The Varied Pathways to Belonging

Abstract

School belonging is generally regarded as a student's sense of affiliation or connection to his or her school. Anyway who has personally navigated the sometimes tortuous terrain of secondary school is able to have some level of direct understanding of the importance that belonging, fitting in and identifying with a school holds for most people. Educators and practitioners often work with young people who feel that they do not belong to the school community which they attend. An absence of belonging can manifest itself in mental health concerns, school attrition and risk-taking behaviours. Opportunities for early intervention through fostering school belonging are born from a greater understa..