How many of us know about the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (commonly abbreviated as the CRC)? Do we realise its impact on education? If not, let’s take a closer look…
“Give me a child till he is seven years old,” said St Ignatius Loyola, “and I will show you the man.” The founder of the Jesuit Brotherhood was way ahead of his time.
For most of human history, most adults have paid scant attention to the education of their children. Education was either non-existent, or based around learning adult skills, and more recently, corporatised usually by governments, on our behalf. Until recently, few parents felt any sense of concern with the curriculum or the purpose of schools. However, I would contend that has changed. We are at the edge of a precipice, and it is time to wake up.
Personally, I love learning. I am committed to lifelong learning. Whether it is regarding my faith, or my career in education, or reading voraciously for personal interest, or for my postgraduate research, I am a passionate lifelong learner. Throughout the years, I have developed a strong interest in education: its history, its purpose, and where it is heading. Some of the trends I observe deeply concern me.
I have prepared a series of presentations and articles on education, including the historical context of education, both western and global, the purpose of education, the chief influences on education, and the present situation of education. I find many parents simply do not know what shapes education in their nation, or how their rights as parents are rapidly and systematically being eroded. This is part of a massive shift away from the traditional Judeo-Christian norms that have seemingly underpinned western society, including in education since the beginning of schools during the Industrial Revolution of the 18th and 19th centuries.
However, in the interest of both brevity and to focus on the present crisis facing education, in this article I am going to centre on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which spearheaded much of the social agenda that has influenced education particularly in the western world over the past three decades.
In 1989 world leaders adopted the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (commonly abbreviated as the CRC), which is an international agreement on childhood (through to the age of 18), setting out the civil, political, economic, social, health and cultural rights of children. To quote from the UNICEF website:
“In 1989 something incredible happened. Against the backdrop of a changing world order world leaders came together and made a historic commitment to the world’s children. They made a promise to every child to protect and fulfil their rights, by adopting an international legal framework – the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Contained in this treaty is a profound idea: that children are not just objects who belong to their parents and for whom decisions are made, or adults in training. Rather, they are human beings and individuals with their own rights. The Convention says childhood is separate from adulthood, and lasts until 18; it is a special, protected time, in which children must be allowed to grow, learn, play, develop and flourish with dignity. The Convention went on to become the most widely ratified human rights treaty in history and has helped transform children’s lives.”[1]
We can already spot in that preamble alone some concerning phrases that we are becoming very familiar with, such as “changing world order”. Also concerning is the statement that “children are not just objects who belong to their parents and for whom decisions are made…” Parents do not have the authority to make the decisions pertaining to their children. Through this agreement, that vacuum of authority has been taken over by the state, ultimately under the umbrella of the United Nations - in other words, a global governing authority. One could say a form of ‘one world government’.
Now we will turn to the actual wording of the CRC, just to highlight six clauses that are worth noting:
Preamble: Considering that the child should be fully prepared to live an individual life in society, and brought up in the spirit of the ideals proclaimed in the Charter of the United Nations, and in particular in the spirit of peace, dignity, tolerance, freedom, equality and solidarity…
Article 2: 2. States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that the child is protected against all forms of discrimination or punishment on the basis of the status, activities, expressed opinions, or beliefs of the child's parents, legal guardians, or family members.
Article 9: 1. States Parties shall ensure that a child shall not be separated from his or her parents against their will, except when competent authorities subject to judicial review determine, in accordance with applicable law and procedures, that such separation is necessary for the best interests of the child.
Article 14: States Parties shall respect the right of the child to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. Freedom to manifest one's religion or beliefs may be subject only to such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary to protect public safety, order, health or morals, or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others.
Article 17: States Parties recognize the important function performed by the mass media and shall ensure that the child has access to information and material from a diversity of national and international sources, especially those aimed at the promotion of his or her social, spiritual and moral well-being and physical and mental health.
Article 29: 1. States Parties agree that the education of the child shall be directed to: (a) The development of the child's personality, talents and mental and physical abilities to their fullest potential; (b) The development of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and for the principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations; (d) The preparation of the child for responsible life in a free society, in the spirit of understanding, peace, tolerance, equality of sexes, and friendship among all peoples, ethnic, national and religious groups and persons of indigenous origin;
There are 196 nations that are parties to this Convention, including 140 signatories, and it has been ratified by 20 nations. The United States signed this on 16 February 1995, but has not ratified it. Nations that have ratified this convention or have acceded to it are bound by international law. When a state has signed the treaty but not ratified it, it is not yet bound by the treaty's provisions but is already obliged to not act contrary to its purpose.
As with any legislation, so much depends on how certain terms are defined, and if those definitions evolve over time. For example, when it refers to ‘health or morals’ - who defines those morals?
I wanted to bring the CRC to the attention of our readers, and to parents, as I find very, very few parents (and even very few professionals within education) know about the CRC. Even if they have vaguely heard of it, they do not know what it contains, or how sweeping its powers are.
As with all things in our world, it is over the slow creep of time that God’s standards and ways are undermined. Often stealthily, and quietly, behind the scenes. I find many people are noticing, and complaining, about a steady decline of standards in education, an erosion of parental rights, and of new morals being taught within schools and being promoted in the media that run contrary to Biblical beliefs and standards. Often they seem to think it all came about by accident. They never seem to know why this has come about, or where this came from. This is where. And this is why.
It has been allowed to happen. It was designed by our governments, globally, three decades ago, and enshrined in international law. It has its roots further back than that, which I unfortunately do not have time to go into here. So please do not think this has been by accident, or outside your government’s sphere of influence. It has occurred deliberately and systematically, and has been allowed, if not overtly directed, by the governments involved in its inception.
In conclusion, I always believe with anything in life, the first step is having awareness. Once we have awareness, we need to work out how we think and feel about it. As Christians, if we are committed to the Bible as the basis of our being, we need to measure up what is occurring with our convictions from the Bible. Regarding the rights of parents, including how to educate our children, we need to work out as Christian parents how we see our role. How do we see the role of the government regarding this?
If we hold the view that ultimately we as the parents are accountable for the children God has blessed us with, including the education of our children, we need to accept that the state does not view this the same way. We can see this in black and white in the wording of the Convention. Even for those of our readers residing in the United States, even though the United States has not ratified the CRC, it has signed it, and therefore cannot act contrary to the Convention’s purpose.
Where to next, then? I would close with four thoughts:
Get involved - Spirit of Prophecy often stated that whilst we have the freedom to do so, to do what we can to influence society for good, including positively impacting government.
Pay attention - even if you have chosen a Christian education for your child, pay attention. These days, we all know and accept that Christianity has a broad spectrum of belief and practice. So choose wisely, and keep monitoring to ensure what is occurring is aligned with your values.
Homeschool well - if you choose homeschooling, do it well! Even as a seasoned educational professional, I believe almost all parents can homeschool well. But it is tough! It is time-consuming and energy-consuming; it costs money, and you do not want to disadvantage your child. I have observed many instances of poor homeschooling, with little occurring in any consistent way, resulting in children being not as literate or numerate as their peers in school, and for those at high school age, missing out on subjects like science. However, there are many ways to solve these sorts of problems, for example, there are sound curricula available, and homeschooling associations can provide excellent support.
Be clear in your purpose — if you haven’t before, put aside some time to prayerfully think through what is your purpose as parents regarding the education of your children.
Let’s close with those wise words from Proverbs 22:6 “Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it.”
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Sharyn Dunn holds a Bachelor of Arts with 1st Class Honours in English from the University of Canterbury in New Zealand and has commenced doctoral research. She has served throughout southern New Zealand in various teaching roles and briefly as a school principal. She is presently residing in rural Canterbury and leading and teaching English at the local Adventist high school in Christchurch. Sharyn entered the SDA Church in 2003 after first accepting the message of salvation as a 16 year old, and is the mother of three adult children.
References:
[1] https://www.unicef.org/child-rights-convention#learn
Convention on the Rights of the Child, UNICEF, https://www.unicef.org/child-rights-convention#learn. Accessed 17 July 2022
Convention on the Rights of the Child, Encyclopædia Britannica https://www.britannica.com/topic/Convention-on-the-
Rights-of-the-Child. Accessed 17 July 2022
Convention on the Rights of the Child, OHCHR, https://www.ohchr.org/en/instruments- mechanisms/instruments/
convention-rights-child. Accessed 17 July 2022
Abhinaya Ramesh. “UN Convention on Rights of the Child: Inherent Weaknesses.” Economic and Political Weekly, vol. 36, no. 22, 2001, pp. 1948–50. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/4410687. Accessed 17 July 2022.