Image: VOLKER Weihbold
Four out of ten young people do not like going to school. But 50 percent would rather go there if they could have more say in the classroom.
This is the result of a study by the Institute for Youth Culture Research among 400 schoolchildren aged 14 to 18 on behalf of SOS Children’s Villages. Participation and democracy should be practiced at school, says Katrin Grabner, child rights expert at SOS Children’s Villages. Under the motto “Having a say makes school” the organization wants to create awareness for more student participation. After all: “Children spend more than 10,000 hours of their lives at school up to the age of 15.”
SOS Children’s Villages wants to draw attention to the topic with days of action, as it did today on Martin-Luther-Platz in Linz. There is a colorful program with quizzes and a wheel of fortune. There is also a poetry slam, where students present their texts about how school feels to them.
The child protection organization wants more space in the curricula for student participation. More than 6000 people have already signed the corresponding petition from the children’s villages. Grabner emphasizes that politicians are now asked to adapt the school system in order to promote basic democratic skills. “We have also received a lot of approval from dedicated teachers. But they need more resources and more time for this,” says Grabner.
Finally, students should learn to express an opinion and to understand and accept other opinions. This would require training and further education for teachers in order to be able to develop the skills of the students.
SOS Children’s Villages tries to set a good example. In the children’s villages, where 1,700 children and young people are growing up, there have long been village speakers and parliaments. The organization offers training and further education for teachers. Teachers can also order a desk calendar with practical exercises from SOS Children’s Villages.
What the co-determination study by SOS Children’s Villages found: one in five children does not dare to speak their mind at school, one in three children has the feeling that their opinions are not valued at school.
Source: Nachrichten
