Children’S Voices in Primary Classroom Decision-Making: Navigating Majority Rule, Inclusion, and Teacher Authority
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51574/judikdas.v5i4.5983Keywords:
Children’s Voices, Democratic Agency, Classroom Decision-Making, Inclusion, Civic Education in Elementary SchoolAbstract
Student participation in classroom decision-making raises questions about whose views count when majority preferences limit some children’s involvement and opportunities to disagree depend on relationships with peers and teachers. This study explored children’s perspectives, reasoning, and imagined actions when majority decisions intersect with inclusion and teacher authority. An exploratory qualitative design using a vignette was employed in one fourth-grade class at an urban public primary school in Bogor, Indonesia. Participants included 34 students aged 9–10 who completed an open-ended questionnaire, four students purposively selected for semi-structured interviews based on variation in their responses, and one classroom teacher. Data were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis, distinguishing hypothetical responses from students’ reported experiences and the teacher’s accounts of practice. Three themes were developed: changing activities or helping children adapt to enable participation; expressing disagreement amid anticipated rejection and concerns about relationships; and considering students’ proposals within the teacher’s decision-making authority. Students proposed different ways to include peers, but articulating alternatives did not necessarily entail willingness to pursue them. Their accounts incorporated anticipated peer responses, concern for others’ feelings, and perceived limits on action. The teacher reported instances of student influence while retaining final authority. These findings show how reasoning attentive to inclusion can coexist with acceptance of collective decisions and reluctance to express disagreement. Classroom decision-making should provide opportunities to elicit affected students’ perspectives and discuss the reasons underlying decisions. Further observational research is needed to examine how children’s expressed reasoning relates to participation in practice.
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