The research is based on the secondary analysis of a longitudinal study data base from a cross-national literacy project “Cross-linguistic comparison of Learning and Teaching to spell and read" during the years 2010 to 2015 in which the Universities of Bozen-Bolzano, Eastern Finland and Justus Liebig Gießen were included. The participants of the current study are 324 Finnish primary school pupils, 270 German primary school children and 162 elementary school pupils from North Italy (considering the German school for the historical minority). We focus in this cross-cultural research on differences and similarities, but also on the trends regarding to development and characteristics of the constructs “self-concept”, “social inclusion” and “classroom climate” in the three participating countries. With this study we analyze the differences between the three scholar samples for three measuring dates (end of class 1, class 2 and class 4) regarding the self-concept FEESS-scale 1-2, and FEESS 2-4, (Rauer & Schuck, 2003, 2004). The FEESS instrument (Fragebogen zur Erfassung emotionaler und sozialer Schulerfahrungen von Grundschulkindern) is a standardized diagnostic instrument that measures the named factors of primary school children in particular scales. Especially the factors classroom climate, and social inclusion are very interesting concepts in the context of inclusive education, which is objective, as simultaneous new topic and mainstream as soon as new and well-established teaching process in many European countries. In each of the countries involved in this study the inclusive education is differently understood, organized and developed and Italy, is one of the pioneer with an experience of 40 years of inclusive classes. The goal of the research is therefor to search for an empirical explanation of the differences to the variables “self-concept”, “social inclusion” and “class-climate” through the impact factors “country” (which includes the different school systems) and other moderating variables.

Assumption: The differences regarding to the self-concept (value expressed from the pupils) base on a different organization of schooling as soon as inclusive schooling under consideration of the school dimensions “classroom climate” and “social inclusion”.

In addition we want to survey the research outcomes of a study from Elias Avramides (2013) to the dimensions of pupils’ self-concept and their social position in their class network which indicates that pupils with special educational needs were found to hold positive perceptions in their self-concept and they felt good about their performance, as well as they felt socially accepted by their classmates, caused on positive relationships and to be members of a social cluster, shortly, they were no more likely to be isolated or excluded than their non-special educational needs peers (which relates hardly to the factors social inclusion and classroom climate). Allied with the statement from Jahnukainen (2014) and Canevaro, A., & Anna, L. de. (2010) that underline how important inclusion is not only from an organizational view, we propose to consider the “perception” or experience of inclusion form the pupils, analyzing the data  on differences regarding to the self-concept between the three participating countries with respect to FEESS scales as well the analysis focuses on the temporal variation of the self-concept in the course of development of these scholar samples in 20 classes in Finland, 13 classes in Germany and 10 classes in Italy.

The research bases on a data set collected from an international study about literacy of a sample of pupils of elementary schools. The participants of this study are 324 Finnish primary school pupils, 270 German primary school children and 162 elementary school pupils from Northern Italy (considering the German school for the historical minority). As methods for the data analysis and the test of the hypotheses we used ANOVA, metric and parametric correlations, scale scores, linear regressions and factor analysis.

What we found were significant differences toward the expression of the self-concept in the three compared school systems with a high proportion and experience with inclusive schooling of pupils and with less experience in the field of integration as well as differences in school and teaching culture and their impact on the self-concept. Control variables were social economic status and education of the parents, pupils gender and teachers influence on the variables self-concept, social integration and classroom-climate. The showed differences regarding these independent variables we reviewed by statistical correlations and regressions. Based on these data we want to reflect about the factors which influence social inclusion and exclusion of pupils in primary schools in an international context which can lead to new knowledge about the processes and structures of inclusion and exclusion in schools as well as results to a helpful organization of schools to improve high levels of social inclusion and self-concepts.

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