Student participation

Examples

Other sections of this site have already referred to a number of instances where students were actively involved in planning or implementing actions for change. Three further cases described below give examples of peer education. One further example where students have taken active learning into action is around fair trade, in encouraging their school to become a 'Fair Trade school'. The second example given below is where students are actively involved in the daily running of the school.

Students teaching students

As part of expanding 6th formers understanding of global issues, a number of project schools have enabled older students to teach about trade issues to lower forms (generally year 7 or 8). Christian Aid's Trading Game was a popular vehicle for introducing and discussing global trade issues.

This long-standing and successful simulation game helps players understand the basic principles of international trade and shows how the gap between rich and poor countries can be maintained and widened by trading systems. Playing time is approximately 90 minutes and 15 to 30 players aged 14+ can take part at any one time.

Global trade to local Fair Trade school

For some project schools, student learning on international trade has led to further investigations by students of their and their school's role and actions in addressing issues of global trade inequality. Student councils took up the issues and pressed for a look at the school's catering supplies and hospitality budget. Fair Trade products are generally ten per cent more expensive than other products, but for schools this extra cost is generally seen as a worthwhile investment in promoting practical and responsible citizenship within their community.

Student reception: daily duty prefects

Click here for a description of how this system is being used by a number of project schools in Manchester, Cheshire and Norfolk.

School councils

Various curriculum and policy developments by project schools in Suffolk, Greater Manchester, Norfolk and Cheshire have relied on ideas and organisation provided by students: setting up Fair Trade and Human Rights Groups, helping to organise Global Weeks, investigating and lobbying for Eco-School or Fair Trade School status.

Quite often the student input and activity was coordinated by the school council. Where a school council operates successfully it can be a key way for teachers and senior managers to involve students constructively in decisions that affect their lives. Yet very few students in secondary schools think they have an effective school council.

To re-vitalize or set-up school councils so that they work well and make a real difference to the life of the school, Save the Children's Education Unit developed The Good Council Guide.

Based on experiences of schools, the Guide provides practical activities, most of which can be run by students with a bit of help from school staff. These activities cover setting up a school council, making it run smoothly and turning it into a success. They get students thinking about how to:

	get people talking and listening in meetings;
	work with teachers and solve problems together;
	have a say in developing school policy.

A section for teachers looks at the benefits they get from school councils and how they can link them to teaching Citizenship and PSHE.

More: Sustaining change

Websites

The Citizenship Foundation site contains a few examples of peer education.

Manchester's Development Education Project (one of the Developing Citizenship partner organisations) is involved in a global dimension peer education project.

The Fairtrade Foundation site offers an overview of issues involved in Fair Trade, of Fair Trade products on the market and it provides links for schools to use in becoming a Fair Trade school.

The student organisation 'People and Planet' provides information about various international development campaigns including on Fair Trade. It also gives information on becoming a Fair Trade school.