Human Rights Education Now!

Note: due to character limitations, bio and episode details are an abbreviated version. Visit the HREUSA Podcast page for the full version HERE.

Dr. Hugh Starkey is an Emeritus Professor of Citizenship and Human Rights Education at IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society. His research focuses on education for democratic citizenship and human rights education (EDC/HRE) from an intercultural perspective. From 2019 to 2024, he co-convened the World Educational Research Association’s International Research Network on Human Rights Education, which evolved into the International Association for Human Rights Education. His latest book, co-authored with Lee Jerome, is Children's Rights Education in Diverse Classrooms: Pedagogy, Principles and Practice (2021).

In Episode 42, Dr. Hugh Starkey discusses the origins of his interest in human rights and human rights education, highlighting his transformative experiences working in Algeria. He describes how the World Studies curriculum and pedagogy influenced his approach, along with his work with the Council of Europe, which deepened his awareness of human rights issues. Hugh connects his background in language and intercultural education to human rights education, emphasizing the importance of integrating controversial issues within language education to enable democratic participation among learners. He then explores the relationships between nationalism and cosmopolitanism, arguing that cosmopolitanism can coexist with patriotism while addressing the challenges of nationalism in undermining universal human rights claims. Hugh advocates for incorporating human rights within multicultural education, envisioning a reimagined nation as a multicultural entity that confronts the legacy of colonialism. He outlines steps for enhancing children's rights, discussing the significance of participation rights in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).

Topics discussed:

• Transformative experiences from working in Algeria
• Influence of the World Studies curriculum and pedagogy
• Increased awareness of human rights through work with the Council of Europe
• Connections between language education and human rights issues
• Importance of democratic focus in enabling learners to speak
• Role of global citizenship education in promoting human rights
• The relationship between nationalism and cosmopolitanism
• Incorporation of human rights in multicultural education and children's rights initiatives

Full topic listing available for PDF download HERE.

Listen on our HREUSA podcast website HERE.

Introduction and Closing Music Credit: “Awakening-Spring” by Ketsa, from the Album Night Vision. Available at the Free Music Archive: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Ketsa/night-vision/awakening-spring/

This music is used in accordance with this Creative Commons License: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Information about that license is available here https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/

Human Rights Education Now! is produced and distributed in accordance with Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 DEED, Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International. Information about this license is available here: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/