0-19 Book Review – Consulting Pupils – what’s in it for schools?

Consulting Pupils – What’s in it for
schools?

Julia Flutter and Jean Rudduck

Routledge Falmer, Taylor and Francis Group

ISBN 0-415-26305-0

£14.99

Star Rating: 3/5

This book is aimed at practising teachers in schools and
combines both details of apparently sound educational research into
the benefits of student consultation and participation and
approaches used by schools in embracing these concepts.

I found the book addressed its aims and therefore gave
practitioners  a solid evidence base for both the rationale for
pupil involvement in the planning of their education and realistic
examples of implementation at all levels. The examples in schools
of successful practice are well documented and the quotes of
students themselves validated points made by the authors.

However the success of this part of the book  is  some what
compromised by the insistence on the authors on prefacing this
important chapter (Pupils’ perspectives on teaching and learning)
by  longer sections which tended to attempt to justify the research
itself.

Although the appendices were useful they obscured the view that
students were important and concentrated once again on the fact
that we adults needed to control the agenda by our control of
research projects.
All in all despite my reservations I found the book a useful tool
in persuading educators that students’ views should be taken into
account.

Brian Evans is head of active citizenship, Kidbrooke
School.