Increasing students’ sense of belonging is a key success measure in the Plan for NSW Public Education. Increasing belonging ensures that students are known, valued and cared for in our schools and lays the foundation for sustained improvements in attendance, literacy and numeracy, and effective post-school pathways.
Alignment with Our Plan for NSW Public Education
The Sense of belonging research series supports the department’s commitment in Our Plan for NSW Public Education to strengthen student wellbeing. Increasing the proportion of students reporting a sense of belonging is a success measure for our goal that every student is known, valued and cared for in our schools. The research series also supports the School Excellence Framework’s three domains. Schools can use this series to reflect on, and modify, their practice in the Framework’s Learning domain (wellbeing), Teaching domain (learning development) and Leading domain (educational leadership, school planning, implementation and reporting).
Students experience a sense of belonging at school when they are recognised and nurtured as individuals. A strong sense of belonging promotes students' wellbeing, academic achievement, and active engagement in their education (Centre for Education Statistics and Evaluation 2019). In NSW public schools, students report on the level of belonging they experience at school through the Tell Them From Me (TTFM) survey. In the TTFM survey, students’ sense of belonging is measured through questions pertaining to peer relationships and inclusion. Trends in TTFM data indicate that students’ sense of belonging at school has been in decline for both primary and secondary school students since 2017. Students in NSW government and non-government schools, and across Australia, have reported declining levels of overall wellbeing year on year. A survey of around 2,000 Australian teachers, administered by Beyond Blue in 2022, indicated that 80% of the teachers surveyed believe poor mental health is one of the biggest issues facing young people. This trend of declining wellbeing is also reflected in international data over the last decade. In light of this national and international context, the Sense of belonging research series seeks to highlight practical strategies that schools are implementing to maintain and uplift students’ sense of belonging.
Belonging can be defined as students’ feelings of being accepted, respected, valued and included by peers and others at school (NSW Department of Education 2023). Research shows that students who experience a sense of belonging in a nurturing school environment have the strong foundations to fulfil their academic potential. Belonging is an important aspect of wellbeing for students to grow into adults who feel confident in the world post-school (Centre for Education Statistics and Evaluation 2020). For Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander students, sense of belonging is closely related to connections to their culture, autonomy and connection to country. Further resources about TTFM’s sense of belonging measures can be found on the Tell Them From Me website.
CESE has created a series of publications which outlines the strategies of schools featured in this website in more detail.
How to use this resource
This resource outlines practical strategies used in diverse school contexts across NSW to facilitate a strong sense of belonging amongst students. The strategies are organised according to whether they can be implemented at the student, whole-school or community level. The strategies are paired with key insights as observed by schools themselves. Further resources can be found at the end of this webpage, including details about each individual school included in the Sense of belonging research series.
Defining sense of belonging
Sense of belonging refers to students’ feelings of being valued by their peers and by others at school. It reflects the extent to which students feel personally accepted, respected, included, and supported by others at school. Students’ sense of belonging is connected to their academic achievement and overall wellbeing. Sense of belonging has a strong influence on students’ academic motivation and outcomes. Students who have a strong sense of belonging also tend to be happier, have greater interest in school activities, and are more confident (NSW Department of Education 2023). The Ambassador Schools project identified a focus on wellbeing and emotional support as a key enabling factor for effective school practice. Fostering wellbeing, and by extension sense of belonging, involves supporting students with an ethos of kindness and care. Sense of belonging is achieved when students feel deeply understood for their circumstances and needs (NSW Department of Education 2023).
The Department has published research findings and resources for schools highlighting the importance of belonging in a series of publications and websites.
How the schools were selected
Schools were selected for this research series based on their high sense of belonging scores in the TTFM student survey relative to the NSW average. In the TTFM survey, students’ sense of belonging is measured through questions pertaining to peer relationships and inclusion.
The research also includes two communities where a pair of schools in close proximity have worked collaboratively to support students’ belonging. These schools are Lambton High School and New Lambton South Public School; and Temora High School and Temora Public School. The findings for these schools are presented together to highlight the influence of community factors on student belonging.
Schools involved in this research series
| School | Principal network | Family Occupation and Education Index | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Epping Public School | Metropolitan North (Gordon) | -0.98 | School with a high sense of belonging scores for girls in comparison to boys |
| Girraween High School | Metropolitan South (Girraween) | 2 | Fully selective school |
| Lambton High School | Regional North (Newcastle) | 55 | Schools located near each other in a community, both demonstrating above average sense of belonging scores |
| New Lambton South Public School | Regional North (Glenrock) | 39 | |
| Macarthur Girls High School | Metropolitan South (Parramatta) | 59 | Single sex girls’ school |
| The Meadows Public School | Metropolitan South and West (Bungaribee) | 110 | School with a high proportion of students from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds |
| Temora High School | Rural South and West (Temora) | 115 | Schools located near each other in a community, both demonstrating above average sense of belonging scores |
| Temora Public School | Rural South and West (Temora) | 97 |