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Perils of perspective: Identifying adult confidence in the child’s capacity, autonomy, power and agency (CAPA) in readiness for voice-inclusive practice

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Abstract

In recent years, children’s voice initiatives in education have gained increased recognition and application. However, while the concept of child and student ‘voice’ is not new, there remains a high level of inconsistency in how voice-focused initiatives are implemented across education sectors. Not all voice initiatives are successful, mainly because such initiatives are not always willingly adopted by the adults directly responsible for the education of children. If authentic voice-inclusive practice is to occur, greater recognition of the impact an adult’s conceptualisation of children has on their willingness and ability to embrace voice-inclusive practice needs to take place. Understanding the key informants that adults draw upon to conceptualise children and their capabilities can assist educational strategists in identifying adult readiness for authentic and effective Voice-Inclusive Practice. Voice-inclusive practice is defined as actions and processes that incorporate children’s perspectives and actively engage with children on matters that affect them. This paper presents a conceptual model CAPA (capacity, autonomy, power and agency) representing the subjective designations adults place on the child that informs the application of sustained voice-inclusive practice and offers a ‘pre-voice’ exploration of an individual’s likelihood of engaging in voice-inclusive practice.

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Notes

  1. Loris Malaguzzi is the founder of the Reggio Emilia approach from which an entire philosophy of education has evolved and further validates the significance of adult conceptualisations of children for practice.

  2. Both authors are (and have been) involved in initial teacher education for over 10 years (Gillett-Swan) and over 20 years (Author 2) at different institutions. They have also independently and collaboratively been involved in consultancy work to deliver workshops and professional development to adults in education and other fields about child voice and child rights.

  3. General topics addressed in this scoping study included adult conceptions of tween capacity, participation, protection, relationships, materialism, and gender.

  4. 79 female; 25 male; 20 unspecified.

  5. Countries included Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, Canada, Denmark, Japan, Lithuania, Turkey, United Kingdom, Bhutan, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Hungary, France, India, Kenya, Laos, Mongolia, Netherlands, South Africa, Tanzania, The Gambia, United Arab Emirates, and the United States of America. The most respondents resided in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Sweden, Denmark and the United Kingdom.

  6. Approximately 41% participants resided in Australia at the time of participating in the APTQ study.

  7. Approximately 41% were 34 years old and under; 47% between 35 and 54 years old; 11% were 55 years and older.

  8. Snowball sampling method beginning with distribution to existing researcher contacts involved with children in middle childhood in professional capacities (e.g. teacher, educator, researcher, academic etc).

  9. Commentary included in the remainder of the paper includes the following labelling based on respondent disclosure; Occupation, Age, Country (APTQ study)/Country when participating (workshop), response source (APTQ study or workshop). All commentary examples provided below are from different individuals.

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  1. Faculty of Education, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD, Australia

    Jenna K. Gillett-Swan

  2. Faculty of Education and Arts, Australian Catholic University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

    Jonathon Sargeant

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Gillett-Swan, J.K., Sargeant, J. Perils of perspective: Identifying adult confidence in the child’s capacity, autonomy, power and agency (CAPA) in readiness for voice-inclusive practice. J Educ Change 20, 399–421 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10833-019-09344-4

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