Effect of deliberative discussion methods on primary cshool teachers’ attitudes towards educational measures
Metka Kuhar and Katja Jeznik

Summary:  In this paper, we analysed the impact of different modes of leading discussions on teachers’ educational-disciplinary practices on the quality of the discussion process (according to deliberative criteria) and attitudes towards educational measures. We present the results of this research, which was conducted on a sample of 226 teachers (6th–9th grade) from 13 Slovenian primary schools, who participated in two forms of discussions: one was professionally facilitated in accordance with the deliberative criteria (equal participation, reasoning, etc.), and the other was carried out only according to the topics to be covered. The main research questions were whether the facilitated groups differed from the non-facilitated groups in terms of the quality of the discussion and how both subsamples differed with regard to possible changes in their attitudes towards educational measures during the discussion. With regard to the quality of the discussion, the differences between the facilitated and non-facilitated groups were statistically significant: in the facilitated groups, self-assessment of each individual’s own deliberative functioning and assessment of the group’s deliberative functioning with regard to certain criteria had higher scores. With regard to the participants’ attitudes towards educational measures, the facilitated groups showed a stronger preference for restorative measures and a weaker preference for retributive measures, while the non-facilitated groups showed a stronger preference for retributive measures.

* Full text article is only available in Slovenian language.
Journal of Contemporary Educational Studies is
published with support of Slovenian Research Agency.