Inclusive civic education and school democracy through participatory budgeting

This journal article examines how youth-led participatory budgeting (PB) initiatives in school settings affect student empowerment, decision-making capacity, and democratic engagement.

The authors draw on empirical data from several U.S. school districts implementing PB. They investigate how students move from being consulted to acting as genuine decision-makers, analyse barriers (such as time constraints, adult control, resource limits) and discuss mediating factors like adult facilitation style and institutional support.

The findings suggest that PB can deepen student agency and civic identity when structured to give real choice, but risks being tokenistic if the budget is trivial or the process tightly managed by adults.

Source: Sage Journals
Language: English

Authors: Tara Bartlett and Daniel Schugurensky

Year of publication: 2023