We know that education provides children with a future. But today, 72 million children are missing out on school. Their right to education is not being fulfilled.

Good quality education is vital for children’s wellbeing and development. It also plays a significant role in improving health and tackling poverty.

Millions of children urgently require real opportunities to learn. They either endure substandard education or they can’t go to school at all.

In the countries where Save the Children works, we often work with government agencies to highlight the importance of education and to improve its quality.

More than half the out-of-school children live in countries affected by conflict. In 2005, Save the Children embarked on Rewrite the Future, an ambitious global campaign to tackle this problem. In more than 20 countries, Rewrite the Future has demonstrated that education can be delivered in the most difficult circumstances.

Because of Rewrite the Future, Save the Children has improved the quality of education for more than 10 million children caught up in conflict and emergencies. We have also helped enrol 1.4 million children in school – the equivalent of opening two schools every day since our campaign began. During 2009, we supported education for 30,000 children in Sri Lanka who live in camps for internally displaced people. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, we enabled 17,500 children to access education – a 70 per cent increase on 2008.

Over a period of 20 years, conflict has destroyed education systems in Rewrite the Future or Somalia. In 2009, we supported 150 primary schools and 90 centres offering alternative educational approaches. To improve the quality of education for Somali children, we also trained teachers. During 2009, more than 1,300 trainees became primary teacher – the first to be certified since the outbreak of civil war.

Our work in education strongly supports efforts to achieve Millennium Development Goal Number 2 – ensuring that by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, complete a full course of primary education.

In many countries, we give priority to providing pre-school education. This is because we know that children who attend pre-schools are more likely to attend and benefit from primary education. Often the pre-school education is informal, play-based education for young children. 

In Australia, Save the Children’s pre-school education programs include:

• The Mobile Playbus Program which operates in four States and the Northern Territory and offers isolated and economically disadvantaged families access to playgroups, games and toy libraries
• Early Learning Centres at Nowa Nowa and Mooroopna in Victoria which provide accessible preschool education for local children who would otherwise miss out
• A multicultural early learning program in Perth which provides early childhood development activities and support to newly-arrived refugee families and children.

Save the Children is making real progress in ensuring that marginalised children, and children affected by conflict, gain a quality education. Our programs vary according to local contexts but our goal is clear: we want to do our part – and more – to achieve universal primary education by 2015.

Want to know more about Save the Children's position on education? Read our position paper on Early Childhood Development.
 
To see what stance we take on other issues that affect the lives of children and young people check out all of Save the Children position papers.