YOUTH, DEMOCRACY AND SCHOOL: AN OVERVIEW OF STUDIES ON SCHOOL MANAGEMENT WITH STUDENT PARTICIPATION IN UPPER SECONDARY EDUCATION

Abstract

This article aimed to analyze how upper secondary school students' participation has been addressed in recent Brazilian academic literature within the context of democratic school management. The methodology adopted was a Systematic Literature Review (SLR), with searches conducted between January and March 2025 in the Google Scholar, SciELO, and CAPES Periodicals Portal databases, using the descriptors "democratic management", "upper secondary education", "student participation", and "youth protagonism", combined with Boolean operators. Ten articles published between 2020 and 2025 were selected and submitted to thematic content analysis. The results indicate four recurring categories: student council as a space for representation; youth protagonism and leadership development; challenges and resistance to student participation; and formative impacts and political learning. It is concluded that, although there are conceptual advances and successful experiences, institutional, cultural, and formative barriers persist that limit the effectiveness of student participation in school management. Strengthening democratic management requires public policies, continuing education, and institutional openness to dialogue with young people.