• When social pedagogy goes to school: innovative approaches promoting agency, community and democracy in formal education

    When social pedagogy goes to school: innovative approaches promoting agency, community and democracy in formal education


International Journal of Social Pedagogy Special Series.

In the last decades, increased attention has been paid to the role social pedagogy plays - and could play - in schools. Countries across the globe are currently experiencing a backslide of their democracies and a rise in the adoption of authoritarian manoeuvres, facing inequalities in social, political, financial, environmental, racial and justice systems. While social pedagogy may emphasize different approaches within varying historical and geographical contexts to address such challenges, a common theme is the connections between the educational dimension of social issues and the social dimensions of educational issues.

Schools can reproduce and even reinforce unequal social structures and exclusionary dynamics, but they can also contribute to social change and engendering a better society. This special issue focuses on school practices inspired by social pedagogy principles and approaches. Drawing from social pedagogy's traditions of participation and dialogue, community building and empathy, human rights and justice, and the centering of voices and experiences of the most oppressed, articles in this special feature explore innovative practices that promote key concepts in the field of social pedagogy.

Publication date: From May 2023 (ongoing). 



Guest Editors

Tara BartlettSchool Of Public Affairs, Arizona State University, USA.
Prof Daniel SchugurenskySchool Of Public Affairs, Arizona State University, USA.



Article list 


Research article


Hope amid violence: youths’ agency and learning experiences to transform social conflicts in non-democratic settings

Najme Kishani

2024-04-03 Volume 13 • Issue 1 • 2024

Also a part of:

Special series: When social pedagogy goes to school: innovative approaches promoting agency, community and democracy in formal education

Cultivating cultural capital with a therapy dog in a third-grade classroom

Terri Hlava

2023-08-08 Volume 12 • Issue 1 • 2023

Also a part of:

Special series: When social pedagogy goes to school: innovative approaches promoting agency, community and democracy in formal education

Civic action on social media: fostering digital media literacy and epistemic cognition in the classroom

Mark Felton, Ellen Middaugh and Henry Fan

2023-07-25 Volume 12 • Issue 1 • 2023

Also a part of:

Special series: When social pedagogy goes to school: innovative approaches promoting agency, community and democracy in formal education

Igniting social pedagogy through learning and teaching partnerships in a higher education context

Catherine McConnell

2023-07-11 Volume 12 • Issue 1 • 2023

Also a part of:

Special series: When social pedagogy goes to school: innovative approaches promoting agency, community and democracy in formal education

Freire for twenty-first-century, austerity-driven schools: creating positive educational relations with and among students at the margins

Simon Edwards

2023-06-27 Volume 12 • Issue 1 • 2023

Also a part of:

Special series: When social pedagogy goes to school: innovative approaches promoting agency, community and democracy in formal education

A human approach to restructuring the education system: why schools in England need social pedagogy

Nicola Stobbs, Carla Solvason, Stuart Gallagher and Sue Baylis

2023-05-30 Volume 12 • Issue 1 • 2023

Also a part of:

Special series: When social pedagogy goes to school: innovative approaches promoting agency, community and democracy in formal education

Perspective article


Social pedagogy and citizenship education in England: an exploration with case studies involving secondary school students in London

Amit Puni and Yvalia Febrer

2023-06-20 Volume 12 • Issue 1 • 2023

Also a part of:

Special series: When social pedagogy goes to school: innovative approaches promoting agency, community and democracy in formal education