Abstract
A student’s sense of belonging at school (Goodenow & Grady, 1993) fulfills a universal basic psychological need for relatedness (Ryan & Deci, 2016; Wang et al., 2019) and fosters happiness (Nanda et al., 2025), healthy development (Baumeister & Leary, 1995; Oberle et al., 2023; Osher et al., 2020), and academic success (Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL), 2025a; DiPerna, 2006; Goodenow & Grady, 1993). However, at Gallant Middle School, students’ sense of belonging satisfaction rates were below the district criterion and there were gaps between White and Black students’ sense of belonging. Given these problems and the significant role teachers play in students’ school experiences, this study examined these questions: What teacher practices are happening that facilitate students’ sense of belonging? Do Black students experience belonging differently than their White peers? If so, in what ways? These questions, in conjunction with a literature review on students’ sense of belonging at school, guided an exploratory case study that sought to elevate students’ perspectives through surveys and interviews and triangulate the student data with classroom observations. The study found four key teacher practices that facilitate a sense of belonging for all student groups and did not find significant evidence that Black students experienced belonging differently than White peers. Recommendations toward improving all students’ sense of belonging were made based on the findings.
