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Children’s Participation: a STEAM Education
* 1 , * 2 , * 2
1  School of Education, Polytechnic Institute of Bragança, Bragança, 5300-253, Portugal
2  Transdisciplinary Research Centre in Education and Development (CITeD), School of Education, Polytechnic Institute of Bragança, Bragança, 5300-253, Portugal
Academic Editor: Daniel Muijs

Abstract:

Children’s participation constitutes a fundamental right recognized by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which establishes in Article 12 the child’s right to express their views freely on matters that concern them. However, the realization of this right in educational settings remains a challenge, requiring pedagogical practices that promote children’s effective agency in decisions related to their learning process. From this perspective, the study draws theoretically on the participation model proposed by Lundy (2007, 2012), which operationalises this right through four interrelated dimensions: space, voice, audience, and influence. In parallel, documents such as the Manual for Schools on Children’s Rights—Child Participation, published by UNICEF (2022), are incorporated, reinforcing the importance of promoting more democratic, inclusive, and participatory educational environments. Within this framework, the present study aims to analyse how implementing a STEAM Education can promote and value children’s participation in the learning process. The study was carried out with a group of 40 children in nursery and preschool educational settings in northern Portugal. Methodologically, a qualitative education was used, drawing on data collection techniques and instruments such as participant observation, pedagogical records, children’s work, and dialogue records. Data were analysed using descriptive and reflective analysis. The results highlight the potential of the STEAM Education to foster investigative and collaborative learning environments that encourage freedom of expression and the sharing of ideas, centred on the child. The analysed data indicate that participation tends to intensify when children engage in organized, intentionally structured investigative contexts in which their suggestions and initiatives are incorporated. In sum, the STEAM Education can constitute a privileged context for promoting participatory educational practices by mobilizing meaningful challenges that foster problem-solving and interdisciplinary integration, thereby supporting the valuing of children’s voices and initiative in the learning process.

Keywords: Child(ren); Children’s participation; STEAM Education; Early childhood education
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