“The Hannam Report” – Investigating the Impact of Student Participation on Education

This study from 2001, by Derry Hannam (a now retired state secondary school teacher, deputy/acting headteacher and Ofsted inspector) evaluates the impact of the student participation aspects of the Citizenship Order on standards of education in secondary schools.

Hypothesis

The investigation set out to test the hypothesis that “in schools that are already taking the ‘participation and responsible action’ elements of the Citizenship Order seriously for significant numbers of students of the full range of academic ability, an improvement in attainment would be found across the full range of GCSE results (though not necessarily mainly at the higher grades).”

It further suggested that “if the hypothesis proves to be accurate this might well be, in part at least, a consequence of higher self-esteem and a greater sense of ownership and empowerment of students leading to greater motivation to ‘engage’ with learning across the curriculum.”

The hypothesis was indeed found to be true. You can read the full Hannam Report here.