The meaning of peer culture for learning at school: the example of a student company

Abstract

The empirical research investigates the orientation and learning processes of adolescents concerning global issues in different educational settings. How do adolescents create their knowledge about the world? What worldviews and ideas do adolescents have about global perspectives? How do they deal with the complexity of world society? The qualitative-empirical research focuses on the comparative analysis of learning processes in different educational settings, such as school lessons in different subjects, school-based extra-curricular activities and non-formal youth work outside school. The main topic of the paper is a case study of a group of female students who run World Shop as student company. The objective is to describe a specific learning culture at a gymnasium, a German grammar school, and the learning processes which occur within a certain learning arrangement. In this context, the student company is important both as an extra-curricular project and because issues which occur in its work setting are integrated into different school lessons. The integration of Global Education in school culture results from the presence of the student company in everyday life at school and the combination of informal learning processes within the peer milieu and formal systematic instruction in school lessons. The research reveals the great potential for the desired acquisition of competencies and knowledge. This in turn demonstrates the extent that student learning is encouraged by a particular school and learning culture.