The degree to which students and teachers are involved in second-level school processes and participation in decision-making: an Irish Case Study

Abstract

The Education Act (1998) is a key policy document in Irish education, emphasising the rights, roles and responsibilities of key stakeholders, including parents, teachers and pupils in schools. Since 1998 the Department of Education and Skills (DES) has stressed the need to introduce an increased role for teachers and pupils in decision-making. It is therefore timely to explore the response of teachers and students to such a collaborative school environment in a rural second-level school of approximately 600 students. Transition year (TY) students (ages about 15–16) and their teachers were surveyed by questionnaire and interviewed. It finds that while the school is proactive in involving students and teachers in decision-making, a source of social, personal and professional empowerment, experienced teachers, and students in particular, want a more substantial voice. For example, most students want more say. They want class discussions or a vote, not just Student Council (SC) representation, on important and not just trivial issues. They want involvement before decisions are taken, with more feedback. Overall, participation is considered important by all stakeholders.

Keywords:

• decision-making
• participation
• democratic
• leadership
• learning organisation
• critical thinking

Notes on contributors

Dr Kathy Harrison, until recently Director of the Centre for Educational Quality and Inspection, Dublin City University, has lectured in education and has researched in the areas of assessment, evaluation, and rights-based education and training, focusing on democratic and socially just principles. Continuing to cultivate an inclusive, holistic pastoral approach, she is currently pursuing psychotherapy and holistic counselling. She is also an associate tutor on the MSc Educational Leadership programme with the School of Education at the University of Leicester.

Dr Alison Taysum is a Lecturer in Education at the University of Leicester where she was the programme leader of a large International EdD programme at the School of Education. She has been responsible for leading the MA in Leadership for Learning and MSc in Educational Leadership. In the School of Education, Alison is a former Chair for both the Educational, Leadership, Learning and Change Special Interest Group and the Research Ethics Committee.

Professor Gerry McNamara is a former Head of the School of Education Studies, Dublin City University. He now leads the Doctorate of Education in Leadership and Evaluation. Gerry is a specialist in the evaluation of education and training programmes, value for money audits, and quality assurance systems. He has led evaluations for a wide range of organisations in Ireland and abroad, including the National Centre for Guidance in Education, the Equality Authority of Ireland, the EU Commission, and the United Nations Development Programme.

Professor Joe O'Hara is Head of the School of Education Studies, Dublin City University, and is an adjunct faculty member of the Centre for Culturally Responsive Evaluation and Assessment at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign and Director at the Centre for Educational Quality and Inspection, Dublin City University.

ORCID

Kathy Harrison http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4266-6682

Alison Taysum http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4934-1223

Gerry McNamara http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9725-9304

Joe O'Hara http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1956-7640