School as Narrated Places: Children´s Narratives of School Enjoyment

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Abstract

This article considers school as a place as narrated by students. The goal is to understand students’ experiences of school as place through the concept of a ‘sense of place.’ The empirical data was collected in a small village school in northern Finland during one week of ethnographic observation, which involved interviewing students, collecting student writing, and observing teaching. Using content analysis and narrative analysis, three types of narrative were analysed in the data: one, narratives of relations in place describe students’ experience of their school as a familiar, safe, peaceful place;two, narratives of action in place emphasise that a sense of place is based on places of common action and belonging; for example in a schoolyard, in a school’s surroundings and environment, on school trips, and during school festivities;three, narratives of self in place give insights into friendships in a small school. A small school enables close, long-lasting friendships, strengthening a sense of place. Migrating students may have difficulties adjusting to tight groups of students; those difficulties may produce feelings of being an outsider. This article aims also to introduce the significance of place in discussions concerning school politics and didactics. An evaluation of the significance of school as a place from the viewpoint of children is suggested as a new perspective for discussions and decision-making regarding school closures. This new perspective should be informed by studies focusing on how schools as places support the growth and development of children, and how an understanding of schools as places can be used to increase children’s enjoyment of school. 

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Keywords

Keywords: narrative inquiry, place, place-based education, sense of place, small school