Democratic education in contexts of polarisation. Lessons from the politicisation of schools during the Chilean protests (2019–2023)

The aim of this article is twofold: first, it seeks to discuss the relationship between democracy and colonization, and to examine the implications of this relationship for democratic education and, second, it turns to decolonial thinking as a resource for critiquing and reconstructing “radical democratic education.” A decolonial critique offers two crucial insights to radical democratic education that draws on Mouffe’s theory of radical democracy: first, it shows how Mouffe’s theory entails the risk of re-inscribing the hegemony of liberal democratic principles because this theory is insufficiently attentive to the harms caused by dispossessions of colonized peoples, especially the loss of their land and, second, a decolonial critique highlights the role of recent ethico-political movements such as “refusal” in resurrecting and rehabilitating the radical promise of democratic education. These insights have practical implications for those who are rethinking radical democratic education in terms of an expanded notion of democracy encompassing subaltern standpoints.

In an era of democratic crises, democratic education in basic education is considered crucial. However, recent studies show that young people perceive their influence both at school and in society as limited, which decreases their civic activity later in life. The aim of this theoretical study is to reevaluate democratic education through feminist care ethics, which is an under-researched topic in the current theoretical debate. In our article, we outline a novel approach to caring democratic education (i.e., care-full democratic education), which presents a complementary stance toward current democratic education, which relies heavily on the theories of liberal democracy and a rational and atomistic subject. Instead of an individualistic emphasis, our approach cultivates the idea of relational autonomy, interconnectedness, and respecting mundane practices in schools as the basis for child-oriented democratic education. In addition, our study dismantles some of the structural injustices (childism and privileged irresponsibility) that we have identified in society and in education, which hinder the realization of democratic culture in basic education.

Quality of life relies on also the quality of working context and the group dynamic. Culture of schools, trust and leadership facilitate quality in fostering strategic policies in establishing policy and development. The aim of the research study is to examine the role of leadership, trust for school culture in regard to the perceptions of inspectors. As this research stands on qualitative nature, experiences, perceptions of research participants shape the current understanding to give insights on the role of leadership, trust. In addition, establishing school culture is a part of quality to set policy in terms of development, inspection is a moderation of encapsulating the nature of school culture. Interview was employed to gain understanding and experiences of inspectors in relation to leadership, trust for the school culture. Mission, vision of schools, principles of schools, loyalty to schools, policies, objectives of practices in schools, social interaction in schools. Thematic analysis through laddering was done that five themes were established in examining leadership, trust in the school culture. It is important that employees in the training organization act in a joint view on implementing educational objectives. This is achieved by developing positive attitudes in people and by being able to act constructively with each other. The research results revealed that the inspectors who are currently working at the Ministry of National Education have their views on the mission, vision and leadership of schools and what they think about school culture trust in schools.

This research project examines alternative schooling practices in two rural areas of Queensland, Australia. The thesis analyses the effects of these alternative practices on three areas: student learning, the engagement of parents and communities in schooling and on equity. The research project is positioned in the context of the pervasive influence of neo-liberalism in politics and economics and the effects of this on education and schooling. In this context, a narrow definition of the purposes of education has been emphasised and a deficit view of schools and teachers has emerged, underlined by a top-down accountability regime of testing and reporting that all but ignores the influence of contextual factors on student performance. This thesis utilises the theoretical perspectives of Charles Taylor, particularly his concept of social imaginaries, and Pierre Bourdieu’s concepts of habitus, social fields, cultural capital and symbolic violence. A central theme in this study is the role of competition as a problematic in schools that creates barriers to learning, especially for students from low socio-economic backgrounds who can find them themselves at a disadvantage in mainstream schooling. This thesis reports on a qualitative research study of alternative practices in three schools in rural areas in Queensland. These schools occupy different positions across a spectrum of alternative school types: an alternative independent school with a holistic philosophy; an alternative pathways program in a state high school; and an alternative state-supported school for young people who have been excluded from or opted to leave mainstream schools. Research methods included semi-structured interviews of leaders, teachers, students, parents and community members to understand the experience of those involved in alternative schooling settings. Document analysis was also undertaken to highlight how the schools saw themselves, as well as discursive practices which were used to explain and communicate key elements of the schools’ educational ethos to their school communities and the wider community. Visits to each alternative schooling site facilitated quasi-ethnographic observations that were compared with the data yielded through the semi-structured interviews and document analysis. Findings from the research revealed a variety of alternative schooling practices across the three sites and also provided insights into their effects on student learning, parent and community engagement and equity in outcomes for students. Data analysis also highlighted how these schooling practices supported the engagement of marginalised young people in education through what are described as practices of ‘non-competition and cooperation’. The study findings have implications for approaches that could inform mainstream schooling practices. The research makes a significant contribution to knowledge by highlighting alternative schooling practices as emergent, alternative imaginaries within a broader field of schooling practices, and how logics of re-engagement of young people in education are both productive and reflective of community engagement in education. The study suggests that alternative schools can be ‘pedagogies of possibility’ by cultivating emergent alternative practices in education which are non-competitive, cooperative and non-violent.

Economic, political, environmental, health, war, and other crises are inevitable and increasingly common. Tourists' perceptions and travel intentions are greatly affected, so it is critical to develop crisis management plans in destinations. The case of cultural destinations is of vital importance, due to the lack of research in this field and the specific characteristics of this type of tourist destination. This article, through a survey of 508 tourists at Daming Palace (China), evaluates the impact of the different types of crises and crisis management systems, through logistic regression analysis, median differences and cluster analysis. Cultural tourists have more negative perceptions in the case of crises with direct harm (terrorism, political crisis, environmental crises and health crises). In addition, crisis management systems are essential, adapted to each type of crisis and each type of tourist, depending on the age and interest of the cultural environment. In general, the most relevant measures in times of crisis turn out to be reimbursement and information systems in different languages. RESUMEN Las crisis económicas, políticas, medioambientales, de salud, guerra, entre otras, resultan inevitables y son cada vez más habituales. Las percepciones de turistas y sus intenciones de viaje se ven afectadas en gran medida, por lo que es fundamental desarrollar planes de gestión de crisis en los destinos. El caso de los destinos culturales resulta de vital importancia, debido a la falta de investigación en este ámbito y las características específicas de esta tipología de destinos turísticos. El presente artículo, a través de una encuesta a 508 turistas en el Palacio de Daming (China), evalúa el impacto de las distintas tipologías de crisis y sistemas de gestión de crisis, a través de análisis de regresión logística, diferencias de medianas y análisis clúster. Los turistas culturales presentan percepciones más negativas en el caso crisis con daños directos (terrorismo, crisis política, crisis medioambientales y crisis de salud). Además, resultan fundamentales los sistemas de gestión de crisis, adaptadas a cada tipo de crisis y a cada tipo de turista, en función de la edad y el interés del entorno cultural. En general, las medidas más relevantes en tiempos de crisis resultan ser los sistemas de reembolso e información en diferentes idiomas.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the meaning of the concept “school identity” as reflected in principals’ perceptions of their school logo, vision and practice.Design/methodology/approachIn-depth interviews were conducted with 24 principals from Israeli elementary, junior high and high schools. The content analysis of principals’ interviews, including open, axial and selective coding and confirmatory qualitative analysis was used to examine the principals’ perceptions regarding the school’s logo, vision and practice.FindingsThe principals’ perceptions of the logo, vision and practice comprised five main features: academic, traditional, national, organizational and social-ethical. Different types of relationships were found between these features: correspondence by appearance, correspondence by non-appearance and incongruence.Research limitations/implicationsThe study suggests a new theoretical model for generating the concept of school identity. The study demonstrates that incongruent findings may be viewed as complementary rather than conflicting when establishing a school’s identity.Practical implicationsThe findings can promote an understanding of the function of school logos and vision statements in school practice, and help develop and maintain school identity. All these may affect the surroundings that come in contact with the school principal, such as parental decision on school choice and governmental activities.Originality/valueTo date, no study has investigated the meaning of school identity based on the principals’ perceptions regarding the school logo, vision and practice. The findings can facilitate the development of an ecological approach, which can help in understanding the meaning of school identity and its effect on students, staff, parents, wider community and national policy.

What differences are there, according to teachers’ opinions, in school leadership practices between male principals (MPs) and female principals (FPs) in urban primary schools in Chile? A national survey has been done to address this topic, which was answered by the principal and five teachers in 381 urban primary schools. Following Leithwood’s school leadership four-category model, 14 practices were considered and measured. Data were analysed by statistical procedures, including the decision tree technique, chi-squared automatic interaction detection (CHAID). Findings showed that in 9 out of 14 practices, FPs have a significantly more favourable evaluation from teachers. Data confirmed that, when compared to other personal traits of principals or school features, gender is the strongest independent variable related with leadership practices. Nonetheless, this advantage occurs in an overall scenario in which both FPs and MPs engage unevenly with the leadership practices across the dimensions of the model. This study does not aim to explain the female advantage, but to show the shape of leadership differences by gender regarding theoretically relevant practices. Nevertheless, its data allow ruling out some possible hypotheses for interpreting those differences. The article suggests that further research is needed to theoretically explain the reasons behind differences in leadership practice by FPs and MPs.

ABSTRACTThe breathlessness to embrace digital first does not necessarily mean better journalism, better democracy, or better journalism education. This must be borne in mind, as the contours of what constitutes journalism in 2015 keep changing and becoming blurry. The question for journalism educators today is this: To what extent should journalism schools keep pace with the latest trends in the industry, and chase, for example, hashtag#25? The latter is a code concept, developed for this article to encapsulate digital first, incorporating social media, a focus on multi-platforms, and the youth – hence ‘25’. Should educators abandon teaching the basic elements of journalism; for instance, how to write stories as opposed to producing content? What about classroom reflections on the value of media freedom in a democracy? Today, the latter role of journalism in a democracy is an enormous demand, given the tumultuous pressure and change the industry is undergoing. The article sets the context from the WAN-Ifra newsroom summit of 2014 and deploys empirical data from State of the newsroom South Africa reports for 2013 and 2014, as well as concepts borrowed from theories of radical democracy, to delineate and discuss several of the conundrums faced by journalism educators. The argument here is that journalism educators should chase hashtag#25 with caution.

Bu çalışma, Bilgisayar ve Öğretim Teknolojileri Öğretmenliği Bölümü son sınıf öğrencilerinin demokratik eğitimle ilgili görüşlerini saptamayı amaçlamaktadır. Çalışma 2017-2018 Eğitim-Öğretim yılı 1. dönem Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal Üniversitesi Bilgisayar ve Öğretim Teknolojileri Öğretmenliği bölümünde Çağdaş ve Demokratik Eğitim dersini alan gönüllü 23 öğrencinin görüşlerine dayanan nitel bir çalışmadır. Veriler yarı yapılandırılmış görüşme formuyla yüz yüze görüşme yapılarak toplanmıştır. Bulgular, Tema 1. Demokrasinin tanımı: halk egemenliği (f=16); Tema 2. Demokrasi kavramları: özgür düşünceli insan: düşüncelerini rahat ve özgürce ifade edebilen insan (f=15); üretken birey: yeniliklere açık ve yenilik getiren birey (f=7); araştırmacı birey; sorgulayan (f=21); demokrat insan: farklı düşüncelere saygılı (f=12);Tema 4 Demokrasi eğitiminin amacı: Özgür düşünce ve yaşam hakkı (f=12); Tema 5. Demokrasi eğitiminin bireye kazanımları: İfade ve düşünce özgürlüğü (f=10);Tema 6 Demokrasi eğitimi ilkesinin önemsenme durumu önemsenmiyor (f=7);Tema 7. Okulların demokrasinin işlevleri yerine getirme durumu: Müfredat ve uygulamalardaki aksaklıklar nedeniyle yerine getirilemiyor(f=18);Tema 8. Okulların demokrasi işlevlerini yerine getirmesi için öneriler: Okullarda daha fazla tartışma ortamı yaratılmalı (f=13); öğretmenlerce özgür ortamlar yaratılmalı (f=10);Tema 9. Demokratik tutum ve davranışlar: Okul ve sınıf başkanlık seçimleri (f=6); Tema 10. Anti-demokratik tutum ve davranışlar: Öğrencilere şiddet uygulama (f=5) şeklindedir. Sonuç olarak, öğrencilerin demokrasi algıları ve demokratik eğitimle ilgili değerlendirmelerinden almış oldukları Çağdaş ve Demokratik Eğitim dersinden teorik olarak yararlandıkları, belli bir oranda bilgi sahibi oldukları ancak, okullardaki demokratik eğitim uygulamalarını yetersiz buldukları anlaşılmaktadır. Öğrencilerin demokratik tutum ve davranış kazanabilmesi için, okulların demokrasi kültürünün yaşanabileceği örgütlere dönüştürülmesi önerilir.

Education is the cornerstone for developing a democratic society, and vital to the work of fostering new generations of citizens. Therefore, knowledge about how to work with democracy in school and in teacher training is important. Education is often considered as the arena where society can transfer democratic values and give people insights into the meaning of democracy. However, there is a lack of empirical research conducted in classrooms, which urges us to investigate the interpretation of how the doing of democracy in education is carried out. In this case study we explore how democratic values are or are not, manifested by teacher students and teachers in teacher education. In order to understand democracy in education, we ask questions about student influence, reciprocity and critical thinking. The empirical material consists of observations and narratives of teacher students, and the analysis is done by using Cultural analysis. The findings show that teacher educators’ and teacher students’ engagement, and mutual responsibility, is significant for democratic education. Also, critical aspects are identified concerning students' expectations, teachers' limited space for action and an inflexible organizational structure. To conclude, we have revealed a need for more research, to continue the debate of democracy in teacher education.

This article investigates whether engagement in school or university, such as being the speaker of class, a member of a student council, and so on, has an impact on political participation and political trust. Following interactionist socialisation theory, engagement during adolescence should develop ideas of citizenship, democracy, and political participation. Schools and universities are arguably key institutions as they can promote democratic decision making in the classroom. This strengthens democracy by increasing experienced political efficacy and through internalizing democratic principles (‘learning democracy’): by acting democratic, one becomes a democratic citizen. My findings show that respondents who experienced democracy in school or university indeed tend to vote and engage even in contentious forms of political participation more often. Also, the experience of democratic practices in school and university increases trust in political institutions. Moreover, trust in political institutions, in turn, increases the likelihood of voting, but not of engaging in other forms of participation. Thus, early democratic experiences seem to foster vivid and participatory democracy without streamlining people into passive participation. The article provides empirical evidence from nine European countries and an additional glance at young cohorts based on online panels.

There is robust evidence that the student-teacher relationship impacts students' cognitive, affective, and behavioural outcomes and contributes to the development of individual and academic secondary students; however, research carried out at disadvantaged school contexts shows that stereotypes and myths about poverty mediate the student-teacher relationship hindering the development of strong studentteacher relationships. This research explores the students' and teachers' social representations of the student-teacher relationship within the classroom at disadvantaged secondary schools. I conducted exploratory-qualitative research in four disadvantaged secondary schools in Chile, where 46 students and 27 teachers participated. The methods used were interviews and focus groups. The data were coded and interpreted using thematic analysis. The findings show that the studentteacher relationship could be understood: (1) as a social role, (2) as ways of treating, (3) so something related to classroom climate or (4) as an ideal student-teacher relationship. In this article, I argue that using social representations theory allows us to identify and understand more deeply the stereotypes and myths that underlie studentteacher relationships, which reinforce educational inequalities and inequities in disadvantaged school contexts. Implications for initial teacher education, teaching practice and educational public policies are discussed.

The study assessed factors constraining use of positive discipline practices in Mzilikazi District Secondary Schools. Qualitative approach and case study design were employed. Purposively selected participants from four secondary schools comprised four school heads; twenty members of the disciplinary committee, four school counsellors, forty prefects and four School Development Committee chairpersons. Data analysed thematically were collected using face to face semi-structured interviews and focus group interviews. Results revealed that lack of role models, ineffective communication, not rewarding positive behaviour, ineffective monitoring and inadequate financial resources constrained use of positive discipline practices in selected schools. The study concluded that factors that constrained use of positive discipline practices in schools mainly emanated from teachers, learners, parents and the members of the community. It is recommended that schools should initiate training programmes for teachers and parents to positively influence their discipline practices in enhancing use of positive discipline practices.

Despite abundant scientific evidence supporting immunization benefits, vaccine hesitancy remains a significant global health concern, particularly during public health crises. Exploring public attitudes towards vaccination is crucial. This study aimed to develop and validate a tailored Public Vaccination Attitudes Scale specifically under the unique circumstances of a public health crisis. A psychometric evaluation was conducted using a cross-sectional study during the peak of a major public health crisis. The scale was developed and its psychometric properties validated using three approaches: (1) generating the item pool through literature research and focus group discussions; (2) assessing the items through expert consultation; and (3) evaluating construct validity, content validity, and internal consistency reliability through exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Data from a total of 3921 respondents were randomly divided into two subsets, one for EFA (n = 1935) and the other for CFA (n = 1986). A 22-item draft scale with five factors was created after literature research and focus group discussion. The content validity of this scale ranged between 0.88 and 1.00. EFA showed a 17-item scale with four factors (Cronbach’s α > 0.7) accounting for 68.044% of the total variance. CFA showed that the values of the fit indices, including convergent validity and discriminant validity, were excellent or acceptable. The overall Cronbach’s α was 0.874, and each factor ranged from 0.726 to 0.885. This study introduces a valuable tool for assessing vaccination attitudes during public health crises, aiding researchers, policymakers, and nurses in combating vaccine hesitancy. Emphasizing the importance of fostering vaccine acceptance, it enhances disease control during emergencies, contributing to the knowledge needed for more effective public health strategies and crisis responses

In recent decades, there has been a shift away from authoritarian, punitive discipline in school communities and a movement towards approaches that promote inclusion, respectful relationships, and understanding. This shift was due to growing concerns about the negative impact of bullying and victimisation that was not resolved using traditional punitive measures. Whole-school restorative practices is an approach that has been reported as successful, in not only addressing misbehaviour as it occurs, but also as a preventive measure that builds social and emotional skills for all those within the school community. The aim of this research was to explore teachers’ and students’ personal experiences of restorative practices and the use of discipline in their school communities. A qualitative approach was undertaken to explore these aims using one-on-one interviews with teachers and focus groups with students. A qualitative approach was considered the most appropriate means to understand the participants’ lives and experiences and to gain depth of information. This allowed for exploration of culture and context through the lived experiences of the individuals. It was anticipated that the research could be used by other schools to create understanding regarding the implementation and sustainability of restorative practices. Six schools participated in the study from government, Catholic and independent providers. One-on-one interviews were held with 14 teachers (three male and 11 female) from the six schools. Sixty students participated in focus groups (one group at each school). Students were recruited from either Year 6 (age 11–12 years old) or Year 9 (age 14–15 years old). School principals completed a basic demographic questionnaire. This study found that there were discrepancies in teachers’ and students’ perceptions of the use of restorative practices. Teachers tended to resort to punitive approaches, whereas students expressed a desire for greater use of restorative practices to build social skills. Despite the discrepancies, both students and teachers described key benefits of restorative practices for the whole school community. This led the researcher to propose a user-friendly framework that draws together the themes described and were considered as supporting social skills: harmony, empathy, awareness and accountability, respect, and thinking of others (HEART). The aim of the HEART framework is to offer a simplified understanding on the benefits of restorative practices, which was considered time consuming and complex by teachers. The HEART framework sees a move towards restorative practices as a social-emotional learning program. The findings highlighted the challenges faced when implementing and sustaining restorative practices. These challenges include those related to institutional factors (e.g. training) and those related to personal beliefs (e.g. the belief that a punitive discipline measure is more effective). A key recommendation is that prevention and early intervention programs, such as restorative practices in school communities, need ongoing support from federal and state governments. This is particularly important for programs that improve social-emotional learning outcomes for young people. Investing in the lives of young people is an investment in both their futures and the future health and wellbeing of communities throughout the world.