In Context

Pupil participation: from law to practice

Published on 8 July 2025 - Created by Mario de Jonge and Carla den Hartog

Ben Smit, researcher at ICLON, has a crystal clear message: students deserve a real voice in their own education, not only because it is their legal right, but because it can fundamentally improve our education system.

Ben argues for student participation that goes beyond symbolic participation. 'It's about the active involvement of pupils in decision-making processes in education - about the content of lessons, teaching methods, but also about school policy and matters that concern them,' he explains. By involving students as partners in action research, teachers can discover what really works in the classroom.

It is remarkable that the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child made this participation mandatory 35 years ago, but that Dutch schools barely give shape to this. 'I can't imagine that you have been in education for 15 years and your voice is never really heard, and then you have to do that as a citizen,' says Ben.

A conversation about democracy in the classroom and why every teacher can start taking student voices seriously today.

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