The rights of the child as public policies analysers

Taught in English as part of the EFISE Master’s programme, this course introduces students to the analysis of public policy through a children’s rights-based approach. It begins with an overview of the main international and European legal and policy instruments, including the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, the European Convention on Human Rights, the Council of Europe Strategy for the Rights of the Child 2022–2027 and its related guidelines on child-friendly justice, the digital environment and child protection, as well as the European Union Strategy on the Rights of the Child.

The course then explores how these frameworks shape social, family and educational policies, particularly in contexts marked by vulnerability, inequality and unequal access to rights. It examines the ways in which children’s rights standards can inform the design, implementation and evaluation of public action and socio-educational interventions.

Through case studies, such as the analysis of the Concluding Observations of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child concerning France, students learn to identify gaps between normative commitments and institutional practices, and to develop a critical understanding of public policies and service provision. Particular attention is paid to the cross-cutting principles of participation, non-discrimination and the best interests of the child, as well as to the conditions required for their effective implementation in professional practice and policy-making.

By bringing together legal standards, analytical tools and empirical perspectives, the course offers a interdisciplinary understanding of the issues at stake in family education, socio-educational intervention and the governance of children’s rights.

Dmonstrate a sound understanding of the main international and European frameworks relating to children’s rights.
Explain how children’s rights principles inform the development, implementation and evaluation of public policies, particularly in the fields of social, family and educational intervention.
Analyse public policies and institutional arrangements through a rights-based approach, with particular attention to children in situations of vulnerability.
Identify and critically assess gaps between legal and policy commitments, on the one hand, and institutional practices and service provision, on the other.
Apply key cross-cutting principles such as participation, non-discrimination and the best interests of the child to the analysis of socio-educational interventions and public action;

Session 1 : Devoir sur table. Ecrit + exposé

Session 2 : Devoir sur table. Ecrit + exposé

Dérogatoire : Devoir sur table. Ecrit + exposé

Répartition de la note finale : Written part 50% et oral presentation 50%

Understand the main international and European children’s rights frameworks;
analyse public policies through a children’s rights-based approach.
Identify tensions between legal standards and institutional practices.
Apply the principles of participation, non-discrimination and the best interests of the child to policy and practice analysis.
Develop critical, and rights-informed analyses of socio-educational interventions.

Ruck, M. D., Peterson-Badali, M., & Freeman, M. (Eds.). (2016). Handbook of children’s rights: Global and multidisciplinary perspectives. Taylor & Francis.

Videos, articles, and public reports in English and French on the online course platform.