Students’ Voices for the Advancement of Inclusive Education: Collective Actions through Research in Spain and England

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4067/S0718-73782025000200063

Keywords:

Inclusive education, Students’ voices, Participatory action research, Biographical narrative research, Primary education

Abstract

This article presents two research experiences linked to primary education contexts in Spain and England, involving students whose voices support the advancement of inclusive education. The aim is to draw practical lessons that may promote more participatory forms of research which actively involve students throughout the entire research process. In Spain, a biographical-narrative study constructed a polyphonic life history of a primary school teacher through the voices of her former students, revealing the motives underpinning the teacher’s commitment to inclusion and fostering the analysis of educational practices. In England, Participatory Action Research (PAR) engaged primary students and teachers in collaborative dialogue, empowering students as researchers to explore and transform their schools’ teaching and learning. Both approaches position students as active producers of knowledge and encourage critical reflection on research methods, accessibility, and inclusivity within the research process itself. The lessons learnt may contribute to fostering more inclusive school environments and to rethinking more inclusive ways of conducting research with students and their schools across all stages, from topic selection to the dissemination of results.

Author Biographies

Inmaculada Orozco, Universidad de Málaga

Assistant Professor in the Department of Didactics and Educational Organisation at the University of Malaga. She was a Juan de la Cierva-Formación postdoctoral researcher and member of the MEICRI (Educational Improvement and Critical Citizenship) research group at the Universitat Jaume I (Castellón de la Plana). She holds a PhD in Education from the University of Seville. Member of the I.D.E.A Research Group (HUM423) at the University of Seville and the Educational Innovation in Inclusion Group (INCLUJI) at the University of Jaume I. Her lines of research are related to inclusive education at different educational stages (early childhood, primary, secondary and university), disability, teacher training, inclusive research, narrative research and participatory action research.

Kyriaki Messiou, University of Southampton

Professor at Southampton Education School (University of Southampton). Her research focuses on inclusive education, student voices, student-teacher dialogues, and participation and marginalisation in school contexts. She uses collaborative and participatory qualitative approaches in her research. Her aim is for her work to have a direct impact on the field, while advancing theoretical understanding of notions of inclusion. She was Director of Research/Deputy Head of the Southampton Education School and co-led the Centre for Research in Inclusion (CRI). She also directed the Centre for Research in Inclusive Education at the University of Hull. In addition, she developed and directed undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. She is a regular contributor to international conferences (AERA, BERA and ECER) and has been invited as a keynote speaker in several countries. She currently coordinates the World Educational Research Association International Research Network (WERA IRN) ‘Student Voice for Promoting Equity and Inclusion in Schools’ in collaboration with Stanford University and involving eleven countries (Australia, Austria, England, Indonesia, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United States).

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Published

2025-12-30

How to Cite

Orozco, I., & Messiou, K. (2025). Students’ Voices for the Advancement of Inclusive Education: Collective Actions through Research in Spain and England. Revista Latinoamericana De Educación Inclusiva, 19(2), 63–80. https://doi.org/10.4067/S0718-73782025000200063

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Vol. 19 No. 2 (2025): Narratives Committed to Inclusive Education from the Voice of Students. Inequalities, Resistance, and Collective Action

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Sección Temática

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