Racial/Ethnic Differences in Perceptions of School Climate and Its Association with Student Engagement and Peer Aggression

Abstract

Research indicates that a positive school climate is associated with higher levels of student engagement and lower rates of peer aggression. However, less attention has been given to whether such findings are consistent across racial/ethnic groups. The current study examined whether Black, Hispanic, and White high school students differed in their perceptions of school climate, student engagement, and peer aggression as measured by the Authoritative School Climate survey. In addition, the study tested whether the associations between school climate and both student engagement and peer aggression varied as a function of racial/ethnic group. The sample consisted of 48,027 students in grades 9-12 (51.4 % female; 17.9 % Black, 10.5 % Hispanic, 56.7 % White, and 14.9 % other) attending 323 high schools. Regression models that contrasted racial/ethnic groups controlled for the nesting of students within schools and used student covariates of parent education, student gender, and percentage of schoolmates sharing the same race/ethnicity, as well as school covariates of school size and school percentage of students eligible for free- or reduced-price meals. Perceptions of school climate differed between Black and White groups, but not between Hispanic and White groups. However, race/ethnicity did not moderate the associations between school climate and either engagement or peer aggression. Although correlational and cross-sectional in nature, these results are consistent with the conclusion that a positive school climate holds similar benefits of promoting student engagement and reducing victimization experiences across Black, Hispanic, and White groups.

Attentional Bias for Academic Stressors and Classroom Climate Predict Adolescents’ Grades and Socioemotional Functioning

“…Since we have learned that a low CC exacerbates the negative effects of students’ attentional bias toward academic stressors on their academic and socioemotional functioning, teachers’ role becomes essential in avoiding the creation of an emotionally negative climate and being responsive and supportive. Research has documented that a positive school climate holds clear benefits of promoting students’ engagement and their emotional and social well‐being, also across ethnic groups (Konold, Cornell, Shuckla, & Huang, ). In this regard, specific interventions should be encouraged to promote a positive atmosphere, starting from within the classroom, by strengthening relationships among peers as well as between students and teachers (Thapa, Cohen, Guffey, & Higgins‐D'Alessandro, ).…”

Avaliação do meio escolar: percepções dos profissionais de uma escola pública do interior de São Paulo

“…No entanto, os profissionais da amostra atribuem o agravamento do comportamento dos estudantes, sobretudo aos problemas no contexto familiar e às questões socioeconômicos/desemprego. Essas questões, de fato, estão relacionadas ao desempenho acadêmico do estudante, contudo, estudos evidenciam a importância do clima escolar positivo para que os atores escolares se sintam engajados e respeitados, promovendo um ambiente de aprendizagem social, emocional e ético (Konold et al, 2017;Shukla et al, 2016;Yang et al, 2018). De modo que para o bom comportamento e desempenho do estudante é fundamental o envolvimento dos atores escolares, tendo ciência das regras e normas, sem imposições, na perspectiva de horizontalidade e não de autocracia (Salgado-Junior, Novil, & Ferreira, 2017).…”

Parents’ Perception of School Violence, Awareness of Risk Factors, and School Safety: An Ecological Perspective

“…These programs were based on the assumption that a good school climate is a protective factor against violence and aggression within school boundaries (Bradshaw, et al 2008;Johnson, Waasdrop, Cash, Debnam, Milam, & Bradshaw, 2017). According to these policies, schools are expected to make deliberate efforts to improve school climate and take steps in utilizing various resources such as school climate surveys, action guides, school drills, emergency plans and training programs (Konold, Cornell, Shukla, & Huang, 2017). Modzeleski, Mathews-Younes, Arroyo, Mannix, Wells, Hill, and Murry (2012) have noted that educational institutions are required by a number of policies to show commitment to safety and the reduction of violent behavior and other forms of threats.…”

“…Accordingly, a positive view of the school environment can produce prosocial student behavior and reduced levels of peer aggression and misbehavior at school (Bradshaw, Waasdorp, & Johnson, 2015;Cornell & Huang, 2016). Konold, et al, (2017) indicate that positive school climate is reflected in a high disciplinary structure, supportive teacher-student relationships, and students' high academic expectations.…”