What children are saying about education in crisis contexts

• In Event: Challenges, crisis contexts, and complexities in education

Proposal

In humanitarian contexts, education in emergencies (EiE) is a critical intervention to support children’s psychosocial well-being, continued learning, and hope for the future (INEE, 2024). Despite EiE being a child-focused sector, girls and boys are seldom meaningfully involved in defining EiE needs and deciding what kinds of interventions form the backbone of the education humanitarian response. This runs counter to children’s rights under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) Article 12 and the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC)’s Commitments on Accountability (IASC, 2017), one of which is participation.

As the coordinating body for EiE under the IASC Cluster approach (IASC, 2015), the Education Cluster has sought to change that through systematically integrating child participation into Joint Needs Assessments (JNAs). This paper presents a synthesis of findings from participatory research with girls and boys through JNAs in six conflict-affected contexts in 2022 and 2023. With technical support from the Global Education Cluster (GEC), Education Cluster partners facilitated 174 child-friendly focus group activities with 1,444 children (52% girls) aged 9-17. The consultations took place in Burkina Faso, Central African Republic (CAR), Myanmar, Niger, North West Syria, and Pakistan. The objective was to find out more about the experiences of children affected by crisis as related to their education, in order to strengthen accountability to children, fill critical information gaps, and use this information to design more relevant, effective EiE response plans.

The research was designed based on the GEC’s Guide to Child Participation within Coordinated Education in Emergencies Needs Assessments and Analysis (GEC, 2021). Information needs were identified with country Education Clusters and participatory activities to run with small, sex-segregated focus groups with girls and boys were selected accordingly. These tools were contextualized, adapted, and translated (as needed). Robust child safeguarding measures were important to put in place.

Because of the country-led nature of this research, there was variation on the profiles of children who participated in the focus group discussions (according to age, sex, disability, school enrolment status, and displacement status). There was also flexibility on the themes of inquiry to ensure relevance and applicability of findings for in-country teams. Data from discussions with children in in each country were compiled, cleaned, and organised according to theme. Direct quotes were recorded and used to illustrate common, surprising, or particularly vivid findings. A country-specific report was produced for each study.

At the global level, a meta-analysis was undertaken to draw out common themes and consolidate findings about the experiences of children affected by crises. Three concise briefs were developed on the following three themes: barriers to accessing education, safety in and around schools, and relationships with teachers (GEC, 2024).

The meta-analysis identified important commonalities in what girls and boys had to say about their education across crisis contexts, as well as specificities that are best illustrated through the voices of children themselves. For example, the most important reason for dropping out of school cited by children was poverty, which is exacerbated by crises and displacement. Children said that parents could not afford to pay school fees or fees levied by parents’ associations, or to cover the hidden costs of education, such as school materials, books, transportation, and uniforms. " You can't go to school empty-handed and always poorly dressed,” said a 10-12 year-old boy from CAR. Other important barriers included child marriage, lack of awareness of the importance of education and child labour, which links to poverty. Insecurity and conflict was also a critical theme, with a girl from Burkina Faso recounting this chilling experience, "The unidentified armed groups killed our parents, they say they'll cut off our heads if we come to school."

Regarding safety at school, in the three countries in which children were asked directly if they feel safe at school, about two-thirds said yes and one-third said no. Girls and boys reported feeling that teachers, school staff, and guards or armed security forces close to school protect them. However, in four countries, children spoke about fearing attacks by armed groups, gunfire, the school’s proximity to military bases, forced recruitment, kidnapping and rape (especially for girls), and fear that the school may be bombed. They also feared fighting between students and corporal punishment by teachers.

Regarding teachers, in three countries where we asked children directly if teachers were nice to students, about two-thirds to three-quarters of children said yes. Girls and boys spoke about teachers listening to, laughing with, protecting, taking care of, and supporting students. “Teachers help us build our future and show us the right path,” said a boy from Niger. However, in all six countries, children also described teachers using corporal punishment, including beating, hitting, and whipping children for being late for class, answering questions incorrectly, making mistakes, or talking too much. Discrimination by teachers was also commonly cited.

Elevating the voices of children in EiE research is critical to better understanding the unique needs of the boys and girls we serve and to designing more accountable, relevant, and effective humanitarian responses. Children’s voices offer a richness, flavor, and specificity to the work that EiE practitioners do. As we look to the future with a view to expanding and deepening children’s participation, the question of new technologies enters into the discussion. Alternatives to the face-to-face, non-digital approach of this research will be explored in the context of potential future applications, adaptations, and innovations, connecting up to the CIES conference theme.

Author

• Dianne Denton, Save The Children International