Student voice's experiences for teacher development: an analysis of good practice guidelines

Abstract

Abstract: Based on the idea of inclusive education, a lot of initiatives are being carried out in order to improve the presence, participation or success of students at school, paying special attention to those who due to gender, age, ability or ethnicity traditionally have been marginalized , silenced and have suffered a process of "disempowerment" (Fielding, 2011; Messiou, 2012; Susinos and Ceballos, 2012). In this context, the movement of student voice invites us to ask who has the power in schools and how they use it, what Bernstein calls "acoustic school" (2000). The experiences of student voice seek to create spaces for dialogue and deliberation to make changes in schools taking into account the thoughts of students. This is based on the conviction that all students are agents with the ability and knowledge to transform, regardless of their characteristics (Rudduck and Flutter, 2007; Fielding, 2011; Fielding and Moss, 2012). In this paper, we present the conclusions of the review of good practice guides of student voice. These guides are the results drawn from different international research studies. In particularly, we will reflect upon the transformations experienced by schools, teachers and students as a result of their participation in improvement projects. We will also analyse the main barriers and supports of participation which condition the beginning and sustaining of these educational experiences whose motor of change is student voice.