"In education, student voice refers to the values, opinions, beliefs, perspectives, and cultural backgrounds of individual students and groups of students in a school, and to instructional approaches and techniques that are based on student choices, interests, passions, and ambitions."
For my own inquiry question, I wondered how student voice could be used more effectively to guide instruction and assessment to create engaged, knowledgeable and thoughtful learners. The hope is that students will be more engaged and more willing to learn if they are involved in the process of selecting activities and assessment methods. Through invested engagement, students will become more knowledgeable, thoughtful learners.
Melissa Schlinger, in her article "Elevating Voice Through Social & Emotional Learning: Finding new ways for students to practice skills as decision makers and problem solvers.", suggests that learners need social-emotional skills before they can actively engage in using their voice.
"Social and emotional learning provides opportunities for all students to develop and practice the skills they need to become leaders, decision makers and problem solvers. It also helps adults and students to jointly create learning places that elevate everyone's voice and strengthens the community." (Schlinger 2020)
She further defines the areas that will be necessary for development. They include: gaining awareness of personal strengths and self-efficacy, practicing self-motivation and organizational skills, recognizing others' perspectives, communicating and collaborating with others, and identifying solutions to issues.
I had not considered the extensive teaching that would be necessary before undertaking student voice. In fact, this is not a task that can be undertaken in a 75 minute lesson or even over the course of a semester. Development of the social-emotional skills necessary for student voice to be fully impactful would take years to achieve. An entire system shift would have to take place. Boards could take this on as a priority in board and school improvement planning at all levels and introduced at an early age.
So what can be done? At the most basic level, student voice is about including choice - in lesson, assessment and school planning. The organized forms of student voice certainly have a place but informal or formal conversation and relationship building to understand the pulse of students seems to be how student voice can be best understood to start.
Domenech, Daniel A. "One Pandemic Plus: Greater Voice for Students." School Administrator, vol. 77, no. 6, June 2020, p. 54. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A635067994/GPS?u=ko_k12hs_d2&sid=GPS&xid=3e5b19dc. Accessed 6 Oct. 2020.
Schlinger, Melissa. "Elevating Voice Through Social & Emotional Learning: Finding new ways for students to practice skills as decision makers and problem solvers." School Administrator, vol. 77, no. 6, June 2020, p. 44+. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A635067971/GPS?u=ko_k12hs_d2&sid=GPS&xid=6544f64e. Accessed 6 Oct. 2020.
