Making Way for Young People to Participate in Civic Activities and Experience Autonomy

Abstract

The United Nations Convention on Child Rights (1990) considers children as active participants capable of contributing to building a better future. Engaging children in decision-making and civic activities is a part of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. Although children are recognized as agents of change at the policy level, they often do not receive meaningful opportunities to participate in decision-making. Previous research has established that metacognitive abilities develop throughout childhood. Hence, adults need to recognize these abilities by providing meaningful opportunities for children to engage in civic activities. This study explores the methods that schools can adopt to engage adolescents in civic activities and create opportunities to experience autonomy. These methods are identified and synthesized by reviewing the available literature. The four methods identified are school student councils, youth-led participatory action research, service learning, and the photovoice approach.