Grounded Theory Analysis of Culture in Classroom Management Beliefs

As the American student population continues to diversify, preparing teachers to effectively educate these students is paramount. Scholars have conducted an array of culture and classroom management studies attempting to ameliorate this concern. Although these studies appear promising, it remains unclear what the role of culture is in classroom management. Given the gaps in the literature, in this study I conducted a qualitative phenomenological exploration of teachers' and students' beliefs about the role of culture in classroom management. This study used a grounded theory analysis by triangulating four teachers' and their students' interviews contextualized with classroom pictures and observations from multiple settings. The results of this study yielded the inductively generated Culture in Classroom Management model. This model includes evidence-driven definitions of identity, culture, and classroom management that may be familiar to teachers. Additionally, the model can serve as an explanation of the role of culture in classroom management that may better prepare teachers to educate their diverse student population.