This doctoral study, grounded in the principles of children’s rights in education, investigates the role of children as co-researchers in exploring the school climate within alternative educational settings. Building on Moody’s (2019) emphasis on involving children in rights-respecting educational environments, this study explores alternative schools as examined by Zerika et al. (2022), revealing environments that adapt curricula to the interests of children and incorporate practices like class and/or school councils, reflecting an indirect approach to fostering child agency. These settings prioritize children’s holistic development, intertwining socialization and learning as key elements of educational experience. The research adopts a case-based, comparative approach across three alternative schools in French-speaking Switzerland, employing multi-informant and multi-method strategies to capture the dynamic nature of school climate, as suggested by Wang & Degol (2016). This includes observations, interviews with teachers, headmasters, and parents, and participatory activities with children (4 to 12). Emphasis is placed on the children’s perspectives on school climate, as elaborated by Cohen et al. (2009), examining how relationships, safety, pedagogical approaches, and the institutional environment contribute to the overall experience of learning and socialization in these schools. An insightful facet of this study is the active participation of children aged 10-11 as co-researchers. Drawing inspiration from Gillett-Swan’s work (2014, 2018), our research employs not only involves children in the development and analysis of data but also places significant emphasis on their insights. This participatory research with children highlighted the need to consider practical, organizational, and temporal aspects for child co-researchers. Balancing the power dynamic and ethically navigating the willingness of children and parents to participate were interesting challenges in these classroom and school settings. Reflections from the study underscore the importance of designing activities that accommodate the logistical and temporal realities of children’s lives. Building trust with participants, being prepared to adapt to the unexpected, and continuously reflect on and adjust methods to suit the needs and preferences of child participants were important. One of the main advantages was the authentic engagement with students, fostering a reciprocal learning environment and enriching data through their creative contributions. This involvement not only provided valuable data but also empowered the children as active participants in the research process.

Cohen, J., McCabe, E. M., Michelli, N. M., & Pickeral, T. (2009). School climate: Research, policy, practice, and teacher education. Teachers college record, 111(1), 180-213. Gillett-Swan, J. K. (2014). Investigating Tween Children’s Capacity to Conceptualise the Complex Issue of Wellbeing. Global Studies of Childhood, 4(2), 64–76. https://doi.org/10.2304/gsch.2014.4.2.64 Gillett-Swan, J. K. (2018). Children’s analysis processes when analysing qualitative research data: a missing piece to the qualitative research puzzle. Qualitative Research, 18(3), 290–306. https://doi.org/10.1177/1468794117718607 Moody, Z. (2019). Droits de l’enfant et école : diversité, participation et transformation sociale. In J. Zermatten & P. D. Jaffé (dir.), 30 ans de droits de l’enfant: un nouvel élan pour l’humanité (p. 174-183). Sion, Suisse : Université de Genève, Centre interfacultaire en droits de l’enfant. Wang, M.-T., & Degol, J. L. (2016). School Climate: a Review of the Construct, Measurement, and Impact on Student Outcomes. Educational Psychology Review, 28(2), 315-352. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-015-9319-1 Zerika, S., Moody, Z., & Darbellay, F. (2022). Les pédagogies « alternatives » au prisme de trois études de cas. Recherches & Éducations. https://journals.openedition.org/rechercheseducations/12353