School Belonging and its Effect on Academic Achievement and Dropout Gaps: Could a Sense of School Belonging Influence Racial Gaps in High School Students?

Racial gaps in academic achievement and school dropout have been prominent research topics in education for many years. Studies suggest that both academic achievement and school dropout are influenced by many of the same factors, including school engagement, which is said to consist of two parts: school participation and school identification or belonging. The present study analyzes the relationship between high school students’ sense of school belonging and their overall computed GPA, and the relationship between students’ sense of school belonging and their chances of experiencing a high school dropout. The present study also examines the moderating effect of race in these relationships. Results suggest that an increase in high school students’ sense of school belonging predicts a small increase in overall computed GPA, and a small decrease in dropout odds. Results also suggest that these effects vary for students belonging to different racial groups.

Grantor dc:publisher

State University of New York at Buffalo

Year dc:date.issued

2018

Author dc:creator

• O'Connor, Michael

Contributors dc:contributor

• Lee, Jaekyung
• Counseling, School and Educational Psychology

• educational psychology
• education policy
• education

Statement dc:rights

• Users of works found in University at Buffalo Institutional Repository (UBIR) are responsible for identifying and contacting the copyright owner for permission to reuse. University at Buffalo Libraries do not manage rights for copyright-protected works and cannot assist with permissions.
• Copyright retained by author.

Language dc:language

eng

Handle dc:identifier

http://hdl.handle.net/10477/77957

OAI record oai:identifier

https://ubir.buffalo.edu/oai/request?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=qdc&identifier=oai%3Aubir.buffalo.edu%3A10477%2F77957