Symposium on “Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”. European Court of Human Rights Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011 Presentation: United Nations – Convention on the Rights of the Child article 12 “States Parties shall assure to the child who is capable of forming his or her own views the right to express those views freely in all matters affecting the child, the views of the child being given due weight in accordance with the age and maturity of the child”. A bridge to democratic participation at school Dr. Massimo Di Rienzo Save the Children Italy – Education Unit m_dirienzo@hotmail.com

1. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
“States Parties shall assure to the child who is capable of
forming his or her own views the right to express those
views freely in all matters affecting the child, the views of
the child being given due weight in accordance with the
age and maturity of the child”
United Nations – Convention on the Rights of the Child
article 12, a bridge to democratic participation at school
dr. Massimo Di Rienzo
Save the Children Italy – Education Unit
m_dirienzo@hotmail.com

2. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
• Should be listening
• Should be able to give due weight
…the views of the child
being given due weight in
accordance with the age
and maturity of the child”
“States Parties shall assure to
the child who is capable of
forming his or her own views the
right to express those views
freely in all matters affecting the
child…
• Must be informed
• Should be able to express
RIGHTS PEDAGOGY

3. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
What experiences…
FORUM of the students on the
1 implementation of the Convention
on the Rights of the Child
FORUM is a final event of a training process aimed at
helping secondary school kids in:
• Focussing on a specific topic which is strongly
related to their lives…
• …reading up on it…
• …discussing in the classroom…
• …writing up common positions under the form of a
“motion”…
• …reading up the motion in front of institutional
“duty bearers”
Organization of FORUM
PREPARATION MEETINGS MOTION WRITING MEETINGS FORUM
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

4. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
What experiences…
FORUM of the students on the
1 implementation of the Convention
on the Rights of the Child
MOTION
A formal motion is a statement made by a
whole classroom during the FORUM final
meeting describing what is to be done and
how it is to be accomplished.
…for instance…
The classroom asks the following:
• The Municipality of Rome should create
more appropriate spaces for kids close
to town centres. They should be held in
check and open to everyone.
• The school principal should foster
“ability to listen” in the classrooms

5. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
What experiences…
2 l’AquilAltrA
…is an initiative addressed to both teachers and children which
experienced a recent strong earthquake in the city of l’Aquila.
NEEDS ANALYSIS
Children had to move to different schools… relations were cut
and threat for the future was the main feeling
• 2009 April 6th… earthquake
• 2009 April 9th… emergency action
• 2009 October to 2010 May...Training for children
• 2010 November to 2011 April… Training for teachers

6. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
What experiences…
2 l’AquilAltrA
In late 2010 teachers asked us to continue the project. They
wanted to develop new approaches for improving participation of
children in their classrooms.
Focus on… BREAKING ALL THE ROLES
Teachers were invited to plan their lessons with creative non-
formal approaches, aimed at breaking all the roles in teaching…
OUTCOME
…how does it feel to come out of the role of “teacher”
“Sometimes we think we give enough space and time to kids in
our classrooms, but it is more in purpose than in practice”
“This training helped me better organize the work in the
classroom, as I intended when I started working and never
managed to do”
“Exploring different ways of managing the lesson in the
classroom made it easier for kids to be more involved”

7. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
What experiences…
2 l’AquilAltrA
Project sample
• Teachers decide to let the children
choose a topic, prepare and manage the
lesson.
• During the lesson teachers try to
boicot, talking over and asking stupid
questions.
• Children could not complete the lesson.
• Children argue with teachers about
responsability of preparing and
managing the lesson
Children were very upset about teachers
behavement, they really made a big effort
to prepare the lesson…

8. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
Lessons learnt…
ALWAYS CHECK OUT WHAT IS THE
STARTING POINT BOTH FOR RIGHT
HOLDERS AND FOR DUTY BEARERS
DEFINE SPACE FOR PARTICIPATION
WITH RIGHT HOLDERS AND DUTY
BEARERS IN THE FIRST TIME
EXPLORE THE POWER OF NON-FORMAL
EDUCATION

9. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
Lessons learnt…
ALWAYS CHECK OUT WHAT IS THE STARTING POINT BOTH FOR
RIGHT HOLDERS AND FOR DUTY BEARERS
EMPOWERMENT CONSULTATIVE DECISION-MAKING SELF-INITIATED and
PROCESSES PROCESSES SELF-MANAGED
CHILDREN (RH): PROCESSES
Building up capacities for CHILDREN (RH): CHILDREN (RH):
free expression Building up capacities for Building up decision- CHILDREN (RH): they
organizing opinions into making capacities have no need to be
ADULTS (DB): communication schemes trained
Improving skills for better ADULTS (DB):
listening and ADULTS (DB): Learning Learning how to ADULTS (DB): Learning
understanding how to give due weight manage inclusive how to make a step
to opinions and how to decision-making beyond
manage decisions processes

10. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
Lessons learnt… DEFINE SPACE FOR PARTICIPATION IN THE FIRST TIME
local
For example, new ideas for government
re-qualifying a dismissed teachers
area teachers
school
For example, negotiating school principle
rules for peacefully living in principle teacher
common spaces
students
For example, planning
contents of lessons during
the school year
…democratic participation has its rules

11. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
Lessons learnt… EXPLORE THE POWER OF NON-FORMAL EDUCATION
KNOWLEDGE
COMES OUT OF INTERPERSONAL
AND COOPERATIVE NEGOTIATIONS
KNOWLEDGE OF MEANINGS
IS A SOCIAL
CONSTRUCTION.
IT CANNOT BE
TRANSFERRED FROM
ONE PERSON TO
ANOTHER

12. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
…the challange
HOW TO:
Shift from experimental to ordinary
democratic participation
“Participation should be an institutional, professional
and personal attitude more than an occasional practice,
as it raises expectations and may cause huge
frustrations if it is not properly designed”

13. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
HOW TO:
Shift from experimental to ordinary democratic participation
1 Consultation on the draft Council of Europe
Recommendation on child and youth participation
• undertake an assessment of the extent to which
children and young people’s opinions are heard
and taken seriously in existing legislation,
policies and practices
• assign, if not in existence responsibility to a
government department or agency to drive,
oversee and monitor implementation of this
strategy and to ensure that child and youth
participation is mainstreamed through decision
and policy making structures

14. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
HOW TO:
Shift from experimental to ordinary democratic participation
2 Consultation on the draft Council of Europe
Recommendation on child and youth participation
• promote training on child and youth
participation for teachers
• provide children and young people with
information on their right to participate
• make children and young people’s
rights, including the right to be heard, a
mandatory component of school curricula

15. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
HOW TO:
Shift from experimental to ordinary democratic participation
3 Consultation on the draft Council of Europe
Recommendation on child and youth participation
• promote all forms of active participation by children
and young people in educational establishments,
notably through pupils’ councils having the possibility
to express views on all aspects of school life
• provide education in a way that respects the inherent
dignity of the child and young person and enables
free expression of her/his views and participation in
school life, for example through using interactive
teaching methods and the recognition of non-formal
education and informal learning

16. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
HOW TO:
Shift from experimental to ordinary democratic participation
…is about …finding indicators
…is about …understandingthe
added value of free expression
…is about …teaching in a different way

17. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
Ideas…
SCHOOLS OF PARTICIPATION
• Schools self-assessing the level of participation
• Depending on the level accomplished, the CERTIFICATORY
AGENCY provides a different training format both for teachers
and for children
• Schools are granted with a certificate “School of participation”
UNDERADIO.IT
• Webradio broadcasting the free voice of 24 classrooms
coming from Rome outskirts
• Starting from November 28th
• Tune in at www.underadio.savethechildren.it

18. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
Ideas…
SCHOOLS OF PARTICIPATION… assessing the SPAN of participation
QUALITY OF SELF-
INITIATED and SELF-
MANAGED
QUALITY OF PROCESSES
DECISION-MAKING
PROCESSES
QUALITY OF
CONSULTATIVE
QUALITY OF FREE PROCESSES
EXPRESSION,
QUALITY OF
LISTENING

19. Symposium on
“Human rights in Education: Freedom of Expression in the Classroom”
European Court of Human Rights
Strasbourg, France, 24-25 November 2011
M little child cam back from
y e
school very upset. I asked him
w H said to m
hy. e e:
“...m teacher gave m all the
y e
answ ers... but I didn't ask any
question”
T H E M EANING O F PART ICIPAT IO N