Sense of Belonging and Academic Engagement in the College Classroom: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach

• In Event: Poster Session 11
  In Poster Session: Motivational Beliefs in Instructional Contexts

Abstract

This study tested a two-factor SEM model that college students’ sense of belonging would predict academic engagement in the classroom, and both constructs would be predicted by course attribute variables. The study further examined whether sense of belonging could mediate the relationships between course attributes and academic engagement. Data were collected from 349 undergraduate students, using online surveys. Results showed that sense of belong was predictive of greater academic engagement. Also, large class size with more than 25 people negatively predicted sense of belonging while interest-based course choice positively predicted both sense of belonging and academic engagement. Additionally, results indicated that student sense of belonging mediated the effects of course attributes (e.g., class size, reason for course-choice) on academic engagement.

Authors

• Jeonghyun Jonna Lee, The University of Texas - Austin

• Kejin Lee, University of Nebraska - Lincoln

• Diane L. Schallert, The University of Texas - Austin