Education as a right and as a duty

Abstract

The article considers the problems in reforming the relations between the children and the teachers in schools. The author argues that it is possible to achieve higher levels of the quality of education only if the underlying principle of these relations changes. Namely, the idea that children have the right to an education ought to replace the idea that acquiring an education is their duty. Such a change in the value system would favor abandoning the enforced character of education. This would help to remove the barriers that limit the abilities of a student to independently solve problems in various situations. The creation of a diversified education system in the post-Soviet period led to the emergence of important yet insufficient preconditions for the formation of an education system based on the idea of rights, including the right to choose a specific program and a specific school. The next step in this direction would be to develop educational standards ensuring the right of all children to an education that would enable them to solve cognitive, communicative and other important problems.