Since 1989, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child recognizes children as subjects of rights. They have also undertaken to make the best interests of the child a priority consideration in all sectors of society, notably in education. Children’s rights education can be relatively explicit, by teaching about children’s rights, or more implicit, with education taking place through the process of experiencing children’s rights respecting environments. This interaction between rights-focused content and rights-respecting learning processes supports the emancipation of children, who are thus able to defend the respect of their own rights as well as those of others (Moody, 2019). This contribution will specifically focus on implicit rights education with specific attention placed on rights-respecting environments from the viewpoint of actors. Based on empirical findings from two previous studies (Louviot, 2019; Zerika, Darbellay & Moody, 2022), it aims to develop a model to describe and understand the links between children’s rights education and the concept of school climate. The dimensions of participation of children in school and of more or less autonomous learning will be more specifically explored.

School climate is a multidimensional concept that takes into consideration various domains of school life and organization. Most studies include dimensions related to relationships, security, teaching and learning, as well as the institutional environment (Cohen et al., 2009; Janosz et al., 1998; Lewno-Dumdie et al., 2020). The concept is usually constructed as the articulation of the affective and cognitive perceptions of all members of a school community: educational staff, students, and parents (Rudasill et al., 2018). Research has highlighted that students’ learning and well-being are fostered within a positive school climate that develops social, emotional, and democratic education (Thapa et al., 2013).

This contribution aims to develop the theoretical links between rights-respecting environments and a positive school climate and confront them with empirical data. Covell and Howe (1999, p. 182) suggest that “including children’s rights education in school curricula is likely to improve children’s psychological well-being, teacher and peer relationships, and to promote more positive attitudes toward ethnic minority children”. Research on children’s rights through education suggests that rights-respecting learning environments with attention to pedagogical practices have an impact on children’s attitudes and engagement as well as on the welfare and protection of children (Quennerstedt & Moody, 2020). Similarly, Quennerstedt (2022) shows that education through right can be conceptualized as a positive school experience in relation to being safe, expressing opinions, being heard, and being equally treated. Research suggests that links between rights-respecting teaching and learning environments and dimensions that are constitutive of a positive school climate exist.

What are the specificities of rights-respecting teaching and learning environments which can support a positive school climate? Conversely, what dimensions of the school climate are more directly in relation to rights-respecting teaching and learning environments? Theoretical and empirical answers will be provided in this presentation.

A dataset from qualitative approaches, based on case studies and multi-actor methodology, is used in this presentation. The case study approach allows for a detailed and contextual understanding of situations, that can be compared, reaching, to a certain extent, a comprehensive understanding (Albarello, 2011; Gagnon, 2012). Educational, institutional, and organizational dimensions like architecture, the role of knowledge, evaluative processes, governance, organization of time, and place given to the values of inter-individual relations or participation of children were studied. Mixed methodological devices were used, composed mainly of interviews with different actors concerned (teachers (n=18), headmasters (n=6), families (parents and children; n=3)), participant observations (children (n=170)) and documentary analyzes. Data from six different schools-cases is used. These schools are heterogeneous with respect to education methods and systems. Four are alternative schools, following different approaches (Montessori, Freinet, Democratic school, School in, by and with nature), and two of them follow more traditional organizations and pedagogies. The comparison between multiple practices allows for highlighting the potential differences within those different approaches. The light can be shed on specific teaching and learning processes, among which some claim to place children and their schooling experience, as well as the objectives of knowledge, at the center of the process. The high degree of variation between the six schools considered in this contribution, notably on the level of education methods and systems, provides a solid basis for inter-case comparisons and the identification of specificities with respect to participation, citizenship, autonomous learning, and the rights of children. Both convergences and divergences are highlighted.

Positive school climate and rights-respecting environments are associated with better academic outcomes, greater student well-being, and indicate the importance of creating safe, inclusive, and supportive environments. Using four dimensions of school climate that are identified in the literature (Cohen et al., 2009) and relatively widely shared understandings of rights-respecting environments, we will describe some components that converge theoretically for a rights-respecting school climate and then exemplify them with data from the six cases. The first dimension is the relationships that create a culture of respect and inclusion, in which all members of the school community feel valued and respected. It considers their interactions, participation and engagement for example in student councils or parent-teacher associations, and can include activities such as non-violent communication, collaboration, or conflict resolution. A second dimension of a rights-respecting school climate is security and discipline: a safe environment for students and staff who can be heard via appropriate measures in place to prevent and respond to discrimination and violence: e.g. applying the rules and peaceful coexistence using tools like school council or peer mediation. A third dimension is teaching and learning. It is not only disciplinary (e.g., teaching about children’s rights) but aims at acquiring transversal skills with attention to the personality and the dignity of children. For teachers, it encourages ongoing professional to support their capacity to create a rights-respecting school climate. Finally, a fourth dimension is the institutional environment including the school system in terms of governance, that can be more or less horizontal and participatory depending on the schools. Another element is the assessment of schools policies and practices to identify any areas where improvement and adjustments can be achieved concerning principles of rights-respecting environments and positive school climate.

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