The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child: some implications for teacher education

Abstract

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child is one of the most comprehensive and innovative pieces of human rights legislation ever introduced. It provides exceptional opportunities for the advancement of children's rights in the 1990s and beyond, setting standards on children's issues and providing a valuable set of guidelines for future action. The Convention has particular implications for teachers and their practice. This article seeks to identify key issues in children's rights for teachers, examining them in the context of countries in both the North and South, and to explore how the Convention might be used as an instrument for policy development in teacher education.