Student voice space and social justice in higher education

Encouraging student voice in teacher education can help promote a socially just classroom. By encouraging students to express themselves and explore topics that are meaningful to them, within the broader subject of the class, multiple expressions of identity and student voice are possible. Creating such a space can help to ensure that each student has the needed representation required for socially just education. This type of education can promote critical thinking skills and add an international dimension to the course content. This is particularly important when multiple social/religious/cultural/linguistic groups are represented in the classroom. The current study sought to examine how teacher education students respond to student voice in the classroom by given open lessons, planned solely by the students, with the lecturer acting as guide when needed. Two surveys were distributed to students at the beginning and end of the semester to establish a student voice baseline from their previous education and to gather feedback on their experiences in the class and how, if at all, their understanding of student voice changed during the course. The preliminary findings indicate that students respond positively to student voice space in the classroom in higher education and it gives students a sense of ownership in their teacher training. Copyright © 2019 CESHK Spring Conference.