Student-Identified Practices for Improving Belonging in Australian Secondary Schools: Moving beyond COVID-19

Springer. Available from: Springer Nature. One New York Plaza, Suite 4600, New York, NY 10004. Tel: 800-777-4643; Tel: 212-460-1500; Fax: 212-460-1700; e-mail: [email protected]; Web site: https://link.springer.com/

Y

13

Foreign Countries; Secondary School Students; Secondary Schools; Group Membership; Student Attitudes; School Closing; Pandemics; COVID-19; Educational Practices; Teacher Role; Classroom Techniques; Social Support Groups; Emotional Experience; Learning; Interpersonal Relationship; Inclusion; Student Diversity; Student Needs

10.1007/s12310-023-09596-9

1866-2625
1866-2633

Despite a strong body of evidence demonstrating the importance of school belonging across multiple measures of wellbeing and academic outcomes, many students still do not feel a sense of belonging to their school. Moreover, school closures caused by COVID-19 lockdowns have exacerbated challenges for developing a student's sense of school belonging. The current study used closed- and open-ended survey questions to explore student perspectives of practices influencing belonging in a sample of 184 Australian secondary school students. Thematic analysis of student responses to open-ended survey questions yielded four themes related to teacher-level practices influencing student belonging: emotional support, support for learning, social connection, and respect, inclusion and diversity. The implications of these findings are discussed, and strategies are suggested for implementing these student-identified practices.

As Provided

2023

EJ1392442