Abstract
Although research has identified the impact of school connectedness on a variety of outcomes for adolescents, much less work has focused on identifying its precursors. This study examined the relative influences of classroom interactions and parental support on elements of school connectedness among a sample of 4838 students (Mage = 15.84, SD = 0.29; 49.1% female) in the United States from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2018 data. The results showed that three domains of classroom interactions (i.e., classroom management, instructional support, and emotional support) and parental support played unique roles in predicting school connectedness (i.e., teacher support and school belonging). Specifically, classroom management positively predicted both teacher support and school belonging; instructional support, especially directed instruction, positively predicted teacher support; emotional support was unrelated to teacher support and school belonging. Parental support positively predicted school belonging, but not teacher support. Overall, these findings highlight the roles of both teachers and parents in providing developmentally appropriate support to facilitate school connectedness.
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This investigation was supported through an award from the University of Kansas School of Education & Human Sciences Student Research Fund.
Data Sharing and DeclarationThe datasets analyzed in the current study are available on the OECD website https://www.oecd.org/pisa/data/2018database/.
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A.P. conceived of the study, participated in its design and coordination, performed the statistical analysis, and drafted the manuscript. M.M.P. participated in the design of the study and drafted the manuscript. S.J. participated in the statistical analysis and interpretation of the data. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Peng, A., Patterson, M.M. & Joo, S. What Fosters School Connectedness? The Roles of Classroom Interactions and Parental Support. J. Youth Adolescence 53, 955–966 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-023-01908-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-023-01908-1