He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tangata, he tangata, he tangata! What is the most important thing in the world? It is people, people, people!

He aha te mea nui o te ao?He tangata, he tangata, he

tangata!

What is the most important thing in the world?It is people, people, people!

Dear Teacher,

I am a survivor of a concentration camp. My eyes saw what no man should witness. Gas chambers built by learned engineers. Children poisoned by educated physicians. Infants killed by trained nurses. Women and babies shot and burned by high school and college graduates.

So I am suspicious of education.

My request is: Help your students become human. Your efforts must never produce learned monsters, skilled psychopaths, educated Eichmanns. Reading, writing, arithmetic are important only if they serve to make our children more human.

Letter pinned on a school noticeboard

Central to our professional role

At the heart of the Social Sciences

A critical/ethical toolkit across the

curriculum

A powerful social inquiry

topic

HUMAN RIGHTS


At the heart of the

Social Sciences

A critical toolkit for inquiry across

the curriculum


topic

HUMAN RIGHTS

Our professional role is to fulfil the right of every young person to an

education that develops their personality, talents and mental and

physical abilities to their fullest potential and enables them to live

satisfying lives as effective citizens.


We are in the human rights business...

“Everyone has the right to education.... Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights.”

Universal Declaration of Human Rights, article 26



“Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and the sense of its dignity, and shall strengthen the respect for human rights.”

International Covenant on Economic, Social & Cultural Rights article 13



“Education... shall be directed to: ...The development of the child's personality, talents and mental and physical abilities to their fullest potential; ...Preparation...for responsible life in a free society

UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, article 29



“All students to realise their full potential as individuals [and to] develop the values needed to become full members of New Zealand's society.”

National Education Goals 1 & 2


As well as defining the end results our professional efforts are to achieve,

human rights standards, evidence, and education policy have something to say about the professional means

we adopt...


We have a professional duty to respect, protect and promote human rights...

“shall respect and ensure [human] rights...to each child within their jurisdiction without discrimination of any kind, irrespective of the child's or his or her parent's or legal guardian's race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national, ethnic or social origin, property, disability, birth or other status.”




“In all actions concerning children...the best interests of the child shall be a primary consideration”

UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, article 3.1



“Provide a safe physical and emotional environment for students”

National Administration Guideline 5


“shall assure to the child who is capable of forming his or her own views the right to express those views freely in all matters affecting the child, the views of the child being given due weight in accordance with...age and maturity”





Respect for self, others and human rights...is to be encouraged, modelled and explored...evident in the school’s philosophy, structures, curriculum, classrooms and relationships

New Zealand Curriculum


How?

Related to key questions central to our professional role:

If our job is to develop citizens who know, and act on, their rights and responsibilities, How do we recognise young people as the citizens they already are – in the classroom, in the school, in the community?Do they know and act on their human rights and responsibilities? Do we?


Creating a supportive learning environment

“Students learn best when they feel accepted, when they enjoy positive relationships with their fellow students and teachers, and when they are able to be active, visible members of the learning community. Effective teachers foster positive relationships within environments that are caring, inclusive, non-discriminatory, and cohesive. They also build good relationships with the wider school community, working with parents and caregivers as key partners….”





curriculum


topic

HUMAN RIGHTS

“The social sciences learning area is about how societies work and how people can participate as critical, active, informed, and responsible citizens.”

eCitizenship is about rights and responsibilities


The human rights framework is a set of cross-culturally negotiated international agreements about the rights and responsibilities of all human beings and how societies should work to address them.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is “the most important document

in legal history”Lord Cooke of Thorndon

Leading New Zealand jurist



Through the social sciences, students develop the knowledge and skills to enable them to:

better understand, participate in, and contribute to the local, national, and global communities in which they live and work;

engage critically with societal issues;

evaluate the sustainability of alternative social, economic, political, and environmental practices.


A human rights perspective provides a critical lens through which young citizens can better understand and contribute to communities,

engage with societal issues, and understand key factors bearing on sustainability.


CONTINUITY & CHANGEStruggles for human rights have defined revolutions and social movements that have helped shape the country and global society in which we live. IDENTITY, CULTURE, & ORGANISATION

The international human rights framework is an expression of global culture, providing agreed standards for social organisation and recognition of individual and collective identity.


PLACE & ENVIRONMENTPeople interact with their environment in pursuit of their human rights, such as food, health, and an adequate standard of living.

THE ECONOMIC WORLDEconomic activity is a key means of realising human rights such as the rights to work and an adequate standard of living, and human rights provides an ethical framework for economic activity.



A critical toolkit for inquiry across

the curriculum


topic

HUMAN RIGHTS

Major social inquiries into ‘human rights’ can address key values and competencies, and achievement objectives such as...


topic

How people pass on and sustain culture and heritage for different reasons and that this has consequences for people (AO L4)

How people participate individually and collectively in response to community challenges (AO L4)

How the ideas and actions of people in the past have had a significant impact on people’s lives (AO L5)

How people define and seek human rights (AO L5)

How the Treaty of Waitangi is responded to differently by people in different times and places (AO L5)

How cultural interaction impacts on cultures and societies (AO L5)

How systems of government in NZ operate and affect people’s lives, and how they compare with another system (AO L5)

How individuals, groups, and institutions work to promote social justice and human rights (AO L6)

How cultures adapt and change and that this has consequences for society (AO L6)


topic

Possible social inquiries:

How did ideas of ‘human rights’ develop?

How did the Universal Declaration of Human Rights come about? What has its impact been?

What is the significance of the Treaty of Waitangi for the human rights of New Zealanders?

How have Māori/African Americans/South Africans/Chinese/Timorese/ sought realisation of their human rights? What human rights challenges remain?

What are the key human rights challenges globally? Who is tackling

them, and how?


topic




curriculum


topic

HUMAN RIGHTS

An understanding of human rights and responsibilities can be part of a powerful toolkit for young citizens.

Understanding the ‘universality, indivisibility and interdependence’ of human rights, and principles such as ‘rights-holders’ and ‘duty-bearers’ can contribute to sophisticated analysis and effective action in situations ranging from interpersonal conflict to complex societal and global issues.


curriculum

Follow a social inquiry into ‘human rights’ by arming students with a human rights toolkit with which to examine the human rights dimension of every topic.


curriculum

The human rights framework guides key questions to be asked, information gathering, and examination of relevant current issues:

What are the human rights issues involved? Whose?

What human rights are people seeking to defend? Does the action they promote run counter to others’ human rights?

How could conflict be resolved?


curriculum

CITIZENSHIP

What rights and responsibilities do New Zealand citizens have?

What institutions and processes realise the human rights of New Zealand citizens?

What are the rights and responsibilities we have as global citizens?


curriculum

GLOBALISATION

How did human rights ideas become globalised?

How were human rights issues at play in the ‘Battle in Seattle’?

How do New Zealanders’ consumer choices impact on the human rights of people in other parts of the world?


curriculum

ENTERPRISE

How are the human rights dimensions of business activity?

How can business activity contribute to the realisation or violation of human rights?


curriculum

SUSTAINABILITY

How is ‘sustainability’ a human rights issue?

What are the human rights dimensions to climate change?


curriculum

Doing it

Recognise human rights

mission

Learn about human rights & responsibilities

To help young people develop to their fullest potential

and be effective local, national and global citizens

Develop education communities that know, promote and live

human rights and responsibilities

Apply a rights & responsibilities

lens

1. Start at the beginning of the year by negotiating a draft classroom Rights & Responsibilities Agreement.

2. Introduce the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in summary form.

3. Map the draft R&R agreement against the list of human rights, discuss, redraft.

4. Link to the international human rights negotiation process, discuss.

5. Adopt R&R Agreement. Use Agreement as basis for class life. Use human rights list as basis for social inquiry.

Learn about human rights & responsibilities

Keep in touch!To access resources and to join

the Human Rights in Education initiative:www.hrie.net.nz

[email protected]

Documents

He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tangata, he tangata, he tangata! What is the most important thing in the world? It is people, people, people!