Innocenti Working Papers

The paper provides an overview and analysis of the initial steps for the establishment process of a separate children‟s ombudsman in Turkey. It examines the legal, political and social reasons why an ombudsman for children would be needed in the country. Specifically, it analyses Turkey‟s legal framework and international obligations, concluding that lack of implementation of the law and monitoring of children‟s rights are the main challenges. Children have disproportionately high rates of poverty, and are often victims of various forms of violence, in particular girls. The political structure of the country is affected by significant tensions, especially with regard to the place of religion in the public sphere. Moreover, civil society is quite weak. A law for a general ombudsman has been adopted by the Turkish Grand National Assembly but recently cancelled by the Constitutional Court. The paper analyses the possible reasons for the stalemate and looks at the text of the law from a child rights perspective. Drawing lessons from the foregoing, the study assesses the goals, risks and opportunities of the establishment process. It focuses on the need to build consensus on the objectives of the institution, ensure its independence, and implement the establishment process with the participation of key actors, including children. The study concludes with a set of recommendations.

The Committee on the Rights of the Child has been one of the main instigators for the development of independent human rights institutions for the promotion and protection of children‟s rights. Relying on article 4 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, it adopted a general comment on this issue in 2002, and now consistently encourages State parties to establish or strengthen such institutions in its concluding observations. Efforts have been made recently with human rights treaty bodies to enhance the involvement of independent institutions at each stage of the reporting process. For independent institutions specifically in charge of monitoring children‟s rights, this implies an important contribution to the work of the Committee. Their status of independence from their government in the reporting process has been emphasized and some institutions submit a separate report to the Committee. Importantly, institutions have a critical role to play in the follow-up and monitoring of the implementation of the concluding observations of the Committee. Finally, there are other instances where independent institutions can interact with the Committee, beyond the reporting process. These include days of general discussion, the drafting of general comments, and support to campaigns such as the campaign for a CRC complaints mechanism. In conclusion, both the Committee and independent institutions can significantly build on each other to strengthen their capacity to promote the realization of children‟s rights.

This paper identifies and evaluates qualitative methods appropriate for use in conducting policy-relevant research on the experiences, motivations, agency and life histories of autonomous and semi-autonomous children and adolescents, including those who migrate independently of parents and adult guardians. First, the paper presents an overview of qualitative research practice and the potential for qualitative research to extend and deepen knowledge of children’s varied and independently negotiated life circumstances. It is argued that qualitative approaches are necessary to understand and meaningfully respond to the experiences of diverse physical, social and cultural environments. Research ethics are discussed from several points of view, highlighting both the importance of maintaining, and difficulty of defining, ethical engagement with subjects whose vulnerabilities and capabilities are manifest in ways that unsettle many traditional conceptions of children. The second, longer section of the paper presents illustrative examples of qualitative research techniques. An illustrated inventory of research tools is presented with seven categories: surveys; interviews and focus groups; observation and participant observation; life histories and biographical methods; visual and textual methods; performance, play and arts-based methods; and virtual and computer-aided methods. Particular attention is given to practical details of field research, including subject recruitment/sampling, research setting, facilitation of interaction with subjects through intermediary contacts and organizations, and the specific steps taken to collect qualitative data. The concluding section synthesizes the information presented and provides guidance on how to incorporate qualitative methods, and qualitative methodologies, into research on children who live independently of parents and adult guardians or who exercise autonomy in more limited contexts.

At the first World Congress against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (Stockholm, 1996), governments of 119 countries, together with UN agencies, NGOs and other organizations and individuals, adopted a Declaration and Agenda for Action that committed them to: a) Promote the participation of children, including child victims, young people, their families, peers and others who are potential helpers of children so that they are able to express their views and to take action to prevent and protect children from commercial sexual exploitation and to assist child victims to be reintegrated into society; and b) I dentify or establish and support networks of children and young people as advocates of child rights, and include children, according to their evolving capacity, in developing and implementing government and other programmes concerning them. The 2nd World Congress against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (Yokohama, 2001) followed up on efforts to strengthen the commitments made in Stockholm. It also included regional commitments, statements and declarations. World Congress III against Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents takes place in Rio de Janeiro from 25 to 28 November 2008, and it aims to promote a broader agenda on children’s civil rights and children’s active role as citizens. Child protection is a focus of research, policy and programming in UNICEF as well as other UN agencies, NGOs and governments. Results of this work have helped a range of partners identify and reach the most vulnerable children and protect all children from abuse and exploitation. Together with partners, UNICEF has promoted children’s participation in a number of ways. Examples include the UN Secretary-General’s Study on Violence against Children in 2006 and its follow up, as well as UNICEF’s engagement with the Committee on the Rights of the Child in its deliberations over the decision to develop a General Comment on article 12, which will address the right to be heard. A ‘Day of General Discussion on the Rights of the Child to be Heard’ was held by the Committee on the Rights of the Child in 2006. These efforts support government decisions and actions to be informed by children’s and adolescents’ realities and recommendations. This paper presents an overview of government commitments to strengthen participation by children and adolescents to protect them from sexual abuse and exploitation. It also considers concrete recommendations for strengthening young people’s involvement in their own protection, based on their recommendations about what is needed to realize the Stockholm Declaration and Agenda for Action. Other useful inputs include case studies that offer new perspectives on children’s and adolescents’ participation to combat sexual exploitation and abuse. The paper provides recommendations for further research, policy development and programming intended to support advocacy and practice developments with and by children and adolescents. These are aimed at furthering achievement of their protection and participation rights during and after World Congress III. The paper calls for governments, UN agencies and NGOs to promote children’s civil rights and recognize their agency and the diversity of childhood experiences. It highlights the importance of strengthening child protection systems, developing and strengthening child-led groups and networks, and creating processes and mechanisms for children to access information, express their views, participate in practice and policy matters concerning them and gain feedback. It further highlights the need for better implementation of international standards that recognize and promote children’s participation and encourage special efforts to address discrimination and involve the most marginalized girls and boys.

One of the core requirements of the Convention on the Rights of the Child is that States Parties should undertake all necessary and appropriate measures to implement the rights recognized therein. However, the implementation of economic, social and cultural rights is a particular challenge for the discretionary power of the State Party because it has to determine what the available resources are. The Committee encourages “other competent bodies” and NGOs to have an active role in effective implementation of the Convention. This opens the way for independent monitoring bodies such as IHRICs, to provide expert advice on implementation. This paper discusses the need for such bodies, their role, possible mandate and powers, guiding principles, as well as the problems of financing and independence. A fundamental feature of the activities of IHRICs is the participation of civil society and children themselves.

In comparison to the Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) systems of many other advanced economies the German system can be characterised as relative uniform, when looking at programmes and providers. But in other ways, there are considerable variations. There are considerate regional differences in governance, funding, and attendance rates, in particular with respect to certain socio-economic groups. This paper describes and evaluates these differences, mainly from an economic perspective and also taking child well-being into account. In Germany (a federal republic of 16 states) the federal government has legislative and organizational authority over the area of child and youth welfare, including ECEC services. Nevertheless, the provision and financing of programmes are a state and municipality responsibility, for which the later must plan and ensure the provision of ECEC services. Within this framework the federal government recently set the political goal of increasing the supply of ECEC places for children below the age of three to 35 per cent by 2013. This is the first time ever that the federal government has made a concrete commitment to allocate federal funds to the sector, given the federal framework special means had to be found to do so.

The aim of this text is to provide a review of the literature and current policies of early childhood education and care in the economically most advanced countries of the world. The introductory chapter 1 provides some basic definitions: what is meant by ‘early childhood services’ both in the narrow sense of care and education services for young children (family day care, childcare centres, pre-primary educational services, integrated services, etc.) and in the wider sense of services supporting the holistic development of young children. Beyond early care and education, other services that support the broad development of young children are policies that sustain parents and parenting, parental leave, family-friendly policies, infant health services and policies that reduce child and family poverty. Explanations are also provided about the age notation used in this paper, and the meaning of the term ‘rich countries’. The section ends with five charts that provide the reader with a rapid overview of key elements of early childhood systems in the rich countries: investment by the countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in early childhood services; maternity, paternity and parental leave entitlements; effective parental leave provision across OECD countries; the main institutional forms of early childhood services in the participating countries, and entitlements by age to early childhood services across selected OECD countries. Chapter 2 addresses the question of the rights and well-being of young children. Information is drawn from five main texts: the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989); General Comment No. 7 issued by the Committee on the Rights of the Child (2006); Innocenti Report Card 4, ‘A League Table of Educational Disadvantage in Rich Nations (2002); Innocenti Report Card 6, ‘Child Poverty in Rich Countries’ (2005); and Innocenti Report Card 7, ‘Child Poverty in Perspective: An Overview of Child Well-being in Rich Countries’ (2007). A strong message coming from these reports is how greatly government social policies and income transfers can alleviate family poverty and lessen its impact on the health, well-being and educational outcomes of young children. Chapter 3 explores the economic and social context of children’s services, and seek to explain the contemporary focus on the upbringing and education of young children. Three profound changes are challenging traditional views of childhood and child-rearing: the changing socio-economic role of women; the changing demography and population diversity of rich countries; and third, the new education ideology with its focus on social equity and preparation for school. The chapter discusses different approaches adopted by countries towards the new challenges posed by these changes, and outlines some of the impacts of upstream socio-economic policies on families and young children. It points also to a certain ‘path dependency’ adopted by different groups of countries in their manner of conceptualizing and organizing early childhood services, stemming from their traditional politicoeconomic structures. Chapter 4 provides a rationale for substantial state investment in early childhood services. It lists and briefly describes some 16 research analyses from 10 different countries showing the benefits generated by early childhood programmes. The research studies are grouped under two headings: analyses showing economic and labour market returns from investment and analyses showing educational returns from investment. The section summary concludes that strong social, economic and education rationales exist in favour of establishing and maintaining national networks of early childhood services, on the condition that these systems aim for and achieve high quality. Some doubts remain, however, concerning the appropriate age at which young children should begin day-long, out-of-home care, and for how long children should stay in out-of-home care during the day. Chapter 5 recalls briefly the promise that participation in high-quality early childhood services holds for the individual child and at a wider level, for society as a whole. Such high-quality services provide significant support to education systems, social policy, gender equality and economies as a whole. The ability to boost the female employment rate from a level of 61.5 per cent (the OECD average) to a participation rate of 76.2 per cent (the case of Denmark) is a powerful stimulus both to the economy and to household budgets. In parallel, the contribution of early childhood services to later achievement in education is of major importance. The chapter goes on to summarize how countries have responded to this promise. In particular, the following themes are examined: the greatly improved access to services for children 3-6 years in almost all countries; the steadily improving regulation and support for quality, and the merits and demerits of establishing targeted programmes for children at risk. Finally, a discussion on the funding of early childhood services is engaged; it evaluates the level of the financial commitments made by countries to early childhood services and the modes of financing that they employ. A short conclusion proposes a dynamic social market model that brings together the dynamism and choice that market approaches can present with the strong investment, effective control and equity in access that public systems have traditionally offered in several countries. Further research is needed on how to create effective social markets, that is, networks of mixed provision in which choice and innovation exist, while maintaining equity and a sense of national and community responsibility for essential services. Widely different levels of purchasing power may be acceptable in the case of commodities or personal convenience, but in the fields of public health and education, they can undermine equity and social solidarity. The UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre and the OECD Social Policy Division have reviewed the initial draft of the analysis. Several early childhood experts and senior early childhood administrators from OECD countries also made helpful comments, and their assistance is gratefully acknowledged. The paper is complemented by Bennett, J. (2008), ‘Benchmarks for Early Childhood Services in OECD Countries’, Innocenti Working Paper No. 2008-02.

This paper presents a summary of the findings of the national and subnational surveys on child injury in this series and discusses implications of the results for child health policy and programmes. The principal finding is that injury has been largely unrecognized as a leading cause of child death. This is largely because the previous estimates of child mortality causality were unable to include injury due to technical issues. The surveys provide convincing evidence that injury is a leading cause of child death after infancy and that the types of injury vary with the age group of the child. Similar convincing evidence shows that injury is a leading cause of serious morbidity and permanent disability in children and that the types of injury with these outcomes also vary with the age of the child. The implications discussed are (1) an effective measure of child mortality needs to be developed to include all ages of childhood; (2) prevention of mortality and serious morbidity from injury in children will require a life-cycle approach; (3) continued progress on child survival programming in children under five years of age will require injury reductions; (4) since drowning is the single injury cause responsible for about half of all injury deaths, targeting it for reduction would be an efficient strategy; and (5) there are efficient strategies for targeting other subtypes of child injury as well.

This paper presents a more detailed description of the survey methodology for technical specialists interested in understanding the major differences between the surveys and the methods used in making the previous estimates of child deaths. A detailed description is provided for survey governance, sampling design, survey instruments, the classification scheme for mortality and morbidity measured in the surveys, the fieldwork procedure, the analytic framework, weighting and adjustments and survey costs. Following this, a number of methodological lessons are addressed, such as: the need to count all children and not only those under five years of age; the need to count all clearly identifiable causes of death in those same groups; the need to count morbidity as well as mortality; and the need to count the deaths in the community where they occur to avoid the various biases associated with facility-based counting. A number of examples from the surveys are shown to illuminate the issues so that they are clear for non-technical readers.

An accumulation of research across hundreds of studies shows the benefits of quality early childhood care and education for children’s later learning, school success and social development. In recognition of the value of providing early learning opportunities, many nations have expanded early childhood care and education in recent years. Mexico provides an interesting case in which expansion of early childhood care and education has occurred in the past 5 years, as have initiatives to improve quality and revise the national curriculum for preschoolers. This paper examines three policy initiatives that occurred in Mexico between 2000 and 2006 – preschool expansion, quality improvement and curricular reform. The preschool expansion included a mandate for all parents in Mexico to send their preschool-aged children (3, 4 and 5 years old) to preschool, with target dates of 2004, 2005 and 2008 for 100 per cent coverage of 5-year-olds, 4-yeaolds and 3-year-olds, respectively. The quality improvement initiative was part of a larger programme providing supplemental funds to select preschools and schools in Mexico’s public education system. Finally, the curricular reform instituted a new preschool curriculum to be implemented nationwide for all programmes across the 3- to 5-year-old age range. We utilize a combination of national data and synthesis of existing studies to review each policy according to the three dimensions of coverage, quality and equity. We find that the preschool mandate resulted in rapid increases in enrolment. In 2005, 98 per cent of 5-year-olds, 81 per cent of 4-year-olds and 25 per cent of 3-year-olds were enrolled in preschool. The greatest increases occurred among 4- year-olds. A consequence of the rapid increase for 4-year-olds was that coverage for 3-year-olds actually declined in approximately half of the Mexican states. The slow progress in enrolment of 3- year-olds is seen to be affected also by reluctance on the part of parents. We draw attention to the international discussion on how best to respond to the development needs of children around the age of three and suggest alternatives to centre, education-based systems. Although national averages of class size did not increase significantly, the proportion of preschools with average student-adult ratio of 30 or more did rise significantly in the general, CENDI, indigenous and CONAFE systems. In the general system (the largest system), the increase in proportion of preschools with average ratio of 30 or more from 12 per cent in 2001 to 18 per cent in 2005. The average increase in these structural indicators of quality was relatively small due to increases in numbers of preschools, particularly in urban areas. The impact of the mandate on other aspects of quality is unclear. The quality improvement initiative affected a relatively small number of preschools. In addition, the preschools that received quality improvement funds in the first 2 years of the programme were relatively larger and had more resources to begin with than other preschools. The national curricular reform was created after a comprehensive process of obtaining input from teachers, directors and early education officials from across all the Mexican states. This process resulted in the implementation of an open curriculum based on comprehensive notions of the multiple domains of competencies in early childhood development. The curriculum requires high levels of teacher initiative and reflective practice. We provide information regarding how teachers, principals and other educators have responded to this demanding and challenging curriculum. The paper concludes with policy options in each of the areas of preschool expansion, quality improvement and curricular reform. More funding is needed particularly targeted to ECCE services in poor and vulnerable communities, to support teachers achieve their licenciatura, to address the needs of preschools with very large student:teacher ratios and to develop strong systems of monitoring and research for the continuous adaptation of the system, particularly with respect to equity in access to quality services.