Human Rights Education Review and the Convenors of the WERA International Research Network announce 2022 Research Webinars

The Editors of Human Rights Education Review and the Convenors of the WERA International Research Network on Human Rights Education are pleased to announce that our 2022 Research Webinars will run from March – June 2022 on Wednesdays 17.30-18.30 (Berlin CET); 16.30 – 17.30 (London/Dublin). 

UPCOMING WEBINAR 1 

16 March 2022 

17.30-18.30 (Berlin CET); 16.30 – 17.30 (London/Dublin) 

Register here  

The rhetoric and reality of human rights education: policy frameworks and teacher perspectives  

Audrey Osler, University of South-Eastern Norway, Norway and University of Leeds, UK  

Jon Arne Skarra, University of South-Eastern Norway, Norway 

What happens when school curricula equate human rights principles with a particular religious or cultural tradition? Audrey Osler and Jon Arne Skarra consider education policy discourses in Norway, noting human rights as a key feature of national identity, said to underpin schooling. They illustrate how education policy maintains distinctions between those who embody national values and migrant others who need to learn them. They look closely at the human rights-related competences students are expected to have on completing 10^th grade, examining social studies and religious education curricula and teacher interview data. Teachers have a lot of autonomy in selecting the knowledge though which these competences will be taught. The presenters consider whether the curriculum supports transformative human rights education (HRE), empowering learners to defend others’ rights and build solidarity across difference. Data suggest that HRE is frequently implicit, restricted, and dependent on teachers’ individual perceptions of rights. Teachers may lack legal knowledge and are unsure how to tackle everyday injustice or racism. Osler and Skarra conclude that a multicultural society and curriculum that equates Christian and humanist values with human rights denies pluralism, placing human rights culture at risk. They recommend education policy explicitly address shared HRE principles and recognise racial injustice. The authors’ full paper can be read here 

Webinar recordings can be viewed on the YouTube Channel