Participative Student – Co-active School is a project of the Ministry of Education, and its objective is to promote the active role of pupils in the development of communality and welfare in schools. This is carried on through the activities of a formal organization of the student association which we will call the ”student association”.

This guide for the operation of the student association is intended for its supervising teachers as a working knowledge kit, which is adaptable for use in every school grade. The guide contains guiding principles on the Participating Student – Co-active School project, the participation of children and youth, the structure of the student association and the significance of co-operation in its operation.

There are several reasons for writing the guide. One of the most important reasons is that the student association activity has not previously been a target of interest commencing from first grade of the comprehensive school. An active role on the part of pupils in furthering their own learning and promoting the school’s communal participatory culture is emphasised in the curriculum. Student association activity is also a practical model for the implementation of the thematic entity entitled Active and Participative Citizen and Entrepreneurship.

The central content of the guide is the operation of the executive committee of the student association, the selection process of the members for the executive committee, the course of the meeting and reinforcing of the role of the members.

The guide contains methods that help the executive committee of the student association and members to practice the skills in question. This guide has emerged as a result of intensive training programmes intended for the supervising teachers of the student association. The material has been found to be very useful in practice.