RCE Quality Assurance System

The RCE Framework is the civil society implementation of a proposal from the World Programme for Human Rights Education (First Phase 2005-2007) approved by the UN General Assembly to 10 (x) Establish a rights-based quality assurance system (including school self-evaluation and development planning, school inspection, etc.) for education in general and create specific quality assurance mechanisms for human rights education;

What is happening

1. IDEC 2025 will host workshops to prepare a Quality Assurance System for Rights-Centric Education (see here)
2. A group of volunteers are presently working virtually to prepare the workshops

Suggested reading

1. Revised draft plan of action for the first phase (2005-2007) of the World Programme for Human Rights Education this is what included a proposal for a Rights-based Quality Assurance System for Education in general
2. The Theory of Change for UNICEF's Rights-Respecting Schools Award (RRSA). (Thank you Don Berg for sharing this). The proposed Quality Assurance is similar, but different:
   1. We too will have Case Studies
   2. Unlike the RRSA, we will not start by accepting the presently mainstreamed system of schools as the baseline.
   3. There will not be an authority that will set benchmarks (RRSA has Bronze, Silver, Gold levels) - instead, it will be the Right-Holders themselves who will evaluate how well their Rights are being respected
   4. There will not be any participating fees.
3. Children's rights group KRÄTZÄ published our "Human rights report", called "The Discrimination of The Child". It compared the real life (reality) of children in Germany with the provisions given by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). 16 of the 30 paragraphs weren't valid or adults/government didn't abide to them. The report was handed over to the President of Germany on the 50th Anniversary of the UDHR (1998). Among other things, it identifies the school system as the core area where human rights are being violated. Website (in German) here and here (Thank you Mike Weimann for sharing this)
4. Proposed Pledge to join RCE Quality Assurance System. This was something drafted in 2024, the odd terminology used is because it is referring to various articles in the World Programme for Human Rights Education (Mike had raised concerns on these in Oct 2024, but we did not take it up at the time. It may still be useful for schools to have evidence that they are taking part in the RCE Quality Assurance System, but that may be better as a confirmation by the RCE Network than a Pledge by the participating school)