No parent should have to choose between providing their child with an education or being able to care for them. But vulnerable families worldwide continue to face this heart-wrenching decision.
While decades of research show the importance of a child living in a family environment, a child’s need for education and need to grow up in a family are all too often in direct competition with the other.
The good news is there is a better way, and there’s an expanding network of individuals, organizations and even governments that are working together to stop children from being separated from their families in order to gain access to education. But this work can only succeed when we understand how deeply intertwined education and family separation actually are.
Millions of children globally live in residential facilities, like orphanages or children’s homes, despite 80% having at least one living parent. At the organization I work for, Lumos, we work to prevent children from being separated from their families and to reunite those who have been in residential care with a loving family. As we pursued this goal, we began to recognize the similarities and connections between residential care facilities and residential education facilities, like some boarding schools.
Our recently published Learning Curves, the first findings of our global thematic review on this issue, identifies why families choose residential facilities for education provided in boarding schools or orphanages, problems with such facilities, and makes recommendations for holistic, sustainable and family-centered change.
Our study discovered a variety of reasons why children are placed in residential facilities to access education. Poverty and its secondary effects, like lack of housing or food, are significant factors. In addition, families who live in rural or remote locations often have no schools within a reasonable distance.
In some cases, discrimination against marginalized and disadvantaged communities has been found to be a factor. For children living on the street, or for those from Indigenous or First Nation communities, state authorities justify placing those children in residential facilities by citing education. And for many children with special education needs or disabilities, accessible and inclusive services simply don’t exist in their home communities — an all-too-common scenario.
For example, Cristina and Igor, who are siblings in Moldova, both have disabilities. Because the local school did not have an inclusive education program, the kids were not allowed to be enrolled. Their parents were told that the only educational option was to place them in an orphanage with schooling for children with special needs. Wanting their children to have the necessary services and support, the parents made the impossible choice to send their young children away.
Moldova is a poor country with a history of political instability, yet with the support of Lumos and other like-minded organizations, the country was able to reduce the number of children in residential institutions by more than 90% between 2007 and 2019. We helped accomplish this by working alongside Moldova’s government to implement critical changes — including reforming the residential childcare system, developing a new inclusive educational system that allows children with disabilities to stay in families while attending school, and creating and expanding social services that support vulnerable families.
This includes Cristina and Igor — both children have returned home and are thriving. They now attend the local school, which has had support and training to offer an inclusive, quality, mainstream education.
Decades of research show a direct correlation between separating children from their families and poor outcomes. In order to thrive, children need more than food, shelter, medical care and even education. They need a safe, consistent and nurturing adult — something even the best residential settings cannot provide.
The impact of residential education on children is complex. By definition, the facilities isolate children from their families and communities and employ rigid routines that neglect a child’s individual needs and preferences. As such, children in residential educational settings encounter similar challenges to what we see in other residential care settings, like orphanages and children’s homes — negative effects with long-term implications on physical, cognitive and social-emotional development.
Whether driven by religious convictions, social consciousness or a desire for equity and justice, charitable donors generously support vulnerable children in residential facilities worldwide. But reform is necessary, and, thankfully, it’s very possible. These donors have the power to redirect the resources they currently give to residential care and shift to supporting organizations that strengthen families and their surrounding communities, including local schools.
By reprioritizing resources, communities and families can be empowered, educators and local leaders can work together to create better outcomes for vulnerable children, and governments can begin to make needed policy changes. Donors can ensure their funds go to organizations that promote care reform for community-based, high-quality, inclusive education that will keep children out of residential facilities and with their families.
The need for an education and family should not be in opposition to each other. Together, we can transform a devastating “either/or” decision into a world-changing “both/and” opportunity — a world where children have access to quality education and the love and belonging of a family.
Note: This op-ed was updated on Wednesday, August 23.
