Introduction to Student Voice in American Education Policy

Abstract

This introduction sets up the volume by defining student voice, reviewing the philosophical and theoretical warrants for it, briefly summarizing the history of the movement in the United States, and synthesizing extant research on the topic. It also explains the tripartite structure of the book (Discovering, Developing, and Demonstrating the Power of Student Voice) and previews the chapters to come. The student voice initiatives analyzed in this volume represent a powerful new model of education reform—one in which students assume an active, integral role. No longer can students be cast simply as the targets of educational policies and the passive beneficiaries of educational processes. As students across the country add their voices to policy debates and assume critical roles as educational innovators, analysts, researchers, and agents of change—not just in their schools, but on local, state, and national stages—they are shaping education policy in powerful ways. Though student voice may be a trendy term in some educational circles, these students’ efforts to make their schools and the school system more responsive to their needs show student voice to be both a serious and a significant reform strategy.