Background: There has been relatively little analysis of school context including a large number of elements from the broader social, political and economic influences. However, primary schools in Flanders (Belgium) are supposed to consider their school context when implementing the Flemish policy on equal opportunities in education. Purpose: In…

Background: School management, in Ireland and also internationally, are currently faced with the problem of peer aggression among students both in a traditional school context and in a cyber context. Although Irish school principals are obliged to implement policy and procedures to counter bullying among students, there is a need for guidance that…

Background: The school environment has shown itself to be an important factor in explaining adolescent behaviour. The relationships and experiences that pupils have at school have been found to influence their development, psychological well-being, self-esteem and social adjustment. Purpose: The aim of the study is to explore whether there is a…

Background: School climate is a heterogeneous concept with a multitude of standardised and validated instruments available to measure it. Purpose: This overview of measurement scales aims to provide researchers with short summaries of some of the self-report instruments in existence, especially in relation to the link between school climate and…

Background: Evidence suggests that the KiVa anti-bullying programme may contribute to a reduction in bullying and victimisation, especially in primary school level. What is more, the level of implementation moderates the programme effects: the more the programme was implemented, the more bullying was reduced. Purpose: Consequently, it is of…

Background: Young people whose parents are separated or divorced form a significant and increasing proportion of young people who attend school. To date, empirical research with young people whose parents are separated or divorced has tended to focus on either their household context, or their school context, rather than on both contexts together.…

School racial climate is an important aspect of the school environment that can have significant implications for youths' development. However, existing research is limited by conceptual and methodological concerns that restrict the ability of researchers and educators to identify "what" about and "how" the racial climate…

With a shift in education from the transition of knowledge to the facilitation of the fullest development of each student, social and emotional guidance of students has moved from the margin to the mainstream of education. With limited resources and many competing demands, however, implementing this social and emotional guidance is not always that…

Background: The match between students' perceptions of a learning environment and their preferences about its design influences students' learning behaviour and by consequence the effectiveness of education. Therefore, the students' perspective deserves a more prominent place in the educational design process. Having an adequate picture of the…

The main goal of this study was to gain a better insight into efforts made to provide optimum education to juveniles in young offender institutions and in secure youth care institutions, and into barriers with which educators are confronted in this process. Results show that for a substantial number of juveniles insufficient information is…

How can the conception of formal learning environments like schools foster individual learning and the acquisition of the competences necessary for a rewarding participation in the knowledge societies of the twenty-first century? Just how important learning has become as an issue for society is demonstrated by the interest shown in the subject by…

Although many studies have focused on the importance of school composition for student achievement, there is still no consensus on "whether" school composition matters to student achievement, and, if so, "why". Therefore, the present study investigates the association between school composition and mathematics achievement at…

This paper is set against a backdrop of contemporary concerns about Britishness. It explores the dominant view that unprecedented levels of cultural diversity within western contexts such as the UK are undermining social cohesion and are attributable to minority groups' failure to connect or assimilate with mainstream "British"…

Giving a student control over their learning has theoretical and intuitive appeal, but its effects are neither powerful nor consistent in the empirical literature base. This meta-analysis updated previous meta-analytic research by Niemiec, Sikorski, and Walberg by studying the overall effectiveness of providing learner control within educational…

This article is based on an exploratory study that examines factors which predict children's performance on the numeracy component of the Australian National Assessment Program--Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN). Utilizing an ecological theoretical model, this study examines child, home and school variables which may enable or constrain NAPLAN…