Family Futures

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Empowering families to achieve

lifelong education for all

Abbie Raikes, Programme Specialist, Section for Basic Education, UNESCO

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he core mandate of the United Nations Educational,

Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is

to bring education to all the world’s people, based

on the principle that education is a universal human

right and is central to building peaceful societies. For the

coming years, UNESCO’s education goal is focused on

lifelong learning: the right for all people to have access

to education throughout their lives, from early childhood

through adulthood.

While school systems and governments are the primary route

through which people receive schooling, families also play

a critical role in education. Focusing on families as central

partners in education is important for both children and

their parents, especially those who have been excluded from

schools systems or who are at risk of being excluded due to

family economic circumstances, cultural background, gender

or the presence of special needs. Education systems that

build upon and empower families as teachers and learners

will help to propel the world forward in pursuit of lifelong

learning for all.

For all children, engaging families early in each child’s life

is central to achieving global education goals. Families form

the basis for children’s learning and development, beginning

at birth and continuing throughout life. A child’s first teach-

ers are parents – parents provide the interaction, emotional

support and exposure to language that forms the basis for

lifelong health, well-being and literacy. Despite parents’

deep love and commitment to their children, families in

many countries struggle to see that their children’s right to

an education is fulfilled. Family poverty poses a grave chal-

lenge to education. Children who come from families that

do not have adequate resources face considerable challenges

to school success, beginning in infancy with poor health,

nutrition and a lack of access to stimulating learning envi-

ronments. As children grow older, the many barriers that

families face in educating their children include a lack of

access to affordable schools; schools of low quality; and

schools that do not foster inclusion – meaning that children

from families of different ethnic or cultural backgrounds are

not accommodated in educational systems. Many children

do not have access to instruction in their mother tongue, a

very challenging situation for children that further isolates

families from their children’s education. Working families

may face additional challenges, such as finding adequate

after-school care and ensuring that parents have the time off

and support needed to attend school functions and engage in

the school community, all of which are integral to a child’s

success at school.

It is also important to note that in many families, some

members have been able to obtain an education while

others have not. Promoting families as teachers and learners

requires that access to education is available for all, includ-

ing youth and adults who may not have had the opportunity

to attend school when they were children, or did not gain

the skills and competencies desired. All told, families are

at the heart of education – by empowering and support-

ing families, global education goals of ensuring access and

completion for all can be obtained.

While UNESCO’s primary mandate is in relation to educa-

tional systems, the organization also recognizes the important

role of families as partners in achieving global education goals,

especially through approaches designed to support family

literacy and community learning. Reading is perhaps the

most basic skill required for lifelong learning, and therefore

promoting literacy is a central goal for UNESCO. Yet despite

increases in primary school enrolment and completion,

millions of children and adults still do not know how to read

Focusing on families as central partners in education is important for both

children and their parents

Image: UNESCO