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This article sets out to explore how young people understand and experience the notions of democracy and participation in their secondary schools. We draw on their own words to examine their perspective on participation in everyday life at school to understand what kind of democratic education they are participating in. The article forms part of the Demoskole 1 project, which studies democracy and the participation of school community members in secondary schools in Catalunya (Spain). To date, our fieldwork suggests that while, in most cases, the opportunity for pupils to participate in decision-making processes is limited, there are differences between schools. Two factors, in particular, appear to have a significant impact in terms of improving pupil participation. The existence of relationships based on trust and more horizontal forms of collaboration between teachers and pupils leads to a sense of wellbeing. This, in turn, has an effect on the atmosphere within the school. The article focuses on the characteristics that distinguish the three schools that took part in the study with the aim of analysing those elements that lead to the creation of a more or less democratic atmosphere in the relations between the various members of the school community.

The arrival over the last 15 years of a substantial number of pupils of immigrant origin has presented Catalan schools with significant challenges. The schools in Vic (70 km north of Barcelona) have been at the forefront of attempts to adjust to this new multicultural reality. This article describes the results of three studies carried out by the Educational Research Group of the University of Vic (GREUV) at critical points in this process. The studies focused on the effects of local decisions taken to balance the social composition of schools, the attempts by some schools to adopt an integrated approach that involves other agencies in order to improve pupils' learning opportunities, and the effectiveness of different strategies for the reception of newly arrived pupils and their families. The article concludes with some elements of analysis and reflection that might contribute to improving the educational opportunities offered by schools with newly diverse pupil populations.