Global Ideologies Surrounding Children's Rights and Social Justice


Book Description

Social rights are a pivotal concern for all of society, including today’s population of children. The study of the rights, or lack thereof, that children have must be undertaken to ensure that future generations are thriving members of their communities. Global Ideologies Surrounding Children's Rights and Social Justice highlights the trials and tribulations that children have often had to overcome to be considered true citizens of their communities. Featuring comprehensive coverage on a wide range of applicable topics such as child abuse, socio-economic rights, social injustice, and welfare issues, this is a critical reference source for educators, academicians, students, and researchers interested in studying new approaches for the social advancement of children.




Leveling the Playing Field


Book Description

World Bank Technical Paper No. 320. Medicinal plants are viewed as a possible bridge between sustainable development, affordable health care, and conservation of vital biodiversity. This paper outlines the importance and usage of such plants in national health care and conservation activities in selected countries--China, Thailand, Indonesia, India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka--and in World Bank development projects. The final section focuses on the strategy needs of developing countries for implementing policies on medicinal plant conservation, cultivation, processing, and marketing.







Gender and Childhood Sexuality in Primary School


Book Description

This book is an ethnography of teachers and children in grades 1 and 2, and presents arguments about why we should take gender and childhood sexuality seriously in the early years of South African primary schooling. Taking issue with dominant discourses which assumes children’s lack of agency, the book questions the epistemological foundations of childhood discourses that produce innocence. It examines the paradox between teachers’ dominant narratives of childhood innocence and children’s own conceptualisation of gender and sexuality inside the classroom, with peers, in heterosexual games, in the playground and through boyfriend-girlfriend relationships. It examines the nuances and finely situated experiences which draw attention to hegemonic masculinity and femininity where boys and girls challenge and contest relations of power. The book focuses on the early makings of gender and sexual harassment and shows how violent gender relations are manifest even amongst very young boys and girls. Attention is given to the interconnections with race, class, structural inequalities, as well as the actions of boys and girls as navigate gender and sexuality at school. The book argues that the early years of primary schooling are a key site for the production and reproduction of gender and sexuality. Gender reform strategies are vital in this sector of schooling.




The Education System in Malawi


Book Description

'The Education System in Malawi', an Education Country Status Report (CSR), is a detailed analysis of the current status of the education sector in Malawi, the results of which have been validated by the government of Malawi. Its main purpose is to enable decision makers to orient national policy on the basis of a factual diagnosis of the overall education sector and to provide relevant analytical information for the dialogue between the government and development partners. The analysis incorporates data and information from multiple sources, such as school administrative surveys by the Ministry of Education, household surveys, and a tracer survey created especially for this study. This CSR, developed by a multi-ministerial national team supported by UNESCO P le de Dakar, the World Bank, and GTZ specialists, updates the previous one drawn up in 2003 and consists of eight chapters, including a chapter on higher education. The analysis provides key monitoring and evaluation inputs for the overall education sector, particularly under the framework of the implementation of the National Education Sector Plan.




Abolishing School Fees in Africa


Book Description

Progress in literacy and learning, especially through universal primary education, has done more to advance human conditions than perhaps any other policy. Our generation has the possibility of becoming the first generation ever to offer all children access to good quality basic education. But it will only happen if we have the political commitment -- at the country as well as at the international level -- to give priority to achieve this first in human history. And it will only happen if also those who cannot afford to pay school fees can benefit from a complete cycle of good quality primary education. Investment in good quality fee-free primary education should be a cornerstone in any government's poverty reduction strategy.




Gender Equity in Junior and Senior Secondary Education in Sub-Saharan Africa


Book Description

This thematic study consists of case studies of Ghana, Malawi, and Uganda, as well as, a review of studies undertaken over the past ten years on education in Africa with particular attention to girls' and secondary education. Gender equity at the primary level has been the focus of considerable attention within the Education for All Framework of Action, but much less so at the secondary level. Evidence of gender inequity and inequality in terms of access, retention and performance in secondary education in SSA raises many questions. While transition rates from primary to secondary are higher for girls than boys, and the repetition rates are lower, girls still significantly trail behind boys in graduation and enrollment rates. The purpose of this study is to document and analyze the extent and nature of gender disadvantage in junior and senior secondary education, to analyze the causes of this disadvantage, and to identify strategies that may be effective in reducing or eliminating it. This study was prepared as part of the Secondary Education and Training in Africa (SEIA) initiative which aims to assist countries to develop sustainable strategies for expansion and quality improvements in secondary education and training. All SEIA products are available on its website: www.worldbank.org/afr/seia.




World Atlas of Gender Equality in Education


Book Description

"The education of girls and women is important not only as a matter of respecting a basic human right for half the population but as a powerful force for economic development and achieving social goals such as enhanced health, nutrition and civic involvement. This Atlas presents the latest data from the UNESCO Institute for Statistics on trends in educational access and progression, from pre-primary through tertiary levels and adult literacy, with special attention to the all-important issue of gender equality. These trends are depicted through colour-coded maps that make it easy for readers to visualize global and regional trends and to understand how they are shaped by factors such as national wealth and geographic location." -- P. [4] of cover.




Educating Tomorrow


Book Description

It is well accepted that education needs to be equalised along gender lines. However, until the management of education is also gender sensitive, that content cannot expect to be effectively communicated. This is the premise of this groundbreaking book. It addresses gender issues and management practices in education, by critically examining both successes and failures drawn from a number of African countries. It proposes ways of improving the management of education to focus on women - who have hitherto been left out of the mainstream of educational and training practices. It throws a uniquely African light on an issue that goes to the heart of the process of democratisation. In order to empower the girl child in the new South Africa and in Africa, the patriarchal and parochial structures that exist within the African educational paradigm need to be broken down and replaced. This would address problems such as: why women are discouraged from certain fields of studies, like sciences; the effect that interactions in learning situations can have on the achievement and attainment of female students; and the critical necessity of educating and training girls in rural Africa. The book speaks to the heart of the administrative processes within the education framework and shows how the way classes are structured or materials selected needs to be adapted in order to correct the present imbalance. It was created and developed with the aim of seeking out the best education management practices, finding common analyses from these and using them to develop guidelines for future education management.




Primary Education in Malawi


Book Description

The objective of this report is to inform an improved understanding of expenditure allocations and processes, the quality of service delivery in terms of inputs and outputs, and educational outcomes associated with primary education in Malawi. The report will also assess the government’s own diagnosis of challenges in the primary education sub-sector, and the reform program intended to address them. The findings of this report are intended to inform discussions as to how to strengthen the government program and associated financing mechanisms, to enhance the likelihood of success.