The danger of subverting students’ views in schools

Messiou, Kyriaki; Hope, Max A.

Abstract

This paper is firmly grounded in the position that engaging with students’ voices in schools is central to the development of inclusive practices. It explores the tensions that can be created when efforts are made to engage with students’ voices in relation to their experiences of learning and teaching. An example from a three-year research and development project, which worked alongside teachers to use students’ voices as a way of developing inclusive practices, is used to illustrate these tensions. This project, though showing that students’ voices can be a powerful means for understanding learning and teaching in schools, also encountered challenges with these processes. This paper focuses on the experiences of one secondary school which (possibly inadvertently) subverted and undermined students’ voice initiatives and explores the potential negative impacts of this on individual students, on students as a whole, and on teacher development. By doing this, suggestions as to how such tensions can be avoided in schools are offered, with the aim being to allow a genuine engagement with the views of students.

Citation

Messiou, K., & Hope, M. A. (2015). The danger of subverting students’ views in schools. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 19(10), 1009-1021. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2015.1024763

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Feb 24, 2015
• Online Publication Date: Mar 30, 2015
• Publication Date: Oct 3, 2015
• Deposit Date: Mar 9, 2016
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 9, 2016
• Journal: International journal of inclusive education
• Print ISSN: 1360-3116
• Publisher: Routledge
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 19
• Issue: 10
• Pages: 1009-1021
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2015.1024763
• Keywords: Students' voices; Inclusive education; Subversion; Teacher development; Schools
• Public URL: https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/412504
• Publisher URL: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13603116.2015.1024763
• Additional Information: Peer Review Statement: The publishing and review policy for this title is described in its Aims & Scope.; Aim & Scope: http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?show=aimsScope&journalCode=tied20
• Contract Date: Mar 9, 2016