Wikipedia defines student voice as "the individual and collective perspective and actions of young people within the context of learning and education."
There has been quite a discussion taking place lately in the blogging world about the lack of "student voice" at NECC and everywhere else.
Karl Fisch noted that, although there were some students present at NECC, "overall, it was a bunch of adults talking about what’s best for students". Acknowledging the difficulty - and expense - that bringing some of his own students to the conference next year would entail, Mr. Fisch is working to implement changes in his home district, encouraging teachers and administrators to include students in lesson planning and professional development opportunities.
Clay Burell thought his classroom assignments were connecting his students to the "real world" but realized that "it was still just homework. Nothing WorldChanging, nothing that taught them that they have the potential to affect this world for the better. Nothing that encouraged their empowerment. Nothing that gave them the opportunity to apply their learning to something that mattered to them, or to discover that, if only schools would let them, they could learn about the limits of their own power to make change in the world." In comments to Scott Schwister, Burell also points out the lack of true collaboration between adults and students.
In response, Schwister lists some suggestions for "elevating student voices", ranging from reading and responding to student blogs, to participating in forums like Students Speak Out.
Carolyn Foote offers a number of potentially empowering policy changes and concludes by asserting "When we seek first to understand our students and the meaningful contributions they can make, that conversation can transform our campuses into much deeper learning communities."
All of these conversations have led me to reconsider some of my plans and strategies for next school year. I had intended to encourage students in my class to share their projects with our Board of Education, both to demonstrate what they've accomplished and to advocate for more technology tools being made available in the district. But if I, as teacher, choose what they present, is this truly "student voice"? Should I let them decide what to request and how to do so?
Jean Piaget said that "The principle goal of education in the schools should be creating men and women who are capable of doing new things, not simply repeating what other generations have done; men and women who are creative, inventive and discoverers, who can be critical and verify, and not accept, everything they are offered."
Our students need to find their voice, and we need to learn how to listen to it.