Introduction
Belonging refers to a peculiar and subjective experience that relates to a yearning for linking with other people, the need for optimistic regard, and the craving for interpersonal connection. Therefore, people feel they have a sense of belonging when they believe they are connected to a social, spatial, cultural, and professional type of community. In this case, we look at how school systems, policies, and actions impact a pupil’s psychological sense of belonging, making them need to affiliate with and be accepted by teachers, fellow students, and parents in their societal settings. According to Baumeister & Leary (2017), school systems, policies and actions will significantly influence pupils’ psychological sense of belonging. It will make them either feel motivated or detached from the school process and indulge in opposing things that might harm their lives afterward. The school’s systems, policies, and actions will determine if the pupils’ sense of belonging is acted upon positively or negatively. In this paper, we will look at various scenarios and explanations of these systems and their impacts on pupils’ psychological wellbeing.
Almost all schools in the world teach psychology alongside their curriculum to know how to engage with students. Therefore, these educational psychologists must ensure that they create a conducive environment for learning and promote cohesion among students, teachers, parents, and society. The common denominator for consideration of belonging must include having better relationships, learning to promote confidence, motivation, and flexibility in the outside world market, and promoting wellbeing in schools and beyond (Gere & MacDonald, 2010). A sound school system and policy will have better guidelines for psychologists to contribute to healthy and effective communities. Goodenow & Grady (1993) say that educational psychologists who engage students to have a sense of belonging must thrive to promote good relationships. They must also teach for better understanding and enable consultations among their peers in case of something they do not understand or enable helping each other to realize their dreams.
When schools set up good policies to govern the operation of students and the people around them, they are offered a sense of community where experience plays a significant role in collective responsibility. The positive impacts of such involvements include fulfilling the needs of these pupils, and they can identify themselves with their peers without fear of intimidation; hence their emotional safety is guaranteed. Pupils feel satisfied and happy with their colleagues, teachers, and society and feel safe mingling and learning different things in the community (Riley, 2019). With their shared emotional connections, pupils can learn from each other and ask for assistance with their homework, emotions, and anything they need to learn from their seniors.
A school that sets up systems and actions involving educational psychologists has positively impacted pupils’ psychological wellbeing. These pupils feel they belong, and their safety is much guaranteed because they have people they can turn to for assistance and express their feelings and moments together (Shaw, 2019). Pupils feel accepted, respected, included, and supported by teachers and fellow pupils, which makes them feel much valued since belonging is one facet of the community. A school can set up policies where the psychologists use the themes of support, identification, familiarity, and inclusion to help the students gain insightful connections with other members of society (Riley, 2019). Students will desire to make social bonds, and when they have a sense of belonging, they can develop in all aspects of life that create essential people in society.
According to Riley (2019), social identity theory predicts certain intergroup behaviors based on perceived group status differences, stability, and legitimacy, as well as the perceived ability to migrate from one group to another. Therefore, schools with active setup policies will enable psychologists to teach pupils the best ideas, beliefs, and values needed to thrive in a better society and the best way to have peace, dignity, and power among their peers. According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, having a sense of belonging requires one to have that self-actualization, know and understand people around them, respect their opinions, and defend each other to thrive in a diverse community (Gere & MacDonald, 2010). Schools will incorporate policies to protect pupils and make them better people in the future by reminding them that they need to satisfy belongingness, peace, and love among themselves before any esteem needs (Whitlock, 2006). In this way, pupils perform better in class, help each other to achieve their goals, and are transformed into better people in society. Psychologists will ensure pupils have that self-actualization to pursue their inner talent and love their friends and families since they feel better about themselves (Baumeister & Leary, 2017). Therefore, a school that enables its students to have that sense of belonging will lead to higher emotional and physical wellbeing, good academic performance, and more outstanding achievements in the outside world. When pupils achieve in school and beyond, they are motivated even better with high levels of optimism, self-concept, and sociability, making them great leaders and motivators in the future.
It is suitable for schools with psychological educators to set up systems and policies that enable successful thriving for pupils. However, it will be complicated to achieve such great heights if there are no established rules to govern the survivorship of these pupils. Students who feel they do not belong to a particular group and are not involved emotionally with a poor sense of belonging will perform poorly in school. They also feel lonely and have low self-esteem, making them drop out of school and indulge in drugs (Shaw, 2019). Evidence of school withdrawal, teenage pregnancies, gang violence, and poor adult outcomes are the negative impacts of pupils whose schools do not employ good policies and systems to help them in their daily activities to support their wellbeing. For example, a pupil who feels they do not belong somewhere will seek solace elsewhere where they will be accepted. They eventually get depression, anxiety, and a reduction in spirituality; even if they go to school, lower school achievement is experienced (Gere & MacDonald, 2010). Schools must then learn to engage the psychological educators to practice belongingness as a significant factor in preventing mental instability.
Schools that do not have engagement systems and policies to protect these children will eventually make them have poor relationships with each other. They will also have reduced social competence in society, leading to disruptive behaviors such as involving themselves in gangs and drug abuse. When these pupils seek attention and acceptance elsewhere, it will be the start of their negative deterioration towards morals, which is very dangerous for society. It is advised that schools ensure the setup systems and policies that enable psychological educators to get thoroughly involved with pupils to make them better people in the future (Goodenow & Grady, 1993). The sense of belonging is meant to stabilize in elementary schools since it is reduced when they try to transition into secondary schools. Schools must have teaching practices that motivate social responsibility and teacher-pupil relationships that positively impact the adolescent process.
Summary
As Goodenow & Grady (1993) suggest, managing disrupted emotional development and other adverse childhood experiences is not easy. However, educational psychologists are experienced in creating a good relationship between them, teachers, and society in general. Some counteractions from pupils can even be evident such as looking for rejection to confirm unworthiness, and they could also push for such to happen. However, psychologists must try and know how to act reasonably to prevent counter-aggression and battle for power. If educational psychologists cannot deal with such problems, children can become resentful, withdrawn, rebellious, and revengeful, which might not go well for a school system (Juvonen, 2007). Educational psychologists must begin rebuilding connectedness in the adverse occurrence of such events and promote mere belonging to improve motivation, and conduct collaborative research with their counterparts to inquire about the place and belonging to transform schools.
Conclusion
In conclusion, schools need to develop significant policies and systems to give pupils that sense of belonging to promote educational achievement in schools and beyond. An educational psychologist must be able to promote a vibrant culture within the school premises where they tell the students to help each other and promote love in all they do. They must also let the parents and society get involved in their children’s education to shift perceptions and provide advocacy in any problematic situation. They must also get views of the children and hear their side of the story without only making decisions for them. They could also have time to identify areas to get involved in by improving the children’s social experiences; psychologists can know that belonging is instrumental to everyone at a fundamental psychological level and contributes to better adult life outcomes.
References
Baumeister, R. F., & Leary, M. R. (2017). The need to belong: Desire for interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human motivation. Interpersonal development, 57-89.
Gere, J., & MacDonald, G. (2010). An update of the empirical case for the need to belong. Journal of individual psychology, 66(1), 93-115.
Goodenow, C., & Grady, K. E. (1993). The relationship between school belonging and friends’ values and academic motivation among urban adolescent students. The journal of experimental education, 62(1), 60-71.
Juvonen, J. (2007). Reforming middle schools: Focus on continuity, social connectedness, and engagement. Educational Psychologist, 42(4), 197-208.
Riley, K. (2019). Agency and belonging: What transformative actions can schools take to help create a sense of place and belonging? Educational and Child Psychology, 36(4), 91-103.
Shaw, E. (2019). ‘How do I know that I belong?’Exploring secondary-aged pupils’ views on what it means to belong to their school. Educational & Child Psychology, 36(4), 79-89.
Whitlock, J. L. (2006). Youth perceptions of life at school: Contextual correlates of school connectedness in adolescence. Applied Developmental Science, 10(1), 13-29.
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