This module is a resource for lecturers

Exercises

This section contains material that is meant to support lecturers and provide ideas for interactive discussions and case-based analysis of the topic under consideration.

Exercise 1

Ask your students to consider the following situation: a child is apprehended at a State's border after arriving by sea on a smuggling vessel. As a trained child specialist, you are tasked with identifying the vulnerabilities and needs of the child. Which characteristics and statuses would you be mindful of? How would these affect the child's protection needs? Where possible, link these protection needs to rights-based actions in accordance with international law.

Exercise 2

Have your students consider each of the following issues in the context of the best interests of the child principle. How should each issue be dealt with in light of this principle?

• Age determination procedures using a combination of wrist x-rays and dental examinations.
• A smuggled child's parents are located in another country. The child wishes to reunite with them.
• Authorities apprehend a child at the border; they are unsure whether or not the child has experienced exploitation.
• A State's policy mandates that migrants entering illegally are to be detained.
• A child is asked to testify against their trafficker.

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