Children and their context

Education & Working Children

Kimberly Boekhoudt Children and International Development University of Amsterdam April 2011

When talking about childhood, theres a dominant western model of what childhood is or should be. Other kinds of childhoods that deviate from this model are seen as problematic and need to be changed in other for a child to have a good childhood. The different situations in which these other kinds of childhoods take place are often not taken into account. In this essay we will discuss the dominant western model on two main issues, education and working children, which are related to childhood. This will be done using the four stages by Mayall (2000): critique, deconstructing, theoretical work, and standpoint or position. In the first stage, critique, we look at the mainstream ideas surrounding education and working children and analyze to what extend these ideas make justice to the diverse situation of children in the Global South. The mainstream idea surrounding education is that everyone has a right to education. Basic education should be free of charge and compulsory, at least for elementary education, for children between the ages of six and fifteen. Education should ensure the development of a child, their human rights and their freedoms. And last but not least, parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education for their children. But the reality in the Global South makes it hard for everyone to enjoy their rights to education. The right to education in reality is not universal, because not everyone can attain it. Moreover the right to education depends greatly on the political choices that are being made at a local, national and global scale. On the other hand, the issue of education is closely related to the issue of working children. The mainstream idea surrounding working children is that child labour is not good and should be abolish as a whole. The ILO describes child labour as the participation of an individual, below the age of 18, in any form of work which is harmful or exploitative in a psychical manner, and furthermore limits a childs access to education (DCI/ILO). Above the age of 15 emphasize is put on work which is harmful or exploitative and under the age of 15 emphasize is put on any form of work. In this mainstream idea the term child labour (unacceptable) is used in contrast to child work (morally adequate or even laudable) (Nieuwenhuys: 168). The term child labour is more problematized and therefore the worst forms of child labour are mainly highlighted here. But in reality in the Global South there are other matters that should also be taken into account when talking about working children. For example what are the reasons why children work, what is their living situation? This will be further discussed in the third stage when we look at alternative approaches regarding working children. In the deconstructing stage we unravel the assumptions that underlie or underpin the dominant accounts. As weve seen above the mainstream idea is that everyone should have a right to education and that education is important for the development of a child. Education is seen as a multiplier, enhancing the enjoyment of all individual rights and freedoms where the right to education is effectively guaranteed, while depriving people of the enjoyment of many rights and freedoms where the right to education is denied or violated (Tomasevski, 2001: 10). Education is seen as the chance for an individual to develop himself and therefore enjoy a good life. In todays globalizing world education is seen as an investment in human capital. Thus when entering a labour market someone with an education has a greater chance of succeeding than someone with no education. As for working children, the mainstream idea suggests that child labour should be abolished as a whole, because child labour stands in the way of a child having an education and succeeding in life. Work is seen as harmful for a childs education and freedom. As mentioned above, in this mainstream idea the exploitation of children during working hours is greatly emphasized as the problem and used as a reason for abolishing child labour. Furthermore children who work are perceived as not having a childhood. Because they dont have the free time to do the things that a child normally does during his or her childhood. Here the western perception of what childhood is plays an important role.

After looking at the mainstream idea surrounding education we can conclude that this idea takes a more economic approach on having an education. In the third stage, theoretical work, we discuss alternative theories and approaches that could improve the analysis of education and working children. How can education be approached in a different way? Instead of focusing on an economic approach, theres an alternative social, cultural approach that focuses on human rights and reaching equity and transformative solutions rather than competing in the labour market. Thus the focus shifts from the rights to education to the rights in education. Here education quality and opportunities to learn are emphasized (Spreen et Vally, 2006: 353). Having education for all only doesnt improve the situation if the education that the children are getting isnt good and theres no equity. Furthermore this approach on the rights to education also takes in account the issue of poverty and the consequences it can have on a child and its education. The right to education must be linked with other human right needs the eradication of poverty and the eradication of discrimination (Spreen et Vally, 2006: 355). But also policy issues on school funding, school fees and additional costs should be taken into account. These are all elements that can intervene in a childs education. Concerning child labour we find two different approaches next to the mainstream approach. One of them is the cultural relativist approach that view children working more in a socio-cultural context and that also support the notion of the existence of multiple childhoods instead of one universal childhood. In this approach work has an important role in the socialization of children, meaning that children who work may develop important skills for their further development. Work is seen as an important training ground for the children. But also theres the point that childrens earnings can be crucial to the family income (Cunningham, 2001: 16). The extra money that the children bring into the household can contribute to the survival of the entire family. For some families schooling is something left for leisure time or as an alternative to farming for children too frail to work on the land (Hashim, 2004). The other approach we encounter regarding child labour is the agency and mobilization approach which focuses on self-organization and mobilization of working children, and on the improvement of their working situation. Whats important here is that children have a say in discussions about working. But more importantly in this approach children have a right to work like any other human being and that they are actively involved in the labour market (Nieuwenhuys: 169). This approach tends to empower children by given them agency to mobilize themselves so that they can try to improve their situation. In the final stage by Mayall (2000) we try to develop a standpoint or position regarding the approaches discussed for the issues surrounding education and working children. When discussing the different approaches surrounding education we found two approaches: a mainstream approach that suggest education for all, thus everyone has a right to education, and an alternative approach that emphasizes on the rights in education rather than rights to education. Personally I agree with the mainstream approach that everyone has a right to receive an education and that education should be available for everyone, but that doesnt mean that this notion works in reality. The reality of education is quite different in the Global South, where not everyone can attain an education due to other factors that play a role in their daily life. Stressing only on education for all is not enough to insure that everyone has an education. There are other elements that should be taken into account like poverty, discrimination, work and language barriers. With this in mind I tend to lean more towards the alternative approach on education. We need to work on the rights in education in order for children to have a chance at a good education and so improve their living conditions. I think that this more a socialized approach that can work and thus can have a positive impact, but on a negative point we can say that theres always a long way ahead in changing the way people think in other to achieve the rights in education. Rights in education are not change overnight or in a year. It takes time and dedication for this approach to succeed. As an example I point to Intercultural Bilingual Education, which Im currently working on for my Bachelors paper, as an alternative form of education for indigenous people in Ecuador. Here

emphasize is put on giving education in their native language and the mainstream language, but also promoting and preserving their culture. This helps the indigenous people to have an education and also to embrace their culture and at the same time enhance their chances of improving their living conditions. But despite this alternative approach for education, people remain skeptical, because of all the steps that have to be made in order for this alternative to succeed. And there always remains the question of whether this alternative approach will actually help the indigenous people and others to achieve better living conditions. For the issue of working children we found a mainstream approach that suggests that child labour should be abolished as a whole, and two alternative approaches: the cultural relativist approach and the agency and mobilization approach. Regarding this issue, on the one hand I partly agree with the mainstream approach that child labour should be abolished, but on the other hand I also agree with the cultural relativist approach that we need to take a closer look at the reasons why children are working so that we can get a better understanding of it. Its easy to say that all forms of child labour should be abolished, but in reality there are reasons why children are working that should be taken into account. Children working doesnt have to be necessarily bad, but the conditions in which they work and the hours with they work are mainly the problem. Some of them work to help support their family because of the poor conditions they live in; others work so that they can get the money to buy school supplies and uniforms to go to school; and others work in their family shop or at home to help their families. The cultural relativist approach can have a more positive look on children working, but it remains difficult to say which forms of work are good or which ones are bad. How do we put a line between what is good and what is bad? We also have to take in account what our perceptions are of what is good/bad and what the perceptions are of the people in the Global South on these matters. All and all we can conclude that education and working children are very much interrelated. When discussing education and working children and the different approaches regarding these issues we encounter many problems and matters that have to be taken into account in order to change the current situation in the Global South. And that we have to look at education and working children from their point of view, not only from our point of view in the western world.

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