Early education in the process of politics

`I hate spoiled children - this has nothing to do with letting children run wild. In fact it shows you how children actually respond maturely to being given freedom." Parent Jane Cunningham is talking about the new students' council at the Kilkenny School Project. "Through committee meetings they learn how to give each other a chance to speak, to listen and be tolerant, to accept that everyone won't agree with them. And they learn that if you are given freedom of expression, that you have to behave accordingly."

Although there are a number of student councils in second-level schools in the Republic, this is the first student council which represents the views of four- to 12-yearolds.

"The parents, teachers and children all work together at our school," says Betty Murphy, whose 12-year-old daughter Eleanor has the task of representing the junior-infant class on the council. "The student council is an extension of the school ethos, which is about providing an education from a genuinely child-centred perspective. They don't just dish out facts here - they create a whole community which everybody feels a part of."

According to Sean Delaney, the teacher responsible for co-ordinating committee meetings, the student council has significant implications for everyone at the school. "We needed the kids' feedback on all sorts of things over the years, but we had no formal mechanism through which we could elicit their views. Now they have a voice, and they know they will be listened to," he says. "They are learning leadership skills, developing political awareness and it gives them a sense of ownership of their school. "They are also learning about committee procedures, how to discuss issues, and to think through how you might realistically implement ideas." Cathy Lanigan-O'Keeffe from sixth class chairs the weekly committee meetings. "We do small things that we can handle and we hand over other stuff to the board of management, in a letter. "We'd handle things like coat hangers. There were a lot of complaints about coats falling on to the floor because we hadn't enough hangers, so we're looking into how to resolve this.

"Students feel more comfortable speaking about things because of the council, and it gives us a way of bringing up problems. We want to make the school a better place for everyone, so everyone has to have a say.

"Having the student council makes me feel I love this school. I am doing something for our school which people will remember."

Cathy was elected chairwoman as the student with most votes in final year. The elections were organised and run along similar lines to an adult election. "I just did mine at the last moment," says Cathy, "but Fiona's was brilliant. She had a poster with her head as a cat and a slogan which said `For Purrfect Catisfaction'. My sister Lucy had a really good one too - her on a ski slope with a slogan which said `For Life, Forever More Downhill, Vote Lucy'." But Cathy reckons this electorate wasn't swayed by sloganeering. "I think the kids voted for the ones they felt were most understanding."

John Brett, vice-chair of the committee, was elected on the basis of another no-nonsense campaign. "I told them I'd help them and make it a better place for them," he says. "Our first plan is to sort out the junior-infants toys. They complained that there were bits missing and you can't play properly without all the pieces." The council has to concern itself with fundraising, too, to meet these needs, as John explains. "We'll be having a student-council day - selling buns and cakes to raise money so we can get them new toys."

The students spent some time drawing up a constitution which has three basic aims: to improve communications, to make the school a better place and to contribute to the wider community. Children up to second class are represented by the older students, while third to sixth classes elect their own reps. Meetings are conducted along very formal lines - opened and closed by the chair, with minutes taken and agreed upon, and issues which concern the teachers or board of management are forwarded in letter form - all more lessons for life.

THE PARENTS are delighted with the advent of a council for their children. "I can only see it as a good thing," says Betty Murphy. "My daughter really enjoys it, she loves being there for the little ones, and she feels she is making a contribution to the school. "The kids are all learning how democracy works. They are learning not to be afraid to voice an opinion and I think it's a pity they don't have one in every school."

"I can see from my own daughter that it makes them question things more", says Jane Cunningham. "They are learning that you can't take things for granted - that you often have to work out how to make things happen yourself. "It gives them a lot of responsibility and helps them develop independence. The more they see the adults in their lives showing respect for their opinions, the more their self-confidence is boosted. "With something like the student council, the children are being given a certain liberty which they have to learn to respect, and that takes a lot of maturity."