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Citizenship at key stage 3 (Year 7-9)
Unit 03: Human rights
Section 3: What happens when human rights are denied?
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Objectives |
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- that not all countries recognise human rights in the same way
- that specific rights may not be respected in some communities
- that people may be denied their rights, and that this can result in them becoming refugees
- that refugees have rights but can face difficulties accessing these rights
- about the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the role of the United Nations High Commission on Refugees (UNHCR)
- about the role of different agencies and organisations in supporting refugees
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Activities |
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Outcomes |
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Children: |
- What happens when human rights are infringed? Ask pupils to identify situations around the world where people have had their rights denied and, in some cases, have become refugees. Pupils should draw on their knowledge from other subjects such as geography, history, RE, eg war or the prospect of war resulting in people fleeing their home countries (Jews during World War II, war and famine in African countries or refugees from events in the Balkans) or the destruction of the Amazon rainforest by large corporations leading to Amerindians losing their land and homes.
- What do we mean by refugees? Using a range of source material, including first-hand accounts of refugee life (available on video and on websites), pupils investigate what a refugee is and what experiences a refugee might have. Ask pupils, in groups, to focus on one situation that led to many people becoming refugees, detailing each stage of the process. They also look at the rights refugees have, eg the right to freedom of thought and movement, freedom from torture and degrading treatment, food, clothing, access to medical care, welfare services and benefits. They report back to the class, discussing how, when and why people were affected, and at what stage their human rights were infringed.
- Scenario activity: following class feedback, give pupils a scenario to respond to where they have 15 seconds to select belongings and flee their home. Ask pupils randomly to list what they would take with them. If pupils cannot answer immediately then they can take nothing with them.
- Pupils could investigate and discuss the roles and responsibilities of the UN, the UNHCR, national and local governments across the world, agencies, charities and other voluntary organisations, eg Amnesty International, in supporting refugees and upholding human rights. What is the purpose of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights? Pupils find out why it is important to have charters that are international for human rights.
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- demonstrate understanding of the status of refugees, and identify the difficulties caused by a lack of rights
- identify different causes of people becoming refugees. They know that a refugee is defined as someone who has left their country because of a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership of a particular social group; and that refugees cannot or do not want to return to their countries
- are aware of the roles of local, national and international government and voluntary organisations in supporting refugees and upholding human rights
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Points to note |
- It is important to be aware that some pupils may be from
refugee families. This section needs to be handled in a sensitive way.
- Link with history: unit
19 'How and why did the Holocaust happen?' See also www.holocaustmemorialday.gov.uk
- The establishment of the United Nations: a useful resource
is the Young Citizens' Passport, published by the Citizenship Foundation.
- UNHCR, the United Nations refugee organisation, is mandated
by the United Nations to lead and coordinate international action for the
worldwide protection of refugees and the resolution of refugee problems. A
range of information, including ideas for lessons and resource sheets, can
be found at www.unhcr.ch/teach/teach.htm
- First-hand accounts of refugee life are available on the
Refugee Council's website www.refugeecouncil.org.uk, pupils may find material
about young refugees especially powerful. See also the Amnesty International
website www.amnesty.org.uk
- Teachers could link this activity to work in geography,
history or RE. It could also be adapted for delivery through these subjects.
- Link with geography:
- the causes of migrant populations and forced migration in different countries
- population distribution (6f)
- the effects of development on different groups of people (6i)
- unit 11 'Investigating
Brazil' .
- Link with history:
- 13 'A world study after 1900'. Refugees have lived in Britain for many years.
Teachers could refer to the Kinder Transport; those who came to England during
the Irish famines of the 19th century; refugees from Asia and Africa who came
to the UK in the 1970s and 1980s; and refugees escaping the Balkan conflicts
of the 1990s
- unit 18 'Hot
war, cold war', unit
19 'How and why did the Holocaust happen?'
- Link with RE: unit
7B 'What does justice mean to Christians?', unit
9C 'Why do we suffer?'.
- Link with key skill: IT.
- Link with thinking skills: enquiry, information processing.
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This unit is divided into sections. Each section contains a sequence of
activities with related objectives and outcomes. You can view this unit by
moving through the sections or print/download the whole unit.
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