people and planet

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examines several initiatives that could be used
to monitor acquisition of relevant knowledge
and skills.
Individuals may acquire knowledge, understanding and
skills but lack the disposition to use them. While target
4.7 does not explicitly say as much, the development
of the right attitudes is an important dimension of
global citizenship education (GCED) and education for
sustainable development (ESD). This chapter thus briefly
reviews several approaches to monitoring adolescents,
youth and adult attitudes, and highlights challenges in
establishing a global monitoring mechanism.
INTERNATIONAL STANDARD-
SETTING INSTRUMENTS
Almost all the concepts mentioned in target 4.7
that promote sustainable development are found in
international frameworks and conventions, notably the
International Recommendation concerning Education
for International Understanding, Co-operation and
Peace and Education relating to Human Rights and
Fundamental Freedoms, adopted by member states at
UNESCO’s 18th session in 1974. This recommendation
lays out a normative framework for countries on issues
related to peace and human rights in the goals, policies,
contents and teacher training materials of national
education systems (Arora et al., 1994; Savolainen, 2010;
UNESCO, 2008).
Although compliance is voluntary, UNESCO has
monitored member states’ implementation on five
occasions since 1974 (UNESCO, 2013). These monitoring
exercises aimed to track the extent to which human
rights materials and principles had been incorporated
into the legal, administrative, educational and teaching
tools that guide everyday practices in education (Prada,
2011). Response rates were low, however, though they
increased from 18% of countries in 2009 to 28% in 2013
(UNESCO, 2009; 2013).
The percentage of countries that responded
to monitoring exercises of human rights in
education, legal and administrative systems
rose from 18% in 2009 to 28% in 2013
The adoption of the SDGs highlighted strong
alignment between the 1974 recommendation and
target 4.7 concepts. As a result, the significance of
effective monitoring of country implementation of the
recommendation became clearer. In 2016, UNESCO
initiated a sixth consultation, asking member states to
assess implementation of the recommendation over
2013–2016. The terms are relevant to the monitoring of
target 4.7. Member states are asked to report whether
the following topics are included in their curricula and,
if so, at which levels of education and in which subjects:
peace and non-violence, human rights and fundamental
freedoms, cultural diversity and tolerance, and human
survival and well-being. Additional questions monitor the
inclusion of these topics in textbooks, teacher education,
student assessments/examinations, and programmes
outside the school system, including non-formal
education, informal education, adult education and
media-based education (UNESCO, 2016e). To increase
response rates, the 2016 questionnaire includes many
more multiple choice questions than before.
Nevertheless, as past low response rates showed, many
national ministries are limited in the capacity to respond
to such surveys and the resources to prepare high quality
national reports. Gathering the information to be included
is hampered by the need to coordinate responses across
relevant ministries and departments (Yusuf, 2007). It is
difficult to assure the objectivity and validity of selfreported
information, which can lower its monitoring
value. Therefore, more systematic and rigorous
approaches to monitoring country progress towards
target 4.7 are needed to supplement country reports.
CURRICULA
Curricula are the main way in which knowledge and skills to
promote sustainable development and global citizenship
are typically conveyed to students. This section reviews
mechanisms to monitor the adoption of topics relevant
to sustainable development and global citizenship
into official curricula. It then discusses a comparative
approach for monitoring curricula at the global level.
HUMAN RIGHTS EDUCATION
One thematic indicator proposes measuring the extent
of national implementation of the framework on the
World Programme on Human Rights Education, in which
the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for
2016 • GLOBAL EDUCATION MONITORING REPORT 289