School Rules: Obedience, Discipline and Elusive Democracy

How much say should students have in shaping their schools' disciplinary cultures? Should they have the power to weigh in on contentious issues like favouritism, discrimination, ';no hats' rules, and zero tolerance? What if pupils disagree with their teachers and administrators on certain rules? Rebecca Raby reflects on how regulations are made, applied, and negotiated in educational settings in the accessibly written School Rules.

Through an in-depth analysis of original data, including interviews with teachers, administrators, and students, and codes of conduct, School Rules reveals what rules mean to different participants, and where it is that they becoming a challenge. Raby investigates students' acceptance or contestation of disciplinary regulations, and examines how school rules reflect and perpetuate existing inequalities and students' beliefs about young people. Illustrating the practical challenges and political and theoretical concerns of involving students in rule-making, School Rules can help teachers and administrators facilitate more meaningful rules and student participation in their own schools.