Children's Perspectives on their Education

Abstract

Sociologists of education were among the first to deal with pupils' perspectives as regards their school life. However, children's points of view on their global educational experience are still rarely explored by sociologists. Although the sociology of childhood is growing fast, it more often covers what adults do to children rather than what children do with what adults do to them. This article discusses some methodological issues involved in the study of children and presents a conceptual framework for approaching the children's points of view on their own education. Based on indepth interviews of 67 11- to 12-year-old children from Geneva it deals more particularly with their experience of parental and teacher educational practices and organization. It presents the types of experience these children have of their school and family education and socialization, based on the subtle analyses they make of their parents' and teachers' roles and authority, the emotions they experience vis-a-vis their parents' and teachers' educational practices, and the strategies they develop to face their parents' and teachers' actual or anticipated demands.

Keywords

children experience socialization

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Adler, P.A. and P. Adler (eds) (1986) Sociological Studies of Child Development. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.

Alanen, L. (1989) `Von kleinen und von grossen Menschen. Plädoyer für eine Soziologie der Kindheit', Das Argument, Zeitschrift für Philosophie und Sozialwissenschaften 173: 79-89.

Ambert, A.M. (1995) `Sociological Theorizing on Children: Concluding Thoughts', Sociological Studies of Children 7: 247-255.

Burkitt, I. (1991) Social Selves: Theories of the Social Formation of Personality. London: Sage.

Chisholm, L. , P. Büchner , H.-H. Krüger and M. du Bois-Reymond (eds) (1995) Growing-up in Europe. Contemporary Horizons in Childhood and Youth Studies. Berlin and New York: Walter de Gruyter.

Corsaro, W.A. (1997) The Sociology of Childhood. London: Pine Forge Press.

Cullingford, C. (1991) The Inner World of the School. Children's Ideas about Schools. London: Cassell.

Damasio, A.R. (1994) Descartes' Error. Emotion, Reason and the Human Brain. New York: G.P. Putnam.

Dandurand, R. , R. Hurtubise and C. Le Bourdais (eds) (1996) Enfances. Sainte-Foy: Presses de l'Université de Laval.

10.

Davis, B. (1982) Life in the Classroom and Playground: The Accounts of Primary School Children. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.

11.

Dubet, F. (1991) Les Lycéens. Paris: Seuil.

12.

Dubet, F. (1994) Sociologie de l'expérience. Paris: Seuil.

13.

Halldén, G. (1994) `The Family - A Refuge from Demands or an Arena for the Exercise of Power and Control - Children's Fictions on their Future Families', in B. Mayall (ed.) Children's Childhoods: Observed and Experienced, pp. 63-78. London: Falmer Press.

14.

Hillman, J. (1992) `Abandoning the Child', in Chris Jenks (ed.) The Sociology of Childhood: Essential Readings. Hampshire: Gregg Revivals.

15.

Holton, G. (1988) Thematic Origins of Scientific Thought. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

16.

James. A. and A. Prout (eds) (1990) Constructing and Reconstructing Childhood. London: Falmer Press.

17.

Jenks, C. (ed.) (1992) The Sociology of Childhood. Essential Readings. Brookfield, VT: Gregg Revivals.

18.

Lahire, B. (1995) Tableaux de familles. Paris: Gallimard.

19.

Markus, H.R. and S. Kitayama (1991) `Culture and the Self: Implications for Cognition, Emotion, and Motivation', Psychological Review 98: 224-253.

20.

Mayall, B. (ed.) (1994a) Children's Childhoods: Observed and Experienced. London: Falmer Press.

21.

Mayall, B. (1994b) `Children in Action at Home and School', in B. Mayall (ed.) Children's Childhoods: Observed and Experienced, pp. 114-127. London: Falmer Press.

22.

Montandon, C. (1995) `La Socialisation scolaire: de l'expérience des enfants à l'analyse sociologique', Revue européenne des sciences sociales XXXIII(102): 95-119.

23.

Montandon, C. (1996) `Processus de socialisation et vécu émotionnel des enfants', Revue française de sociologie XXXVII: 263-285.

24.

Montandon, C. (1997) L'Éducation du point de vue des enfants. Paris: L'Harmattan.

25.

Morrow, V. (1994) `Responsible Children? Aspects of Children's Work and Employment Outside School in Contemporary UK', in B. Mayall (ed.) Children's Childhoods: Observed and Experienced, pp. 128-143. London: Falmer Press,

26.

Oakley, A. (1980) Towards a Sociology of Childhood. New York: Schocken Books.

27.

Pollard, A. (1985) The Social World of the Primary School. London: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.

28.

Qvortrup, J. , M. Bardy , G. Sgritta and H. Wintersberger . (eds) (1994) Childhood Matters. Social Theory, Practice and Politics. Aldershot: Avebury.

29.

Sirota, R. (1994) `L'Enfant dans la sociologie de l'éducation: un fantôme ressuscité?', Revue de l'Institut de Sociologie, Université Libre de Bruxelles, 1-2: 147-166.

30.

Van Haecht, A. (1990) L'Enfance: terre inconnue du sociologue', Bulletin AISLF 6: 87-97.

31.

Vasquez, A. and I. Martinez (1996) La Socialisation à l' école. Approche ethnographique. Paris: PUF.

32.

Vincent, J.D. (1986) Biologie des passions. Paris: Odile Jacob.

33.

Waksler, F. Chaput (1991) `Studying Children. Phenomenological Insights', in F.C. Waksler (ed.) Studying the Social Worlds of Children. London: Falmer Press.

34.

Waller, W.W. (1932) The Sociology of Teaching. New York: John Wiley.

35.

Woods, P. (1980) Pupil Strategies. London: Croom Helm.

36.

Woods, P. and M. Hammersley (eds) (1976) School Experience. London: Croom Helm.