The Role of School Connectedness and Social Support in the Acculturation in Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Youth in Australia

Abstract

Objective: The current study investigated the relationship of demographic and social ecology factors (social support and school connectedness) with acculturation of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) youth. Method: Participants comprised of 237 CALD youth, from migrant and refugee backgrounds, attending a specialised Australian school designed to address English language development and re-settlement needs of CALD youth. Results: Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that after controlling for demographic factors, school connectedness and social support explained a significant percentage of the variance. Conclusion: This study has implications for assisting CALD youth in schools. Findings highlight the need for further research exploring the modifiable factors that promote school connectedness and social support. Interventions and effective practices that enhance school connectedness and social support for CALD youth are identified as likely to contribute to successful acculturation.

Preliminary investigation of the psychological sense of school membership scale with primary school students in a cross-cultural context

“…For example, Gaete and colleagues investigated school belonging's relation with mental health problems in students in Chile and found that school belonging was associated with reduced emotional, conduct, hyperactivity, and peer problems (Gaete et al, 2016). Khawaja, Allan, and Schweitzer (2017) found similar results for students in Australia, linking school connectedness to a variety of positive outcomes. These studies, among others, support the findings that school belonging has significant benefits for students, A substantial body of research has investigated school climate and school belonging with adolescent or early adolescent populations (Cowden et al, 2016;You, Ritchey, Furlong, Shochet, & Boman, 2011).…”

Refugee students' perspectives on inclusive and exclusive school experiences in Austria

“…School connectedness is seen as a multidimensional concept manifested at different levels. These include an emotional (i.e., feeling safe, supported and valued by teachers and peers), behavioural (i.e., engagement with school activities) and cognitive level (i.e., faith in school values and its significance) (Khawaja, Allan, & Schweitzer, ). School connectedness is considered to have a number of positive outcomes for students, including protecting students' mental health, enhancing self‐esteem and efficacy and improving wellbeing (Fazel, Garcia, & Stein, ).…”

“…In addition to school connectedness, scholars have also found that social support—instrumental and emotional support—enhances refugee students' integration process, protecting students from mental health issues and helping their psychological adjustment to the new environment (Khawaja et al, ). In Austrian schools, instrumental support emphasises language acquisition.…”

Strengths and difficulties questionnaire-teacher: Investigating its factor structure and utility with culturally and linguistically diverse students

“…An earlier study indicated that gender can impact adaptation, as CALD boys have shown a higher psychological adaptation, while the CALD girls revealed more sociocultural adaptation (Berry, Phinney, Sam, & Vedder, 2006). Nevertheless, more recent investigations have found no gender differences (Khawaja, Allan, & Schweitzer, 2018;Khawaja et al, 2017). Compared to migrants there is a higher prevalence of psychological and behavioural difficulties among those who are from a refugee background (Leth, Niclasen, Ryding, Baroud, & Esbjørn, 2014;Momartin et al, 2006).…”