Research question/objective: Student wellbeing and dropout is a major concern not only for schools, but even more so for the students themselves, as absenteeism, for example, has been linked to a number of negative short and long-term outcomes. While much has been done to make schools safer and/or to reduce harassment and bullying, anti-bullying approaches rarely include the voices of students themselves. With this in mind, this study explores students’ own suggestions for what students and staff can do to create a more positive atmosphere at school.

Theoretical framework: This ongoing study draws on the new sociology of childhood and earlier work on student voice to improve schools, which (1) emphasises the importance of children’s voices in matters that affect them, and (2) views students as potential agents of change in their own right, including taking seriously the importance of exploring what children and young people themselves want and expect from their schooling in order to contribute to school improvement.

Methodology/research design: The study uses thematic analysis based on responses from students in grades 6-9 (12-15 years old) in Swedish compulsory schools. The material consists of approximately 2500 open-ended responses collected through the Friends school surveys between 1 January 2010 and 1 October 2024. The question asked was: "What do you think students and staff can do to create a more positive atmosphere at school?

Expected results/outcomes: Four main aspects are presented and discussed in detail: (1) ‘Supervision’, which includes students’ suggestions for more teachers to supervise the school day, including the importance of more adults in the playground, corridors and hallways (2) ‘Active intervention by adults’, which includes students’ emphasis on the importance of more active intervention by adults, and more active questioning and taking seriously instances of verbal abuse between students; (3) ‘The importance of showing respect’, including students’ statements about the importance of students being more respectful and caring towards each other, for example, by avoiding and making comments about or to each other; (4) ‘Adults showing concern’, including students’ statements about the importance of adults showing concern for students, for example, how they feel and sense in school, for example, by stating the importance of school staff showing more interest in students’ school life.

Relevance to Nordic educational research: Taken together, the results will provide important insights relevant to schools and students in all Nordic countries, by showing which aspects of schooling students themselves identify as important to improve in order to create a more positive atmosphere at school, including fewer instances of harassment and bullying. The results of this study could therefore provide information on what is needed to make schools the safe places for learning that they should be.