scholarly journals CONSTRUCTING CRITICAL CITIZENSHIP WITH YOUNG PEOPLE: ALTERNATIVE PEDAGOGIES

2011 ◽  
Vol 2 (3/4) ◽  
pp. 494 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shannon Moore
Keyword(s):  
Active Citizenship ◽  
Child Rights ◽  
Alternative Pedagogy ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
Research Protocols ◽  
Traditional Research ◽  
New Knowledge ◽  
United Nations Convention ◽  
Key Participants ◽  
Alternative Pedagogies

<p>The authors present theoretical and empirical arguments for adopting the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (or CRC) to renew the teaching of citizenship to young students from a social justice standpoint (Giroux, 2003; Giroux &amp; Searls-Giroux, 2004; Mitchell, 2010; Moore, 2008; Smith, 2007). The paper draws its analysis and conclusions from a descriptive, exploratory study with key participants from a 2009 rally hosted by Nobel nominee, child rights activist, and founder of <em>Free the Children</em>, Craig Kielburger. Four of the paper’s co-authors were senior elementary students initially chosen as interviewees for the investigation and subject to traditional research protocols for minors. During data collection, however, their status shifted reflexively to include their contributions – not as objects under study or subjects of the interviewer’s questions – but as co-constructors of new knowledge. Relative to the dominance of their teachers and other adult groups “engaging” their participation, this new status allowed a deeper exploration of the meanings they attached to active citizenship through an innovative dialogue (see Kellett &amp; Ward, 2008; Kellett, Forrest, Dent, &amp; Ward, 2004; also Devine, 2002). Through participatory lenses embedded within CRC principles, particularly Article 12, the analysis transcends traditional disciplinary silos to offer a critical and transdisciplinary alternative pedagogy.</p>

scholarly journals The Legal Conundrum in the Implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in Nigeria

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Ibrahim Danjuma ◽  
Karatu Afabwaje Joel
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Child Rights ◽  
National Assembly ◽  
Binding Force ◽  
Full Compliance ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
International Laws ◽  
United Nations Convention ◽  
The Law ◽  
Global Agency

International law or treaty binds a state where such state signed, ratified acceded or domesticated same. In a monist State, ratification alone suffices for the international law or treaty to become binding whereas, in a dualist State, domestication as a condition must have complied. It is because of the peculiarities within various nations' legal systems (Monist or Dualist system). In 1989, The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), an international human rights instrument came into force. Since its domestication as the Child Rights Act (CRA 2003) in Nigeria by the National Assembly, only about 24 States have enacted the law for onward enforcement. Nigeria is a nation which became independent in the year 1960 comprising now of 36 states and Abuja as its Federal Capital Territory all under the Federal Government. Since its domestication as the Child Rights Act (CRA 2003) in Nigeria by the National Assembly, many States have enacted the law for onward enforcement. However, few states are yet to comply and raise a question as to whether the said CRC has a binding force in all the States of the Federation. This study aims to examine the extent of how the UNCRC and CRA are being enforced in Nigeria. This study's research methodology is purely doctrinal, where library materials such as books, articles from journals, and online articles have been carefully selected and analyzed for this research. This paper recommends establishing a global agency or organ that should be saddled with the responsibility of ensuring full compliance and enforcement of international laws or treaties.

Constitutional Protection of Children’s Rights: Visibility, Agency and Enforceability

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 401-434
Author(s):  
Conor O’Mahony
Keyword(s):  
Children's Rights ◽  
Children’S Rights ◽  
Constitutional Rights ◽  
Child Rights ◽  
Constitutional Protection ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
United Nations Convention ◽  
National Constitution

Abstract While almost every state in the world has ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, there is less consensus around the manner in which the rights protected by it should be protected in national constitutions. To say that a constitution makes provision for children’s rights is just a starting point: the extent to which a national constitution takes a genuine child rights approach will depend on the quality of the constitutional provisions in question. This article aims to provide a typology which can be used to assess whether the approach taken by any given constitution to the protection of children’s rights is in line with the child rights approach envisaged by the Convention by analysing individual constitutions along three separate spectrums. The Visibility spectrum measures how visible children are in a constitutional scheme; the Agency spectrum measures the extent to which children are considered to be independent, autonomous rights holders; and the Enforceability spectrum measures the extent to which children’s constitutional rights can be enforced.

scholarly journals Intercountry Adoption in New Zealand - A Child Rights Perspective

1997 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 421 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Couchman
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Hague Convention ◽  
Intercountry Adoption ◽  
Child Rights ◽  
Current Form ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
United Nations Convention ◽  
The Hague ◽  
The Hague Convention

In 1996, the Adoption Amendment Bill (No 2) was introduced into Parliament. The aim of the Bill was to implement in New Zealand the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption. New Zealand's accession to the Hague Convention would provide significantly improved protection for some children who come to New Zealand as a result of intercountry adoption. This article provides information on intercountry adoption in New Zealand, the background to the Bill, and concludes that the Bill, if passed in its current form, would fail to provide protection for the majority of children who come to New Zealand as a result of intercountry adoption, and would not fulfil New Zealand's obligations concerning adoption under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Perception on Child Rights Protection and Media Performance Among Kuje Internally Displaced Persons' Camp, Abuja, Nigeria

2020 ◽  
pp. 277-294
Author(s):  
Felix Chidozie Chidozie ◽  
Augustine Ejiroghene Oghuvbu
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
Child Rights ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Internally Displaced ◽  
Rights Protection ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
Displaced Children ◽  
The Media ◽  
United Nations Convention ◽  
The United Nations

This essay examines media and child rights protection in Nigeria, using Kuje IDPs Camp in Abuja, FCT as a case study. It argues that the media has important and indispensable roles to play in enabling the promotion of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and Nigeria's Child Rights Act, 2003. The study adopted the qualitative method through interviews and focus group discussions conducted at the Kuje IDPs Camp. Findings suggest that the Nigerian government is not committed to implementing the prescription of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Child Rights Act, thus further jeopardizing the already fractured rights of the of children in IDPs camps in Nigeria. Similarly, the media is not paying attention to the plight of the displaced children. The prescriptions advanced in this study as well as the conclusions reached are relevant for policy makers at the national, regional, and international levels responsible for the rights of the children, especially the Nigerian child.

scholarly journals Child Rights Education - Building Capabilities and Empowerment Through Social Constructivism

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-48
Author(s):  
Heather Kathleen Manion ◽  
Shelley Jones
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
Social Constructivism ◽  
Child Rights ◽  
Education Project ◽  
Global Citizens ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
United Nations Convention ◽  
The Right ◽  
Development And Evolution

Children have the right to a voice, to education and to education about their rights, as outlined in Article 12 and Article 29 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Child rights-based education can support children to be empowered with critical agency and exposed to connection to the wider world, better equipping them to become young global citizens and act in ways that demonstrate empathy and commitment to diversity, dignity, and equality. To obtain this goal, education systems must be aligned to foster these attributes and empower children to develop and exercise the capabilities that will best serve them in childhood as well as adulthood. This paper considers how we can support the empowerment and capabilities development of children through child rights-focused education using an integrated framework of empowerment, capabilities (Sen, 1999), and social constructivist (Vgotsky, 1978) education. Building on the foundations laid in the development and evolution of children’s rights, setting out the theoretical underpinnings and drawing on a case study of a rights-based education project, this paper will consider how rights-based education can be feasible and beneficial.

Problematising the Dominant Child Rights Discourses: Why We Need a Nuanced Approach to Combat Child Labour

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 476-486
Author(s):  
Abdul-Rahim Mohammed ◽  
Adams Sulemana Achanso
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
Theoretical Perspective ◽  
Child Labour ◽  
Global Awareness ◽  
Structural Barriers ◽  
Child Rights ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
United Nations Convention ◽  
The United Nations

Three decades have now passed since the promulgation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in 1989. Despite the almost universal ratification of the CRC, as well as the heightened global awareness of the prevalence of child labour, the phenomenon persists. Following the ratification of the CRC, the rights-based approach to combating child labour became the dominant theoretical perspective. By problematising the dominant child-rights framework, this paper contributes to the discourse on child labour by arguing for a more nuanced approach to addressing the phenomenon. The paper achieves this objective by underscoring the importance of understanding and engaging with the reasons why children work, the socio-economic contexts within which they work, and why policies designed to address child labour should address the structural barriers that directly and indirectly promote child labour.

scholarly journals A Child Rights Perspective on Intergenerational Trauma

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-91
Author(s):  
Brent Bezo
Keyword(s):  
Child Maltreatment ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Intergenerational Trauma ◽  
Political Movements ◽  
Child Rights ◽  
Trauma Research ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
United Nations Convention ◽  
The United Nations ◽  
Research Initiatives

This paper argues that intergenerational trauma undermines the rights of the child, as per articles of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. To meet this objective, this paper draws on the available evidence suggesting that intergenerational trauma deprives children of their rights to environments free of maltreatment-abuse (Articles 19), and poverty (Article 27), in addition to undermining their rights to their own culture (Article 30). This paper then draws on available intergenerational trauma research, suggesting that child maltreatment-abuse, poverty, and loss of culture prevent the child from obtaining the best possible health, with the latter also a right outlined in Article 24. Because this paper argues that the study of intergenerational trauma owes its existence to political movements, recommendations are made for researcher engagement in multisectorial child-centric research initiatives, in order to help realize children’s rights that are undermined by intergenerational trauma and improve children’s health.

scholarly journals Refugee and Asylum-Seeking Children: Interrupted Child Development and Unfulfilled Child Rights

Children ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (11) ◽  
pp. 120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ziba Vaghri ◽  
Zoë Tessier ◽  
Christian Whalen
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Growth And Development ◽  
Critical Period ◽  
Child Rights ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
Depth Analysis ◽  
United Nations Convention ◽  
Accelerated Growth ◽  
The Many

The 21st century phenomenon of “global displacement” is particularly concerning when it comes to children. Childhood is a critical period of accelerated growth and development. These processes can be negatively affected by the many stressors to which refugee and asylum-seeking children are subjected. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is the most ratified human rights treaty in history, with 196 States Parties (SPs). The CRC provides a framework of 54 articles outlining government responsibilities to ensure the protection, promotion, and fulfillment of rights of all children within their jurisdictions. Among these are the rights of refugee and asylum-seeking children, declared under Article 22 of the CRC. Refugee and asylum-seeking children, similarly to all other children, are entitled to their rights under the CRC and do not forgo any right by virtue of moving between borders. The hosting governments, as SPs to the CRC, are the primary duty bearers to fulfill these rights for the children entering their country. This manuscript provides an overview of the health and developmental ramification of being displaced for refugee and asylum-seeking children. Then, an in-depth analysis of the provisions under Article 22 is presented and the responsibilities of SPs under this article are described. The paper provides some international examples of strengths and shortcomings relating to these responsibilities and closes with a few concluding remarks and recommendations.

Economic and Social Rights, Budgets and the Convention on the Rights of the Child

2013 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 248-277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aoife Nolan
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Social Rights ◽  
Child Rights ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
Budget Analysis ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Significant Obstacle ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Relationship

Recent years have seen an explosion in methodologies for monitoring children’s economic and social rights (ESR). Key examples include the development of indicators, benchmarks, child rights-based budget analysis and child rights impact assessments. The Committee on the Right of the Child has praised such tools in its work and has actively promoted their usage. Troublingly, however, there are serious shortcomings in the Committee’s approach to the ESR standards enshrined in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which threaten to impact upon the efficacy of such methodologies. This article argues that the Committee has failed to engage with the substantive obligations imposed by Article 4 and many of the specific ESR guaranteed in the CRC in sufficient depth. As a result, that body has not succeeded in outlining a coherent, comprehensive child rights-specific ESR framework. Using the example of child rights-based budget analysis, the author claims that this omission constitutes a significant obstacle to those seeking to evaluate the extent to which states have met their ESR-related obligations under the CRC. The article thus brings together and addresses key issues that have so far received only very limited critical academic attention, namely, children’s ESR under the CRC, the relationship between budgetary decision-making and the CRC, and child rights-based budget analysis.

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