The Child's Right to Education as an Obligation of the State

The state, as the guarantor of the protection of human rights and freedoms, enters into an agreement with its citizens through the Constitution, according to which the laws/rights adopted by the state are given primacy over the rights of the individual. In return, the state assumes the obligation to the individual to protect the citizen, to provide them with the means for development, and simultaneously undertakes the obligation to protect fundamental human rights and freedoms, in which legal and advocacy services—and, of course, lawyers and attorneys—play an important role. One such obligation is found in Article 35 of the Constitution of Georgia, which concerns the right to education. According to Part 3 of the Constitution of Georgia: "Preschool education shall be guaranteed by the state in accordance with the rules established by law. Primary and basic education shall be mandatory. General education shall be fully funded by the state in accordance with the rules established by law. Citizens have the right to receive state-funded vocational and higher education in accordance with the rules established by law." What does this right mean? What obligation does the state undertake towards the citizen/child? What are the state's rights and obligations regarding education?;

First of all, it should be noted that for me, as a lawyer, the right to education is a social right (under the new Constitution, Georgia is a social state). This right implies, first and foremost, that the state has an obligation not to interfere in an individual's right to receive an education; specifically, under the Constitution of Georgia, "everyone"—meaning absolutely everyone without distinction—has the right to education. Education is extremely important for the state also because it ensures the prevention of existing or anticipated inequality in society. In turn, receiving an education is divided into the following stages:
a) Preschool education;
b) General education;
c) Vocational education;
d) Higher education;
Preschool Education;
The state takes responsibility for creating appropriate conditions for preschool educational institutions. This means it must carry out their maintenance, and if necessary, reconstruction and renovation, equip them modernly, ensure compliance with hygienic conditions, etc. Is the so-called "registration-based" admission to preschool educational institutions constitutional? The question should be posed from the perspective that the state might set some conditions for a person to receive primary education, but if preschool education is dependent on—to use the accepted term—"attendance," this rule will likely not be entirely constitutional. The state is failing to fulfill its obligation to its citizens because, in reality, the state declares a commitment to "mandatory education" but simultaneously restricts this right. Unfortunately, in legal practice, this issue is rarely framed in such a way;

Preschool education, in turn, is divided into two parts: public and private. The state controls the public sector, while its control over the private sector is insignificant. The right of all people, and especially children, to receive an education constitutes the core of the international legal right to education. In this regard, Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Articles 13 and 14 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Articles 28 and 29 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and Article 13 of the Protocol of San Salvador are particularly important.
Based on the above, the State of Georgia has assumed the following obligations.
To establish free, compulsory, and primary education (a public school may not demand any amount or fee from a parent for the child's education);
To take all measures to introduce free education and, if necessary, to provide financial assistance (to ensure that education is free and, when needed, to materially assist students in obtaining an education);

To make this right accessible to all children (this means there should be no differences among children in receiving an education based on their origin, ethnic background, etc. In this same aspect, it can be considered that the existence of preschools and schools should not be contingent upon the number of children);
To ensure the accessibility of information and materials in the field of education and vocational training for all children, which inherently includes access to textbooks, etc. It must also be considered that the state has committed to ensuring that, while maintaining discipline, disciplinary punishments and their application must be carried out using methods that reflect respect for the child's human dignity (naturally, violence is prohibited, but this also includes the exclusion of so-called psychological violence, which unfortunately we sometimes encounter in modern Georgia and during the advocacy process);

During the acquisition of preschool education, it is the state's obligation to ensure the child is prepared for school and their thinking is developed. Additionally, it must be noted that the state provides education to the child precisely so that the child will have equal opportunities to achieve success in private and public life. It is true that the state protects the right of the child and the parent to choose an educational institution, but this does not mean that the child may evade compulsory education and/or the parent may allow them to evade it. General Education — This is also part of the state's obligations. Specifically, the state is obliged not to impose any fees for study. According to the legislation on general education, the levels of general education are:
Primary (6 years);
Basic (3 years);
Secondary (3 years);
General educational activities are carried out by legal entities of public law or legal entities of private law. Based on the legislation, the state creates the appropriate conditions to conduct normal educational learning processes in general educational institutions. During the educational process, the state protects several principles, namely:

The school is obliged to take all reasonable measures to ensure a fair assessment of the student's knowledge. It is inadmissible for a student's academic assessment to be conditioned by their discipline (for example, it is unacceptable to assess a student based on behavior that the teacher dislikes). It is obliged to care for creating the necessary conditions to form the student into a free individual possessing national and universal human values. Developing the student's mental and physical skills, providing them with essential knowledge, establishing a healthy lifestyle, forming a civic consciousness based on liberal-democratic values, promoting the student's respect for cultural values, and fostering an awareness of their rights and duties towards their family, society, state, and environment;

The independence of public schools from religious and political associations, and the independence of private schools from political associations. In some cases, it is even essential that children, especially schoolchildren, are aware of their rights. This can be provided to them in a form acceptable to the child. The state ensures the right of every student to receive general education in the state or native language as close as possible to their place of residence;

Furthermore, it is crucial to consider that both national and international law firmly protect the freedom of parents to choose the type of education for their children in accordance with their religious, moral, or ideological beliefs. This includes the right of the child to receive the education chosen by the parent at their discretion, as well as the right of the parent to make decisions regarding the child's education without state coercion. However, it must also be considered that the exercise of this right should not be carried out in a way that contradicts the child's right to education. This issue is important to me as a lawyer because some perceptions suggest that national legislation contradicts the interests of the child, which is precluded by current legislation;

In addition to the above, the Law of Georgia on General Education grants the following additional rights: A student has the right (through their parent and/or legal representative) to appeal illegal and other unlawful acts of a teacher, school, or the educational institution's mandate officer (resource officer) to protect their rights and freedoms, and to receive full compensation for any damage caused. The school, in turn, is obliged to create an effective mechanism for the independent and impartial review of complaints. During the educational process, the following are inadmissible concerning a student: the politicization of the learning process in a general educational institution (political agitation by any party toward students);

A student (students) has the right during school hours or on school premises to seek, receive, create, store, process, or disseminate any information and ideas, as well as to use school resources to seek, receive, and create information and ideas. It is inadmissible to infringe upon the editorial independence of school publications or to censor books in the school library. The student is guaranteed the freedom of belief, religion, and conscience, as well as the right to voluntarily choose and change any or no beliefs or worldview;

Additionally, the European Court established in one case that while non-discriminatory requirements for admission (e.g., exams) to secondary and higher educational institutions do not contradict the European Convention, this approach confirms that member states are not under any obligation "to establish or fund at their own expense any specific type or specific level of education system." It is universally recognized in legal literature that no restrictions should be introduced on primary education, and that states have a minimum obligation to ensure the existence and functioning of a minimum number of educational institutions;

Based on the aforementioned, the right of a student/child to education constitutes the state's obligation to provide preschool and general education without demanding any additional fees from the student. The state is also obligated to create a properly functioning and organized educational system. Furthermore, the state is required to ensure the "depoliticization" of these educational institutions, and education must be provided to the student in a manner that ensures their competitiveness as a future adult citizen;
In case of additional questions, please contact me: 
Attorney Guram Kontuadze, full legal and advocacy services
throughout the territory of Georgia; We Set Precedents;  
Signal/Tel/viber/WhatsApp/Telegram +995 591 976 764; 
e-mail: guram.kontuadze@gmail.com; facebook; 

ადვოკატი თბილისში ადვოკატი საქართველოში ადვოკატი რუსთავში ადვოკატი თელავში ადვოკატი მარნეულში ადვოკატი ზუგდიდში ადვოკატი ქუთაისში ადვოკატი ბათუმში ადვოკატი სურამში ადვოკატი ვაკეში ადვოკატი ვერაზე ადვოკატი ციხეზე ადვოკატი წალკაში ადვოკატი საბურთალოზე ადვოკატი ვარკეთილში ადვოკატი ახალ რუსთავში ადვოკატი  ახალ რუსთავში ადვოკატი დმანისში ადვოკატი ბოლნისში ადვოკატი საგარეჯოში ადვოკატი მიწის სამოქალაქოს ადვოკატი საადვოკატო მომსახურება თბილისში საადვოკატო მომსახურება რუსთავში საადვოკატო მომსახურება თელავში საადვოკატო მომსახურება მარნეულში საადვოკატო მომსახურება ზუგდიდში საადვოკატო მომსახურება ქუთაისში საადვოკატო მომსახურება  ბათუმში საადვოკატო მომსახურება  საგარეჯოში საადვოკატო მომსახურება  ახალ რუსთავში საადვოკატო მომსახურება ახალ რუსთავში იურისტი ახალ რუსთავში იურისტი დმანისში იურისტი  თბილისში იურისტი საქართველოში იურისტი რუსთავში იურისტი   ბათუმში იურისტი ქუთაისში იურისტი ზუგდიდში სამოქალაქო საქმის ადვოკატი სისხლის სამართლის ადვოკატი ადმინისტრაციული სამართლის ადვოკატი მიწის საკითხებზე მომუშავე ადვოკატი განქორწინებაზე მომუშავე ადვოკატი ქონებაზე მომუშავე ადვოკატი ქონების ადვოკატი ადვოკატი სამოქალაქო საქმეზე ადვოკატი სისხლის სამართლის საქმეზე განქორწინების შემდგომ რა ხდება განქორწინების შედეგები ადვოკატი სამოქალაქო საკითხებში სამოქალაქო საქმის ადვოკატი საქართველოში სამოქალაქო საქმის ადვოკატი ზუგდიდში სამოქალაქო საქმის ადვოკატი ბათუმში სამოქალაქო საქმის ადვოკატი საგარეჯოში სამოქალაქო საქმის ადვოკატი  მარნეულში სამოქალაქო საქმის ადვოკატი თელავში ადმინისტრაციული საქმის ადვოკატი თბილისში ადმინისტრაციული საქმის ადვოკატი საქართველოში ადმინისტრაციული საქმის ადვოკატი ზუგდიდში სისხლის სამართლის  საქმის ადვოკატი თბილისში სისხლის სამართლის  საქმის ადვოკატი საქართველოში სისხლის სამართლის საქმის ადვოკატი რუსთავში სისხლის სამართლის საქმის ადვოკატი ზუგდიდში სისხლის სამართლის საქმის ადვოკატი საგარეჯოში სისხლის სამართლის საქმის ადვოკატი  მარნეულში სისხლის სამართლის საქმის ადვოკატი თბილისში სისხლის სამართლის  საქმის ადვოკატი ბათუმში სისხლის სამართლის  საქმის ადვოკატი საგარეჯოში ბიზნეს ადვოკატი რუსთავში ბიზნეს ადვოკატი თბილისში ბიზნეს ადვოკატი ბათუმში ბიზნეს ადვოკატი ქუთაისში სტარტაპ ადვოკატი თბილისში საადვოკატო ბიურო თბილისში საადვოკატო ბიურო  საქართველოში საადვოკატო ბიურო  რუსთავში საადვოკატო ბიურო ზუგდიდში საადვოკატო ბიურო  საგარეჯოში საადვოკატო ბიურო  მარნეულში საადვოკატო ბიურო თელავში Юрист в Тбилиси Юрист в Грузии Юрист в Рустави Юрист в Телави Юрист в Марнеули Юрист в Зугдиди Юрист в Кутаиси Юрист в Батуми Юрист в Сурами Юрист в Ваке Юрист в Вере Юрист в Цихе Юрист в Цалке Юрист в Сабуртало Юрист в Варкетили Юрист в Ахал Рустави Юрист в Ахал Рустави Юрист в Дманиси Юрист в Болниси Юрист в Сагарехо Юрист по земельным гражданским делам Юридические услуги в Тбилиси Юридические услуги в Рустави Юридические услуги в Телави Юридические услуги в Марнеули Юридические услуги в Зугдиди Юридические услуги в Кутаиси Юридические услуги в Батуми Юридические услуги в Сагарехо Юридические услуги в Ахал Рустави Юридические услуги в Ахал Рустави Юрист в Ахал Рустави Юрист в Дманиси Юрист в Тбилиси Юрист в Грузии Юрист Юрист Юрист в Рустави, Батуми Юрист в Кутаиси Юрист в Зугдиди Юрист по гражданским делам Юрист по уголовным делам Юрист по административному праву Юрист по земельным вопросам Юрист по разводам Юрист по недвижимости Юрист по недвижимости Юрист по гражданским делам Юрист по уголовным делам Что происходит после развода? 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