The Australian Council for Educational Researeh(ACER) released a report on Australian students' sense of belonging in school in May. It described as "disturbing" some of the differences in Australian students' sense of belonging between male and female students, students from high and low economic backgrounds, and students from different cultural backgrounds.
A sense of belonging in school is the degree to which students feel respected, accepted and supported by teachers and peers. It has been linked to students' attention and effort in class, their persistence and completion of learning activities. An understanding of belonging is important for educators. It allows them to plan effective practices to support students in the classroom and school-wide.
A study from the US found students' sense of belonging goes down from year 7 through to year 11. With it, students' educational expectations also decrease. This fall may be due to a mismatch between students' need for autonomy（自主）and interaction，and their learning environment. They may experience less supportive and caring teacher-student 'relationships, increased teacher control, and limited opportunities for autonomy. A similar study in Finland also found this might be because secondary students need to adapt to a larger social network and a larger number of teachers, so they may not know their peers or teachers as well.
Importantly, some groups of students may feel lower levels of belonging. This includes students with different cultural or language backgrounds, students with disabilities or students awkward in social interaction.
Teachers and schools play an important role in building up students' sense of belonging. If a student considers their school and teacher to be caring and accepting, they're more likely to adopt the academic and social values of their school and teacher. Teachers and schools can take steps to improve students' sense of belonging in school, which is of great importance for all students.
