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Publication date: 10.04.2024
Lawyer, graduated from the National University "Odesa Law Academy" with honors. Since 2017, I have been specializing in legal and educational and general legal issues. I am the author of legal articles, scientific publications and articles in the educational environment. Mentor of the "Veritas" legal clinic. The owner of the legal blog "Educational_law_ua" on Instagram.
The right to education is considered one of the basic rights of children recognized by international human rights standards. Free education is a key aspect of this right, as it provides access to quality education without financial constraints. In this article, we will consider children's rights to free education, the main principles that must be followed and ways to ensure access to it.
International Norms and Legislation
The right to education and free education is recognized in many international instruments, such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. According to these documents, every child has the right to access quality education, which should be accessible and free of charge at least at the primary level and important stages of education.
Many countries also have legislation that guarantees children's right to free education. For example, in Ukraine, the Law "On Education" ensures the right of every citizen to free education in state and communal educational institutions.
Principles of Free Education
Free education is based on several basic principles, including:
Accessibility: Education should be accessible to all children, regardless of their social status, ethnicity, physical or other disabilities.
Free of charge: Education should be provided free of charge, that is, without payment of school or other fees, which can become an obstacle for low-income children, and charitable contributions to educational institutions should be exclusively voluntary and directed to the official fund account of the educational institution. If the child is studying in a private fee-paying school, this principle will not apply here, but in this case you may need a legal analysis of a contract by a lawyer or analysis of contracts when the child starts at such an institution.
Quality: Free education must meet high quality standards and ensure the proper level of education, because this principle is guaranteed by the state.
Freedom of choice: Children and their parents should be able to choose the educational institution that they consider best suited to their needs and values.
Providing Access to Free Education
Ensuring access to free education may require appropriate measures from the state and society. Some of them include:
Funding: The state must provide sufficient funding to educational institutions to ensure quality education and reduce costs for children and their families.
Infrastructure: It is necessary to provide adequate infrastructure for educational institutions to ensure comfortable learning conditions.
Social programs: It is important to implement social programs, such as scholarships and support for low-income families, to ensure access to education for all children.
Education: In order to ensure access to free education, it is necessary to educate families and the public about the importance of education and children's rights to it.
In this way, the legal analysis of documents by a lawyer makes it clear that the rights of children to free education are fundamental and important for ensuring their full development and integration into society. Ensuring access to free education must be a priority for states and society, and only through joint efforts can these rights be realized for all children, regardless of their situation.
