“It’s fun but at the same time difficult”: Experiences of and perspectives on children’s participation in decision-making processes in Physical Education and Health

Swedish compulsory school education rests upon the foundation of democracy, and the Curriculum for the compulsory school, preschool class and school-age educare 2011 (Skolverket, 2018) stresses that children should have the opportunity to take initiatives. Research shows that children are not able to have any influence on activities in Physical Education and Health (PEH). Usually, they have to follow the teacher’s instructions and reproduce specific movement patterns. This article discusses a research project that challenged traditional ways of teaching PEH, in order to give 10-year-old children the opportunity to have an influence on PEH. The project involved 10 circus lessons in which the children were encouraged to explore movement and put their own ideas into practice. In terms of theory, the approach is based on Hart’s (1997) Ladder of Children’s Participation. Data were collected through participant observations, video observations, interviews, and a field diary. The results show that the children participated in varying degrees and experienced attempts to increase their influence in different ways: Some found it fun and free, while others found it difficult and boring. One important conclusion is that influence and participation need to be practised – both by children and by teachers. Circus activities, because of the playfulness and creativity involved, may be very suited to practising influence and participation..

Lifting the School Mat: An Investigation of Pedagogy and Children's Social Worlds at Mat Time

<p>Primary school teachers’ use of whole-class activity is a well-documented phenomenon. Typically, it is assumed that children’s active participation in group tasks is important for their academic learning and for developing self-concept. However, previous studies have found that children’s participation varies widely. The present research set out to investigate why individual children’s participation differs within the peer group during whole-class activity. Teachers’ pedagogy and children’s social worlds intersect during classroom interactions; it is in this intersecting space that this research is situated. One specific whole-class activity was chosen as a focus, namely mat time. This is a practice whereby the teacher calls the entire class to the mat typically for the purposes of instruction, discussion, or other similar activity. To understand mat time from the perspectives of the people who experience it, two studies were undertaken using a mixed strategy approach for data gathering. The first study investigated teachers’ perspectives (N=296) using a questionnaire. Participants were asked about a variety of themes relating to mat time including pedagogical uses, strategies, and outcomes. Principal components analyses confirmed the approximate uni-dimensionality of the data relating to each theme, which were then calibrated to a measurement variable using Samejima’s (1969, as cited in DeMars, 2010) graded response model. Various correlations and comparisons were conducted pertaining to the pedagogical factors influencing children’s participation, behaviour, and enjoyment. The second study used qualitative semi-structured interviews with children (n=49) from three year two classrooms situated in different schools. The data were analysed and discussed in relation to peer culture and peer-relations theories, which posit that children’s social groups consist of norms and interests that differ to those of adults’, and that such groups consist of internal social hierarchies. Taken together, the findings from the two studies indicated that teachers and children differ in their perception of the social climate at mat time. For instance, whereas teachers tended to report that mat time achieved prosocial objectives, children were more likely to describe socially divisive aspects. Such aspects included certain children’s desire to affiliate with specific peers while excluding others, or promoting their own participation over that of classmates. Seating position and opportunities to take active roles were sources of competition. Children’s differing participation was influenced by their individual strategic understandings of how to secure active roles, social support, and academic confidence. Furthermore, teachers generally reported that children were inattentive during mat time, suggesting that it may be an ineffective context for learning. Nevertheless, when teachers were cognisant of children’s interests, they tended to report better participation across the class. The implications for teaching practice include an onus for teachers to actively protect vulnerable children during mat time, socially and academically, and to ensure that opportunities to take part in activities are equitably distributed.</p>

Lifting the School Mat: An Investigation of Pedagogy and Children's Social Worlds at Mat Time

<p>Primary school teachers’ use of whole-class activity is a well-documented phenomenon. Typically, it is assumed that children’s active participation in group tasks is important for their academic learning and for developing self-concept. However, previous studies have found that children’s participation varies widely. The present research set out to investigate why individual children’s participation differs within the peer group during whole-class activity. Teachers’ pedagogy and children’s social worlds intersect during classroom interactions; it is in this intersecting space that this research is situated. One specific whole-class activity was chosen as a focus, namely mat time. This is a practice whereby the teacher calls the entire class to the mat typically for the purposes of instruction, discussion, or other similar activity. To understand mat time from the perspectives of the people who experience it, two studies were undertaken using a mixed strategy approach for data gathering. The first study investigated teachers’ perspectives (N=296) using a questionnaire. Participants were asked about a variety of themes relating to mat time including pedagogical uses, strategies, and outcomes. Principal components analyses confirmed the approximate uni-dimensionality of the data relating to each theme, which were then calibrated to a measurement variable using Samejima’s (1969, as cited in DeMars, 2010) graded response model. Various correlations and comparisons were conducted pertaining to the pedagogical factors influencing children’s participation, behaviour, and enjoyment. The second study used qualitative semi-structured interviews with children (n=49) from three year two classrooms situated in different schools. The data were analysed and discussed in relation to peer culture and peer-relations theories, which posit that children’s social groups consist of norms and interests that differ to those of adults’, and that such groups consist of internal social hierarchies. Taken together, the findings from the two studies indicated that teachers and children differ in their perception of the social climate at mat time. For instance, whereas teachers tended to report that mat time achieved prosocial objectives, children were more likely to describe socially divisive aspects. Such aspects included certain children’s desire to affiliate with specific peers while excluding others, or promoting their own participation over that of classmates. Seating position and opportunities to take active roles were sources of competition. Children’s differing participation was influenced by their individual strategic understandings of how to secure active roles, social support, and academic confidence. Furthermore, teachers generally reported that children were inattentive during mat time, suggesting that it may be an ineffective context for learning. Nevertheless, when teachers were cognisant of children’s interests, they tended to report better participation across the class. The implications for teaching practice include an onus for teachers to actively protect vulnerable children during mat time, socially and academically, and to ensure that opportunities to take part in activities are equitably distributed.</p>

Virginal Innocence and Corporeal Sensuality

Recently, the body of critical childhood studies has emphasized children’s active participation and competence in consumerism. Nevertheless, children’s participation has also aroused concerns about the loss of childhood and childhood innocence. Children are seen particularly vulnerable when it comes to children’s representations, especially fashion and fashion advertising. They are seen as one of the legitimate places where children’s sexualization is possible. This article analyzes samples from children’s contemporary high fashion advertising and shows, through the method of close-reading, the “visual grammar” of innocence andsexuality. Although childhood is coded with innocence, children’s fashion advertising plays with ambiguity that centers on sexuality.

Fostering Children’s Participation in Disaster Risk Reduction Through Play: A Case Study of LEGO and Minecraft

This article focuses on children’s participation in disaster risk reduction. It draws on a 2018 study done in New Zealand with 33 school children who conducted participatory mapping with LEGO and the video game Minecraft to assess disaster risk in their locality and identify ways to be more prepared. The research involved participatory activities with the children actively involved in the co-design, implementation, and evaluation of the initiative. A focus group discussion was also conducted to assess the project from the viewpoint of the schoolteachers. The results indicate that LEGO and Minecraft are playful tools for children to participate in disaster risk reduction. The research identifies four key elements of genuine children’s participation, including the Participants, Play, the Process, and Power (4 Ps). This framework emphasizes that fostering children’s participation in disaster risk reduction requires focusing on the process through which children gain power to influence decisions that matter to them. The process, through play, is child-centered and fosters ownership. The article concludes that Play is essential to ground participation within children’s worldviews and their networks of friends and relatives.