Publications

Submission to the Expert Panel on Educational Underachievement

Read the Commission’s submission to the Expert Panel on Educational Underachievement.

Date produced November 2020.

Below is a summary of the response.

You can also download the full document through the links provided.

The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC):

• 3.6 recommends that a human rights based approach is adopted to assessments and monitoring of educational underachievement, which is founded on international human rights standards and the best interests of the child.
• 3.7 recommends that the principles of availability, accessibility, acceptability and adaptability are used as a means of approaching the issue of educational underachievement.
• 3.11 advises that a human rights based approach to educational underachievement will help address the need for early intervention to support children, and their families and carers. For example, a human rights based approach requires that early intervention extends to early childhood, before children enter formal education, an important step in preventing a cycle of underachievement taking hold.
• 3.22 recommends that a detailed human rights based evaluation is undertaken to understand why poorer children underperform compared to their peers from more affluent households, with a particular focus on the principles of availability, accessibility, acceptability and adaptability.
• 3.23 recommends that resources are put in place and appropriately directed to support children from lower socio-economic backgrounds, to fully realise their educational potential and to support their families to ensure that every child can fully enjoy the right to education. The allocation of resources should be guided by findings from the above proposed human rights based evaluation.
• 3.29 recommends that consideration is given to putting in place special measures to support underperforming cohorts of children, specifically children from lower socio-economic backgrounds, boys, particularly Protestant and ‘other’ boys, and children who do not attend grammar schools.
• 3.39 recommends that schools put in place additional support for children and young people most at risk of suspensions and exclusions to ensure such action is a last resort, including focusing on disciplinary options which help support children within the school. This includes ensuring that parents and children have a central role in shaping strategies to eliminate exclusions. It also includes giving particular consideration to addressing both formal and informal school exclusion, particularly in relation to racial and ethnic minority children.
• 3.54 recommends that a human rights based plan of action is developed in consultation with disabled children, their parents and carers, which identifies key measures to be implemented to ensure that every child has the supports they require to realise their right to education.
• 3.55 recommends that regular independent reviews of the effectiveness of the special educational needs system are carried out to ensure this system adequately supports children to realise their right to education.
• 3.56 recommends that immediate steps are taken to ensure that all children with special needs have timely access to a school placement.
• 3.57 recommends that effective remedial support is provided to all children with special educational needs that have been failed by the system up to now to ensure that they do not continue to be disadvantaged by past failings and will have the skills and support to avail of the same opportunities as children who will benefit from any reforms in the future.
• 3.64 recommends that the attainment gap between at risk groups, such as Traveller children, Roma children, children from migrant families and resettled refugee children, is monitored and appropriate supports are put in place to ensure all children can fully enjoy the right to education.
• 3.73 recommends that a non-selective system of post-primary school admission is introduced in order to abolish unregulated post primary selection in NI.
• 3.74 recommends that the health and wellbeing of children undergoing the testing process is monitored and comprehensive support is in place to mitigate any harm.
• 3.82 recommends that the Addressing Bullying in Schools (NI) Act 2016 is commenced without delay and that the Department of Education monitor levels of bullying in schools across all vulnerable groups and review protected categories within the 2016 Act.
• 3.83 recommends that all schools put in place effective policies for addressing bullying and provide appropriate training to ensure that all staff, students and families understand this policy and ensure it is kept under review.
• 3.84 recommends that all children and teachers are effectively trained on the safe use of information and communication technologies. Information should also be made available for the purpose of supporting families and guardians to understand and promote the safe use of information and communication technologies within the home. The Department of Education should work with the Department of Health and Department of Justice for the purpose of developing and implementing effective steps aimed at raising awareness among children on the severe effects that online bullying can have on their peers, and increase the involvement of social media outlets in the efforts to combat cyber-bullying.
• 3.86 recommends that there is an overall investment in high quality teacher training that ensures every teacher in Northern Ireland is trained on how to prevent and address the most common issues that can lead to educational underachievement and to identify cases when more specialised intervention is required and how to refer such cases.
• 3.88 recommends a more linked up approach with the Education Authority NI’s Youth Service and other such initiatives to ensure that funding allocation fully considers the reasons for educational underachievement and that funding provided for tackling this particular issue is efficiently and effectively directed.
• 4.11 recommends that measures to control the COVID-19 pandemic are undertaken in a way to minimise harm to the education of children and focuses on ensuring that education is available, accessible, acceptable and adaptable. This includes ensuring minimal disruption and remedial provision for children in NI whose education has been affected by COVID-19, particularly children with special educational needs. This requires consideration of challenges that children may face due to disruption (such as access to equipment, access to internet, costs involved for increased time at home and reduction or suspension of special educational needs support) and taking effective steps to mitigate any negative impacts. This can include providing the necessary equipment, providing emergency funds to cover additional costs and putting programmes in place that ensure appropriate special educational needs support is provided within a home environment. It also includes ensuring mental health and wellbeing is included in the recovery curriculum and that this is supported by adequate long-term funding.
• 4.12 recommends that special consideration is given to those children.
• 4.13 The NIHRC recommends that in advance of any future school closures or implementation of blended learning that resources are put in place to ensure that all children have access to appropriate technology and access to a stable and secure internet connection.