Education

Young people spend an average of 15,000 hours behind school desks over the course of their school life. Thus, education is one of the most powerful tools for social participation of the underprivileged. This is why the Centre pays a great deal of attention to the equal opportunity policy in terms of education. As such it is not only active in committees or institutions where these problems are discussed but it also prepares recommendations for the various Communities and Districts.

However, schools are often a place where inequalities are preserved, and where failure affects many. This is especially the case for youngsters stemming from migration.

Even more troublesome is the fact that statistics on this topic have remained constant over the past decades, despite all the policies which were developed and all the funding. This is why the CEOOR permanently watches over the developments in this field: it is active in several commissions on a societal-, a policy and a university level, which discuss these issues and it also renders advice and puts forward recommendations to the public authorities.

In the French-speaking Community and within the scope of its tasks, the CEOOR has taken up action – or will be taking action in the near future- in a limited number of fields in cooperation with the various actors who play a part in the field of education.
These actions are mainly focused on e.g.:

– schooling newcomers in middle school (12-18years old)
– the disproportionate amount of children of immigrants who are redirected to technical or professional schooling
– recognition of foreign degrees
– the intercultural dimension of the classes being taught
– the social mix in schools and classrooms

In the Flemish Community the CEOOR not only is a member of the “Commission on Diversity and Equal Opportunities in Education” which aims to solve conflicts about inequality, racism or discrimination in a positive and constructive way but it is also an active member of the ‘Commission on pupils’ rights’, which aims to solve conflicts concerning enrollment at a primary- or high-school level. Other fields in which the CEOOR works in the Flemish Community are e.g.:

– promoting the diversity of the teachers corps by encouraging schools to adopt a diversity strategy
– taking up the educational aspect of sexual diversity as a topic in the courses
– taking up the educational aspect of intercultural diversity as a topic in the courses
– inclusive education: assisting schools in their efforts to make sure children with special needs can also enroll in a regular school
– encouraging schools to appoint translators to sign language

External expressions of religious beliefs

Education is probably the societal field which is currently most concerned with the question of external expressions of religious beliefs. The freedom of employees to manifest their belief conflicts with other important dispositions: the freedom of the employer, for the non-confessional schools, and the neutrality of government, for the public schools. Moreover, other principles can also get mixed up in the debate: we are dealing here with children and young adults who are easily impressed and who are in the process of forming their personality. Consequently, the educatinal dimension of schools must not be overlooked. The CEOOR has created a website with comprehensive information on this topic: in French www.diversite.be/signes and in dutch www.diversiteit.be/veruiterlijkingen.