DUSHANBE, November 30, 2015, Asia-Plus — UNICEF in close collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Science in Tajikistan has presented a first-of-its-kind Course on Journalism and Child Rights.
According to UNICF CO Tajikistan, the publications “Journalism and Child Rights” and “Guidance for Teachers on Journalism and Child Rights Course” are now available in Tajik language and ready for distribution to all journalism schools in the country.
Tajikistan is one of nine countries in the Central Eastern Europe and Commonwealth Independent Countries (CEECIS) region that have introduced the journalism course at tertiary level. An assessment completed by UNICEF in early 2015 concluded that over 3,500 students have enrolled in and benefitted from the course in 40 universities in the CEECIS region.
The course reportedly provides trainees and students of journalism with an understanding of children’s rights as articulated in the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child.
This module for undergraduate media students, designed by UNICEF in close collaboration with the Dublin Technical University and in partnership with leading universities in the CEECIS region, has been piloted for the last two years at the Faculty of Journalism of the Tajik State University.
The pilot phase in Tajikistan took place in 2013-2015. It offered a unique opportunity to the students of the Faculty of Journalism to learn about child rights and apply the learning in practice. The pilot also benefited from contributions of the established media professionals from all regions of Tajikistan who helped adapt the course to the country context and particularities of children’s issues.
In 2014, based on the results of pilot phase, the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Tajikistan (MoES) set up a working group consisting of the representatives of the journalism schools and media houses to review and to contextualize the course to Tajikistan’s law, practice, policy as well as culture and socio-economic situation. As a result, starting from 2016, this course will start in nine universities across the country.
