by KAREN GRAVET, ROLA AJJAWI and SARAH O’SHEA
Approximately 15 per cent of students leave university early, but for those from equity backgrounds this figure is significantly higher. Whilst students depart higher education for a number of reasons, successful persistence is often equated to learners’ perceptions of “belonging”. Achieving a “sense of belonging has become similar to a magical elixir, if individual institutions get the “belonging” ingredients right then the result will be satisfied and successful learners.
Our research indicates that this assumption may be flawed for a number of reasons. Firstly, students told us that belonging can be understood in multiple ways, often contrary to accepted understandings. Belonging is not location specific nor do learners necessarily want to “belong” to a whole university – a generalised “one size fits all” idea of belonging may actually lead to feelings of exclusion. Finally, belonging is not a neutral term, it is tied to notions of power in terms of who has the power to define who belongs and how belonginess is conveyed.
Drawing upon student video blogs (vlogs) and concurrent interviews, our data contributes further insights into the complexity of relational processes within higher education practices and pedagogies. The students in this international study experienced belonging as something active, purposeful and connected to a bigger purpose. The vlogs powerfully showcased how individuals created remote spaces of belonging via curation of desks, rooms and resources.
But many students may need additional support to create such spatial certainties, particularly in remote learning settings or when experiencing hardship. Equally, not all learners strive to “belong” and, in this study, some reflected that this state of “belonging” could cause discomfort or masking. In interviews and vlogs, participants narrated the active choices made in relation to belonging, and how this might be desired in some spaces and communities but not others.
Overall, belonging and non-belonging really do matter to students, but more attention is needed to unpack this complex area in ways that fit with the diversity of our students. Instead of focusing solely on belonging, we challenge the sector to consider what non- belonging might look like and to interrogate a generalised acceptance that there is always value in achieving belongingness.
Dr Karen Gravett, @k_gravett: Senior Lecturer in Higher Education, University of Surrey [email protected]
Professor Rola Ajjawi, @r_ajjawi: Professor Education Research, CRADLE, Deakin University, [email protected]
Professor Sarah O’Shea, @seos895, Higher Education Researcher, Curtin University [email protected]