Focus on pupils
Pupils are increasingly aware of global connections, and we need to encourage this positive attitude. As a school you need to ask yourselves these questions.
- What do we do to encourage and enable pupils to participate in their local and global community and society?
- How do we make global issues relevant to our pupils?
- To what extent do we ask pupils what is important to them?
Hart's ladder of participation is a model for thinking about pupil involvement in school life. In the activity on the right you will see that the top rung of the ladder shows 'youth-initiated, shared decisions with adults', followed by 'youth-initiated and directed'. Before you start the activity, consider these questions.
- Is shared decision making most beneficial to both pupils and staff in your school?
- Are pupils in your school empowered when they make decisions with staff in a supportive role?
- Can you determine which form of decision making best fits with your school's needs?
The activity opposite gives you an opportunity to use Hart's ladder as an auditing tool to tackle this controversial issue and consider which level of participation is most meaningful in your school. Hart's ladder suggests that increased participation results in greater levels of confidence and competence among pupils and an improvement in the structure and function of the school.
Activity Resources:
- Images
- Interactive
- Sound
- Text
- Video
Activity
- Click on the Interactive icon and spend a few minutes thinking about the animation of 'Hart's ladder of participation' from Children's Participation from Tokenism to Citizenship (adapted from Hart, 1992). Consider the sequence from no participation to true participation.
- For each of the following issues, place your pupils on the ladder:
- setting school and classroom rules;
- the content of lessons;
- the wearing of school uniform;
- deciding on and organising extra-curricular activities;
- the school purchasing policy.
- For each of the above, consider what factors determine your placement on the ladder. Discuss these issues informally with colleagues, and keep notes for reference when you complete Unit B5.
- Action point: what policies and practices could you adopt to move pupils further up the ladder?
