Reconciling self-interest and ethics: the role of primary school pupil councils

The renewed focus on values in education and the need for the democratization of school systems has been accompanied by a widening of the perception of enterprise in education, with the implication that existing 'enterprising' approaches may lend themselves to the expression of citizenship education. But can the possible tensions between these two agendas be reconciled and, if so, how can teachers respond to this in practical terms? This article reports on new research emerging from a small sample of Scottish primary school pupil councils. The way in which teachers and pupils in these schools perceive the aims and purposes of these councils is explored, and the potential for linking aspects of individual enterprise with communitarianism is analysed. The research raises new questions about the potential for apparently opposing educational dichotomies to be harmonised, and a 'Third Way' between capital and welfare to be reflected in educational practice.