의 관계를 구성하는 내용이 해당 조항에 적시되어야 함을 정리하였다. 둘째, Honneth의 권리인정의 측면에 고찰한 결과, 22조의 이행은 구호적인 차원에 머무를 수 있는 법리적 한계가 있음을 분석하였다. 마지막으로, 22조가 난민아동의 권리인정이 유입국가 내에서 이루어지기 위해서 유입국가와 난민아동과의 관계를 어떻게 구성할 것인가를 제시하였다. 결론: 분석결과를 바탕으로 전쟁피해 난민아동의 권리인정에 대한 비판적 고찰과 함의를 제시함으로써 전쟁폭력의 후유증을 해결하고 전쟁피해 난민아동의 권리를 강화하는 방향으로 나아갈 것을 제안하였다.Objectives: The purpose of this study is to examine the four rights guaranteed by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child(UNCRC) and to analyze Article 22 in order to strengthen the rights of refugee children who were victims of war. Methods: First, the four rights of the UNCRC were examined by applying a social recognition structure based on Honneth s recognition theory. Second, Article 22 was analyzed by applying Honneth s three recognition types. Results: The main findings of the study are as follows. First, we found that supranational involvement is required to solve the problem of infringement of war refugee children and actual rights can be guaranteed by relevant laws and regulations. Second, the three recognition norms and rights of Honneth s recognition theory was applied to the situations of war victims. As a result, the aid activities for refugee children were not sufficient as activities of recognizing rights. Third, in order to function as a transnational norm to promote the welfare of refugee children, it is necessary to consider how the influx of nations should form relations with refugee children. Finally, UNCRC Article 22 should consider how an influx of nations should structure their relationship with refugee children in order to function effectively as a transnational norm for the welfare of refugee children. Conclusions: Based on the results of this analysis, we suggest that we should focus on resolving the aftermath of war violence and strengthening the rights of refugee children.

Children’s Participation in Child Protection Practice in Ghana: Practitioners’ Recommendations for Practice

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) includes provisions to ensure that children and young people participate in decisions affecting their lives. Ghana ratified the convention in 1990 making a commitment to review its child protection policies and legislation in compliance with provisions in the UNCRC. Yet, national policies and legislation do not include practical guidelines to promote children’s participation in the child protection process. Thus, this qualitative study presents findings from in-depth interviews with 15 child protection practitioners on their views about some practical guidelines to promote children’s participation in child protection. Data from the interviews were subjected to constructivist grounded theory analysis. The study findings revealed the age of the child, separate room for children, creating a friendly environment and education as some important factors for practitioners to consider in promoting participatory practices for children. Child protection policies and legislation in Ghana should include these suggestions to ensure that children’s views are heard in the child protection process. To realize the overarching goal of achieving active child participation in child protection, further research may focus on the views of parents and children on how to develop culturally relevant strategies to promote child participation.

Comparing reunified and residential care facility children's wellbeing in Ghana: The role of hope

The U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) stipulates children are entitled to “a family environment…of happiness, love and understanding”. Recent work on deinstitutionalization of children from residential care has found important child wellbeing differences, particularly around hope. Using data from Ghana—a country that has initiated reintegration of children from residential care facilities, therefore providing a natural opportunity for comparative research—we used hope, whether the child has been reunified with family/caregivers or remained in the care facility, and a statistical interaction of the two, along with controls, to predict the Child Status Index, an internationally-established measure of child wellbeing. We found hope was associated with greater wellbeing for both groups; the influence of hope, however, was stronger among reunified children. We briefly articulate mechanisms explaining why this may be and suggest that psychological wellbeing, particularly hope, may function as a moderator to help provide children with an important means of negotiating their environments.

Play: Fostering relationships that inspire positive change in young people’s meaningful participation

Despite play’s recognition in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and evidence that play is beneficial to children’s development, and a vehicle to support realization of other children’s rights, it is one of the most neglected rights of the child. An overarching devalue of play has implications on its relationship with children’s participation rights and correspondingly the realization of young people’s meaningful participation. This article explores the interplay between the right to play and children’s participation rights. Drawing upon a participatory play-based research qualitative study with young people at a youth-driven child rights workshop entitled XXXX and interviews with adults, the article considers the role of play in relational development for meaningful participation, as well as the devalue of play across young people and adults. The article concludes with a discussion of the implications of findings and provides recommendations for the role of play to co-create transformative participatory environments in research, policy, and programs.

Barriers to Children's Participation in Child Protection Practice: The Views and Experiences of Practitioners in Ghana

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) includes provisions to ensure that children and young people have a say in decisions affecting their lives. Although a signatory to the UNCRC, Ghana is a nation where little empirical evidence has been gathered regarding the barriers that prevent children from participating in child protection. Thus, in this article, we report on findings from a qualitative study into the barriers to children's participation in child protection practice in Ghana. The study was based on qualitative interviews with 15 child protection practitioners, and a constructivist grounded theory approach was used to analyse data from the interviews. Intimidation, parental influence, communication problems, and confidentiality were identified as barriers to promoting participatory practices for children in the child protection process. The study findings suggest that engaging with children in separate rooms or spaces, away from the presence of parents and other adults, could help practitioners promote children's participation. It is recommended that practitioners should upgrade their skills for working with children by taking part in in-service training, workshops, and seminars to help address issues with communication. Practical actions suggested in this study may also be useful for other practitioners addressing similar issues.

Science in the fight to uphold the rights of children.

The United States is the only major nation to not yet have ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). Recently, there has been an erosion of the rights of children across America, Europe, and elsewhere, but through science, we may have an opportunity to counter some of this alarming trend. In the area of vaccines, the scientific community can raise its voice on the dangers that nonmedical exemptions and delays pose to children at risk for measles, influenza, and other childhood illnesses. Poverty places infants and children at high risk for illness and homelessness. Gun violence and gun-related accidents are killing on average four American children daily, and climate change is promoting global pediatric malnutrition. Increasing international, federal, and state support to seek innovative solutions to these and related issues is a moral imperative.

Rights for the World’s Children: Rädda Barnen and the Making of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

ABSTRACTThe UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) from 1989 remains the most widely ratified treaty on human rights and functions as a normative frame for myriads of actors working to promote the rights of children. The scholarship on the convention recognises that non-governmental organisations were crucial to the drafting of the treaty. Some of these accounts also single out the Swedish Save the Children Federation (Rädda Barnen) as significant for facilitating non-governmental cooperation and shaping the drafting group discussions. Drawing on archival and published first-hand sources, the paper adds to the available accounts, first by outlining some of the developments that led Rädda Barnen to embrace the concept of children’s rights in the 1970s and become involved in drafting of UNCRC in the 1980s. The paper then reveals how the organisation engaged creatively with the concept of children’s rights in the drafting process and succeeded in framing children in armed conflict and female genital mutilation as rights issues, effectively challenging some of the conventional boundaries of international human rights law. But the paper also points to the limits of Rädda Barnen’s influence and suggests that its creative engagement took place within a relatively conventional framework of child protection.

A Family Strengthening and Sponsorship Demonstration Model in India

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) states that in order to reach full and harmonious development, a child should grow up in a family environment and whenever possible, with their biological family. If the biological family is unable to care for the child, she is best cared for in a family or family-like setting, rather than in an institution. This prioritisation of care options is reflected in all Indian child protection legislation including the Juvenile Justice Act (Child Care & Protection) 2015 and the Integrated Child Protection Scheme, 2014 and supplemented by the Rules and Guidelines issued by the Government of India under this law. Recently, in 2017, the Supreme Court of India has issued directions6 to the Government and the Ministry of Women and Children Development to look at possibilities of family strengthening. This article is an analysis of a State sponsored scheme in Rajasthan, the Palanhar Yojana, which has been successful in demonstrating the success of the scheme as an instrument of family strengthening. The article analyses the assessment survey of about 366 Palanhar Yojana (Caregiver Scheme)7 beneficiary families in the city of Udaipur in Rajasthan, with the aim of creating an evidence-based foundation on which to design community-oriented family preservation/strengthen services. The conclusion of the article offers the concept for a family strengthening model as derived from the results of the survey. The intent is to add an applied value to the article.

Successful futures? New economy business logics, child rights, and Welsh educational reform

The well-documented global economic disinvestment in schooling necessitates critical examination of policy discourses that influence educational systems and student learning. Situated within the critical policy studies tradition, the present study conducted a critical discourse analysis of the Donaldson Report (2015), a proposed comprehensive Welsh learning and accountability system. We begin with a brief discussion of research focused on global accountability reform within the new economy. To situate the Donaldson Report within this research, we review literature on reforms within the United Kingdom, with special attention to the Welsh educational policy context, which also includes incorporation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) into national policy. Findings highlight a limited Report focus on core educational rights embodied within the UNCRC and recommendations for a new system that leans toward a more technocratic and performance orientation. We conclude with implications for the exercise of children’s rights within Welsh schooling.

The UNCRC: The Voice of Global Consensus on Children’s Rights?

ABSTRACTThat the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) encompasses contradictions is known. Despite this knowledge, attention to conflicting aspects within the convention is limited, and instead, the assumption that the convention represents an international consensus on the meaning of children’s human rights seems to be widespread in policy and academic work. Furthermore, the available literature within the field of children’s rights is largely silent regarding precise and elaborated knowledge about the inherent contradictions within the UNCRC. This paper expands upon and specifies the knowledge about consensus and inconsistencies within the convention. Through an in-depth study of the drafting process of the UNCRC, the paper identifies and displays both contradictions within the convention, and ways in which the text of the convention can be seen to express consensus. The analysis shows how a certain consensus was produced for respectively civil and political rights, and socio-economic rights, but that different and inconsistent children’s rights logics underlay the formation of these respective consensus-formations.

Protection of Children's Human Rights and Health: A Legacy of Julian Kramsztyk, Janusz Korczak, and Ludwik Rajchman.

Tutor of generations of Warsaw medical doctors, Julian Kramsztyk (1851-1926) was son of Rabbi Izaak Kramsztyk, Polish patriot and fighter for independent Poland. Julian Kramsztyk graduated in medicine from Warsaw University in 1873 to soon work as a supervisor of the Internal Diseases Department of Bersohns and Baumans Children’s Hospital from 1878 to 1910, and despite of refusing professorship from Imperial Warsaw University, he worked as a lecturer of pediatric disorders from 1880 with strong association of his medical practice with scientific and editorial tasks as well as engaging in charity. This article focuses on selective retrieval of biographical data of social and scientific achievements of followers of Julian Kramsztyk: his student, pioneer of children human rights, and pioneer of healthy patterns of nutrition of children, pediatrician Janusz Korczak (Henryk Goldszmit; 1878 or 1879-1942); and a skilled bacteriologist and a brilliant epidemiologist who was a prominent activist of the League of Nations (later United Nations Organization), cofounder of the UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund), and the first chairman of the Organization from 1946 to 1950, which was primarily dedicated to “provide emergency food and health care to children in postwar time,” Ludwik Rajchman (1881-1965). Janusz Korczak works laid foundation for international recognition of children rights to health, respect, education, privacy, and all the other human rights to be included in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). In 1989, nutrition and vaccination issues were the main medical interests of these medical doctors and still remain major fields of UNICEF actions.

A moral case for universal healthcare for runaway and homeless youth

PurposeRunaway and homeless youth (RHY) are among the most vulnerable youth globally. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) states that all children have the right to the highest level of health, and that universal healthcare rights are afforded to RHY and all children. Social determinants of health (SDH) are universal factors that frame the experiences of RHY as facilitators or barriers for accessing healthcare. The purpose of this paper is to describe practical best approaches, and policy recommendations, for improving clinical care systems to make healthcare more accessible to RHY.Design/methodology/approachThe authors describe and apply an adapted socio-ecological framework that includes SDH specific to RHY around the globe.FindingsThere are multiple and complex factors in the social ecology of RHY that determine their chances of accessing healthcare. While many intrapersonal reasons for homelessness are the same globally, systems of care vary by country and by developing/developed country status. Structurally competent care systems offer a new lens for how to best provide care to RHY to take into account SDH and the unique needs of RHY.Originality/valueThe UNCRC serves as a moral guide and frame of universal child healthcare provision for countries around the world. The authors uniquely argue for UNCRC, tailored-SDH, and care delivered in a structurally competent manner to make a moral case for both physical and mental health for all RHY.

Language, Culture, and Early Childhood: Indigenous Children’s Rights in a Time of Transformation

Article 30 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) sets out the rights of Indigenous and minority children to learn about and practice their own culture, religion, and language in countries where these practices are not shared by the majority of the population. The provisions of Article 30 are particularly relevant in nations such as Canada that are built upon a history of colonization, where for generations Indigenous children have been dispossessed of their cultures, languages, territories, family and community ties—all of the foundational elements of healthy and whole Indigenous identities. The colonization of the life-worlds of Indigenous children represents, in short, a primary mechanism through which nations have attempted to eliminate and assimilate the Indigenous populations within their borders, with devastating multi-generational consequences for surviving Indigenous peoples.

Development of a Child Evaluation Framework for Early Childhood Services Using Deliberative Democratic Evaluation and the Mosaic Approach

The purpose of this article is to present an evaluation design for the development of a Child Evaluation Framework (Framework). If implemented, this Framework would give four to six year old children attending early childhood services in an Australian context the capacity to impact upon the design and delivery of their early childhood service. As highlighted, the current lack of ability for children to have a voice and participate in the evaluation of their early childhood service infringes upon their rights under Article 12 of the 1989 United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) which calls for the child's right to freedom of expression and information, and for participation. It is hoped that the successful development and implementation of this design would advance child participation rights and child empowerment. The design utilises the principles of deliberative democratic evaluation, and methodologies advocated within the mosaic approach to researching with young children.

Research-based Reflections on How the Educational, Economic and Social Circumstances Faced by Some Children and Young People Can Lead to Significant Disadvantage and Vulnerability

Abstract The paper provides detailed reflections on the educational, economic and social circumstances that impact on the lives of many disadvantaged and vulnerable children and young people. Drawing largely on primary research data collected in Romania, Germany and the United Kingdom, three illustrative case studies are presented for consideration focusing on: life in residential care and youth offending institutions; experiences of educational vulnerability; and human trafficking. The methodological approach adopted across the research projects explored, was shaped by the demands and expectations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). All of the reported data reflects the views of children and young people who were interviewed as part of three research projects. It is argued that the difficult and challenging circumstances that many children and young people find themselves in, place them at significant disadvantage and increased vulnerability in terms of their social and educational development and life chances.

The diffusion of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) more than the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC) in Africa: The influence of coercion and emulation

In 1989, the United Nations adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), a seminal instrument in protecting the rights of children. Uniquely, this convention was the only one to receive near universal ratification, with African countries comprising half of the first 20 to sign the convention. Ghana was first among these countries to ratify the convention. This set off a bandwagon effect of other African countries quickly ratifying the convention. However, a year later, African governments reacted to their low involvement in the drafting process of the UNCRC and also to what they thought to be an inadequate representation of the real experience of the African child in the UNCRC. Consequently, this group adopted their own version of the convention – the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC). However, unlike the experience with the UNCRC, African nations were not quick to ratify their own Charter; the ACRWC is hardly discussed in public and policy forums in Africa, and its use among those charged with the protection of children is minimal. Using the lenses of policy diffusion, I assess the influence of coercion and emulation mechanisms on privileging the UNCRC which is used as the main organizing framework for child rights in most African countries. Additionally, I look at how Ghana’s political reputation influenced other African adopters, an effect which was not replicated with the ratification of the ACRWC. Implications for social work research, policy and practice are discussed.