Students who actively participate in the learning process learn more than those who do not. "Involvement matters," as Tinto (1997) points out, and this involvement can occur both inside and outside the classroom. The importance of students' active involvement in learning is by now well documented and known. Active involvement in class facilitates critical thinking and facilitates the retention of information that might otherwise be lost. This investigation attempts to understand and integrate the research on class participation within a broader framework that views the classroom as a social organization with its own structure. Students' perceptions of and experiences within the social organization of the classroom play a crucial role in shaping their participation in class. From this perspective, the authors argue that how students view the formal and informal structures of the classroom directly and indirectly affect their class participation. Students' characteristics, such as age and gender, also influence their perceptions and their participation. (Contains 1 note.)