Adult Power in Schools: Representations and Practices that Shape Children’s Participation

Abstract

This article examines how adultcentrism functions as a barrier to children’s participation in schools. Drawing on interviews with primary teachers, it explores discourses that, while often framed as protective or educational, restrict children’s agency. Representations identified in the study portray children as individuals in transition to adulthood, dependent on adult control and care, or confined to the role of pupils. These conceptions sustain school practices that limit opportunities for their voices to have an actual impact.

The qualitative, quasi-ethnographic study revealed that children’s participation is mainly understood through three dimensions: expressing opinions, being heard, and taking part. Yet these are partial and subordinated to adult logic: opinions are confined to classroom issues, listening rarely implies decision-making power, and taking part is often reduced to symbolic belonging with no political incidence. The findings also point to forms of symbolic violence that further constrain participation, such as expecting it to exist exclusively in predefined spaces, which relegates children’s insights and contributions. Still, some teachers recognize the importance of creating different spaces and understanding children’s perspectives’ key role at school. These openings, though modest, signal a path toward more democratic and participatory schools