21.11.2014 International Day of children’s rights: Rroma children should be fostered more in school

On the occasion of the International Day of children’s rights, Dubuc (2014) reports on the education of Rroma children in Romania. According to Eugen Crai, director of a Romanian school fund for the promotion of Rroma, the enrolment rate of Rroma children is still unsatisfactory. In 2005, only 46% of Rroma children over 12 years went to school for more than four years. George Puiu, a schoolteacher from Fantanele, sees one reason for this in the lacking practical orientation of the schools. Parents, who are affected by extreme poverty and went to school themselves only for a short time, would not sufficiently appreciate the value of education and instead need their children as labourers for the family income: “At the edge of the measures, which the government implemented since 1990 to integrate the children into the school system, various programs have been launched, such as the “Let’s go to school” UNICEF initiative. In Fantanele, where one of 250 schools is involved in the initiative, the faculty decided to develop two projects, in order to connect extracurricular and educational activities to make the school more attractive: a day of sporting encounter with the other schools and an excursion to the zoo and the botanical garden of Bucharest. “This allows the children to put into practice what they have learned in the physical and science classes… but also to create a link between the school and the community, by including the parents – spectators, but also mediators and accompanying persons”, explains the director of the school, Dora Stefan.” – The article wants to provide a balanced presentation of the topic. Nevertheless, it hides important aspects: racist teachers or school authorities that impede Rroma access to education. A visit to the zoo or the botanical gardens will change little about this. The part of Rroma, who are well educated and do not live in ghettos, is ignored: from the estimated one and a half to three million Rroma in Romania, many build part of the middle class. In addition, access to the labour market is not egalitarian, as in many other countries. In addition, Romania has its history of Rroma slavery; a historical responsibility towards the minority that is often ignored.