Conference Agenda
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34 SES 06 A: Youth Political Engagement Across Educational Tracks: How Family Resources and School Contexts Interact
Network Keynote | ||
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34. Research on Citizenship Education
Paper Youth Political Engagement Across Educational Tracks: How Family Resources and School Contexts Interact Tampere University, Finland Presenting Author:Political engagement has become a central concern in contemporary democracies, particularly in light of growing inequalities in participation and increasing expectations placed on schools to foster informed and active citizenship. While young people’s declining electoral participation has often been emphasised, research also shows that political orientations, attitudes, and civic dispositions begin to form well before voting age. Understanding when and how educational contexts matter for political engagement therefore requires attention to adolescence as a formative phase of political socialisation and to the mechanisms through which education interacts with family and social background. This keynote first situates the analysis within the tradition of political socialisation research, with a particular focus on adolescence as a formative stage in which political orientations, attitudes, and modes of engagement take shape. Schools are conceptualised as central arenas of political socialisation alongside families, peers, and the wider societal environment, emphasising how everyday educational experiences contribute to the gradual construction of young people’s relationship with politics. Rather than treating education solely as a channel for transmitting civic knowledge, the keynote highlights the role of learning environments, interactional practices, and institutional contexts in shaping how adolescents interpret politics, societal conflict, and their own position within democratic systems. Building on this framework, the keynote draws on findings from the research project Education, Political Efficacy and Informed Citizenship (EPIC) (funded by the Research Council of Finland during 2019–2023), which examined the development of political engagement among Finnish adolescents using large-scale longitudinal survey data collected before and after the transition from basic to secondary education. The project analysed how political orientations evolve during this period and how schools contribute to either the reproduction or mitigation of inequalities in democratic citizenship. Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used The empirical findings show that differences in political efficacy, political orientations, and participation intentions are already observable before educational tracking takes place. These differences are subsequently shaped – though not fully determined – by students’ educational trajectories, with the transition into general and vocational tracks associated with diverging developments in political self-efficacy, issue attitudes (such as views on gender equality and climate change), and intentions to participate politically. While family background remains a strong predictor of political engagement, the findings suggest that educational environments can, under certain conditions, narrow participation gaps between adolescents from more and less politically engaged families. The keynote further examines how these developmental patterns vary across social groups and contexts. It highlights the continued importance of family socialisation, particularly parental political engagement and discussion, while also demonstrating that schools can play a compensatory role for adolescents who lack such resources at home. In addition, the analysis addresses gendered processes of political socialisation, including differences in political self-efficacy and the differential role of mothers’ and fathers’ political engagement for daughters’ and sons’ political confidence. Differences between adolescents with a migrant background and those with native-origin parents are also considered. Evidence from the EPIC project and related research suggests that students with a migrant background tend to attribute greater importance to teachers and school-based experiences in shaping their societal and political attitudes than their native-origin peers. This pattern likely reflects more limited opportunities for political discussion and institutional familiarity in some migrant families, making schools a particularly salient arena for political learning. For these students, teacher encouragement, inclusive pedagogical practices, and an open classroom climate appear especially consequential, underscoring the responsibility of educational institutions to function as inclusive civic spaces. While the empirical focus of the keynote is on Finland, the presentation situates the findings within a comparative perspective. The Finnish case combines relatively late educational tracking, strong normative commitments to equality, and high levels of institutional trust. At the same time, the observed inequalities in political engagement mirror patterns identified in international research, making the findings relevant for broader debates on citizenship education and democratic inequality across educational systems. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings The keynote concludes by reflecting on the implications for citizenship education research and practice. Rather than viewing political disengagement solely as an individual deficit, the findings point to the importance of educational structures, classroom climates, and social contexts in shaping young people’s opportunities to develop as confident and informed citizens. The keynote calls for continued attention to how educational systems can support inclusive pathways to political engagement during adolescence. References . | ||