Links between instructional quality and classroom composition in classes taught by the same teacher

Background

As instructional quality is crucial for successful learning, its conditional factors are of particular interest for research and practice. Research showed that distal as well as proximal class composition factors are related to instructional quality. However, it is still unclear to what extent these aspects explain differences in instructional quality between classes of the same teacher.

Aim

This study investigates differences in instructional quality (cognitive activation, classroom management, student support) between classes taught by the same teacher and how these differences are related to distal (gender ratio, SES, proportion of multilingual learners) and proximal (self-concept, interest, mathematics grade) classroom composition factors.

Sample

Analyses are based on 3566 students in 219 classes taught by 106 teachers in 9th-grade mathematics classrooms in Germany.

Methods

We estimated three-level doubly-latent linear mixed models regressing instructional quality on class composition factors with students at level 1, classes at level 2, and teachers at level 3.

Results

Roughly 7–13 % of the variance in instructional quality perceived by the students can be attributed to class characteristics. Higher class-mean interest and a lower proportion of multilingual learners are related to higher cognitive activation. Class-mean self-concept is negatively and interest is positively related to student support. Higher discipline can be significantly explained by higher mean mathematics grades and more female students in the class.

Conclusions

Our results underline the importance of considering the classroom context when striving for high instructional quality, highlighting the importance of promoting proximal factors such as student interest.