| Abstract [eng] |
This article examines the grounds of discrimination and the forms of their manifestation in the educational sphere through the practice of the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson of the Republic of Lithuania. The purpose of the article is to determine which grounds of discrimination predominated in the Ombudsperson’s educational practice during the period 2015–2026 and to identify the institutional settings in which these grounds manifested themselves. The object of the research consists of the body of decisions and opinions adopted by the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson in matters related to education in 2015–2026, supplemented by the annual activity reports of the Ombudsperson for 2015–2025 insofar as they are relevant to the educational context. The empirical corpus comprises 34 decisions and opinions covering preschool, primary, lower secondary, upper secondary, vocational and higher education, as well as cases concerning national assessment procedures and final examinations. The annual reports are used as an additional source for identifying broader institutional priorities and structural trends in the Ombudsperson’s educational practice. The research is based on document analysis, qualitative content analysis, systemic analysis and comparative analysis. The findings demonstrate that the most prominent grounds of discrimination in the educational sphere were sex, disability and social status. Complaints on the ground of sex were primarily related to gender-based allocation of activities, stereotypical organisation of education, school uniform rules, pregnancy and maternity in higher education, and harassment. Disability-based complaints mainly concerned inclusive education, accessibility of educational services, reasonable accommodation, assessment procedures and adaptation of national examinations. Complaints on the ground of social status were most often linked to admission criteria, access to paid or restricted educational services, the structure of competitive admission scores and the reconciliation of studies with family responsibilities. Less frequently, but still in a legally significant manner, complaints were submitted on the grounds of language, nationality, citizenship, origin, religion and beliefs, sexual orientation and age. The analysis shows that the Ombudsperson’s educational practice reveals not merely a broad spectrum of prohibited grounds but also distinct patterns of manifestation across different levels of education. Equality in education therefore extends beyond formal admission or participation and includes educational content, institutional rules, service accessibility, academic culture, assessment systems and the accessibility of state-organised examinations. The article concludes that the Ombudsperson’s practice serves not only as a mechanism for individual rights protection but also as an important instrument for identifying structural problems in education law and policy. |
