Human rights education: key success factors

Despite significant progress, human rights and fundamental freedoms are violated every day around the world. These violations range from barriers to educational access, discrimination based on gender, race, and religion, to racism, hate speech and violent conflicts. For example, 2023 marked the 13th time peacefulness has deteriorated in the last 15 years, and 79 countries witnessed increased levels of conflict.

Human rights violations are an affront to just, peaceful and inclusive societies and require urgent, collective and sustained efforts at all levels. Education lies at the centre of these efforts to achieve human rights. Effective human rights education inculcates knowledge, skills, values, beliefs and attitudes that encourage all individuals to uphold their own rights and those of others.

This study, commissioned by UNESCO in cooperation with the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), examines the impact of human rights education (HRE) pedagogies and good practices worldwide, with a specific focus on the primary and secondary levels in formal education. Using a data-driven approach that includes a literature review and surveys and interviews with informants, the study identifies key success factors for impactful HRE and provides recommendations for future research and practice.

The study finds that HRE can have a positive impact on learners’ knowledge and understanding of human rights, as well as their attitudes and behaviours related to human rights. It is an essential resource for education stakeholders looking to promote HRE at all levels of society and through a lifelong learning lens.