RIGHT TO EDUCATION

  

PRESENTED BY:
RACHEITA PRADHANANGA
RAJANI GAJUREL
ROSHAN SUNAR
RUKMANI KHADKA
SADHANA DEUBA
SADIKSHYA MAHARJAN
 INTRODUCTION
Rights 
Rights are the inherent will or interests of individuals which are legally permitted and
guaranteed. The right must have legal protection, recognition and enforceability.  
Ihering  - “ Rights are legally protected interests .”

Education  
The word “ Education “ has been derived from the Latin term  “Educatum”  which
means the act of teaching or learning . 
 A group of educationists say that it has came from another Latin word “ Educare”
which means “ to bring up “ or “ to raise.”
 According to a few others, the word “Education “ has originated from another Latin
term “ Educere “ which means “to lead forth “ or “ to come out “.
 Aristotle – “ Education is the process of training man to fulfill his aim by exercising
all the facilities to the fullest extent as a member of society .”
 Making the man civilized 
  Satisfaction of needs 
  Adaptation to environment
  Modification of environment
  Development of character
  Development of individuality
  Preparation for life
  Creation of good citizen 
  Practical knowledge of various spheres of work
  Promotion of social efficiency 
 The right to education is a fundamental human rights .
  Every individual , irrespective of race, gender, nationality, ethnic or social origin,
religion or political performance, age or disability , is entitled to a free elementary
education .
  This right is explicitly stated in United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human
Rights ( UDHR), adopted in 1948 and has since been enshrined  in various
international conventions, national constitutions and development plans.

 Key elements of Right to education 

The right to  education is identified as a human right and it must be available,
accessible, acceptable and adaptable. Every person shall be able to get the benefit
from educational knowledge which is desired to get their basic learning knowledge.
a) Availability
        Education should be available for all and without cost, minimum the primary
education and fundamental level. The government should be able to make it available
for the citizen. The governments have to make sure availability of school. The primary
education and higher and also basic education should be available for all.
b) Accessibility
         All of the educational institute should be accessible for everybody. Nobody
can be discriminate on the basis of race, sex, color, religious, economic status,
language and immigration status or disability. The school should be safe for all,
the school should be reasonable distance from the community. Education
should be affordable to all and text book. Higher education should be
accessible for all and also equitable for all. Person with disabilities can access
and inclusive, quality and free primary education and secondary education on
an equal basis with others in the communities in which they live.

c) Acceptability
         The education learning method of school should be acceptable to the
parents for their children and they should be fulfilling the national norms that
they set by the government also should be providing the equality educations.
The method of education also is  easy and acceptable to all.
d) Adaptability 
      Adaptability means the education has to be flexible and easy. Adaptability
promotes equitable outcome for learners. The education should be adaptable for
children and youth and also higher student. 

 In Sum Up :
Free and compulsory primary education
Available and accessible secondary and technical/ vocational education that is
progressively free
Equal accessible higher education based on capacity and progressively made free
Fundamental education for those who could not access or complete primary
education 
System of schools with continuously improved conditions and enhanced
educational access for individuals
TYPES OF EDUCATION
SYSTEM IN NEPAL

School education
Basic school (1-8 grades) 8 years
Secondary (9-12 grades) 4 years

Higher education
Undergraduate :3-4 years or 5 years
Masters : 2or 3 years
M phil :18 months
PHD : 3+years
 NINE UNIVERSITIES

Tribhuvan university
Shanskrit university
Kathmandu university
Pokhara University
Purbanchal university
Madhya paschimanchal University
Sudur Paschimanchal
Agriculture and forestry university
Lumbini budha University
Why should we study Right
Relating to education in Law,
poverty and Development?
National Framework w.r.t Right Relating to
Education:

1) Constitution of Nepal 2072( article 31)

2) An Act relating to Compulsory and Free
Education, 2075( 2018).
31. Right relating to education:

(1) Every citizen shall have the right of access to basic education.
(2) Every citizen shall have the right to get compulsory and free
education up to the basic level and free education up to the secondary
level from the State.
(3) The citizens with disabilities and the economically indigent citizens
shall have the right to get free higher education in accordance with law.
(4) The visually impaired citizens shall have the right to get free
education through brail script and the citizens with hearing or speaking
impairment, to get free education through sign language, in
accordance with law.
(5) Every Nepalese community residing in Nepal shall have
the right to get education in its mother tongue and, for that
purpose, to open and operate schools and educational
institutes, in accordance with law.
Chapter-2
Access of Citizens to Education and Liability of
the State
3. Right to get education
4. Liability of State to provide education
5. Duty of the citizens
Chapter-3 deals with Compulsory and Free
Education .
6. To provide compulsory education
7. To get children to be admitted
8. To acquire education from convenient school
9. Not to refuse to get admission
10. Not to expel from school
11. To readmit
12. To transfer
13. To provide transfer certificate
14. To make provision of alternative education
15. To provide non-formal and open education
16. To provide traditional education
17. Provisions relating to technical education
18. Education of children whose guardians are not
identified
19. To be disqualified
20. Education up to secondary level to be free
21. To provide textbooks
22. To provide educational materials
23. To provide scholarship
24. To make arrangement for treatment
25. Provision relating to day breakfast
26. Language of instruction
29. To operate school or teaching institute
Chapter-5
Appropriation of Budget and Grant for Education
30. Appropriation of budget and grant
31. To support by other person or institution
Chapter-6: Offence and Fine

32. Offence and fine:

Chapter-7: Miscellaneous Provisions

33. Special rights of citizens with disabilities and Dalit
citizens
34. To operate model, specialized and mobile school with
facilities
35. Provisions of monitoring, and monitoring indicators
36. To submit report
37. To provide details
38. Partnership or collaboration to be made
39. This Act to govern
40. Power to frame Rules
41. Power to make standards
Are there any restrictions to this right?

The right to education does not give you the right to learn whatever you want, wherever
you want. The courts have ruled that the right to education relates to the education
system that already exists. It does not require the government to provide or subsidize
any specific type of education.

The government is allowed to regulate the way education is delivered. For example, it
can pass laws making education compulsory or imposing health and safety requirements
on schools. Schools are allowed to use admission policies so long as they are objective
and reasonable.

Although parents have a right to ensure their religious or philosophical beliefs are
respected during their children’s education, this is not an absolute right. As long as these
beliefs are properly considered, an education authority can depart from them provided
there are good reasons and it is done objectively, critically and caters for a diversity of
beliefs and world views.
Example case - R (Hounslow London Borough Council) v
School Admissions Appeal Panel for Hounslow London
Borough Council [2002]
The admissions policy of a primary school in West London prioritized
children who lived in the school’s designated catchment area. This
meant that some children who lived outside this area, but who had
brothers or sisters attending the school, were not admitted because
of the pressure on class sizes. A group of parents challenged this
decision. The court held that the school’s admission policy did not
violate the right to education. It emphasised that, where applications
exceed the number of school places, admissions authorities have to
use a fair process to make practical, objective decisions. Among
other things, this means that each application must be properly
considered on its merits before a final decision is made.
Nepal’s constitution and compulsory education act are
more progressive than UN Conventions and other
constitutions in terms of ensuring education as a
human right.

Parliament of Nepal enacted Right to Free and

Compulsory Education Act in 2018 to implement
Article 31 of the constitution.
 With this, the country has upheld right to education as an
enforceable sacrosanct human right. Unlike erstwhile constitutions,
the 2015 charter casts an obligation on the state to ensure free
education up to the secondary level (from grade nine to 12) and
compulsory and free basic education for up to grade eight.
The Act provisions that a person, who has not received basic
education, is not entitled to get a government or non-government
job after 10 years (after 2028).
This has sent the message that the right to education is the part of
basic human rights as well right to life with dignity guaranteed under
Article 16.
It enables any citizen to seek enforcement of the right by way of
resort to writ jurisdiction.
Constitutions of 1959 and 1962 had miserably failed to show
adherence to right to education. These two constitutions lacked
provisions relating to right to education.

The 1948 Government of Nepal Act under Article 4 provisioned for

free and compulsory primary education throughout the country. However,
1951 and 1990 constitutions lacked provisions for free and compulsory
education to citizens under the chapter of fundamental rights.

The 2007 Interim Constitution brought a paradigm shift in the entire

system of governance and fundamental rights. Article 17 envisaged, for
the first time in constitutional history of Nepal, for citizen’s right to get free
education up to secondary level from the state. However, there was no
provision regarding ‘compulsory and free’ education.
The 2015 charter not only brought a substantial change in political landscape
but also incorporated ambitious and progressive rights under the fundamental
rights. For the first time, the constitution, under Article 31, advocated for the
‘free and compulsory’ education for Nepalese.

Three years after the promulgation of the constitution, the parliament enacted
Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act. The Act says that every child
in the age group of 4-13 has the right to ‘free and compulsory education
in a neighbourhood school, till the completion of basic education. Likewise,
children are also allowed to receive free secondary education.
To ensure this right, the appropriate government, which means central
government or provincial governments and its affiliates, is shouldered with a
duty to provide school within two kilometres walking distance from children’s
residents.
There is mandate for private schools as well.
The Act commands them to set aside 10
percent seats for scholarship candidates
where the number of students stands up to
500, and 12 percent and 15 percent
scholarship seats where the number of
students is up to 800 and above 800,
respectively.
Uprooting illiteracy
Nepal has put in place strict legal arrangements to eradicate illiteracy.
The 2018 act strictly instructs the parents to enroll their students in
schools. It envisages that if they fail to admit their students in schools
or deprive them from acquiring basic level education, they would be
deprived from the facilities provided by the local bodies.
The local bodies are mandated to hold dialogues with the reluctant
parents and convince them to ensure the access of education to their
children.

The report of School Sector Development Program (2016-2023)

says that about 86 percent of children who enroll in grade one reach
grade five and only 74.6 percent survive up to grade eight.
.

Legal maxim has it that every law exists to serve the

common cause and the welfare of people.
The makers of the Constitution and 2018 Act seem to
have realized that in a developing country like Nepal,
political democracy would be of little value without
consolidation of economic democracy.
Accordingly, they have enacted provisions to oblige the
state to impart free and compulsory school education
to children.
Thus it can be said that Nepal is serious, at least in
terms of legal measures, to eradicate illiteracy and to
ensure quality education, which is enlisted under Goal
number 4 of Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs), to its citizens. It’s positive. But people will
benefit only when they those legal measures are
strictly implemented.
The constitution of Nepal in its schedule 8 has given the right to the local
governments to manage basic and secondary level education. The recently
adopted 21-point education policy 2019 has empowered the local level
governments by stating that they can appoint teachers on their own.

If everything goes as envisioned in the policies, local units can recruit

teachers on their own once the ministry promulgates the Local Education Act.
Deepak Sharma, spokesperson for the Ministry of Education, Science
and Technology, said that the ministry is preparing to introduce the act
before the upcoming local level elections.

Appointment of teachers by local level governments was formulated as a

policy to meet the shortages of teachers in schools.
…
The vision of policy is “educated, civilized, healthy and capable human
resource, social justice, transformation and prosperity”.
As per the policy, the government will ensure each and every citizens
access to compulsory and free basic education. It also contemplates gradual
implementation of the concept of school zoning in basic education .
“specialized schools of various subjects, including science, music,
sports, ayurveda and medicinal herbs will be established, operated
and managed.
There will be the state of art national science school to expand the
opportunity of science and technology education for citizens” reads the
policy.
“Technical education for all” is one of the salient features of the policy.
Under this concept, the government will provide technical and vocational
education and skill development opportunities to all interested citizens by
strengthening institutional capacity of agencies concerned.
EDUCATIONAL POLICIES AND PLANS

Annex and
. event program
in vocation al
education

current practice
in educational Education
SSDP improvement act

Higher
education
project Ii
…
SSDP (school sector development plan),(2073-2080)
Focus of SSDP
Early child education and development/pre primary education
Basic Education
Secondary education
Technical and vocational education (TVE) stream
Non-formal education and life long learning
Cross cutting priorities
Financing
..

Makes educational program , funding, structure, Compatible with federal

governing system.

HERP II ( Higher education reform project )

The objectives of Nepal second higher education project are :
a). Enhanced quality and relevance of higher education and research through a
set of incentives for promoting effective management and financial sustainability
of academic institutions.
b). Improved access for academically qualified under privileged students
including girls dalits and educationally disadvantaged janajyoti to higher
education through financial assistance and enhanced capacity of higher
secondary schools.

The project components are:

1. Reform grants
2. Student financial assistance
3. Higher secondary education
4. Strengthening system capacity
GENERAL INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS
DOCUMENTS INDICATING THE RIGHT TO
EDUCATION
The right to education is foreseen in many international and regional
legal instruments. A large number of standard-setting instruments—
conventions, declarations, recommendations, frameworks for action,
charters—that are used at the international and regional level, provide
a normative framework for the right to education.
Various international organizations such as UNESCO, Economic and
Social Council of United Nations, United Nations Committee on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and forums for example, World
Education Forum in Dakar, Senegal, in 2000; World Conference on
Education for All (EFA) in Jomtien, Thailand, in 1990 reaffirmed the
human right to education and expressed the framework of obligations
and implementation targets for all states. Now the right to education,
expanded for every child, youth and adult, is considered to be one
of the most challenging projects of social development.
UNITED NATIONS FRAMEWORK
The right to education originally came to be expressed for the very
first time in Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights .
Article 26 Part 1 foresees: Everyone has the right to education. It shall
be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages.
Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional
education shall be made generally available and higher education
shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.
The provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights have
been specified and complemented by two later documents—the
special document dedicated to education, the UNESCO Convention
against Discrimination in Education (1960) , and the International
Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966) .
The International Covenant on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights (1966) devotes two articles to the right to
education—Articles 13 and 14.
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women, 1979 provides ,States
Parties to take all appropriate measures to eliminate
discrimination against women in order to ensure to them
equal rights with men in the field of education and in
particular to ensure, on a basis of equality of men and
women… in Art. 10
Declaration on the Rights of Persons belonging to
National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities,
1992, Art. 4
The latest specific international legal document foreseeing the right to
education is the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), which
dedicates 3 articles (articles 28-30) to education. Article 28 of the
Convention repeats all of the most important provisions of other
international documents and imposes on the states the obligations to
respect, protect, and fulfil each child’s right to education, focusing
upon the obligations of State Parties in relation to the
establishment of educational systems and in ensuring access
thereto. The obligation to fulfil incorporates both an obligation to
facilitate and an obligation to provide.
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination,
1966 Article 5 and 7.
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, 2006 Article 24.
Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and
Members of their families, 1990 part 3 and 4
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966 Article 18.
 UNESCO FRAMEWORK
The UNESCO Convention against Discrimination in Education (1960)17
was the first international treaty to be adopted concerning education as
such. The Convention is the first legally binding instrument which
provides for standards and a quality of education.
Article 4 of the UNESCO Convention foresees: The States Parties to
this Convention undertake …:
(a) To make primary education free and compulsory; make secondary
education in its different forms generally available and accessible to all;
make higher education equally accessible to all on the basis of
individual capacity; assure compliance by all with the obligation to
attend school prescribed by law;
(b) To ensure that the standards of education are equivalent in all public
educational institutions of the same level, and that the conditions
relating to the quality of the education provided are also equivalent;
(c) To encourage and intensify by appropriate methods the
education of persons who have not received any primary
education […];
It has to be noted that Convention against Discrimination in
Education refers to the general principle of “equal
opportunity” in education as the basis of action to be taken by
States Parties with a view to achieving the right of the child to
education.
UNESCO Convention on Technical and Vocational Education,
1989
ILO FRAMEWORK
ILO Convention No. 138 on the minimum age for
employment, 1973
ILO Convention No. 182 on Worst Forms of Child Labor, 1999
ILO Convention No. 169 concerning Indigenous and Tribal
Peoples in Independent Countries, 1989
REGIONAL LEGAL INSTRUMENTS
REGULATING THE RIGHT TO
EDUCATION
The first regional document indicating the right to education was
The European Convention on Human Rights, specifically the First
Protocol of the Convention. Article 2 of the Protocol, in general
terms, briefly foresees that “No person shall be denied the right to
education.
The African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child set out
a much broader and more comprehensive right to education than
that provided for in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’
Rights (1981). Article 11 of the African Charter on the Rights and
Welfare of the Child provides that every child shall have the right to
an education. The provision incorporates aspects of Articles 28 and
29 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in its outline of the
aims of education, and it prescribes measures that states must take
as part of their efforts to achieve the full realization of this right.
OTHER REGIONAL FRAMEWORK
INCLUDES:
 African Youth Charter, 2006 Art. 13 and 20
 African Union Convention for the Protection and
Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa
(Kampala Convention), 2009, Art. 9
 Arab Charter on Human Rights, 2004, Art. 40 and 41
 ASEAN Human Rights Declaration (2012), Art. 27 and 31
 Charter of the Organization of American States, 1967, Art.
49 and 50
 Inter-American Democratic Charter, 2001, Art. 16
THE CONTENT OF THE RIGHT TO
EDUCATION—THE CONCEPTION OF
THE FOUR “A’S”
Expressed for the first time in The International Covenant on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966), and then reaffirmed
almost in all treaties or other documents related to human rights, the
quantitative and qualitative scope of the right to education consists of
four “A’s”—availability, accessibility, acceptability and
adaptability.
Availability means that states must ensure a free and compulsory,
good quality education available for all children up to a defined age
minimum, with safe schools and appropriate infrastructure and
facilities, especially with trained teachers.
Accessibility obliges the state to eliminate any discrimination on the
basis of internationally prohibited grounds: legal and administrative
barriers, ethnicity, economic status, disability, gender obstacles. In
addition, education must be free and physically accessible.
Acceptability requires that states ensure that education is acceptable to
children, parents and teachers, with relevant content and methods,
respecting everyone’s rights. It includes parental choice of education for
their children and the enforcement of minimal standards (quality, safety,
environmental health).
Adaptability imposes the obligation to ensure that education is
adaptable to the child’s specific situation and ability (especially for
minority, indigenous, working children, children with disabilities, child
migrants).
 IMPORTANT CASES
 Mohini Jain v State of Karnataka(1992)
 The Supreme court of India held that the" 'right to education’ is
concomitant to fundamental rights enshrined under Part III of
the Constitution” and that ‘every citizen has a right to
education under the Constitution’.
 The Supreme Court held that a ‘right’ to education ‘flowed
from’ the enforceable right to life and personal liberty
guaranteed by Article 21 of the Constitution, since there could
be no ‘dignified enjoyment of life’, or the realization of other
rights, without adequate education.
 Unnikrishnan v. State of Andhra Pradesh(1993)
 The state could no longer remain a silent non-interfering
spectator, and onus was cast upon it to dedicate its machinery
to the effective fruition of these ‘socio-economic’ rights.
 The court relied on Article 45, a directive principle, to hold that
the state had a duty, under Article 21, to provide for free and
compulsory education of its citizens till the age of
fourteen.
Case 1: Major obstacle for Nurpu’s school education
Nurpu Ghale aged 14 lives at Thade, Rasuwa in a Himalayan district of
Nepal. He lives in a family of 8 members. He can simply read and write.
Nurpu’s mother passed away when he was very small. In the absence
of his mother, he had to support household activities. He was interested
to go to school and wants to study up to SLC but he is not getting that
opportunity. Now he spends time by working in agricultural land.
Nurpu completed grade 5 at Thade. Since the school for upper grade is
located at a distance of 2 hours on foot, he is compelled to leave school.
Thus, geographical distance and poor economic status are working as
barriers to his education. In spite of keen interest in study, Nurpu is not
able to attend school. He is expecting support from community, VDC
and the government institutions.
Source: Jnawali et al., 2008.
The studies found inadequate learning conditions in most
of the schools sampled. There was a lack of curriculum
materials, teaching as well as reading materials like
textbooks, pencils and pens.
These should be managed by the school concerned.
Instructional materials were not properly managed.
Classroom delivery was not found to be student oriented.
The process of textbook memorization was followed.
Source: RIGHTS-BASED EDUCATION IN NEPAL:
EXISTING STATUS AND CHALLENGES, Damodar
Jnawali, PhD
 eradicating poverty in all its forms and dimensions,
including extreme poverty, is the greatest global challenge
and an indispensable requirement for sustainable
development.”
The UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report  and the 
Education Commission’s Learning Generation Report  provide
important evidence on the impact of education on individual’s earnings
and economic growth. Below are some of the most compelling data that
illustrate these links.
1.Education reduces poverty
171 million people could be lifted out of extreme poverty if all children
left school with basic reading skills. That’s equivalent to a 12% drop in the
world total.
Absolute poverty could be reduced by 30% from learning
improvements outlined by the Education Commission.
3.Education reduces economic inequalities
If workers from poor and rich backgrounds received the same education,
disparity between the two in working poverty could decrease by 39%.
4.Education promotes economic growth
Educational attainment explains about half of the difference in growth rates
between East Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa between 1965 and 2010.
In 2050, GDP per capita in low-income countries would be almost 70% lower
than it would be if all children were learning.
Increasing tertiary attainment by one year on average would increase sub-
Saharan Africa’s long-term GDP by 16%. 
5.Education increases individual earnings
Education increases earnings by roughly 10% per each additional year of
schooling.
For each $1 invested in an additional year of schooling earnings
increase by $5 in low-income countries and $2.5 in lower-middle
income countries.
THANK YOU …