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Access to Education

This section looks at issues which affect the access of orphans and other vulnerable children to education. Issues of access particularly affect school age children . Other sections cover issues regarding HIV/AIDS and life skills education and the role of schools . Many of the barriers to accessing education are the same as those which prevent children from accessing health care .

Key points about the access of orphans and other vulnerable children to education are:

1. Barriers to education are similar those which prevent access to health care. They include lack of money, involvement of children in household duties, stigma and discrimination, reduced education provision and quality, low value placed on education by some families and the fear of infection.

2. There are a wide range of initiatives which have been tried to improve the access of orphans and other vulnerable children to education. These include reducing costs, changing the way education is provided, increasing access to education in other ways and improving educational quality.

3. A number of key principles have been established regarding access to education. These are based on lessons learned from practical experience.

The Importance of Access to Education

Ensuring access to essential services is one of the five key strategies identified in the global strategic framework introduced in 2004. Education is one of those essential services.

Barriers to Access to Education

Things which prevent orphans and other vulnerable children gaining access to education include:

• Cost of Education - Many poor families are unable to send their children to school because of the costs involved. These may be direct costs, such as school fees. They may also be indirect expenses, such as cost of uniform, school supplies, transport and food.
• Household Duties - Many orphans and other vulnerable children are expected to spend considerable time in household duties. This may involve care for sick adults and younger children. It may also involve contributions to household livelihood. For example, this might involve agricultural or wage labour. In some cases, children and young people may be withdrawn from school to do such duties. This withdrawal may be short or long-term. Girls are affected more than boys.
• Stigma and Discrimination - Orphans and other vulnerable children may experience stigma and discrimination in school. This may result in them not attending school.
• Reduced Education Quality and Provision - HIV/AIDS is seriously affecting the education sector in severely-affected countries. Some teachers are ill and dying from AIDS. This may be reducing the number of teachers available to school and the quality of education provided by those schools.
• Some Families do not Value Education - Some families may not see education as a priority, particularly for girls and children with HIV. In many cases, this is because they see survival needs as of higher priority.
• Fear of infection - This is particularly the case for children with HIV/AIDS. However, children with HIV/AIDS are able to attend school normally.

Action to Improve Access to Education

Many activities have been introduced which seek to try to improve the access of orphans and other vulnerable children to education. These include:

• Reducing school-related costs - There are various ways of doing this. These include eliminating school fees or meeting them in a different way. They also include subsidising other expenses or providing in-kind support to schools that admit orphans and other vulnerable children. An example of such in-kind support would be providing World Food Programme rations to children through school.
• Changing the way education is provided through community schools, interactive radio education and vocational training centres.
• Increasing access indirectly - This might involve strengthening the economic position of orphans and other vulnerable children through microfinance . This would make them more able to pay. Other indirect methods include local advocacy and building the capacity of community care coalitions.
• Improving Educational Quality - This might involve adapting curricula to make them more relevant to orphans and other vulnerable children, training teachers in meeting children's psychosocial needs and in using community-based volunteers to support the work of teachers.

Key Principles

Key principles for increasing access to education include:

• Targeting all vulnerable children in an area, not just those affected by AIDS.
• Creating affordable schooling.
• Giving priority to non-formal education as well as formal education.
• Activities which are based on community need and community participation.
• Increasing management capacity at both national and community level.
• Linking short-term relief to longer-term policies.
• Ensuring safety at school for girls.
• Ensuring that increasing access to education also increases quality.
• Evaluating what works and what doesn't and sharing this information.

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