Review article
Child participation in school
Sandra Car
; Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Ivana Jeđud Borić
; Faculty of Education and Rehabilitation Sciences at University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
Modern approaches and paradigms of education, especially in the so -called post-conventional time, conceive a child as an active being who can and should participate in his/her own education and take responsibility for his/her behavior (Koller-Trbovic and Žižak, 2005; Pećnik, 2008; Markovinović, 2010; Kušević, 2010). Although the idea of children’s participation and taking into account their perspective is relatively well represented through professional and scientific papers and discussions, we can note the discrepancy between the idea of participation and its actual application in practice, whereat we are talking about the “high tide” of rhetoric of participation and “low tide” of practical application and impact on improving children’s activities (Badham, 2004, according to Bessell, 2011). Survey on opinions and attitudes of children and young people in Croatia showed that a major problem in relation to the participation rights of children is the lack of satisfactory institutional mechanisms aimed at the involvement of children in decision-making (Miharija and Kuridža, 2011). Therefore, the aim of this paper is to present an analysis of the condition of participation of children in school through the presentation of relevant laws and policies, research and best practice. Overview of relevant literature has shown a shortage of methodical indicators about children’s participation in school in all the segments, from theoretical models and research to models of good practice. Shortage of data draws attention to necessity for further promotion of children’s participation in school through scientific and professional work, participatory research projects and interactive demonstration of children’s participation models.
Keywords
best practice; children; normative regulations; participation; school
Hrčak ID:
177323
URI
Publication date:
10.2.2016.
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