Chapter 5: Student and Teacher Perceptions of Democratic Classroom Organization, Management, and Instruction

Some have argued that authoritarian classrooms do little to prepare students to participate in a democracy. As a result, some teachers have introduced democratic elements into their classes. In democratic classes, students help make and enforce rules, give input on curriculum, and help identify and solve problems. This chapter reports the reactions of a first-year teacher and her students to her inclusion of democratic elements in her class. She describes her nervousness in doing so, as well as the positive outcomes she observed. Students, likewise, describe how their involvement in classroom management and their input on curricular decisions impacted their experiences in the class.