[1]  

 

Forum: Commission II on Education

Issue: Resolving the educational discrimination in regions with a substantial minority

population with emphasis on indigenous peoples and minorities with different ethnic

backgrounds.

Background Information:

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) emphasizes the principle of non-

discrimination and states that every person has the right to education. The

discrimination in education violates the rights acknowledged in the Declaration. There

are many different types of educational discrimination; in this commission, we will be

focusing on discrimination against indigenous peoples and minorities with different

ethnic backgrounds. Educational discrimination against ethnic minorities could be

considered as the following:

• “Failing to take action to overcome language barriers that impede equal

participation in a school district's educational programs,

• Deliberately segregating on the basis of race, color or national origin,

• Discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin in employment,

employment conditions and assignment of faculty and staff,

• Transferring students in order to increase segregation on the basis of race,

color or national origin among a district's schools.”(1)

The term discrimination will be referred to as the following throughout this report:

“any distinction, exclusion, limitation or preference which, being based on race, colour,

sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, economic

condition or birth, has the purpose or effect of nullifying or impairing equality of

treatment in education and in particular:

[2]  

 

(a) Of depriving any person or group of persons of access to education of any type or at

any level;

(b) Of limiting any person or group of persons to education of an inferior standard;

(c) Of establishing or maintain separate educational systems or institutions for persons

or groups of persons; or

(d) Of inflicting on any person or group of persons conditions which are incompatible

with the dignity of man.”(2)

The term education will be referred to in the following ways throughout this report: the

types and levels of education, access to education, the standard/quality of education,

and the conditions under which education is given.

Throughout history, have been facing social exclusion and marginalization. They are

considered to be part of the poor and extremely poor. Their levels of access to basic

needs such as adequate health and education services are below national averages.

They are exposed to the consequences of environmental degradation. Both indigenous

peoples and minorities with different ethnic backgrounds suffer not only morally

degrading experiences, but are excluded from basic rights and requests.

A countries level of development is identified through three factors: life expectancy,

education and standard of living. It is a measure of welfare in a country. The scope of

economic development includes the economic, political and social well-being of people.

When these are kept in mind, it could be said that education of the people in a country

plays a major role in the development level of a country. If a country seeks further

development, it needs to give priority attention to the situation of indigenous peoples

and minorities.

Related Countries:

USA: Concerning the educational discrimination of minorities with different ethnic

backgrounds, the United States was the first country to make religious freedom part of

its fundamental law. The Supreme Court has refined the ways in which people may

practice and express their religious convictions throughout the years. This process is

common where public schooling and religion intersect. Racial discrimination in

[3]  

 

education is prohibited by Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title VI protects people

from discrimination based on race, color or national origin in programs or activities that

receive federal financial assistance. According to Title VI, no one in the United States

will be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to

discrimination on the basis of their race, color or national origin, under any program or

activity receiving Federal financial assistance.

The IDB (Inter-American Development Bank), was established in 1959 in order to

support the process of economic and social development, focusing on Latin America

and the Caribbean. It is currently the main source of multilateral financing in the region.

Providing solutions to development challenges by partnering with governments,

companies and civil society organizations, it reaches its clients ranging from central

governments to city authorities and businesses. Bank authorities state that the

institution doesn’t aim to solely increase the number of small scale initiatives that are a

direct response to a specific indigenous need, but to also routinely include indigenous

concerns in the operations that constitute the core of the Bank’s work; the large scale

national or regional projects in education.

Another main transnational network organization that deals with indigenous peoples is

the IPACC (the Indigenous Peoples of Africa Co-ordinating Committee). The committee

is a messenger of African indigenous peoples in dialogues with governments and

bodies such as the UN.

Solutions:

In order to ensure that indigenous peoples have universal access to quality, culturally-

sensitive social services, policies must be imposed in the areas of inter-cultural/bilingual

education and culturally sensitive maternal and child healthcare, which are areas of

concern for many. Any change in educational systems must be compatible with

indigenous cosmogony and cultures, considering that this support is essential in

strengthening identity.

It was decided by many states that the following practices should be permitted:

[4]  

 

• Students praying during school hours if they don’t disrupt classroom instruction

or other educational activities;

• Transportation of students to private, sectarian schools at public expense;

• Public purchase of secular textbooks for use in religious schools;

• Use of school facilities by religious organizations in accordance with policies that

also allow non-religious groups to use these facilities;

• Release of students from schools to attend religious instruction classes;

• Provision of a signer for a deaf student in a religious school at public expense;

• Permission for student organized religious clubs to meet on school property

before or after school hours.

It was decided by many states that the following practices should be prohibited:

• Sending public school teachers into private, sectarian schools to provide

remedial instruction;

• Providing a publicly funded salary supplement to teachers in religious schools.

The solutions that UNESCO suggested are the following:

• “To make primary education free and compulsory; make secondary

education in its different forms generally available and accessible to all;

make higher education equally accessible to all on the basis of individual

capacity; assure compliance by all with the obligation to attend school

prescribed by law;

• To ensure that the standards of education are equivalent in all public

educational institutions of the same level, and that the conditions relating to

the quality of the education provided are also equivalent;

• To encourage and intensify by appropriate methods the education of

persons who have not received any primary education or who have not

[5]  

 

completed the entire primary education course and the continuation of their

education on the basis of individual capacity;

• To provide training for the teaching profession without discrimination.”(3)

UN involvement:

“The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are eight goals to be achieved by 2015

that respond to the world's main development challenges. The MDGs are drawn from

the actions and targets contained in the Millennium Declaration that was adopted by

189 nations-and signed by 147 heads of state and governments during the UN Millennium Summit in September 2000.”(4)

The Millennium Development Goal that relates to our issue is the second one, which

aims to achieve universal primary education. The target under this goal is to ensure that

all boys and girls complete a full course of primary education, which would be measured

through the net enrolment ratio in primary education, the proportion of pupils starting

grade 1 who reach last grade of primary, and the literacy rate of 15-24 year-olds both

men and women. The Millennium Development Goals don’t emphasize indigenous

peoples particularly, but some figures illustrate the situation that these people face

around the world: they number about 300-700 million, even though the comprise only

5% of the world’s total population, they make up 15% of the world’s poor and about one

third of the world’s 900 million extremely poor rural people. They face significant

differences in terms of access to and quality of education and health. For example, in

Guatemala, it is seen that 53.5% of indigenous young people between ages 15-19

haven’t completed primary education, as compared to 32.2% of non-indigenous youth.

One of the most significant ways in which the United Nations is involved with this issue

is through UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural

Organization), which

“has the purpose of instituting collaboration among the nations with a view to furthering

[6]  

 

for all universal respect for human rights and equality of educational opportunity. It aims

to promote equality of opportunity and treatment for everyone in education.”(5)

If permitted in a state, according to the convention, the following will not be considered

as discrimination:

• the establishment of separate educational systems/institutions for students of the

two sexes, if the systems offer equivalent access to education, provide staff with

qualifications of the same standard, as well as school premises and equipment of

the same quality, and offer the same or equivalent courses of study;

• the establishment of maintenance, for religious or linguistic reasons, of separate

educational systems/institutions that offer education which attends to the wishes

of the students’ parents or legal guardians, if participation in these systems is

optional, and if the education provided conforms to such standards as they may

be approved by the competent authorities,

• the establishment or maintenance of private educational institutions, if they have

the object not to secure the exclusion of any group, but to provide educational

facilities in addition to those already provided by public authorities.

The UNPFII (United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues) is another

advisory body under the United Nations that emphasizes educational discrimination

towards indigenous peoples. Focusing on indigenous issues related to economic and

social development, culture, the environment, education, health and human rights, the

UNPFII is proof that although they are not new to the UN, issues on indigenous peoples’

is increasing. The forum consists of 16-members, is half government-nominated and

half indigenous-nominated, and is authorized to advise ECOSOC and the UN system on

issues about indigenous peoples, in order to raise awareness and produce material.

The fourth session of the UNPFII focused particularly on the first (eradicating extreme

poverty) and second (promoting universal primary education) Millennium Development

Goals. During the session, it was stated that the MDG process may lead to accelerated

loss of land and natural resources, and accelerated assimilation, which would lead to

[7]  

 

the worsening of the marginalization, discrimination and further impoverishment of

indigenous peoples.

WORKS CITED

(1) http://civil-rights.lawyers.com/Educational-Opportunities-Discrimination.html

(2) http://www.unesco.org/education/pdf/DISCRI_E.PDF

(3) http://www.unesco.org/education/pdf/DISCRI_E.PDF

(4) http://www.undp.org/mdg/basics.shtml

(5)http://www.unesco.org/education/pdf/DISCRI_E.PDF

[8]  

 

USEFUL LINKS

http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/en/mdgs.html

http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/documents/workshop_IPPMDG_ifad_indigenous_e

n.pdf

http://public.findlaw.com/civil-rights/more-civil-rights-topics/religion-discrimination-

more/le7_i.html

http://public.findlaw.com/civil-rights/more-civil-rights-topics/religion-discrimination-

more/faq146.html

http://public.findlaw.com/civil-rights/race-discrimination/race-discrimination-education-

overview.html

http://civil-rights.lawyers.com/Educational-Opportunities-Discrimination.html

http://www.unesco.org/education/pdf/DISCRI_E.PDF

http://www.iadb.org/aboutus/

http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/en/session_fourth.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indigenous_peoples

http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/statesmeeting/rulesofprocedure.html

http://www.unesco.org/en/education

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ticuna_language

http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/documents/workshop_IPPMDG_ifad_indigenous_e

n.pdf

[9]  

 

Forum: Commission II (Education)

Issue: Providing UN aid to LEDC’s with the aim of helping them develop

successful, efficient national education programs

INTRODUCTION

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” as

Nelson Mandela has once said.

With respect to this philosophy, we, as the Commission II, will deal with United

Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) branch of

education and our primary focus will be providing education to all human beings without

any type of discrimination. Our base is the Article 26 of the 1948 Universal Declaration

of Human Rights which reads as “everyone has the right to education”. No matter how

simple this idea sounds, there are currently millions of people lacking access to schools,

teachers and even books. Unfortunately, the situation is appalling in Less Economically

Developed Countries (LEDCs).

Representatives from 164 Member States met in 2000 in Dakar, Senegal and

decided to implement six “Education for All” goals by 2015. The very same decisions

were taken in the Millennium Development Goals adopted in 2000. The second United

Nations Millennium Development Goal is to achieve universal primary education: “to

ensure that by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike will be able to complete a

full course of primary schooling."

Now, reviewing the current situation when illiteracy is common in developing

countries and most of the Member States struggle to adjust themselves to the rapid

[10]  

 

changes on the world technology, it is imperative for UNESCO to ensure equal

distribution of opportunities for all in order to give every human being the chance to

survive. Thus; education, the key to survival, should be the main focus of the

organization.

Although several projects have being initiated, there is still need for more efficient

actions to be taken and this is our commission’s duty to achieve this goal.

DEFINITION OF KEY TERMS:

LEDCs:

This is the abbreviation of Less Economically Developed Countries. Currently LEDCs

consist of Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina,

Armenia, Azerbaijan, The Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize,

Benin, Bhutan, Bolivi, Botswana, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina

Faso, Burma, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic,

Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic

of the Congo, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican

Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Estonia, Eritrea, Ethiopia,

Fiji, Gabon, The Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-

Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Indonesia, India, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica,

Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia, Lebanon,

Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Lithuania, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia,

Maldives, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Moldova,

Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Nicaragua,

Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru,

Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Samoa, São Tomé and

Príncipe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands,

South Africa, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and

the Grenadines, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Syria, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand,

Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan,

[11]  

 

Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu,

Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

MEDCs:

It is the abbreviation of More Economically Developed Countries.

Gross Enrollment Ratio

Total enrollment in primary education as a percentage of the population.

GENERAL OVERVIEW:

Everybody has a right to receive education, however currently 75 million children

and 774 million adults are missing the adequate amount of quality education, according

to UNESCO. These huge numbers appall us, as illiteracy is almost unacceptable in

developed world. However, in LEDCs these rates are unfortunately high.

It should be noted that education is not only about being able to read. It is the key

to fight poverty. Education gives people the chance to work and earn their own money

which eventually empowers their both economic and social status. Thus; in 21st century

when poverty rates are rapidly increasing especially in LEDCs, education should have

top priority in all Member States’ policies.

The Global Campaign for Education notes that continuous economic growth

cannot be obtained unless 40% of the population of a Member State can read and write.

On the other hand, education provides a more healthy generation as a literate mother’s

child has 50% more chance to survive till the age of 5. Additionally, considering the

prevalence of HIV/AIDS in especially Sub-Saharan Africa, education can save great

number of people from dying from different epidemics.

Governments of LEDCs struggle to adopt the true policy on education as they

are often misled. For a long time period, most of the economic analysts misled the

society and governments by claiming that investments on institutions do not provide any

[12]  

 

benefits but harm on citizens’ economy. Thus, the main problem in these countries is

that although primary and secondary schools are present in most of them, higher

education classes almost do not exist which causes drastic education disparities

between them and MEDCs. The reliability on education centers should be regained and

societies should believe in long term profits that will come from a well qualified

education system.

Education is also necessary for governments to learn ways to benefit from world

economy. Obviously, education is not only for personal development but also for

political competition.

Here are some reasons for non-access to education:

a) Lack of Consistent Faculty:

In order to establish high education institutions, reliable faculty is imperative as

they are the milestones of spread of education. Their consistent existence encourages

both the students and the other teachers to teach and/or learn. However, taking limited

amount of wage provided for them into consideration, it is not surprising to see their

unwillingness to teach. Unless adequately qualified life standards are implemented in

institutions and faculty is motivated, an efficient faculty is impossible.

b) Challenges faced by students:

Considering the fact that in most LEDCs political instability and consistent chaos

form two main problems of the society, it is unrealistic to assume appropriate

atmosphere for education is reached. Students face numerous difficulties while studying

and as a response to these unendurable living conditions they simply quit.

Overcrowded schools and classes and inadequate study materials are also the

other problems faced by prospective high education class students. In most cases,

students’ will to study does not overcome their struggles and the question becomes

whether they can or not study. Thus, many special students who are capable of

studying become incapable to afford or receive education.

[13]  

 

c) Insufficient Resources:

Importantly, funding in LEDCs is inadequate and because of the income

disparities between governments the budget specified for education differs according to

governments’ economic situations. As a result of these, education materials and any

resources needed for the establishment of education centers are insufficient. As a chain

reaction, lack of resources cause a great damage on governments’ education systems.

Another aspect of the financial reasons is governments’ prioritization of societies’

needs. Unless education is listed as one of the primary focuses of the governments, the

fair distribution of their budget is impossible. Thus, policy renewal should be considered

for further developments.

On the other hand, apart from these struggles there are several internal problems faced

within the society that decrease the gross enrollment rates. Some of these problems are

listed below:

a) Marginalized Groups:

While reviewing education level in society, it is obtained that some groups need

more attention than the others as they lack access to education because of their social,

political or economical status. The most vulnerable group is females as currently 55% of

children who are not going to school are made of girls and 2/3 of illiterate people consist

of women. Moreover, indigenous populations, rural groups, people lacking family care

like street children, migrants and nomads, the peoples with disabilities and linguistic and

cultural minorities.

According to the Global Campaign for Education a third of children without any

access to education consists of disabled children.

b) Academic Freedom:

[14]  

 

Academic freedom is defined as “the right of scholars to pursue their research, to

teach, and to publish without control or restraint from the institutions that employ them”

in the Columbia Encyclopedia. Academic freedom is a milestone towards efficiently

working education centers. It can be obtained only by governments’ especially legal

support and it is vital in all LEDCs in order to integrate education fully in governments’

policies.

c) Shared Governance:

Faculty should be given the right to determine education centers’ policies in order to

provide a free environment for students and teachers without any pressure from the

governments or any political conflicts.

d) Language:

As a result of long years of colonization in most of the developing countries there is

not a monolingual environment but rather multilingual settings. Thus, great portion of the

society cannot attend classes, as their tribunal language is not spoken in education

areas. No special education classes exist for them.

TIMELINE OF EVENTS:

• 5-9 March 1990

The World Conference on Education for All: Delegates from 155 Member States and

representatives from 150 Non-Governmental Organizations attended the conference in

Jomtien, Thailand. They have decided to spread primary education in global level and

increase level of illiteracy all around the world before the end of the decade.

• April 2000

The World Education Forum took place in Dakar, Senegal. Attendants adopted the

Dakar Framework for Action and pledged to achieve Education for All by the year 2015.

[15]  

 

THE SIX EDUCATION GOALS ARE:

1) Expanding and improving comprehensive early childhood care and education,

especially for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children

2) Ensuring that by 2015 all children, particularly girls, children in difficult

circumstances and those belonging to ethnic minorities, have access to, and

complete, free and compulsory primary education of good quality.

3) Ensuring that the learning needs of all young people and adults are met through

equitable access to appropriate learning and life-skills programmes

4) Achieving a 50 per cent improvement in levels of adult literacy by 2015,

especially for women, and equitable access to basic and continuing education for

all adults.

5) Eliminating gender disparities in primary and secondary education by 2005, and

achieving gender equality in education by 2015, with a focus on ensuring girls’

full and equal access to and achievement in basic education of good quality.

6) Improving all aspects of the quality of education and ensuring excellence of all so

that recognized and measurable learning outcomes are achieved by all,

especially in literacy, numeracy and essential life skills.

(official listing taken from: http://portal.unesco.org/education/en/ev.php-

URL_ID=43811&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html)

UN INVOLVEMENT, RELEVANT RESOLUTIONS, TREATIES AND EVENTS:

There are several ongoing projects on improving education level in LEDCs. The

primary focus of our commission should be the ways to improve these projects, as

currently education is still a problem in these countries.

1) EDUCATION FOR ALL (EFA):

[16]  

 

The Education for All movement is a global project aiming to provide education for

all human beings in all regions without any trace of discrimination. This movement was

initiated in 1990 after the World Conference on Education for All by UNESCO, the

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Population Fund

(UNFPA), The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the WB. The attendants

promised to reach their education goals by 2000. However, as the goals were not

reached in most countries, these organizations met again in Dakar, Senegal. This time,

they have adopted six goals to be reached by 2015.

2) THE GLOBAL CAMPAIGN FOR EDUCATION (GCE):

This campaign’s main purpose is to inform international community about the current

problems on education and create mental pressure on governments with the help of

international support.

The campaign organizes the Global Action Week each year which is when most

intensive campaign take place. This year, it will be from 19-25 April 2010.

3) THE BIG READ:

The Big Read is a branch of the GCE. Its main purpose was to gather signature’s for

a petition to achieve the education goals by 2015. It also offered a book consisting of

volunteers’ stories in order to give illiterate people the chance to read them. Its main

purpose was to activate the societies in UNESCO’s projects.

4) RIGHT TO EDUCATION PROJECT:

This project consists of an Advisory Panel on the question and aims for social

mobilization and overcoming legal challenges on the topic.

5) THE TASK FORCE ON HIGHER EDUCATION AND SOCIETY:

This was a program conducted by education experts from 13 countries and is

initiated by UNESCO and the World Bank (WB). It lasted for 18 fruitful months of these

experts densely discussing on their assigned issues. Their aim was to determine the

[17]  

 

future of education in LEDCs. As a fruit of the project a report under the name of

“Higher Education in Developing Countries/ Peril and Promise” was released on March

1st 2000 at WB in Washington, DC.

The project’s utmost focus points were officially listed in the Report as:

1. higher education’s long-standing problems and the new realities it faces;

2. the nature of the public interest in higher education;

3. the issue of how focusing on higher education as a system will yield the benefits

of planned diversification;

4. the need to improve standards of governance;

5. the particularly acute requirement for better science and technology education;

and

6. a call to develop imaginative general education curricula for certain students

Subsequently, a Seminar under the name of “The International Seminar, From

Peril to Promise: how higher education can deliver” took place on Tuesday 19 March -

Saturday 23 March 2002 which was organized by the British Council in order to gather

educationalists and higher education experts to discuss the current and future situation

on the aforementioned regions. A detailed interpretation of the outcome of the previous

research done during 18 months was one of the results of the seminar.

6) ASSOCIATION FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF EDUCATION IN AFRICA (ADEA):

This association promotes special focus on Africa and evaluates the current situation

in order to determine the lackings and the actions to be taken.

UN INVOLVEMENT:

*UN has been assigning Special Rapporteurs on the Right to Education since 1998.

These UN officials are asked to write reports on their projects. Here are the Special

Rapporteurs until now:

[18]  

 

• Mr. Vernor MUÑOZ VILLALOBOS ( Costa Rica), since 2004

• Ms. Katarina TOMASEVSKI ( Croatia), 1998-2004

The following committees of UN deal with the Right to Education. Their sessions might

be focused on the topic:

• The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR)

• The Human Rights Committee (HRC, dealing with the Covenant on Civil and

Political Rights)

• The Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

• Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD)

• Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women

(CEDAW)

• Committee on Migrant Workers (CMW)

• Committee on the Rights of Person’s with Disabilities (CRPD)

Additionally, there are several reports on the topic.

POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS:

As most of the citizens of LEDCs are struggling because of their horrifyingly

difficult life standards, it should be taken into consideration that these people have more

to settle before educating themselves. Undoubtedly, these are the primary needs of

humans such as food and shelter. We cannot expect a man craving for a piece of

bread to take economics classes or at least read a piece of paper. Thus; our first aim

should be ensuring that the life standards of the citizens are adequate for an

atmosphere of learning. Then, we should be focusing on ways to reach people located

in rural areas as they are the ones without access to schools. Mobile education centers

can be one of the possible solutions.

[19]  

 

FUNDING

LEDC governments need to be economically supported as their current economy

does not let them to invest on education centers.

TEACHERS

One of the main problems is lack of teachers. Although prospective students are

everywhere, teachers are rarely found.

BOOKS

Lack of resources also hardens the situation. Supplying the necessary resources

is a must for children and adults in LEDCs.

POLITICAL WILL

Apart from all the economic and social problems, the political aspect of the topic

should also be considered. The governments of LEDCs should give full support for

education in order to apply all the international campaigns initiated.

COOPERATION

Last but not least, cooperation is a key point in order to reach the education

goals by 2015. The implementation of these aims all around the world requires full

cooperation between governments and also individuals. We should be the one power to

achieve anything on education.

To sum up, we expect all delegates to read the Millennium Development Goals,

especially UNESCO’s previous and ongoing projects on education and previous

resolutions on similar topics. We do not want to establish projects that already exist, our

aim is to develop the already existing ones and create original new ones. Please bear in

mind that we will mostly be debating on regions where neither school nor teacher exists.

Therefore, try to have a different perspective and come up with feasible solutions.

[20]  

 

It is also worth mentioning that MUNESCO 2010 will take place exactly 10 years

after the Education for All meeting in Dakar, Senegal. Why not make our sessions the

third meeting and expand Member States’ vision on education by adopting more

feasible goals considering today’s circumstances and come closer to reaching the six

goals before 2015?

USEFUL REPORTS:

• Optional Protocol to the ICESCR

• UN Human Rights Law

• European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights

• European Social Charter

• African Charter on Human and People's Rights

• African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child

• American Convention on Human Rights

• Arab Charter

• The Road to 2015: Reaching the Education Goals

• Higher Education in Developing Countries/ Peril and Promise

[21]  

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY/ USEFUL WEBSITES:

• http://www.tfhe.net/about/about.htm

• http://siteresources.worldbank.org/EDUCATION/Resources/278200-

1099079877269/547664-1099079956815/peril_promise_en.pdf  

• http://home.hiroshima-u.ac.jp/cice/chimombo8-1.pdf  

• http://www.unesco.org/en/education/worldwide/africa/  

• http://www.adeanet.org/adeaPortal/  

• http://www.right-to-education.org/  

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Primary_Education  

• http://www.campaignforeducation.org/  

• http://www.campaignforeducationusa.org/  

• http://www2.ohchr.org/english/issues/education/rapporteur/index.htm  

• http://www.join1goal.org/  

• http://www.unesco.org/en/efa-international-coordination/the-efa-movement/  

• http://www.bmz.de/en/issues/Education/hintergrund/bildungsituation/index.html  

• http://www.hewlett.org/programs/global-development-program/quality-education-

in-developing-countries  

• http://www.adeanet.org/adeaPortal/accueil/welcome.jsp  

• For more reports: http://www.unesco.org/en/efa-international-

coordination/resources/publications/  

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Issue: Resolving the educational disputes in Europe with focus on religious teachings

and the threatened co-existence of all religious groups

FORUM: Commission II (Education)

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

Today, the major religion in Europe is Christianity. There are also several

Southern European countries which have large Muslim populations; some also have

other smaller religious groups. Before the Roman Empire adopted Christianity in 380

A.D., polytheistic religions were the major religions in Europe. In the 11th century

Christianity was separated into Roman Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox Church. In

the 16th century, there was the separation of Catholics and Protestants. Today,

Christianity in Europe is separated into the Roman Catholic Church, Orthodoxy,

Protestantism, Anglicanism, Calvinism-Presbyterianism and Anabaptism-Baptism.

Europe now also has a large growing population of atheists, agnostics and irreligious.

Religious coexistence (the idea that peoples of different religions, and ideologies

can live together in peace and harmony) was seen in Medieval Al-Andalus, present day

Spain, where people of different religions lived together for a long time. Muslims,

Christians and Jews also coexisted in Al-Andalus. After the Reformation, both Germany

and Europe experienced significant conflicts that led to decades of wars in Europe.

Crusades and Islam’s understanding of “Jihad” are also examples of this problem.

Today, these conflicts still last in Northern Ireland. The main reason of the dispute is the

conflict between Anglicans and Catholics.

Religious teaching and education in various parts of the world has been a matter

of debate. Throughout history, religious education varied in Europe. As the Soviet Union

was formed as to be an Atheistic state (it later declared to be a secular state), religion

was discouraged and prosecuted. As religion was discouraged, religious education was

prohibited as well. Faculties of divinity were closed, activities of religious groups were

restricted, propaganda of atheism influenced people and public education was made

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against any and every religion. Apart from Former Soviet Countries, most European

countries have been following a compulsory curriculum for religious educations in public

schools.

RELATED COUNTRIES

Estonia: Estonia is a good example of countries under the influence of Soviet atheism.

In the 1930s, Christians made up 95% of the Estonian population. After the Soviet

regime, every person above 30 was affected by the Soviet policy about religion by 2000.

By 2000, people who had no religious affiliation made up almost half of the society.

Since the break-up of the USSR, Estonia has been trying to re-install the religious

education. Today it is an optional subject; parents enroll their children in primary

schools because there is no other alternative.

Romania: Romania has undergone a similar experience with the Estonian people,

under Ceausescu who was the communist leader of the Romanian regime. Theological

schools were forced to leave the university, after 1989, changes were made about

religious education: religion will be taught by teachers that are paid by the government,

students may opt out however, students between the ages of 7 and 18 are taught,

faculties of theology were allowed back to universities.

Switzerland: It is the responsibility of Canton, the regional political member states of

the federal state of Switzerland, to decide on religious education. As the socio-political

environment differs in each region, educational systems also vary according to these

differences. France: France adopted the separation of the Church and State in 1905. Laïcité, or

secularism, has been one of the main concepts of the French government. Due to this,

there is no direct religious education in any of the state schools. Religion in general is

taught through other subjects like history, geography and literature. An amendment to

the French Code of Education, “Law on secularity and conspicuous religious symbols in

schools was” was adopted in 2004. The law strictly opposes wearing headscarves,

large Christian crosses, Jewish skullcaps and Sikh turbans. Though the ban is designed

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to bring the French strict separation of government and religion, non-governmental

organizations have been deeply involved in criticizing the French government for

violating religious freedom. Religious education can only be taught in private religious

schools, but it isn’t mandatory.

Germany: In Germany, students above age 14 may choose to study religion or opt out

this subject. If they are younger than 14, their parents have the right to opt their children

out from this subject. If students opt out, they will have to take “Ethics” or “Philosophy”

which are considered as “neutral” subjects. Today there is an ongoing debate about

introducing Islam to religious education in schools due to the growing population of

Muslims in Germany.

Italy: Although religious education is an optional subject, due to its Catholic culture,

most of the students in Italy choose to study religion. Debates arose when Islam studies

were suggested in schools. This was rejected by the Interior Minister. Students were

able to get academics credit by taking only Catholicism; however this changed in Mid-

August in 2009. Another issue that Italy faces is that crucifix was banned due to the

decision of the European Court of Human Rights in public schools, which stated that

displaying crucifix in public schools violated religious and education freedoms. This

decision was reacted angrily by the Italian parliament and public as well, claiming that

crucifix is not a part of Christianity for Italians but a tradition for them.

United Kingdom: In Scotland, religious education is an obligatory subject in schools.

In the rest of the UK; England, Wales and Northern Ireland, religious education is

statutory compulsory for each students attending the school. Parents have the right to

withdraw from this subject. Due to the education act of 1944, it is compulsory that

schools start the day with collective worship.

Norway: Religious education is compulsory for every student. The subject supposedly

provides “tolerance and understanding between religions by providing knowledge about

different traditions and dialogue about common values in multi-religious societies”.

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Although it provides knowledge about other religions and secular ideas, it is structured

around Christianity and the Christian culture heritage of Norway.

Turkey: Religious education is taught under the subject of “Religion and Ethics” and is

compulsory for every Muslim. The content of the subject is limited with Sunni Islam not

the Shiite and other sects of Islam. There are also religious schools called Imam Hatip

Schools, which are vocational high schools designed to train government employed

imams. Graduates of these high schools are able to go to Faculty of Divinity in higher

degrees.

Bosnia-Herzegovina: Bosnian students were introduced to religious education in the

90s. If chosen, students weren’t allowed to drop this class in the middle of the year.

Content of this class is based on the major religion in the area.

POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS

Education is necessary for coexistence in the world. If hatred is taught at school,

starting from childhood, coexistence would be threatened. Education is the main

solution to this problem. This could be done by explaining how numerous communities

live together. Religious teaching should provide tolerance among other religions and

should not be from just the point of view of one religion. The religious education in

Norway is a good example to the education that should be taught in schools. The

Norwegian government has been trying hard to adopt a religious but more objective

education. Religious education generally should be focusing on how to live together

generally rather than just teaching religion. The general aims of religious education are;

• “knowledge about different religions

• learn from different world religions and provide opportunities to explore and

express their own responses and personal beliefs

• developing social and ecological awareness

• learn from different world religions and provide opportunities to explore and

express their own responses and personal beliefs”

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Governments should work with necessary international organizations like

UNESCO and UNESCO’s related sub-bodies such as; International Bureau for

Education and for European countries European Union’s body of organization, The

Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) which is responsible for

the EU’s educational programs in parts of Europe. This agency also works to publish

World Data on Education. For Europe, the Organization for Security and Co-Operation

in Europe (OSCE) also has studies for educational purposes. Governments should also

be responsible of providing teachers for religious education.

Friedrich Schweitzer, a German academic and researcher, suggested the

International Criteria for Religious Education. These are;

• “Religion must and can be taught in line with the criteria of general education,

• Religious Education must include some type of interdenominational and

• Inter-religious learning which are in line with the increasingly pluralist situation of

many countries

• Religious Education must be based on the children’s right to religion and

religious education • Religious Education teachers must be professionals in the sense that they have

reached a level of self reflexivity based on academic work which allows for a

critical appropriation of their religious backgrounds and biographies”

UN INVOLVEMENT

There is no direct United Nations involvement in this issue; however there are

many international organizations working for this issue. UNESCO has sub-bodies

dealing with educational disputes around the globe. International Bureau for Education

is one of them. The main mission of this organization is “to act as UNESCO's centre

specialized in contents, methods and structure of education”. It builds networks to share

expertise on curriculum development in all regions of the world and aims to introduce

modern approaches in curriculum design and implementation, improve practical skills

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and promote informed policy dialogue at national, regional and international levels. The

International Bureau for Education publishes “World Data on Education” which gives

brief information about countries’ educational systems. This report plays an important

role in the improvement of countries’ education systems.

The European Commission’s agency of the Education, Audiovisual and Culture

Executive Agency (EACEA) provides a network about “information on and analyses of

European education systems and policies. This network consists of 35 national units

based in all 31 countries participating in the EU's Lifelong Learning programmed (EU

Member States, EEA countries and Turkey) and is coordinated and managed by the EU

Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency in Brussels, which drafts its

publications and databases.”

Education is the vital solution to the issues that the world faces. The Organization

for Security and Co-Operation in Europe has “education programs are an integral part of

the Organization's efforts in conflict prevention and post-conflict rehabilitation”, we can

say that this organization works to find solutions to any threat coexistence of groups of

different religions living in the countries.

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USEFUL LINKS

http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/history/spain_1.shtml

http://religion.wikia.com/wiki/Coexist

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_war

http://pdc.ceu.hu/archive/00005508/01/Newsletter_APRIL_2009.pdf

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/03/crucifix-banned-from-ital_n_344105.html

http://www.adnkronos.com/AKI/English/Politics/?id=3.0.3893334779

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C4%B0mam_Hatip_school

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8340411.stm

http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/education/eurydice/index_en.php

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/education/3959255.stm

http://www.vexen.co.uk/religion/religious_education.html

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/93513.stm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_Education#cite_note-collwors-1

http://www.euresisnet.eu/Pages/Religion-State.aspx

http://www.iheu.org/node/2724

http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst?docId=5001871438

http://www.ibe.unesco.org/en.html

http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/27/20/33867420.pdf

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,1526501,00.html

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WORKS CITED

http://resources.eun.org/etwinning/europa2.pdf

http://www.oslocoalition.org/html/project_school_education/religious_education_in_plura

listic.html

http://pewforum.org/newassets/images/reports/Muslimpopulation/Muslimpopulation.pdf

http://hsacre.mikrotime.com/aims.html

http://www.ibe.unesco.org/en/organization/about-the-ibe.html

http://www.ci-muenster.de/themen/religionsuntericht/ru12.pdf

http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/education/eurydice/index_en.php

http://www.osce.org/activities/13038.html