Empirical Validation of a Model for Predicting Students' Sense of Belonging and School Engagement as a Function of Classroom Management Practices

Abstract

Over the last two decades, several studies have overlooked at-school belonging and engagement, two dimensions that are associated with several positive outcomes. However, the relative influence that contexts and interventions may have on these components has received much less attention. In this study, school belonging and engagement were examined as a function of the implementation and application of classroom rules. The study took place in two Moroccan schools, and participants were 238 students from 9th grade (101 boys, 137 girls; Mage = 15.1) living in the cities of Casablanca and Témara. They all completed a questionnaire that allowed to measure their belonging and engagement in conjunction with the manner in which rules are implemented and applied. Correlational and structural equation modeling methods were used to analyze the aforementioned relationships. Results showed that implementation of classroom rules had a positive effect on school belonging, which, in turn, had a positive effect on school engagement. These results indicated the need to conduct further empirical research to measure the contribution of classroom management practices on school belonging.