Developing a children's rights approach to fundraising with children in primary schools and the ethics of cultivating philanthropic citizenship

Abstract

Fundraising literature predominantly focuses on adult donors, with limited literature addressing younger donors, particularly children, and virtually no discussion on the normative ethics which inform fundraising with children. Addressing this gap, this article examines the ethical dilemmas posed by the mainstreaming of charity fundraising in primary schools. Regardless of high levels of participation, research with primary school pupils shows that children's engagement in fundraising activities is often passive, with little decision making afforded to children. First, we question the ethics of passively engaging children in the fundraising relationship. Second, we question the role of fundraising more broadly in helping to cultivate children's philanthropic citizenship, suggesting that current fundraising mechanisms in schools are counter-intuitive to fostering long-term philanthropic engagement. We argue that by critically engaging children in the process of giving, children develop a deeper understanding of the cause areas that matter to them, which cultivates a longer-term commitment to philanthropy. This is potentially a different goal than that of many organisations involving schools in fundraising, where the focus is on incentivising transactional fundraising efforts aiming to raise as much money as possible and thus raises particular ethical challenges which must be considered. In this paper we draw on previous research and established frameworks for understanding philanthropic behaviour to explore the ethical challenges of fundraising with children in schools and present a pathway towards a more child-led, children's rights approach to fundraising in primary schools.

Philanthropic tales: A critical analysis of how philanthropic citizenship is represented in children’s picture-books – problems and possibilities

“…Finally, campaigning for a cause featured in 37% of the sampled books. The broad scope of philanthropic activities discussed in the books is welcomed and fits well with how children tend to view 'being charitable' as a mass of prosocial behaviours and actions (Body et al, 2019).…”

“…She and her mother gift the family food and then celebrate together as they all have food, yet the issue of why the family is in food poverty is left unquestioned, disassociating the philanthropic act from the root causes of food poverty. There is a concern here that this not only a missed opportunity (Body et al, 2019(Body et al, , 2020a(Body et al, & 2020b, but that teaching ideas of philanthropy disconnected from wider social and political frameworks, potentially promotes the idea of charity as the response to social ills rather than questioning structural inequalities (Body et al, 2020a;Power and Taylor, 2018).…”

“…In this paper we consider the intersection between the concept of philanthropic citizenship and children's literature. We define philanthropic citizenship as a dimension of citizenship behaviour, associated with intentions and actions that intend to produce social and/or environmental benefits for example volunteering, social action, charitable giving, advocacy and activism (Body, 2021). Children's literature has long been renowned for engaging children in moral and prosocial learning by drawing children into creative and imaginative worlds.…”

Raising philanthropic children: Moving beyond virtuous philanthropy, towards transformative giving and empowered citizenship

“…The second element is purpose, which is the resolve to which we apply these capacities. Nonetheless, whilst children may easily have this resolve (see Body et al, 2021), they are to a large extent dependent upon the adults within their sphere to be able to put this resolve into action. As Schervish summarises, ‘ philanthropy is the response to affective demand such that donors directly fulfil the needs of others simply because they are people in need ’ (Schervish, 2014, p. 396).…”

“…A large‐scale survey of primary school teachers in England underscores the prevalence of charity and fundraising activities within the primary school environment, recognising its role in shaping children's civic behaviours (Body et al, 2022). However, the research reveals a tendency to emphasise individualistic virtues in giving, with less than a third of children provided with opportunities for collective action and discussions on social justice issues during fundraising efforts, such as supporting children in poverty or foodbank initiatives (Body et al, 2022). Additionally, while most philanthropic activities centre around monetary donations, fewer than half of children participate in social action projects, and only 16% engage in advocacy or campaigning efforts (ibid).…”