Community Participation Standard 1: Participation

Education authorities and other education stakeholders should ensure community participation in the analysis, planning, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of education responses. Any member of the affected community should be able to participate, regardless of their age, gender, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, disability, HIV status or other factor.

Education authorities and other education stakeholders should engage the community in identifying:

• the education needs of all learners;
• the locally available financial, material and human resources;
• existing and changing relations between male and female children, youth and adults;
• power dynamics within the community, including relations between language groups, and any groups that may be excluded;
• security issues, concerns and threats;
• ways of protecting education institutions, staff and learners from possible attack, including gender-based violence;
• local hazards, safe and accessible locations for schools and other learning spaces, and local approaches to disaster risk reduction;
• ways of integrating relevant life-saving and conflict-sensitive education messages into all aspects of education response, including messages that address the major health threats in the community.

Structures to support stronger links between family, community and schools or other learning spaces should be developed in a participatory, inclusive and consultative manner.

‘Community education committee’ refers to a group which identifies and addresses the educational needs and rights of all learners in a community. Alternative names may include ‘parent-teacher association’ or ‘school management committee’. It can assist a community through training and capacity building activities or by engaging with education authorities and other education stakeholders to support education programmes. If a community education committee does not already exist, its formation should be encouraged.

The community education committee should be representative of all the groups in the community and may include:

• school administrators, teachers and staff;
• parents or care-givers;
• children and youth;
• staff from civil society organisations;
• representatives from local NGOs and religious organisations;
• traditional leaders;
• health workers.

The inclusion of representatives of vulnerable groups is essential. Community education committee members should be selected through a locally relevant participatory process that is appropriate to the context and that allows women and men and girls and boys to participate equitably.

In complex emergencies, where social distinctions such as ethnicity, tribe, religion and race can be exploited, the community education committee should work with all parties. While inclusion is the goal, the safety of individuals and groups comes first. Committees should aim to provide education safely, impartially and appropriately for everyone in the community. They should have first-hand knowledge of the changing socio-economic and political context and communicate with decision-makers at all levels.

Roles and responsibilities of community education committee members should be clearly de ned and may include:

• meeting regularly to address issues of concern;
• keeping records of meetings and decisions;
• mobilising community financial and in-kind contributions;
• determining appropriate approaches sensitive to age and culture to ensure that educational programmes respect the needs and rights of learners. Examples include flexible school calendars and age-appropriate curricula that reflect the community context;
• communicating with the community and local and national education authorities to promote good relationships between community members and decision-makers outside the community;
• ensuring that those responsible for ensuring access and quality of education are accountable;
• monitoring education provision to help ensure quality of teaching and learning;
• collecting and monitoring disaggregated information on who is and who is not participating in learning opportunities;
• promoting security from attack and strengthening the security of staff and students going to and from school;
• ensuring that disaster risk reduction is included in education provision;
• ensuring appropriate psychosocial support.

Local education authorities, the community and the community education committee should prioritise and plan education activities through a participatory planning process that will result in a community-based education action plan. A community-based education plan should build upon a national education plan, if one exists, and provide a framework for improving the quality of formal and non-formal education programmes. It should reflect the needs, rights, concerns and values of the emergency-affected community, particularly those belonging to vulnerable groups.

An education action plan focuses on ensuring educational continuity. It may have several objectives, including:

• developing a shared vision of what the teaching and learning environment might become, described in terms of activities, indicators and targets, and a timeline;
• the adaptation of curricula to the particular context, including conflict sensitivity and disaster risk reduction as appropriate;
• agreeing on procedures for the recruitment, supervision and training of staff, and teacher compensation and support;
• prioritising a human rights-based approach to reduce discrimination and create a shared understanding that education must be available, accessible, adaptable and acceptable;
• gaining agreement and shared commitment on priorities for developing a safe and supportive learning environment, including protecting education from attack;
• describing specific tasks and responsibilities of education authorities, which are legally responsible for protecting the right to education, and other education stakeholders. This may include resource mobilisation, maintenance and development of infrastructure, and coordination with external agencies and other sectors including food security, health, hygiene, nutrition, water supply and sanitation responses.

Action plans should incorporate regular community monitoring and assessment to help maintain broad community participation.

Children and youth have a right to be heard in matters that affect their lives, including the development and management of the education system. They should be invited to participate in discussions in safe, secure and welcoming environments that reinforce respect for constructive dialogue. Culturally appropriate ways of helping children and youth express themselves can be used, such as art, music and drama.

Children and youth should be trained to help them protect and support their emotional and social well-being and that of their family members and peers. Children and youth are often very valuable in identifying who is not in school after an emergency and helping them to attend. They can also help peers who are injured or those with disabilities access educational opportunities. Capacity building should emphasise their abilities to initiate positive change, including peace-building and addressing the root causes of conflicts and disasters. For example, training can support children and youth to report and prevent abuse within the learning environment and to take part in peer mediation or conflict resolution.

Tasks such as distributing supplies or constructing shelters can provide opportunities for youth to participate in the planning and implementation of activities that are important for their communities. Such participation can offer positive alternatives to becoming involved in crime or armed groups, has strong psychosocial benefits and helps the wider community to appreciate the contributions of youth. The participation of youth in planning, monitoring and evaluating education programmes, particularly skills and livelihoods training, helps ensure that these programmes meet their current and future needs. Special efforts should be made to encourage girls and young women to participate to ensure that their voices are heard because their access to education and educational needs may differ from those of their male peers.

Social audits are community-based evaluations of an education programme. They are used to:

• determine the people, funding and materials that are available for the programme;
• identify gaps;
• monitor the effectiveness of the programme.

It may not always be possible to conduct social audits at the beginning or in the mid-term stages of an emergency. However, in long-term chronic crises or early recovery contexts, social audits provide communities with an opportunity to improve their ability to more effectively monitor education programmes and to document violations of their rights. Participation in social audits is particularly relevant for young people, especially those who are not in formal or non-formal education. It is important that the results of social audits are shared with all community members and relevant authorities.

Capacity building strengthens knowledge, ability, skills and behaviour to help people and organisations achieve their goals. Every effort should be made to identify education experts, including teachers, other education personnel and developers of curricula, within the affected population to be involved in programme planning and implementation. If enough local expertise cannot be identified, or if people are unable or unwilling to assist with (re-)establishing the education system, then capacity building activities for community members may be appropriate. Assessments should examine the different capacities, needs and responses of male and female children, youth and adults in the community, including vulnerable groups. Training programmes should assess community capacity to identify training and other capacity building needs and ways to address them. Such activities should promote ownership and maintenance of the education programme by the community and coordination with other sectors.