Session Information
25 SES 06, Cross Cultural Perspectives on Children’s Rights: Sweden / Australia; Switzerland / Germany
Parallel Paper Session
Contribution
The core philosophy of the UN-Convention on the Rights of the Child aims at extending basic human rights to minors. The Convention does not only focus on the right to protection, education and health, but also encompasses the right to participation: Children and young people should – in accordance with their age and maturity – be able to express their views freely in all matters affecting them. Therefore, educators as well community leaders – besides parents – have to make sure, that children be provided with adequate opportunities. With respect to the fundamental importance of children’s participating in making decisions that affect their current and their future life the objective of this nation-wide large-scale study in Switzerland as well as in Germany was to identify the conditions that impede resp. enhance children’s participation particularly in the community and in school.
Participation provides the opportunity for democratic learning in a real-life environment, and it fosters experiences that, according to numerous recent studies, may have a positive impact on the development of the child’s personality. Therefore, the main hypotheses of this study were the following: Participation helps to develop competence, enhances the sense of responsibility and supports the development of a healthy identity. Moreover, participation does not only shape the socialization of children, it may also help integration; this applies in particular to children of foreign origin and to those suffering from a disability. In general terms, participation creates a novel, voluntarily chosen solidarity that – in view of the loss of traditional ties – has the capacity to make a huge contribution to the successful inclusion of children.
As to the meaning of participatory involvement, there is a wide range of opinions in society as well as in research. It ranges from „lending children an open ear“ to taking part in children’s councils or paliaments to binding exertion of influence on the part of children, using appropriate methods with respect to planning and decision-making processes that concern them (cf. the well-known „participation ladder“ as developped by Roger Hart).
While most research on participation so far was less interested in existing structures but in program and community evaluation, based on common program evaluation research guidelines, this study focused on the structural determinants that foster or impede participatory involvement. Moreover, it analyzes the intricate relationship between the various conditions at home, in school and in the community.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
Reinhard Fatke & Matthias Niklowitz (2003): Giving Children a Voice. Participation of Children and Young People in Switzerland. Zürich. Reinhard Fatke (2008): Kinder- und Jugendpartizipation im wissenschaftlichen Diskurs. In: Kinder- und Jugendbeteiligung in Deutschland. Entwicklungstand und Handlungsansätze. Hrsg. v. Bertelsmann Stiftung. Gütersloh. Reinhard Fatke & Helmut Schneider (2008): Die Beteiligung junger Menschen in Familie, Schule und am Wohnort. In: Kinder- und Jugendbeteiligung in Deutschland. Entwicklungstand und Handlungsansätze. Hrsg. v. Bertelsmann Stiftung. Gütersloh. Roger Hart (1997): Children’s Participation. The Theory and Practice of Involving Young Citizens in Community Development and Environmental Care. Sterling, VA. Deutsches Jugendinstitut (2002): Bericht über die Lebenssituation junger Menschen und die Leistungen der Kinder- und Jugendhilfe in Deutschland. – Elfter Kinder- und Jugendbericht. Berlin. Fritz Oser, Manuela Ullrich & Horst Biedermann (2000): Partizipationserfahrungen und individuelle Kompetenzen. Unpublished Ms. Université de Fribourg.
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