Equity in School Water and Sanitation

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EQUITY IN SCHOOL WATER AND SANITATIONschools where toilets were cleaned children playeda major role in this cleaning. In India, especially,concern was expressed that children could beasked to play too great a role in cleaning; however,examples in other countries showed that certainschools had created a situation in which childrenfelt proud of the responsibility they had been givenand did not appear resentful of this task. Goodpractice was observed in schools where it wasclear who held responsibility and where teachersworked with children in maintaining facilities ratherthan simply imposing this task on them.Exclusion and discriminationMenstruating girlsAll four country studies concluded that girls,particularly adolescent girls, were disadvantagedin terms of toilet facilities. While boys expressedless concern about sanitation facilities, interviewswith girls showed that there was an almost totalabsence of sensitivity to the requirements ofmenstruating girls. Girls who were menstruatingtended to have nowhere to wash their sanitarycloths or dispose of their sanitary pads. They werealso embarrassed by the way in which the designof facilities did not allow them necessary privacyand dignity. The result, in all countries, was thatgirls who were menstruating either carried on withtheir studies in a state of continual anxiety or theyappeared simply to take days off. Both the girlsand their mothers were aware that this wasdetrimental to their studies. In all countriesmenstruation was seen as a very private affair andschools do not appear to see it as their role toprovide either knowledge or support – inBangladesh, where menstruation is actually a partof the curriculum, girls and teachers reported thatthese sections were missed out.Children perceived as ‘unclean’In all schools in all four countries ‘cleanliness’ wasseen as being very important. Considerableattention was paid to children’s appearance withregular inspections to see that both they and theiruniforms were clean. The positive aspect of thisis the pride that children take in looking clean andsmart when they come to school. However,inevitably certain children, particularly those frompoorer families, found it hard to adhere to thesestandards. In some schools there appeared to bean assumption made by teachers that children whowere less clean were also those who were lessable and came from families who were lesscommitted to their studies.Researchers in all four countries closely observedwhether or not certain children were discriminatedagainst in terms of toilet cleaning duties, accessto drinking water, being given privileges such asfetching water for teachers and seatingarrangements at meal times and in the classroom.While all countries had examples of schools inwhich there was complete equality in all theseareas, in many there was considerablediscrimination.The particular groups of children who werediscriminated against varied both from country tocountry and within countries. While traditionalcaste-based discrimination was very apparent andovertly expressed by both teachers and somechildren in the Lalitpur district of Uttar Pradesh inIndia, it was not evident in Mirzapur district. InNepal, caste-based discrimination was notapparent in the schools visited but there was somediscrimination against children from the very poorChepang community. In Bangladesh, someinstances of discrimination were shown againstAdivasi children and also children from the teagardens but not against the richer Manipurichildren. In Bhutan children from the Uraoncommunity as well as children of poorer urbanlabourers and poorer farmers were seen as beingchildren who often arrived dirty at school and alsocould sit separately from other children. Thisdiversity of findings shows that it is hard to placediscrimination into clear-cut categories. Whiletraditional discrimination in terms of caste andethnicity does still exist at school it is not universal.However, one overriding fact which does emergeis the importance of poverty as a key factor indiscrimination.Children themselves were very aware thattraditional patterns of discrimination and exclusion,although still strong in many areas, were alsobeginning to change. While some of them stillexpressed clear opinions that certain groups ofchildren were ‘dirty’ and not to be mixed with,others spoke of friendships which went beyondcaste or ethnicity while still saying that they mightbe uneasy at talking about these friendships withtheir parents. This recognition of change was a38
Overcoming Exclusion and Discrimination in South AsiaIndia Country Reportpositive finding in the research. However,alongside this there were also indications that newelites were emerging which, like the old elites, oftenmanifested themselves in terms of cleanliness.All countries have some examples of teacherfavouritism towards children who are wealthier,whose parents have power or influence, who areseen to be more clever and who appear neat andclean. Although these children might be the sonsand daughters of traditional elite families,researchers are clear in pointing out that this isnot always the case. In all countries there areexamples of these children manifesting theirsuperiority in terms of cleanliness and appearanceand also examples of them being the children onwhom status is conferred by them being asked tofetch water for the teacher and being the childrenwho are exempt from cleaning duties.Examples of good practiceAll four reports showed individual schools whichexhibited very positive examples of good practice.The precise way in which this good practicemanifested itself inevitably varied according toparticular country contexts; however, all of theexamples included certain key elements.Good practice schools all had adequate facilitiesand, if facilities broke down, they knew who toapproach in order to get them repaired. Thesefacilities included essential materials for cleaningthe toilets and also sufficient available supplies ofsoap and towels. Facilities were kept clean andeveryone was clear about who was responsiblefor cleaning. The way in which cleaning duties werecarried out varied from country to country but akey common element was that those withresponsibility, whether this was the village pradhanas in India or Child Clubs as in Nepal, felt andgenerated a real sense of pride in ensuring thatfacilities were clean. In all the good practiceschools children had a role, sometimes a key role,in cleaning duties. However, there was no exampleof them feeling exploited and teachers were seento actively support children in carrying out this role.Children in these schools were seen not only topractise good hygiene behaviour but also to beaware of the reasons for this behaviour. Anunderstanding of the importance of good practiceshad obviously been part of their curriculum andthey were well aware of the link between goodhealth and hygiene and the reduction of disease.Finally, and probably most importantly, theseschools were ones which had generated an ethosof equality. All duties and tasks were distributedon a completely equal basis without anyfavouritism or discrimination. Teachers did notassume that certain children would automaticallysit separately and all children were accordedequal respect and dignity. Within such an ethos,it is not so much that steps are taken todiscourage exclusion but rather that inclusiveprocedures were created which, in the words ofthe Nepal report, left ‘no room for exclusion’.Transfer of good practice fromschool to communityAll countries also gave examples of good hygienebehaviour being shared between school andhome. The way in which this happened variedconsiderably between the different countries.While Bangladesh gives some extremely positiveexamples of individual children encouraging theirparents to carry out what they have learnt inschool, Bhutan reveals more formalizedapproaches which take place through parent–teacher meetings or parent awarenessprogrammes. Interestingly, researchers in Indiaand Nepal, whose good schools showed someexemplary practices, are very clear that transferof good practice between school and home is farmore likely to happen if a holistic approach istaken with school and community both being partof a total sanitation campaign.In terms of children feeling able to transfer goodpractice in non-discrimination which they haveexperienced at school to home, the findings areless conclusive. While several children speakabout how they feel very happy eating with andsitting next to children from other groups inschool, they do also acknowledge that suchbehaviour would not necessarily be condoned athome. In this way many of the children showedthemselves to be very aware of the distinctionwhich still could exist between behaviour in publicand private zones. However, the very positive wayin which many of them spoke about friendshipswith children from different groups within schooldid reveal the pivotal role which an inclusiveschool can play in allowing children to exploredifferent ways of relating and giving them a safeplace where they are free of the social,hierarchical divisions which can occur outside ofschool. The issue which still needs to be explored39
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Cover Photo: © UNICEF/India/Sanjay
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Equity in School Water and Sanitation

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