Conference Program

Education lies at the core of human societal evolution and is a fundamental field of study concerning any developmental process of our species. To date, the educational process has been a domain that is difficult to define and consequently even harder to evaluate with the aim of improvement. The approach for the present study was chosen because it aligns with the multi-factorial nature of education, grounding itself in systems theory. This framework allows the research questions to be placed within a web of interconnected systems and sub-systems (e.g., society, government, educational unit, educators, students, guardians) (Mavrofidis, 2018). In a democratic context, hearing the voices of those most affected by a system (the students/learners) is a fundamental democratic practice. Furthermore, this systemic perspective is crucial for understanding how education and democracy are intertwined in building "just, inclusive, and sustainable" societies.

Our qualitative research was based on this theoretical framework and focused on the students' views regarding the quality of the educational process (Sallis, 2002). For this purpose, ten in-depth personal interviews were conducted with graduates of Secondary Education in Greece (Creswell, 2019). The participants selected had all graduated from Secondary Education within the preceding 1-3 years and had completed their 18th year of age, thus being adults at the time of the interviews.

The main objective of the research was to investigate and compare the students' views on school infrastructure and teaching staff in order to assess the extent to which these influence the overall perception that students formed about school, particularly during the last three years of their attendance. To answer the main research question, a thematic analysis was performed on the data collected from the interviews, which also highlighted additional areas for study concerning the development of social skills within the school environment.

In a period where the central strategic choice for improving education places greater emphasis on strengthening infrastructure and less on strengthening human capital, it is useful to hear the perspective of the students on the impact these interventions have on their daily educational reality.