Instructional quality is a research topic that has received increased attention over the past decades. However, despite evidence for its importance to student learning, few studies are designed to examine patterns of prevalent instruction. The present study aimed to enhance the understanding of instructional quality in Swedish lower secondary…

Clarity of school rules and teachers' use of praise are strategies suggested to facilitate a positive classroom climate. Studies indicate difficulties for teachers to use such approaches in classrooms with higher levels of disruption. To study (1) if student-rated clarity of school rules, use of praise, and classroom climate differ between…

Background: Feeling accepted by peers is important for young people's health but few studies have examined the overall degree of acceptance in school and its health consequences. The purpose of the study was to investigate whether health complaints among Swedish students can be attributed to the acceptance climate in their school class even when…

Previous research on science education has described various factors influencing students' participation and produced categorizations of students based on e.g. cultural background. In this article it is argued, theoretically and empirically, that an understanding of students' participation in science education needs to begin with an analysis of…

This article presents results from an empirical study of how student engagement is visible during introductory algebra. Previously, the notion of engagement in mathematics has been studied from students' and researchers' perspectives. This study is instead focused on teachers' perspectives on student engagement. Eight teachers in grade 6-7 have…

Background: This investigation focuses on student attitudes and looks at school quality from the perspective of affective variables rather than students' knowledge or abilities. The concept of attitude includes ways of feeling, thinking and behaving and maintaining an expression of one's identity within the environment. The analysis focuses on…