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Cited by 184Educational Environments and Student OutcomesEarly Childhood Education and DevelopmentParental Involvement in Education

School Belonging: The Importance of Student and Teacher Relationships

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Allen, Kelly-Ann, Slaten, Christopher D., Arslan, Gökmen, Roffey, Sue, Craig, Heather, Vella-Brodrick, Dianne A.·2021·The Palgrave Handbook of Positive Education
DOI 10.1007/978-3-030-64537-3_21
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Abstract

School belonging is associated with a range of positive educational and developmental outcomes, including psychosocial health and wellbeing, prosocial behaviour and academic achievement, and transition into adulthood. However, an increasing number of students worldwide report not feeling a sense of belonging to their school. There is growing research evidence that strong student–teacher relationships can promote school belonging, however creating these relationships within highly complex educational systems can be challenging. Further, only a few interventions focusing specifically on belonging that are available in schools have been found to be effective. This chapter highlights the importance of teacher support for a student’s sense of school belonging, discusses challenges associated with student–teacher relationships, and points to strategies for building strong relationships. We highlight the role that school leaders play in fostering strong relationships, and consider extensions within higher education, and future directions. Considering the importance of student–teacher relationships towards a student’s sense of school belonging, and the empirical base that points to both short- and long-term outcomes, implications for widespread benefits are possible for schools that prioritize and value positive relationships between staff and students.

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  • Prolonged absence and limited communication may undermine sense of belonging.

    “whereas prolonged absence and limited communication may undermine sense of belonging [20, 29, 30, 31, 32].”

    From Sense of School Belonging and School Reintegration for Students Hospitalized With Chronic or Complex Medical Diseases: Insights From a Grounded Theory Study (2026) · cites this paper as [29]

    The Relationships Matter section says opportunities to connect and positive interactions are important to belonging, which supports the point about limited communication in broad terms. The Current Context section also links student–teacher relationships to school belonging. Neither section addresses whether prolonged absence undermines belonging; searches for absence and communication found no more specific passage. Page numbers were not available in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.76)

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Cited by

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Authors
Allen, K.-A., Slaten, C. D., Arslan, G., Roffey, S., Craig, H., & Vella-Brodrick, D. A.
Affiliations
  • Monash University (AU)
  • University of Missouri (US)
  • Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy Üniversitesi (TR)
  • University of Exeter (GB)
Corresponding author
Allen, Kelly-Ann
ORCID
Venue
The Palgrave Handbook of Positive Education
Publisher
Springer International Publishing
Published
2021
Pages
525-550
DOI
10.1007/978-3-030-64537-3_21
OpenAlex
W3175461529
Cited by
184
References
13
Citations by year
2026: 32 · 2025: 63 · 2024: 47 · 2023: 23 · 2022: 16 · 2021: 3
FWCI
152.14
Type
book chapter
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Springer eBooks (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Monash University Research Portal (Monash University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
  • Minerva Access (University of Melbourne) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Funders
University of Kansas
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Education › Educational Environments and Student Outcomes
  • Social Sciences › Education › Early Childhood Education and Development
  • Social Sciences › Education › Parental Involvement in Education
Keywords
school belonging, teacher-student relationship, teacher support, school leadership, student well-being, prosocial behavior, academic performance, coming of age, belonging interventions, higher education

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