Conflict hits schooling hardest where children are the target
Education systems cannot function if children do not feel safe. Protecting schooling in conflict settings therefore goes beyond rebuilding infrastructure. It requires addressing the threats that keep children out of classrooms. Political Scientist Roos van der Haer and her colleagues show the impact of violence targeting children in The Conversation.
Conflict disrupts education. But armed groups do not all operate in the same way. Some use tactics that directly target children, such as recruiting child soldiers or committing sexual violence against minors. These tactics do more than create general insecurity. They directly threaten children’s safety and wellbeing and in many cases prevent them from going to school.
Roos van der Haer (Institute of Political Science, Universiteit Leiden) and her colleagues found that protecting education also requires establishing and implementing policy that decreases child recruitment and sexual violence in conflict settings. It requires safe routes to and from school, and addressing gender-specific barriers.
› Read the full article on The Conversation.