Teachers’ Organizational Participation: Profiles In 12 Countries And Correlates In Teaching-related Practices

Abstract

Interactions within classrooms contribute to adolescents’ democratic civic development by providing resources fostering students’ political understanding. Many teachers participate in social or political groups in their communities and more broadly. These out-of-school experiences inform their classroom practices and are contextualized by national situations. The role played by these experiences has received little attention from social studies researchers. The present analysis examined teachers’ organizational participation and its association with classroom discourse and practices by utilizing large-scale data from 12 countries in Europe and Asia. A person-centered statistical approach identified four organizational participation profiles among teachers that were further examined in relation to classroom practices. Teachers who were active in a broad range of organizations were likely to provide more stimulating civic and political learning environments with potential to foster students’ active construction of civic and political understanding. Contextual factors and implications for civic and citizenship education at school are discussed.