Legal Guarantees of Educational Access for Marginalized Groups within Substantive Equality.
Keywords:
Right to education, marginalized groups, substantive equality, non-discrimination, educational access, inclusive education, legal protectionAbstract
Access to education for marginalized groups requires more than formal admission to educational institutions because structural disadvantages may prevent individuals from effectively using educational services. This article examines the legal construction of educational access for marginalized groups and the obligations and protection mechanisms required to secure substantive equality. The study employs doctrinal legal research by examining constitutional provisions, education legislation, international human rights obligations, disability law, and administrative protection mechanisms. The synthesis shows that the right to education encompasses availability, accessibility, acceptability, adaptability, non-discrimination, and meaningful participation. Equal treatment cannot always be achieved through identical rules because poverty, geographical isolation, disability, social exclusion, and other disadvantages may require differentiated measures. State obligations consequently include financing, accessible facilities, reasonable accommodation, individual support, inclusive institutional structures, complaint procedures, and remedies capable of correcting both individual harm and structural exclusion. Legal protection should therefore assess educational access according to whether learners can actually enter, participate in, benefit from, and complete education with dignity and on substantively equal terms.
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