In this first stage it is clear that XXXXX as an integral programme of social services has greatly influenced the type, content, and orientation of the academic courses, but also the style of communication between teachers and students with a clear tendency to a greater protagonism of the latter.

The idea is that students can be observed to take more initiative in communicating with teachers as a result of this programme.

protagonismo m prominence; el protagonismo estadounidense en estos
campeonatos the prominence o the outstanding performance of the
USA in these championships; un papel de creciente protagonismo an
increasingly prominent o important role; con su afán de protagonismo,
no deja hablar a nadie más she’s so keen to be center stage o to be in the
limelight that she never lets anybody else say anything; el protagonismo
de los estudiantes en la revuelta the leading o prominent role of the
students in the revolt; gana cada vez más protagonismo it is becoming
more and more prominent/important; lo ha sabido hacer sin
protagonismos he has managed to do it without putting himself in the
limelight; el protagonismo de nuestro país en la escena internacional
our country’s leading role on the international scene

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Note added at 2002-05-01 09:39:12 (GMT)
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AS YOU CAN SEE, \"protagonism\" basically DOES NOT exist in English. The word sounds like Spanglish.
I ONLY found it in the Oxford English Dictionary. You probably will not find it in any other.

1. The chief personage in a drama; hence, the principal character in the plot of a story, etc. Also pl., the leading characters in a play, story, contest, etc.
Fowler\'s classification of the plural as an absurd use (Dict. Modern English Usage p. 471; maintained in Sir E. Gowers\' second edition, p. 489) may be challenged on the grounds that derivation from Greek pqèso| first, does not preclude a plural form, and limitation to the singular is strictly relevant only in the context of ancient Greek drama.

2. A leading personage in any contest; a prominent supporter or champion of any cause. Also pl., the most prominent or most important individuals in a situation or course of events.

¶3. [Through confusion of sense 2 with pro-1 5a.] A proponent, advocate, or supporter (of a cause, idea, etc.).
In this use the notion of ‘a leading personage’ is not implied. In some contexts there is ambiguity between this sense and sense 2.

Hence ¶pro\"tagonism rare, the defence or advocacy of a cause, idea, etc.

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Note added at 2002-05-01 09:43:53 (GMT)
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protagonist (pro-tàg´e-nîst) noun
1.The main character in a drama or other literary work.
2.In ancient Greek drama, the first actor to engage in dialogue with the chorus, in later dramas playing the main character and some minor characters as well.
3.a. A leading or principal figure. b. The leader of a cause; a champion.
4.Usage Problem. A proponent; an advocate.

[Greek protagonistês : proto-, proto- + agonistês, actor, combatant (from agonizesthai, to contend, from agonia, contest, from agon, from agein, to drive, lead).]

Usage Note: The protagonist of a Greek drama was its leading actor, of whom there could be but one in any play. This is an etymological nicety that many modern writers continue to observe when using the word to refer to the main character of a drama or other fiction. Thus when the members of the Usage Panel were asked \"How many protagonists are there in Othello?\" the great majority answered \"One\" and offered substitutes such as antagonist, villain, principal, and deuteragonist to describe Desdemona and Iago. But there is reputable precedent from the 17th century on for using protagonist to mean simply \"important actor\" or \"principal party,\" with no implication of uniqueness, as in There are three protagonists in this sluggish novel. Smith and Jones were the protagonists in the struggle over the future of the computer company. Thus, while some writers may prefer to confine the word to a singular sense in their own usage, it is pedantic to insist that the looser use is incorrect. The use of protagonist to refer to a proponent has become common only in the 20th century and may have been influenced by a misconception that the first syllable of the word represents the prefix pro-, \"favoring.\" In sentences such as He was an early protagonist of nuclear power, this use is likely to strike many readers as an error and can usually be replaced by advocate or proponent with no loss of sense.



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Note added at 2002-05-01 09:46:42 (GMT)
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THIS IS EVEN BETTER:
the latter with a clear trend toward A MORE PROMINENT ROLE.

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Note added at 2002-05-01 09:51:20 (GMT)
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Spanglish is to be understood in a reversed sense.

or: clearly fostering/promoting a greater participation of the latters

also involvement (greater, more active)

the construction with "with" is not so english, I think

however, two more literal options can be:
-showing a clear/evident trend towards a ...
-clearly tending to...

These have tended to assign a more central/leading role for the students.