Ecological continuity in sustainable higher education under SDG 4.7: a process model of participation competence

Purpose Grounded in the framework of Sustainable Development Goal 4. 7 (SDG 4.7) and Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), this study focuses on the core issue of “sustained participation and cross-contextual continuity” as a key sustainable competence in higher education. It aims to construct a process-oriented mechanism model explaining how this competence is generated, internalized, and institutionally sustained within classroom ecology. Taking classroom participation practices as an interactive field, the study explores how sustainable competence is constructed and maintained within multi-actor interaction structures and institutional conditions. Methods A qualitative research design was adopted. Using an interaction-oriented course as the research context, semi-structured interviews were conducted with students, teachers, and organizational/institutional support representatives ( N = 29). Guided by constructivist grounded theory, the study employed open coding, axial coding, and selective coding (three-level coding) for systematic integration. Triangulation across multiple participant perspectives was further applied to enhance analytical rigor and interpretive robustness. Findings Four interrelated mechanisms were identified: (1) The reconstruction of the participation risk framework, through which classroom interaction shifted from a high-exposure structure to a low-risk participation structure; (2) The institutionalization and internalization of teacher interaction rules and peer collaboration norms, transforming participation from a high-cost individual risk-taking behavior into a low-cost shared routine; (3) The formation of a sustaining strategy system, enabling participation to achieve operational stability and repeatability; and (4) The ecological and institutional continuity conditions required for cross-contextual extension, as well as the sustainability constraints triggered by ecological discontinuities. Conclusion This study proposes an integrated mechanism model of “safe generation – agency internalization – ecological continuity,” demonstrating that sustainable participation competence is not an inherent individual trait but an ecological form of competence embedded within interaction structures and institutional design. Its long-term stability depends on the coordinated alignment among instructional rules, collaborative norms, and mechanisms of institutional continuity.