The report “Engaging School Children in Decision Making Processes in Georgia” is a baseline assessment of the current state of democratic governance of schools and democratic citizenship education at school level in Georgia, in relation to student participation in decision-making processes. The report was developed by Council of Europe experts in July – September 2022 and is intended to inform the development of methodological guidance for schools on democratic school governance and the development of training programmes for school principals and other stakeholders in schools.
The report covers 9 distinct aspects of school life: school climate, leadership and management, school boards, student self-governments, curriculum, teaching and learning, Civic Education, extra-curricular activities, and professional development. It outlines the significance of each of these for student participation, describes the current legislative framework, identifies areas for development, and makes policy and practice recommendations.
The report concludes that opportunities for student participation in decision-making vary considerably across schools in Georgia, a variation that can be explained in terms of the leadership style of school principals, attitudes of teaching staff, access to relevant forms of professional development and the availability of appropriate educational resources.
The report argues for a more strategic approach to democratic school governance in schools, focusing on the role of the school principal and the concept of a whole-school approach to student participation. In practical terms it recommends, among other things: strengthening the democratic leadership role of school principals and providing specific capacity-building measures; improving student representation in student self-governments and school boards; general and subject-specific training and resources for classroom teachers; a more clearly-defined role for Civic Education teachers in relation to student participation in the school as a whole; and increasing opportunities for parents and families to become involved in school administration, and curricular and extra-curricular activities.
The report will be published in the English and Georgian languages and will be disseminated at the national conference “Democracy starts in school – the role of schools in developing a culture of democratic participation in Georgia” which will be organised by the Council of Europe in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia on 28 October 2022 in Tbilisi, Georgia. The English version of the report can be downloaded here. The Georgian version will be available in the coming days.
The project "Democracy Starts in Schools – Engaging School Children in Decision Making Processes in Schools and Communities in Georgia" is implemented by the Council of Europe and funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).
