The learning environment is a critical dimension of educational quality. It must be effective with children, gender-sensitive, healthy and safe for children, and protective of them. Families and communities should play a central role in ensuring such environments.

A quality learning environment includes adequate facilities–a school building, if possible, where girls and boys have the same access to physical exercise, adequate hygiene and sanitation facilities, clean water, and health services. It includes reasonable class sizes, so that teachers can teach all children and so that all children can learn; and school policies that promote physical and mental health. It is safe and secure for all children.

A quality learning environment is a place where children are free to learn, where they have learning resources and where children are excited about and proud of learning because of positive reinforcement from the teacher. A quality learning environment gives children time to think and space to create. The classroom and the school are safe, peaceful, and orderly places where all children can spend the maximum amount of time on learning.

While no single environmental factor will exclude or include all girls, safety and security in the learning environment are essential. Lack of safety and security may be very obvious, in the form of physical danger such as beatings or rape. More insidious are the invisible forms of harassment and violence exerted against children who are "different" or female. These vary from making girls (but not boys) do school maintenance tasks or personal chores for teachers at the expense of learning; to denying girls physical exercise (no girls’ sports or playground time); to sexual harassment.

Sanitation is also important. There is evidence that having separate, safe girls’ latrines contributes to girls’ attendance in school.

Safety and Security in Schools

Opening Our Eyes: Addressing Gender-Based Violence in South African Schools: a Module for Educators

by Mlamleli et al (2001)

http://www.utoronto.ca/iwsgs/GAAP/index2.htm

Gender and Violence in Schools

Web page is part of a DFID-funded research project to raise awareness about gender violence in schools and disseminate information on interesting initiatives.

http://www.id21.org/education/gender_violence/index.html

Towards Better Programming: A Manual on School Sanitation and Hygiene. Water, Environment and Sanitation

Technical Guidelines Series no. % (ID No. UNICEF/PD/WES/98-5)

http://www.unicef.org/programme/wes/pubs/glines/hygman.htm

School Sanitation and Hygiene Education Web site supported by UNICEF and IRC

Provides background information, programme experiences, Notes and News bi-annual journal, key resources, links and references:

http://www.irc.nl/sshe/

Sanitation Connection, topic: School Sanitation

A Web site providing a list of resource materials, including publications, Websites and mailing lists related to school sanitation and hygiene education.

http://www.sanicon.net/titles/topicintro.php3?topicId=20

School Health at a Glance

A website providing background information, references and links to a variety of school health issues including water and sanitation issues. Under the "key reference" page the WHO School Health Series is presented which includes an excellent publication on helminth infections at school age.

http://wbln0018.worldbank.org/HDNet/hddocs.nsf/
c840b59b6982d2498525670c004def60/
0fe98b669f62d3ec85256a42005cf99f?OpenDocument

Strengthening Interventions to Reduce Helminth Infections: An Entry Point for the Development of Health-Promoting Schools.

Research and case studies have proven that schools are a remarkably efficient means to prevent and reduce helminth (worm) infections. This document shows how helminth reduction interventions can have a positive impact on children's health, learning potential and school attendance. WHO/HPR/HEP/96.10.

http://www5.who.int/school-youth-health/download.cfm?id=0000000095

FRESH, Focussing Resources for Effective School Health

A Web site providing background information about the four key components of:

• Provision of safe water and sanitation;
• Skills based health/HIV, hygiene, nutrition education
• Health/Hygiene/Nutrition related school policies
• School based health and nutrition interventions.

http://www.freshschools.org

Life Skills Based Education

A Web site providing background information on lifeskills based education. Although more geared towards HIV/Aids lifeskills based education, the background documentation can function well for any health topic to be addressed, including hygiene.

http://www.unicef.org/programme/lifeskills/index.html

Child Friendly Schools

School Self-Assessment

Particpatory Learning and Action for Child-Friendly Schools - SCF USA/ UNICEF Thailand 2000

A Framework for Rights-Based, Child-Friendly Schools

http://www.unicef.org/programme/lifeskills/support/cfs.html