- Schools have recognised that understanding pupils' attitudes and responses to teaching and learning can have a significant effect on the quality of self-evaluation.
- For pupil voice to have an impact on teaching and learning, you need to be clear what you want to find out.
When pupil voice first emerged in schools, canvassing pupils' views tended to be limited to matters related to facilities and provision, such as catering, playground equipment and toilets, and personal welfare, in particular bullying. These were often addressed through school councils, which would also often be asked to respond to wider school issues, such as systems for rewards and sanctions.
More recently, schools have recognised that understanding pupils' attitudes and responses to teaching and learning can have a significant effect on the quality of self-evaluation. This can lead to greater differentiation and more targeted interventions to improve learning.
Before we consider how pupil voice might operate in this way, we need to establish some principles to guide the process. Ruddock and Flutter (2004) suggested that these should be that:
- the desire to hear what young people have to say is genuine
- the topic is not trivial
- the purpose of the consultation is explained to the young people
- young people know what will happen to the data and are confident that expressing a sincerely held opinion, or describing a feeling or an experience, will not disadvantage them
- feedback is offered to those who have been consulted
- action taken is explained and, where necessary, justified so that young people understand the wider context of concerns, alongside their own input, that shape decisions.
I would add to this that care should be taken that a full cross-section of pupils, covering all groups, is engaged in the consultation.
Pupil voice in the classroom
If you want pupil voice to have an impact on teaching and learning, you need to be clear what you want to find out. You may wish to examine some generic issues, such as:
- what are the features of a good lesson
- identifying barriers to learning
- how marking and feedback improve learning
- the impact of working with particular friends or groups
- the effect of questioning and group work
- the gaps between the performance of different groups: for example, boys/girls and pupil premium students and the rest.
This could be examined in a number of ways. As a starting point, you could identify the areas you wish to examine and include them in a questionnaire for pupils (see the example in the online toolkit). This could be administered to a specific class, all classes in a year group or classes within a specific subject or faculty area, depending on the breadth of focus of our enquiry. It is a good idea to ask teachers to complete the questionnaire as well, to establish any differences between their responses and those of their pupils.
You then need to examine the emerging issues in more depth. This can be done in a number of ways:
- Through smaller focus groups of pupils, ideally with examples of their work to hand. Ask pupils to show you work which they are proud of or which illustrates the areas of focus you have chosen. Ensure that the groups cover a range of abilities and groupings.
- Through learning walks, so that responses to the questionnaire can be tested against an observation of teaching and learning across a range of subjects and teachers.
- Through pupil shadowing, which will allow an observation of the responses and attitudes of a specific group of pupils throughout a day.
Some teachers may be uncomfortable with the prospect of their pupils being asked about what is happening in their lessons. It is important to establish a protocol which makes it clear that this is a developmental process unconnected to teacher appraisal and that pupils' responses are objective and not personal. Also, such strategies for self-evaluation may begin on a small-scale basis, with volunteers using pupil questionnaires to inform their practice, then reporting back to a staff meeting.
Pupil voice to support disadvantaged learners
The gap in achievement between disadvantaged pupils and the rest is a major issue for many schools. In order to develop effective interventions to raise the achievement of under-performing groups, it is important to systematically evaluate the needs of those groups and their barriers to learning.
One approach would be to use the strategy described above for pupil voice in the classroom and ensure that the responses and attitudes to learning of pupils in such groups are compared with the rest. This will then inform specific strategies to address the needs of the learners. For example, if there is evidence from pupil surveys and learning walks that disadvantaged learners lack confidence in answering questions, their teachers will need to take this into account in the way they structure their lessons.
It is also important to capture the attitudes and responses of pupils in vulnerable groups more widely, so that the impact of subsequent strategies and interventions is properly evaluated. A survey of all pupils' attitudes to school might include questions on:
- enjoyment of school and sense of belonging
- the level of family support
- involvement in extra-curricular activities
- relationships with teachers and other pupils
- ambitions and aspirations
- access to resources for learning, including ICT.
Again, this would need to be followed up by focus groups to evaluate whether the responses of pupils in disadvantaged groups differ significantly from the rest. If so, what would need to be done, for example, to raise aspirations and improve access to ICT? It is also important to revisit surveys over time to see what the impact has been of any improvement strategies.
You can also then ensure that you raise the aspirations of disadvantaged learners further through fuller engagement in the wider life of the school. This, for many schools, could bring the greatest benefit of a systematic approach to pupil voice.
- Ruddock and Flutter: Consulting Young People in Schools, Cambridge, 2004.
Use the following items in the toolkit to put the ideas in the article into practice:
- Form – Pupil observation: What are you looking for?
- Form – Pupil voice: Pupil logs
- Form – Pupil voice: School council discussion/pupil interview
- Checklist – Pupil questionnaire
- Form – Pupil voice: Consultation and different methods you might use
- Form – Pupil voice: Establishing the ground rules for a school council
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