School Connectedness and Belonging
February 2021 - Episode 2. Schools are not just physical buildings that students attend to get an education, they are social and emotional communities of learning.
Why is it so important that students feel as though they belong or have some connection to school, their teachers and peers? Belonging has long been recognised as the third most important need after health and personal safety (Maslow, 1954). Despite this, some schools focus their energies on student engagement first. This often comes from the belief that if students are interested in the work and they are ‘engaged’ they will enjoy coming to school.
However, the research strongly suggests that learning and teaching are social activities (Pajares & Schunk, 2002; Bredo, 1997; Molinillo, et. al., 2018). Students’ sense of academic self-concept, satisfaction and subsequent engagement are shaped by their belonging and connectedness. This leaves many schools confounded - despite having fantastic and exciting academic programs a significant number of students report that they feel as though they don’t connect or belong at school.
What is school Belonging and Connectedness?
In order to support students who feel they do not belong or connect to school we first must have a shared definition of what it means to belong. School belonging refers to:
“the extent to which students feel personally accepted, respected, included and supported by others in the school social environment”
(Goodenow and Grady, 1993)
A term that is often used interchangeably with school belonging is school ‘connectedness’. School connectedness is something that can be observed (e.g. numbers of friends, participation in school activity) and at the same time it is an affective state (i.e. self- belief/ perception). It can include things such as commitment to the school, having a firm belief in the importance of school and taking an interest in school. School connectedness is also related to the belief, by students, that adults within the school community care about their learning, have an interest in them as individuals and have high academic expectations (Allen & Kern, 2017). When described as a feeling, connectedness is a student’s sense of acceptance by peers and teachers.
My personal favourite definition of a sense of true belonging comes from Brene Brown (2017) who has written widely on this topic.
It is evident from the broad definition that belonging is both a social construct and it is something that students develop themselves (e.g. using Brene’s words “feeling as though you can share your most authentic self…doesn’t require you to change who you are”) (Korpershoek et. al., 2020, Allen, et. al., 2018). Therefore, the challenge for schools is creating a culture of true belonging and connectedness.
Why is belonging and school connectedness so important?
According to Kelly - Anne Allen, a leading authority on school belonging, from Monash University:
A sense of belonging at school can support students through periods of social and emotional challenge. The school years are a key developmental period for all children. They are forming their identity, developing social skills and being influenced by their peers.
Belonging can impact upon children’s future relationships and their ability to function and adjust well into adulthood. Finding it difficult to connect and belong has been linked to poor behaviour, lower self-esteem, self-concept, depression and even suicide thoughts.
In relation to attendance - connectedness and belonging are a leading cause and correlate to attendance issues.
Research shows, feeling like you belong at school is linked to higher levels of resilience emotional, physical wellbeing and better academic performance.
What can schools do to foster a culture of belonging and connectedness?
Case Study
John had always been socially awkward. He described feeling disconnected from his classes and also his peers. John found it increasingly difficult to communicate with his peers and felt self- conscious if he was to see them out. He felt as though people just did not understand him. At school he would float through his classes sitting at the back and rarely putting his hand up. Lunch time was worse. He would go to the steps near the basketball courts and eat by himself or he would find a quiet place in the library. One morning he found it too hard to get up and did not go to school. His parents let it go and just thought he was feeling unwell. However, John increasingly withdrew into his room and would not leave the house. When encouraged to go to school by his parents he explained that he did not see the point. This outlook spiralled into feelings of depression and anxiety. It was not until John saw a counsellor and started to work through some strategies to manage his feelings of anxiety that he was able to get back to school and re-establish those connections with the friends he thought he didn’t have.
How might a school help a student like John?
Relationships
Relationships are key to belonging and a students feeling of connection to peers and teachers. Some schools have teacher mentoring programs or establish points of contact. Every student should feel as though there is one member of staff who they can relate to. A simple way to achieve this is to acknowledge students and take interest in things beyond the classroom. A chat about what happened on the weekend or something they are interested in is all that it takes sometimes to establish that connection. No student should go through a school day and not be acknowledged at last once.
Safe harbours where connections can be made
Unstructured times are the worst for students who are socially awkward or those that feel as though they do not belong. Whilst many socially awkward students gravitate to the library, this still does not address the need for students to feel acknowledged during the school day. Many schools offer ‘safe harbours’ where students can go at lunch to engage in a structured activity such as playing with Lego, craft, computer club or just a room that students can sit and chat. In some primary schools they run the “you can sit with me campaign” whereby a school will have designated places for students to go to if they are feeling they do not have anyone to play with.
Supportive school culture
A supportive school culture is key to students feeling as though they are accepted and they belong. This is particularly important for Aboriginal students or students from minority backgrounds. Schools that have supportive cultures actively engage with students and the school community to support inclusion. This might include having translation of important school messages available to students and parents. In many schools there are large posters and signs acknowledging country and welcoming visitors.
Development of wellbeing literacies (Oades, et. al., 2020).
Schools can build cultures of belonging by improving the school’s wellbeing literacy . Through wellbeing literacy, students are taught to recognise and articulate when they are feeling disconnected. Wellbeing literacies also encourages students to build resilience, establish their character strengths, develop respectful relationships and recognise the needs of others. There are structured and unstructured opportunities for students to practice and develop their social emotional literacies.
Learning Matters
Connectedness is promoted in schools that set high expectations for all students. Learning is valued and all students are engaged in meaningful activity. Schools provide multiple opportunities for student voice and choice over their learning. Apart from being engaging, learning is also rigorous. Students’ progress is actively monitored. Students set themselves personal goals for learning growth as well as achievement. Growth is celebrated. Elective subjects and extra- curricula activities are great ways to tap into students interests and showcase their strengths.
References
Allen, K. A., & Kern, M. L. (2017). School belonging in adolescents: Theory, research and practice. Singapore: Springer Singapore.
Allen, K., Kern, M. L., Vella-Brodrick, D., Hattie, J., & Waters, L. (2018). What schools need to know about fostering school belonging: A meta-analysis. Educational Psychology Review, 30(1), 1-34.
Brown, B. (2017). Braving the wilderness: The quest for true belonging and the courage to stand alone. Random House.
Bredo, E. (1997). The social construction of learning. In Handbook of academic learning (pp. 3-45). Academic Press.
Fong Lam, U., Chen, W. W., Zhang, J., & Liang, T. (2015). It feels good to learn where I belong: School belonging, academic emotions, and academic achievement in adolescents. School Psychology International, 36(4), 393-409.
Goodenow, C., & Grady, K. E. (1993). The relationship of school belonging and friends' values to academic motivation among urban adolescent students. The Journal of Experimental Education, 62(1), 60-71.
Jonassen, D. H. (2002). Learning as activity. Educational Technology, 42(2), 45-51.
Korpershoek, H., Canrinus, E. T., Fokkens-Bruinsma, M., & de Boer, H. (2020). The relationships between school belonging and students’ motivational, social-emotional, behavioural, and academic outcomes in secondary education: A meta-analytic review. Research papers in education, 35(6), 641-680.
Molinillo, S., Aguilar-Illescas, R., Anaya-Sánchez, R., & Vallespín-Arán, M. (2018). Exploring the impacts of interactions, social presence and emotional engagement on active collaborative learning in a social web-based environment. Computers & Education, 123, 41-52.
Oades, L. G., Ozturk, C., Hou, H., & Slemp, G. R. (2020). Wellbeing literacy: A Language-use capability relevant to wellbeing outcomes of positive psychology intervention. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 15(5), 696-700.
Pajares, F., & Schunk, D. H. (2002). Self and self-belief in psychology and education: A historical perspective. In Improving academic achievement (pp. 3-21). Academic Press.