Open Classroom Climate Research Articles

Preparing youth for global challenges: can an open classroom climate prepare students for climate action?

ABSTRACT Factors that influence students’ knowledge about climate change have been found to be largely external and based on social interactions. Building from this idea, we use factor analysis and structural equation modeling with the 2016 IEA International Civic and Citizenship Education Study data and create two novel climate change scales (pro-environmental behavior and perceived threats of climate change). We then determine the relationship between open classroom climate, pro-environmental behavior, perceived threats of climate change, and civic participation in secondary students. Findings indicate that when controlling for gender, civic knowledge, and socioeconomic factors, an increase in open classroom climate significantly predicts an increase in activism for climate change. Based on these results, we further examine the relationship between pro-environmental behavior and civic participation in society. Findings indicate that climate variables predict participation positively across the countries, except illegal protest, which was negatively related.

Measuring and explaining political tolerance among adolescents: insights from the International Civic and Citizenship Education Study2016

BackgroundTolerance is a prerequisite for deliberative democracies. Therefore, fostering tolerance is an important task for educational systems in democracies. In the present study, the concepts of social and political tolerance were disentangled and applied to the measurement approaches of the International Civic and Citizenship Education Study 2016 (ICCS 2016). A single scale of political tolerance was proposed by identifying items on equal rights of women and men, different racial and ethnic groups and immigrants that capture the support of equal political rights. Previous research indicates different approaches that might be used to foster tolerance in schools.MethodsThis study used the rarely applied alignment method to identify a political tolerance scale that was sufficiently invariant in the 15 participating European educational systems. The alignment method identifies solutions with minimal amounts of non-invariance. Multilevel regression analyses are used to identify which aspects of schooling are predictive of political tolerance at the student and at the school level.ResultsThe alignment analyses revealed a sufficiently invariant solution for the 15 education systems that could be used in regression analyses. While cognitive learning showed only a weak relationship with political tolerance, teacher fairness was relevant at student and school level. An open classroom climate was a positive predictor with relevant strength only at school level. Further multigroup analyses indicated that the results at the student level were stable between countries, while school level indicators varied more strongly between countries.ConclusionsResearchers need to acknowledge the conceptual differences between social and political tolerance in their measurement approaches. The alignment method can be useful to create scales that are comparable between many different educational systems. While educational systems differ strongly in their school level variance of political tolerance, teachers can play an important role in fostering political tolerance at the student level.

Validation of the Academic School Climate Scale for Students

This study sought to develop an Academic School Climate Scale measuring students’ perceptions of the learning environments at their schools. With a pilot sample of 1,265 students and validation sample of 14,773 students in Grades 4–12 in schools across the U.S., results of EFA and CFA supported a bifactor model with a general factor and three subscales: High Standards, Teacher Support of Student Learning, and Peer Support of Learning. We found scalar invariance by gender and race, and metric invariance by grade band. Correlations of the Academic School Climate Scale with open classroom climate and school climate indicated concurrent validity.

Explaining the gap: Why do Swedish‐speaking minority youth have higher political self‐efficacy than Finnish‐speaking majority youth?

AbstractAlthough political self‐efficacy is one of the most important determinants of political participation, little is known about the factors that boost its development or reduce structural differences between different social groups. This study tests three perspectives—socioeconomic background, social capital and supporting school environment—to explain why youth belonging to the Swedish‐speaking minority in Finland have significantly higher political self‐efficacy than those belonging to the Finnish‐speaking majority, despite their minority status. Using the data of 5274 15–16‐year‐old students in a multilevel OLS design, this study indicates that a more open classroom climate in minority schools is an important predictor of the higher political self‐efficacy of the minority youth. The results demonstrate the value of promoting classroom environments where students are encouraged to express their opinions and discuss political issues openly.

Classroom emotions in civic education: A multilevel approach to antecedents and effects

BackgroundClassroom emotions are major predictors of student learning and academic outcomes. Emotions might be of particular significance in civic education, where oftentimes highly controversial and heated debates take place. AimsWe aimed to examine antecedents and effects of emotions in civic education through the lens of the control-value theory. Specifically, we investigated the classroom climate during discussions of political and social issues as an antecedent of students’ enjoyment, shame, anxiety, and boredom, in addition to a possible mediation effect of these emotions on political knowledge and participation as core outcomes in this domain. SampleParticipants were 1162 students from vocational schools (grades 10–13). MethodsMultilevel structural equation modeling was used for the analysis. ResultsWe found a positive relation between an open classroom climate and enjoyment and negative relations with anxiety and boredom. No support was provided for the relation to shame. Enjoyment related positively, and all negative emotions (shame, anxiety, boredom) negatively to achievement on the knowledge test. All activating emotions (enjoyment, shame, anxiety) related positively to intended political participation. Furthermore, enjoyment mediated the association between classroom climate and intended political participation at the student level. ConclusionsThis study strongly supports the theoretical assumptions of the control-value theory. Pedagogically, the results imply that fostering a classroom context that is open to diverse opinions can prevent the experience of negative emotions and increase students’ experience of enjoyment.

Predicting Students’ Social Movement Citizenship based on Open Classroom Climate, Political Efficacy and Civic Knowledge

Predicting Students’ Social Movement Citizenship based on Open Classroom Climate, Political Efficacy and Civic Knowledge

Construction of Measurement and Investigation of the Role of Classroom Climate on Students' Knowledge and Attitudes in the Learning Process

The learning climate in the classroom has a very important role in encouraging optimal learning processes in the classroom. The purpose of this research is to look at creating measurements of classroom climate, investigate the aspects that influence it and the role of classroom climate in citizenship education lessons in terms of students' knowledge, attitudes, and behaviour. This study was a factorial design analysis investigating the role of citizenship education classes in classroom climate, students' knowledge, skills, and dispositions. The sample was conducted on 650 junior high school students with a total of 50 classes. Data analysis used was variability correlation and hierarchical linear model analysis. Findings show that a classroom climate with open discussions has proven effective in improving student learning outcomes in citizenship education subjects, both in the aspects of students' knowledge, attitudes and behaviour. Several aspects that influence the level of reliability of measuring classroom climate are the gender composition in the class, the level of student activity, individual perceptions of learning opportunities, the socioeconomic level of students, the level of student knowledge about citizenship education, and differences in views about class material. Thus, an open classroom climate is able to increase student competence in the field of citizenship education and the reliability of the classroom climate is influenced by various factors, including student characteristics at both the individual and class levels. This research has several limitations, including the survey only focusing on students, not involving variability factors from outside the classroom, and not optimally controlling aspects of student response variability. The findings implied that teachers and stakeholders must pay attention to factors that influence the reliability of classroom climate in order to optimally improve academic competence.

Searching for a democratic equalizer: Citizenship education's moderating effect on the relationship between a political home and internal political efficacy

Internal political efficacy (IPE) is an important yet unequally distributed driver of political action. Following cultural sociological explanations for political disengagement, we study how students' political home environment reproduces inequalities in IPE and how citizenship education moderates this. We test whether citizenship education compensates, reproduces, or accelerates inequalities in IPE due to differences in one's political home environment. These moderating effects are tested for three components of citizenship education; the number of civic learning experiences, open classroom climate for discussion, and active student participation at school. We consider the school a potential equalizer and a segregated breeding ground for democracy. Based on multilevel analyses employing cross-sectional data (3838 students across 147 schools) gathered to test the attainment targets in citizenship education among Flemish senior high school students (Belgium), we show that privileged students receive more citizenship education. However, each citizenship education component increases IPE and has a small yet significant compensation effect. This paper makes theoretical and empirical contributions to the literature on inequalities in political socialization processes while critically investigating the school's functioning as a democratic equalizer.

The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree: Longitudinal associations among American adolescents’ civic engagement and family and school characteristics

Adolescents’ civic engagement is related to other aspects of their positive development. Many family and school characteristics can promote adolescents’ civic engagement, but they are often studied separately. Furthermore, studies have often used adolescent self-reports and measured only one aspect of the multidimensional construct of civic engagement. Using longitudinal, multi-rater data from 539 adolescents (59.4% girls, 56.8% White) and 356 parents (80% mothers), we examined family and school characteristics that promote adolescents’ social responsibility and five civic actions. Structural equation models showed that parents’ social responsibility and civic actions predicted adolescents’ corresponding civic outcomes six months later. Extracurricular opportunities in school predicted adolescents’ community service and helping behaviors. Open classroom climate predicted adolescents’ helping behaviors and moderated the association between parents’ and adolescents’ social responsibility. Parental warmth and classroom discussion of social issues did not predict adolescents’ civic engagement. We discuss limitations, implications, and directions for future research.

When civic knowledge matters but is not enough: The role of classroom climate and citizenship self-efficacy on different facets of civic engagement

The global need to reverse political disaffection has motivated researchers to seek ways of fostering citizenship engagement. This study focuses on the role adolescents’ citizenship self-efficacy plays in linking civic knowledge and classroom climate to civic engagement. We use data from 4838 Chilean students (M age = 14.16) who participated in the International Civic and Citizenship Study (ICCS). Using structural equation modelling, a mediational model with multilevel clustering showed that civic knowledge positively affects formal participation, but not civil participation, while an open classroom climate increases both forms of engagement during adolescence. Citizenship self-efficacy mediates the relation between classroom climate and both types of participation. We discuss the implications of these findings for the design citizenship education curricula for youth who live in contexts of inequality.

Joyfull Learning Activities in Open Classroom Climate to Reduce Students Academic Stress

Diterima: 27-09-2022 Disetujui: 19-11-2022 Kata kunci: Akademik stress Pembelajaran menyenangkan Keterbukaan Kesejahteraan Pembelajaran yang menyenangkan dan menarik bagi siswa secara tidak langsung dapat menurunkan tingkat stres akademik bagi mereka. Kecemasan siswa yang muncul dalam proses pembelajaran yang dialami siswa di kelas sering muncul dan berdampak pada motivasi belajar. Penelitian kuantitatif ini dilakukan di sekolah-sekolah dengan tingkat aktivitas siswa yang tinggi baik di dalam maupun di luar kelas sehingga menjadi latar belakang penelitian ini untuk melihat tingkat stres akademik dan cara mengatasi masalah tersebut agar siswa kembali belajar dengan senang dan termotivasi. . Pembelajaran yang dibangun dengan melibatkan siswa, komunikasi yang menyenangkan, suasana kelas yang nyaman, dan pola interaksi belajar yang segar dapat mengurangi stres akademik siswa. Situasi pembelajaran yang menarik dapat menarik minat siswa untuk terlibat aktif dalam kegiatan pembelajaran bersama guru dan siswa lainnya. Stres akademik tidak dapat dihindari, kecemasan akibat proses pembelajaran dapat dialami oleh siswa dalam hal nilai, prestasi, kepercayaan diri, proses berpikir dalam konteks tersebut tentunya akan berpengaruh. Artikel ini memberikan kajian yang perlu dipahami oleh guru dan siswa bahwa pola kegiatan yang mendorong antusiasme guru dan siswa dalam berkolaborasi, berkontribusi dalam menciptakan ruang kelas yang meminimalkan stres akademik dan menghilangkan kecemasan

Civic Education, Teaching Quality and Students’ Willingness to Participate in Political and Civic Life: Political Interest and Knowledge as Mediators

Civic education is generally assumed to play a key role in youth’s political sophistication. It aims to equip young people with the necessary competencies and skills to effectively participate in political and civic life. However, few studies have examined the relative importance of different facets of teaching quality within civic education as well as mediating factors for fostering active citizens. The present study seeks to fill this gap by investigating how different facets of teaching quality are associated with adolescents’ willingness to participate in political and civic life and how this relationship is mediated by political knowledge and interest. The study uses original data from N = 250 students (n = 152 7th graders: Mage = 12.54, SD = 0.91, range = 11–14, 45% female; n = 98 10th graders: Mage = 16.12, SD = 0.97, range = 15–18, 35% female). The findings show that not all teaching quality facets are equally important. While perceived cognitive activation and open classroom climate were positively associated with students’ willingness to participate, a statistically significant association with discussions of current political events in the classroom was not found. In addition, the relationship between perceived cognitive activation and willingness to participate is fully mediated by students’ political knowledge and interest. This study illustrates the relative importance of different teaching quality facets in civic education and calls for continued efforts to better understand teaching quality in civic education.

Book Information. Human Values in Education, Rudolf Steiner, Anthroposophic Press. London. (2004). $22.72, Pages 198. ISBN: 0-88010-544-5.

Symptoms or behaviors called symptomatic by Steiner (2004) explain how interactions in the classroom only look at the physical presence around teachers and students. However actually, intrinsic value is very crucial to prioritize. The intrinsic value in students who need to be touched is their heart and soul to get to know each other better. Teaching classically with the view that the existence and readiness of students are the same is a way of thinking that should be addressed to present an unpretentious "open classroom climate" filled with love, care, and togetherness.

How to ensure an “open classroom climate” for citizenship education in extracurricular activities: An analysis of a questionnaire survey for Japanese elementary school children

How to ensure an “open classroom climate” for citizenship education in extracurricular activities: An analysis of a questionnaire survey for Japanese elementary school children

Civic mandates for the ‘majority’: The perception of whiteness and open classroom climate in predicting youth civic engagement

Informed by Critical Race Theory, this quantitative study supports civic educators in understanding the role of classroom climate and racial identity in students’ civic engagement during a statewide middle school civics mandate (n = 4707). Findings reveal that students of color experience higher civic engagement and lower civic attitude scores than white-identifying peers, after controlling for school, classroom, and affluence indicators. Students’ perception of whiteness (or perhaps majority status) appeared to correlate with positive civic knowledge and civic attitude, but relative civic inaction. These findings suggest differences in civic outcomes as early as middle school between white-identifying students and students of color. Such differences offer implications for civic education interventions that address not only effective instruction, but civic inequities, students’ perceived agency, and curricular content.

Ethnic Diversity and Students\u2019 Social Adjustment in Dutch Classrooms

Research in the US indicates that classroom diversity is related to better social adjustment of students, but research on this association in European classrooms is limited in scope and yields inconsistent findings. This study examined how classroom ethnic diversity is related to social adjustment of societally dominant versus minoritized ethnic groups, and how an open classroom climate for discussion contributes to this. This was examined in low to moderately diverse Dutch classrooms (2703 secondary school students, from 119 classrooms and schools, Mage = 14, 50% female, 18% foreign-born parents). Results revealed that students from minoritized groups reported lower social adjustment. For all students, classroom ethnic diversity was related to worse social adjustment which was partly explained by classroom socioeconomic status (SES). An open classroom climate for discussion did not moderate the relation between diversity and social adjustment. The findings indicate that students’ social adjustment is worse in ethnically diverse and low-SES classrooms, and an open classroom climate for discussion does not solve this.

Teaching for citizenship: Instructional practices and open classroom climate

ABSTRACT Open classroom climate for discussion (OCC) is consistently associated with positive civic outcomes for students, but research on the determinants of OCC primarily focuses on individual- and school-level indicators or uses qualitative or non-representative samples. This study considers how teacher instructional practices influence the presence of OCC at the classroom level by using a sample of U.S. social studies classrooms to conduct a multi-level analysis. Results suggest that some instructional practices are associated with greater student perceptions of OCC. Classroom discussion of current events is most strongly related to OCC, and other student-centered teaching practices including debate, simulation, and inquiry-based instruction are associated with specific components of an open classroom climate. These findings have important instructional and policy implications for schools and for teacher preparation programs.

Civic education as an antidote to inequalities in political participation? New evidence from English secondary education.

Entrenched inequalities in political participation have made the questions of who participates and when, why, or how some of the most frequently asked and researched in political science. Building on existing comparative research, this article focuses on civic education in English secondary schools and, in particular, the ability of related interventions to close participation gaps normally seen by sex, ethnicity and socio-economic status. Analysing original survey data collected from more than 350 students in 17 maintained secondary schools located in six regions of England, this article evaluates the impact of four types of civic education (curricula lessons; open classroom climate; participatory activities; and political contact) on three participatory outcomes (expressive political behaviours; voting intentions; and anticipated high-intensity participation). Descriptive and inferential analyses suggest (a) cumulative quantities of civic education are positively associated with youth political participation; (b) open classroom climate may close known inequalities in young people’s expressive and electoral participation whilst political contact with politicians and political institutions may widen those inequalities; and (c) civic education may currently accelerate inequalities in young people’s political ambition. These findings raise important and immediate challenges for policy-makers who are concerned with improving young people’s civic engagement in England and elsewhere.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1057/s41293-021-00186-4.

(Re)examining the effects of open classroom climate on the critical consciousness of preadolescent and adolescent youth

An open classroom climate, one where diverse opinions and discussion of social and political issues are welcome, promotes civic development among youth and fosters critical consciousness. Critical consciousness, defined as the capacity to recognize societal inequity along with the motivation and action taken to challenge such inequity and promote positive social change, also engenders civic development and engagement. Advancements in critical consciousness measurement and changes in the sociopolitical climate over the past two decades suggest the need to reexamine the effects of open classroom climate on critical consciousness. This paper explores the extent to which an open classroom climate is associated with critical consciousness in a contemporary, diverse sample of preadolescent and adolescent youth (n = 4,901, Mage = 14.69). Results suggest open classroom climate is linked with the reflection, motivation, and action dimensions of critical consciousness. Implications for promoting an open classroom climate and critical consciousness are discussed.

Collaborative learning in politics: creating spaces for political socialization in the classroom

This paper analyses changes in attitudes towards politics among the students of a Bachelor of Communication degree program in Spain after applying an educational innovation project including a formal civic education, an open classroom climate and collaborative learning strategies in politics. The effects of the project on the knowledge and interest towards politics of the participants were measured through a mixed methodology. First, a survey was administered both before and after the project was implemented. Second, focus groups were also conducted in both referred moments. The results show an increase in both understanding and having an interest in politics among students. In the context of low levels of formal instruction on politics during secondary school, such as in the Spanish case, these findings show that political disaffection among youth relates to a serious lack of knowledge about politics.