Children have the right to form their own views and be heard on matters affecting them. As detailed in Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), children have the right to express their views and opinions and for these views to be given due weight and the right to being heard (UNCRC, 1989, Art. 12). As it has been articulated in the Lundy model of child participation (2007), voice is one of the core elements of children’s right to participation. For the full exercise of this right, children’s voice requires safe and inclusive opportunities where they can form and express their views (space), and also demand that children are listened to (audience) and their views are acted upon as appropriate (influence). Breaches to children’s right to participate, including disregard or neglect to consider their views or exclusion from decision-making, have been consistently corroborated since then particularly in relation to their education and schooling experience (McMellon & Tisdall,2020), despite children's clear desire to participate (Forde et al. 2018; Martinez Sainz & Daminelli, 2022; Waldron & Oberman, 2016). Children’s capacity to express their views on matters related to teaching, learning and curriculum is encompassed by the concept of ‘pedagogic voice’ (Arnot & Reay, 2007), which aligns with their right to be listened to on matters that affect them and the extent to which their views are fully considered and acted upon as granted in the UNCRC.

This paper brings together the sociology of pedagogic voice and a children’s rights framework to answer two research questions. First, how do children experience being heard and actively participate in decision-making processes related to their learning in diverse primary school settings in Ireland? Second, how do the relationships between children and teachers and their pedagogical encounters in the classroom inform and transform children’s voice? We proposed a rights-based approach to children's pedagogic voice as a relevant framework to explore their experiences of participation in decision-making and whether and if so how these shape their learning experiences. We draw on quantitative and qualitative data from the longitudinal mixed-methods cohort study Children’s School Lives (CSL) study in Ireland to analyse the views and experiences of children and teachers regarding children's voice and their capacity to influence their own learning. 

Research exploring children’s voice in school and community life has looked at different processes and practices from consultations or collaborations with students to participation spaces and mechanisms and leadership opportunities for children (Cook-Sather, 2006; Fielding, 2004; Fleming, 2013; Mitra & Gross, 2009). It also has explored the opportunities children have to analyse and revise educational approaches or act as partners in research projects (Lundy & Cook-Sather, 2016). The inclusion of children in decision-making has been demonstrated to result in meaningful contributions to school improvement (Mitra, 2001; MacBeath et al, 2003; Flutter and Rudduck, 2004; Pedder & McIntyre 2006; Rudduck & McIntyre, 2007; Thompson, 2009). Fostering children’s voice in schools contributes to their development as citizens, preparing them for active and informed participation in society (Devine, 2002; Jerome & Starkey, 2021); and can lead to a stronger commitment to their own learning, including improved motivation and positive attitudes towards learning as well as a stronger identity as a learner (Flutter and Rudduck, 2004). As children are “expert witnesses” (Flutter and Rudduck, 2004, p 4) or legitimate informants (Lundy & Cook-Sather, 2016) of learning, teaching and schooling processes, they can provide unique insights into challenges and possible solutions.

The data analysed in this paper are part of the national longitudinal study of primary schooling in Ireland, Children's School Lives (www.cslstudy.ie). CSL is a mixed-method cross-sequential longitudinal study that follows two representative age cohorts in 189 primary schools reflecting the full spectrum of school types in Ireland in relation to size, patronage, socio-economic status, gender and urban/rural settings. Over a 5 years period, a nationally representative quantitative study was conducted across the 189 schools (CSL National study sample) using a repeated measures survey with children, their parents, classroom teachers and school principals. In addition, in-depth case studies were conducted across 13 schools (CSL Case study sample) using interviews, focus groups, class observations and multi-modal, child-centred participatory methods. The CSL study followed the ethical procedures approved by the University Human Ethics Research Committee and all the children and adults have previously consented to participate in this research. This paper adopts a key exploratory interpretative case study (Thomas 2021) with phenomenological undertones (Kettley, 2010) and draws on longitudinal qualitative and quantitative data of children and teachers who participated in the project annually from 2019 to 2022. It encompasses the two cohorts participating in the CSL study, Cohort A comprised of children who started primary school in 2019 (4-5 years old) and Cohort B of children who were in 2nd class (7-8 years old). The paper includes data from four waves of data collection conducted on a yearly basis, the last wave analysed here was collected in 2022, when the cohorts were in 1st class (6-7 years old) and 5th class (10-11 years old) respectively. The quantitative data in the paper reports on the National Study sample with surveys of participating children of the two cohorts (N= 13,386) and their classroom teachers (N= 583). The qualitative data reports on 13 case Study sample, with 7 schools for Cohort A and 6 schools for Cohort B. The case study sample also represents the full spectrum of Irish schools in terms of size, urban/rural, socioeconomic status, gender and school patronage. The data analysed in this paper includes interviews with the teachers, focus groups with the children, observations and play-based activities.

Longitudinal findings of the CSL Study demonstrate the existence of both individual challenges for children’s voice in the classrooms as well as structural barriers that hinder their active participation in decision-making to influence their learning. Whereas individual challenges relate to children’s perceptions, experiences and understandings of voice as well as teachers’ attitudes and their pedagogical practices, the structural barriers are connected to the affordances and limitations of the curriculum to facilitate children’s voice and requirements in the policy implementation for children’s participation in decision-making. The findings from children across the different classes in primary school provide a complex picture of pedagogic voice, highlighting how children’s capacity to express their views on matters related to teaching, learning and curriculum is informed and developed from their unique perspectives and everyday experiences in their school lives. Children’s perceptions of instances when their pedagogic voice was considered and respected, might not align with adults’ considerations. For instance, contrary to what teachers reported, children felt their voice was included more and their ideas taken into consideration as they progressed through primary school. However, in the examples they provided, it is evident that their participation was constrained to issues related to classroom management or school policies and not in relation to core pedagogical issues informing and shaping their learning such as teaching approaches, curriculum implementation or assessment strategies. Our findings highlight the complexity of both aspirations and practice with respect to children’s voice in the classroom. While the research suggests a very positive disposition toward children’s voice, in practice it operates in diverse ways - from higher voice and participation in the earlier years, to a more directed focus on voice in terms of discipline, and classroom management.

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