Valuing vulnerable children’s voices in educational research

Abstract

Changing views on childhood and children's rights entail an increasing demand for listening to children's voices, even in research. All children are, in principle, seen as vulnerable participants in research, but our concern is the particularly vulnerable children. By listening to them, researchers increase the chances of contributing to the improvement of the children's total situations based on their own experiences. In this article, after discussing why vulnerable children should take part in research and exemplifying how they should do it, we consider advice for enabling particularly vulnerable students' voices to be heard in research in ethically justifiable ways. Recommendations for considering vulnerable children's participation in research are proposed. While children may be regarded particularly vulnerable for a range of reasons, we draw attention to the student group in regular classes identified as having special educational needs by referring to examples from a recent research project in Norwegian schools.

Researching Sensitive Topics With Children and Young People: Ethical Practice and Blurry Boundaries

“…Power dynamics between an adult researcher and a child participant are always apparent, but they are especially pronounced in settings where young people are socially bound to follow the instructions of adults (Woodhead & Faulkner, 2008). This is true in most forms of research with children, but even more so when embarking on research with those who are considered vulnerable and may have previously experienced difficult or contentious relationships with professionals or practitioners (Ellis, 2016; Faldet & Nes, 2021).…”

“…As Beazley et al (2009) explain, 'the researcher is not the knower of truth, but rather the recorder and interpreter of multiple 'other' social subjectivities ' (p. 369). In this, we acknowledge that research is filtered and controlled by adults who take on the decision about whose voice to share and in which contexts (Faldet & Nes, 2021;James, 2007).…”

Inkluderingsbegrepet under utvikling? En analyse av de norske læreplanverkene L97, LK06 og LK20

“…Et dilemma i den praktiske hverdagen kan, ifølge Norwich (2013), vaere hvordan en kan sikre tilleggsressurser til et potensielt sårbart barn uten samtidig å risikere stigmatisering og diskriminering. For enkelte barn må kanskje dessuten deltakelse i fellesskapet av og til veies opp mot behovet for beskyttelse (Faldet & Nes, 2021).…”

The Influence of Psychosocial Factors on the Successful Formal Education Trajectories of Young Spanish People in Vulnerable Situations

“…Notwithstanding the existing work in this area, several studies point to the need to continue conducting research that explores the dimension of students in vulnerable situations and the factors associated with their academic performance [24,[43][44][45]. Faldet and Nes emphasize the need to continue conducting research in education, giving voice to students in vulnerable situations [46]. Conducting studies on this subject and this specific population is relevant due to the markedly subjective and continuously changing nature of this reality.…”