The School as an Arena for Co-Creating Participation, Equity, and Well-Being—A Photovoice Study from Norway

Abstract

Schools may play an essential role as an arena for co-creating community activities that enhance well-being, equity, and citizenship. Still, there is limited knowledge about physical and non-physical factors that contribute to well-being within such approaches. The aim of this study was to identify important factors for well-being as perceived by pupils, school employees, and parents in a community school in Norway. The participatory method photovoice was used, and seven pupils, six employees, and four parents participated by taking photos used as the basis for six focus group discussions. Transcripts of the discussions were analyzed using Systematic Text Condensation. The analysis showed that the participants experienced that the school’s built and natural environment, the activities happening there, and the human resources and organization at the school facilitated perceptions of safety, inclusion, and cohesion, which in turn contributed to well-being. Furthermore, the results showed that co-creating schools as a community arena could be an innovative way of ensuring participation, equity, and well-being in the community. Such an approach might be especially important in deprived areas or in multi-ethnic communities. An important prerequisite to succeed is the openness of the school’s staff to engage in co-creation with other stakeholders in the community.

Læring gennem mad og måltider i grundskolen: Teori og praksis fra Danmark, Sverige og Norge

“…En tydelig ramme knyttet til forventninger og matutvalg kan da vaere viktig å etablere, som er i tråd med kostanbefalinger, og som tar hensyn til kulturelle og andre hensyn på en god måte (Mauer et al, 2022). En samskaping rundt skolen som arena som involverer alle kan vaere en metode for å sikre deltagelse, likeverd og trivsel i lokalsamfunnet (Ihlebaek et al, 2021). Det er viktig å vaere observant på omliggende butikker som en potensiell barriere for hvorvidt elever spiser skolelunsj på skolen (Holthe et al, 2010;Mauer et al, 2022).…”

A Multifaceted Portrait of Students’ Connectedness to Urban Schools

“…Future research could pay more attention to the formulation of the central question to ensure it addresses all students. Finally, even though students are key actors in school connectedness, the inclusion of teachers' perspectives is recommended for future research (Ihlebaek et al, 2021). This would facilitate data triangulation, creating a complete and more reliable picture of the reality within a particular situation (Sincer et al, 2019).…”

“…These studies contributed to informed improvement of local educational practices (Joyce, 2018). Recently, Ihlebæk et al (2021) investigated the factors influencing students’ sense of connectedness in an urban elementary school. To this end, a participatory research setting was created in which students, teachers, and parents shared their experiences and perspectives through photovoice activities and focus groups.…”