Redefining student voice: applying the lens of critical pragmatism

ABSTRACT

During the past thirty years, student (or pupil) voice has gained attention in education policy especially in many Western countries, accelerated by both the acceptance of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in 1990 and an emphasis on accountability in schools. Multifaceted and complex, student voice in schools incorporates a wide variety of practices associated with children expressing their views about their education. This article traces the evolution of the concept of student voice in schools over the past three decades, exploring how various understandings have impacted on practice. Using this historical perspective as a springboard, the article suggests a different approach to the practice of student voice in schools: as interwoven with, and integral to practice. Neither an accountability measure, nor a tokenistic rehearsal of democratic processes, the lens of critical pragmatism is utilised to argue that student voice can only be given meaning as an integral part of everyday critically reflexive practice.

KEYWORDS:

• Student voice
• pupil voice
• critical pragmatism
• reflexive practice
• dialogue

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Norges Teknisk-Naturvitenskapelige Universitet

Notes on contributors

Mari-Ana Jones

Mari-Ana Jones has been in the field of education for 20 years. Previously a teacher and school leader in the UK and Norway, Mari-Ana now leads Educational Leadership at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim, Norway. She is the Academic Programme Director of the Master’s in Educational Leadership at NTNU and teaches on two national programmes for school leaders in Norway. Mari-Ana’s research interests include developing and leading participative and co-creative learning communities in education, with a particular focus on student voice. She works extensively with schools and municipalities around Norway.

Valerie Hall

Valerie Hall has spent almost thirty years in Further and Higher Education in the UK in senior leadership positions, teaching and supervising across Masters and Doctoral level awards, and in the last decade having a strategic lead in Initial Teacher Education (ITE) in the post-compulsory sector. Her practice and research focus is centred on student voice and explores individual perspectives, including self-efficacy, self-categorisation, and social identities. Valerie currently holds the position of Honorary Research Fellow at the Education Observatory, University of Wolverhampton.