Abstract

In an asynchronous online undergraduate statistics course, an intervention was designed and introduced to increase students’ feelings of belonging within the class. Students reported their feelings of belonging at the beginning and end of the semester, along with various perceptions about the course. Overall, feelings of belonging significantly increased across the semester, coinciding with the introduction of the social belonging intervention. This was the case even though students reported that they were initially anxious and not excited about the class. Importantly, the change in belonging scores was particularly pronounced for first generation college students, who began the course with lower initial belonging scores compared to their continuing-generation peers. Additionally, higher social belonging scores were correlated with: more knowledge, more confidence, more excitement, more time spent on classwork, and better predicted final grades. These findings suggest that fostering feelings of social belonging is associated with positive outcomes across both academic and social domains.

Keywords: social belonging, student engagement, academic achievement, first generation, educational intervention

How to Cite:

Jordan, A., (2025) “The Connection Between Social Belonging and Classroom Success: A Correlational Study”, Teaching and Learning Conference Proceedings 1(1).

Accompanying TLC Presentation Video