School principals' point of view on pupils' participation
Abstract
Participation is a right that children should have the opportunity to put into practice. Schools are an ideal setting for students to make their voices heard by expressing ideas, making decisions and formulating proposals. With the aim of exploring the options of the students to participate in the school and to point out ways to maximize these options, we conducted a study by means of an ad-hoc questionnaire addressed to all school principals in Catalonia. Specifically, 684 participated and the results indicate that not only do boys and girls give their opinion in class, but also make decisions when they work in groups, in relation to classroom coexistence or by voting their own proposals. In addition, they can influence the school by claiming and defending their interests. In conclusion, the different degrees of student participation reveal an evolution from symbolic or apparent participation towards giving opinions and making decisions, an also having an influence. However, participation in areas traditionally governed by adults and the possibility of establishing participatory mechanisms are rare. It would therefore be appropriate to strengthen the different levels of participation and to promote those types that have hardly been detected in this study.
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