The role of classroom experiences and school ethos in the development of children as political actors: Confronting the vision of pupils and teachers

Abstract

The significance of the school as a context for citizenship education (CE) has been widely emphasised (Fielding, 2011; Ichilov, 2003), and the object of educational policies across Europe (Eurydice, 2005). CE involves specific subjects, school assemblies and extra-curricular activities, but is recognised as being highly determined by regular classroom experiences and the school ethos (Kerr et al., 2010). In fact, democracy and citizenship can be experienced in schools, as pupils are meaningfully involved in participatory dialogue and decision making (Dahlberg, Moss & Pence, 1999; Fletcher, 2005; Wilde, 2005). Are these experiences, however, recognised both by pupils and teachers, as instrumental in learning to be engaged, critical and responsible citizens?In this paper, we present the results of a case study in the metropolitan area of Porto to consider the (dis)continuities between school discourses and practices regarding citizenship in the vision of teachers and pupils, from kindergarten to grade 8. Focus groups were used to consider issues of citizenship, participation and the role of the school. In the case of pupils, the focus group involved the completion of a task of transforming a newly-discovered island into a country (Adelson & O’Neill, 1966). The more collaborative and participatory approach to solve the task came from the younger children who attended kindergarten, reproducing the class ethos, as appears evident in the discourse of pre-school teachers. Older pupils revealed, as would be expected, more complex political discourses – but, as their teachers recognised, the demands of the mandatory curricula seem to supersede those discourses and CE appears to be more related to extra-class (and extra-school) experiences. The implications for CE and the work of educational psychologists will be discussed considering both direct intervention with pupils and consultation with teachers and other relevant stakeholders.