Reviewing the impact of COVID-19 on children’s rights to, in and through education

ABSTRACT

Emergency legislation introduced internationally since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic saw the closure of all levels of educational settings and a shift to remote teaching. Drawing lessons from an independent child rights impact assessment (CRIA) in Scotland, United Kingdom, this paper reviews the impact of COVID-19 measures on children and young people’s rights to, and experiences of, education during the current crisis. Findings highlight that while measures sought to preserve the best interests of children and their basic rights to safety, a distinct lack of consultation on the impacts of the measures undermined the interdependency and indivisibility of children’s human rights. Three human rights principles – participation and inclusion, non-discrimination, and mutual accountability of family and the State – were identified as being particularly significant in this assessment. Looking forward, findings point to the need for extending the range of perspectives involved in child rights impact assessments in times of crisis – where human rights are at even greater risk of being breached – and the significance of a children's rights-based perspective for re-imagining education altogether.

KEYWORDS:

• Children’s human rights
• right-holders and duty-bearers
• education
• participation
• crisis

Acknowledgments

The author wishes to thank Dr. Marlies Kustacher for providing constructive feedback on an earlier version of this manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 C. Pascal and T.Bertram, ‘What do Young Children Have to Say? Recognising Their Voices, Wisdom, Agency and Need for Companionship During the COVID Pandemic’, European Early Childhood Education Research Journal 29, no. 1 (2021): 21–34.

2 OHCHR, ‘Child Rights and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic’ https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Children/ChildRights_2030Agenda.pdf (accessed April 19, 2021).

3 Children and Young People's Commissioner Scotland. Independent Children’s Rights Impact Assessment on the Response to Covid-19 in Scotland https://cypcs.org.uk/wpcypcs/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/independent-cria.pdf (accessed March 1, 2021).

4 R. Unger, Democracy Realised. The Progressive Alternative. (London: Verso, 1998).

5 A. Anderson, P.Hyll-Larsen, and J.Hofmann, ‘The Right to Education for Children in Emergencies’, Journal of International Humanitarian Legal Studies 2, no. 1 (2011): 84–126.

6 L. Cairns, etal., ‘Children’s Rights to Education – Where is the Weight for Children’s Views?’ The International Journal of Children's Rights 26, no. 1 (2018): 38L.60.

7 R. Blundell, etal., ‘COVID-19 and Inequalities’, Fiscal studies 41, no. 2 (2020): 291–319.

8 Unger, Democracy Realised.

9 D. Osberg and G. Biesta, ‘Beyond Curriculum: Groundwork for a Non-Instrumental Theory of Education’, Educational Philosophy and Theory 53, no. 1 (2021): 57–70.

10 G. Biesta, ‘What is Education For? On Good Education, Teacher Judgement, and Educational Professionalism’, European Journal of Education 50, no. 1 (2015): 75–87.

11 Anderson etal., ‘The Right to Education for Children in Emergencies’.

12 Biesta, ‘What is Education For’.

13 Ibid.

14 S. Hunter and C. Cassidy, ‘Teachers and Learning for Sustainability: Rights, Democracy and Social Justice’, Scottish Educational Review 51, no. 1 (2019): 7–16.

15 Biesta, ‘What is Education For’.

16 K. Tisdall, ‘Challenging Competency and Capacity?’ The International Journal of Children’s Rights 26, no. 1 (2018): 159–82.

17 L. Lundy, ‘"Voice" is Not Enough: Conceptualising Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child’, British Educational Research Journal 33, no. 6 (2007): 927–42.

18 J. MacAllister, ‘Enhanced Agency Rights for Older Scottish Children With Additional Support Needs: A Philosophical Review’, International Journal of Inclusive Education 23, no. 5 (2019): 519–31.

19 J. MacAllister, ‘What Should Educational Institutions be For?’ British Journal of Educational Studies 64, no. 3 (2016): 375–91.

20 Ibid.

21 Authors.

22 S. Sterling, ‘Sustainable Education’, in Revisioning Learning and Change (Totnes: Green Books, 2001).

23 Osberg and Biesta, ‘Beyond Curriculum’.

24 Lundy, ‘‘"Voice" is Not Enough’.

25 Hunter and Cassidy, ‘Teachers and Learning for Sustainability’.

26 J. Roche etal.,‘Citizen Science, Education, and Learning: Challenges and Opportunities’, Frontiers in Sociology 5, Art. No.: 613814 (2020).

27 T. Collins, ‘The General Measures of Implementation: Opportunities for Progress With Children’s Rights’, The International Journal of Human Rights 23, no. 3 (2019): 338–56.

28 Ibid.

29 Scottish Government, ‘Getting it right for every child’ https://www.gov.scot/policies/girfec/ (2020, accessed April 19, 2021).

30 P. Higgins, Learning for Sustainability. The Report of the One Planet School Working Group. Edinburgh: Scottish Government (education.gov.scot; 2012).

31 B. Christie etal., ‘From Rhetoric to Reality: Examining the policy vision and the professional enactment of enacting Learning for Sustainability in Scottish schools’, Scottish Educational Review 51, no. 1 (2019): 44–56.

32 L. Payne, ‘Child Rights Impact Assessment as a policy improvement tool’, The International Journal of Human Rights (2019).

33 Ibid.

34 Children and Young People's Commissioner Scotland. Independent Children’s Rights Impact Assessment on the Response to Covid-19 in Scotland https://cypcs.org.uk/wpcypcs/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/independent-cria.pdf (accessed March 1, 2020).

35 Observatory of Children's Human Rights Scotland. Independent Children’s Rights Impact Assessment on the Response to Covid-19 in Scotland, Appendix 10: Methodology. https://cypcs.org.uk/wpcypcs/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/CRIA-appendix-measures.pdf (2020, accessed March 1, 2021).

36 T. Woodcock etal., ‘A Modified Delphi Study to Identify the Features of High Quality Measurement Plans For Healthcare Improvement Projects’, BMC Med Res Methodology 20, no. 8 (2020).

37 Children’s Parliament, ‘The Corona Times Journal Archives’. https://www.childrensparliament.org.uk/tag/corona-times/ (2020, accessed April 12, 2021).

38 Scottish Youth Parliament, Young Scot and YouthLink Scotland. ‘Lockdown Lowdown – What Young People in Scotland are Thinking About COVID-19’. https://syp.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/lockdownlowdown-final-report.pdf (2020, accessed April 1, 2021).

39 A. Calabrese-Barton, K. Won Jung and E. Tan, ‘Co-Designing for Rightful Presence in Informal Science Learning Environments’, Asia-Pacific Science Education (2020): 1–34.

40 A. Nolan, ‘Advisory Note from Prof Aoife Nolan: Should Schools Reopen? The Human Rights Risk’, The Independent SAGE Report 3: When Should a School Reopen? Final Report. The Independent Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE), https://www.independentsage.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Independent-Sage-BriefReport-on-Schools.pdf (2020, accessed March 1, 2021): 30.

41 A. Andrew etal., ‘Learning During the Lockdown: Real Time Data on Children’s Experiences During Home Learning’, IFS Briefing Note BN288. https://www.ifs.org.uk/publications/14848 (2020, accessed April 12, 2021).

42 Ibid., 457.

43 United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child. General Comment No. 7: Implementing Child Rights in Early Childhood CRC/C/GC/7 [online], https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/treatybodyexternal/Download. aspx?symbolno = CRC%2fC%2fGC%2f7%2fRev.1&Lang = en [2005, accessed June 15, 2020): para. 35.

44 E. Sutherland, ‘The Enigma of Article 5 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of The Child. Central or Peripheral?’ Int. Journal of Children’s Rights 28 (2020): 447–70.

45 MacAllister, ‘Enhanced Agency Rights for Older Scottish Children with Additional Support Needs’.

46 B. C. Hafen and J. O. Hafen, ‘Abandoning Children to their Autonomy: The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child’, Harvard International Law Journal 37, no. 2 (1996): 449–92.

47 L. Müller and G. Goldenberg, ‘Education in Times of Crisis: The Potential Implications of School Closures for Teachers and 53 Students’, https://my.chartered.college/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/CCTReport150520_FINAL.pdf (accessed June 18, 2020).

48 United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child. ‘CRC COVID-19 Statement’, https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=INT/CRC/STA/9095&Lang=en (accessed June 13, 2020).

49 United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child. General Comment No. 12 The Right of the Child to be Heard. CRC/C/GC/12, [online] https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/treatybodyexternal/Download. aspx?symbolno = CRC%2fC%2fGC%2f12&Lang = en (2009, accessed June 15, 2020).

50 Together, ‘Analysis of Scottish Government’s Response to UN Committee’s 11 recommendations’ https://www.togetherscotland.org.uk/media/1530/sg_tog_covid_report_27-05-2020.pdf (accessed June 15, 2020).

51 G. Wang etal., ‘Mitigate the Effects of Home Confinement on Children During the COVID-19 Outbreak’, The Lancet 395 (2020): 945–7.

52 K. Wall etal., ‘Look Who's Talking: Eliciting the Voices of Children from Birth to Seven’, International Journal of Student Voice 2, no. 1, https://ijsv.psu.edu/?article=look-whos-talking-eliciting-the-voices-of-children-frombirth-to-seven (2017, accessed June 16, 2020).

53 Sutherland, ‘The Enigma of Article 5 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child’.

54 Article 1, defining the child as ‘every human being below the age of 18 years’.

55 P. Cuevas-Parra, ‘Co-Researching With Children in the Time of COVID-19: Shifting the Narrative on Methodologies to Generate Knowledge’, International Journal of Qualitative Methods 19 (2020): 1–12.

56 Authors, 2020.

57 D. Jindal-Snape, ‘10 New Ways of Supporting Children and Young People’s School Transitions During the Pandemic’, TCELT-International Network of Transitions Researchers, https://tceltintr679475724.wordpress.com/2020/05/22/blog-10-new-ways-of-supporting-children-and-young-peoples-schooltransitions-during-the-pandemic/ (accessed June 16, 2020).

58 Jindal-Snape, ‘10 New Ways of Supporting Children’.

59 D. Jindal-Snape, A-Z of Transitions (Palgrave Macmillan, 2016).

60 Jindal-Snape, A-Z of Transitions.

61 Jindal-Snape, ‘10 New Ways of Supporting Children’.

62 Carers Trust Scotland, ‘Coronavirus: Support to Raise Awareness of Young Carers in Education’, https://carers.org/downloads/scotland-pdfs/briefing-young-carers-education-2020---carers-trust-scotland.pdf (accessed June 15, 2020).

63 Scottish Youth Parliament, Young Scot and YouthLink Scotland.

64 Who Cares Scotland, ‘The Impact of Covid-19 Guidance on Scotland’s Care Experienced Community’, https://www.whocaresscotland.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Impact-of-Covid-19-on-Scotlands-Care-Experienced-Community_anon_-April-2020.pdf (accessed May 31, 2020).

65 J. Hilppö etal., ‘Children and the COVID-19 Lockdown: From Child Perspectives to Children’s Perspectives’, http://culturalpraxis.net/wordpress1/2020/04/26/children-and-the-covid-19-lockdown-fromchild-perspectives-to-childrens-perspectives/ (accessed June 18, 2020).

66 C. McMellon and A. MacLachlan, Independent Children’s Rights Impact Assessment on the Response to Covid-19 in Scotland, Appendix 2: Mental Health, https://cypcs.org.uk/wpcypcs/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/CRIA-appendix-mental-health.pdf (2020, accessed March 1, 2021).

67 One Parent Families Scotland Response to COVID-19 (May 2020), [online], https://opfs.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Response_to_COVID-19_OPFS.pdf (accessed June 16, 2020).

68 Y. Foley etal., ‘Initial Teacher Education and English as an Additional Language’, http://www.ceres.education.ed.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/ITE-Report.pdf (2018, accessed June 18, 2020).

69 Education Scotland, ‘Learning at Home, Home Education and Flexi Schooling’. Retrieved from: Learning at home, home education and flexi schooling - mygov.scot (accessed April 19, 2021).

70 J. Moote etal., ‘Comparing Students' Engineering and Science Aspirations from age 10-16: Investigating the Role of Gender, Ethnicity, Cultural Capital, and Attitudinal Factors’, Journal of Engineering Education 109, no. 1 (2020): 34–51.

71 Child Poverty Action Group and Child North East, ‘Parents and Children’s Experiences of School Closures – Latest Survey Findings’, https://cpag.org.uk/sites/default/files/files/Parents%20and%20children%27s%20experiences%20of%20school%20closures%20-%20latest%20 survey%20findings%2020%20May%202020.pdf (accessed June 15, 2020).

72 M. Treanor, Independent Children’s Rights Impact Assessment on the Response to Covid-19 in Scotland, Appendix 4: Poverty, Food and Digital Access. https://cypcs.org.uk/wpcypcs/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/CRIA-appendix-poverty-food-insecurity-digital-exclusion.pdf (2020, accessed March 1, 2021).

73 Parenting Across Scotland Issues for Parents During the Coronavirus Outbreak, [online] 4May, https://www.parentingacrossscotland.org/media/1484/pas-briefing-issues-for-parents-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak.pdf (accessed June 15, 2020).

74 Children’s Parliament.

75 Moote etal., ‘‘Comparing Students' Engineering and Science Aspirations from Age 10-16’.

76 B. Christie etal., ‘From Rhetoric to Reality: Examining the Policy Vision and the Professional Enactment of Enacting Learning for Sustainability in Scottish schools’, Scottish Educational Review 51, no. 1 (2019): 44–56.

77 D. Barton etal., Enabling Access to Greenspace During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Perspectives from FIVE CITIEs. https://www.thenatureofcities.com/2020/05/04/enabling-access-to-greenspace-during-the-covid-19-pandemic-perspectives (2020, accessed March 1, 2021).

78 Reuters, COVID-19 takes Unequal Toll on Immigrants in Nordic regions. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-norway-immigrants/covid-19-takes-unequal-toll-on-immigrants-in-nordic-region-idUSKCN2260XW (2020, accessed March 1, 2021).

79 T. Casey, Independent Children’s Rights Impact Assessment on the Response to Covid-19 in Scotland, Appendix 5: Rest and Leisure. https://cypcs.org.uk/wpcypcs/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/CRIA-appendix-rest-play.pdf (2020, accessed March 1, 2021).

80 C. Piccininni etal., ‘Outdoor Play and Nature Connectedness as Potential Correlates of Internalized Mental Health Symptoms among Canadian adolescents’, Preventive Medicine 112 (2018): 168–75.

81 E. Sosu and M. Klein, ‘Socioeconomic Disparities in School Absenteeism after the First Wave of COVID-19 School Closures in Scotland’. University of Strathclyde; 2021 (2020, accessed March 1, 2021).

82 Biesta, ‘What is Education For’.

83 Ibid.

84 UNESCO, 2020.

85 D. Barton etal., ‘Enabling Access to Greenspace During the COVID-19 pandemic: Perspectives from Five Cities’, https://www.thenatureofcities.com/2020/05/04/enabling-access-to-greenspace-during-the-covid-19-pandemic-perspectives (2020, accessed March 1, 2021).

86 Sosu and Klein, ‘Socioeconomic Disparities in School Absenteeism’.

87 Unger, Democracy Realised.

88 Lundy, ‘"Voice" is Not Enough’.

89 MacAllister, ‘Enhanced Agency Rights for Older Scottish children with Additional Support Needs’.

90 J. Vlieghe, ‘Experiencing (Im)potentiality: Bollnow and Agamben on the Educational Meaning of School Practices’, Stud Philos Educ 32 (2012): 189–203.

91 Unger, Democracy Realised.

92 Ibid.

93 B. Stiegler, Prendre soin. De la jeunesse et des générations (Paris: Flammarion, 2008).

94 P. Cuevas-Parra, ‘Co-Researching With Children in the Time of COVID-19: Shifting the Narrative on Methodologies to Generate Knowledge’, International Journal of Qualitative Methods 19 (2020): 1–12.

95 Calabrese-Barton etal. (2021).

96 Author 1 etal. 2019.

97 S. Tillmann etal.,‘Mental Health Benefits of Interactions with Nature in Children and Teenagers: A Systematic Review’, Epidemiol Community Health 72, no. 10 (2018): 958–66.

98 Müller and Goldenberg.

99 J. Marshall, P. Kelly and A. Niven, ‘“When I go there, I Feel Like I can be Myself.” Exploring Programme Theory within the Wave Project Surf Therapy Intervention’, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 16, no. 12 (2019): 1–17.

100 A. Murray etal., ‘Maximising and Evaluating the Uptake, use and Impact of Golf and Health Studies’, British Journal of Sports Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2019-100994 (2019, accessed June 18, 2020)

101 S. Hunter and C. Cassidy, ‘Teachers and Learning for Sustainability: Rights, Democracy and Social Justice’, Scottish Educational Review 51, no. 1 (2019): 7–16.

102 Author 1 etal. 2019.

103 J. Baldacchino, ‘Education’s Experience in an Age of Anti-Politics: Reading John Dewey in the Third Decade of the 21st Century’, SISYPHUS, Journal of Education 8, no. 3 (2020): 54.

104 Unger, Democracy Realised.

105 Lundy, ‘"Voice" is Not Enough’.

106 Roche etal., ‘Citizen Science, Education, and Learning’.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Laura Colucci-Gray

Laura Colucci-Gray is Senior Lecturer in Science and Sustainability Education at Moray House School of Education and Sport, University of Edinburgh.