Educational support provided to secondary school students with cancer outside the school environment

Abstract

Every adolescent has the right to '... different forms of secondary education, including general and vocational education, making them available and accessible to every child' (General Assembly, 1989, Article 28 (1b)). When students are hospitalised due to illnesses, such as cancer, they are likely to miss out on their schooling. As a result, some students are pushed back a year within the educational system, and this may discourage students from furthering their studies. The reason for such discouragement may be a lack of support to continue with their studies during the treatment and the recovery process. The intention of this research is to determine the level of educational support, or lack of, which is currently available in Malta to secondary school students with cancer. That is, this study will evaluate the educational provisions for this group of students to be able to continue their studies during their recovery period in hospital and at home. The educational opportunities in place today will be compared to the equivalent levels that take place within a Maltese secondary school to reveal possible educational inequalities experienced by this population. Revealed problems shall then be subject to criticism in order to find means to make the educational opportunities for secondary school patients with cancer as fair and efficient as possible. This will increase the opportunities to continue their studies after their treatment and to maintain the educational standards as their peer group.