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** Preamble ** Whereas a healthy, sustainable democracy requires the thoughtful and effective participation of its citizenry…
 * Declaration of Education Rights **

Whereas optimum political, social, and economic participation requires certain fundamental capacities and conditions…

Whereas it is the responsibility of democratic society to intentionally foster the development of these capacities and conditions essential to its continued vitality and to that of its citizens…

Now, therefore, this Declaration of Education Rights is proclaimed as a common standard of achievement for the continuous growth and self-realization of all people in the context of democratic community.

** Article 1 ** Everyone has the right to participate meaningfully in his/her own education and the educational decisions that affect him/her. These decisions include those establishing the purposes, content, and assessment of learning activities.

** Article 2 ** Everyone has the right to an education directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.

** Article 3 ** Everyone has the right to an education that acknowledges and respects his/her cultural, religious, and/or ethnic heritage, as well as his/her unique learning style.

** Article 4 ** Everyone has the right to an education that acknowledges multiple ways of knowing and assists in the exploration and understanding of various world views.

** Article 5 ** Everyone has the right to an education that fosters the capacities necessary for effective participation in a social and political democracy.

** Article 6 ** Everyone has the right to an education that fosters the capacities necessary to lead responsible and satisfying lives.

** Article 7 ** All educational institutions shall unambiguously reflect the values of democracy in their policies, practices, curriculum, organizational structures, and outcomes.

** Article 8 ** P-12 education shall be free, as well as equitably and adequately funded. Technical, professional, and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of capacity.

** Article 9 ** Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education in which their children participate.

** Article 10 ** Everyone has the right to an education that acknowledges our place within the natural world, respects the interconnectedness of all life, and promotes the building of a just and sustainable world.

** Article 11 ** Education shall be compulsory through the primary years and freely available thereafter until the age of majority. No minor shall be denied access to a free and appropriate educational program for any reason. Furthermore, no person shall be compelled by law to participate in any educational program that does not protect the full range of these rights.

** Article 12 ** Given that education is an ongoing process that extends far beyond the bounds of formal schooling, everyone has the right to live in an educative community that purposely contributes to the continuous growth and well-being of all its members.

** Article 13 ** No one shall be denied access to employment or postsecondary education, or be discriminated against in any way solely on the basis of P-12 academic credentials.

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