Student and Teacher Perceptions of Their Middle and High Schools' Sense of Community.

Abstract This study investigated the sense of community at a Midwestern school district's middle and high schools. Students and teachers completed the School Ethical Climate Index (SECI) to assess the schools' sense of community. Middle school student and teacher perceptions of their school's sense of community were significantly more positive than high school student and teacher perceptions across all SECI subscales. Regardless of school level, teachers rated teacher to student interactions and relationships significantly more positive than students. There was a significant positive relationship between student perceptions of their schools' sense of community and their attendance and academic achievement. Recommendations were made to enhance the schools' sense of community by integrating opportunities for students to practice prosocial skills within classroom activities. Key Words: sense of community, school climate, middle school, high school. Introduction Recent world events and violence at schools throughout the nation indicate that schools need to be concerned about developing humane citizens, people who are concerned about the feelings and welfare of others (Noddings, 1988, 1992; Watson, Battistich, & Solomon, 1997). In order to develop humane citizens, schools must establish a sense of community within their physical structures where students and teachers honor one another. A sense of community has been defined as "a feeling of belongingness within a group" (Osterman, 2000, p. 323) and "based on the ethics of acceptance of otherness with respect, justice, and appreciation and on peaceful cooperation within difference" (Furman, 1998, p. 312). A school with a positive sense of community is characterized by caring relationships (Bryk & Driscoll, 1988; Noddings, 1988, 1992). Evidence abounds for why there is a need for a positive sense of community within schools. A lack of belongingness has been associated with incidence of mental and physical illness, behavior problems, teen suicide, violence in schools, loneliness, delinquency, withdrawal, aggression, drug and alcohol abuse, eating disorders, depression, drop outs, teen pregnancy, vandalism, diminished motivation, and poor academic performance (Battistich & Hom, 1997; Baumeister & Leary, 1995; Bryk & Driscoll, 1988; Deci, Vallerand, Pelletier, & Ryan, 1991; Kagan, 1990; Newmann, 1981; Osterman, 2000). For teachers a sense of belonging is associated with greater job satisfaction and reduced absenteeism (Bryk & Driscoll); for students it is associated with positive social and personal attitudes and increased participation, motivation, and engagement in school, resulting in academic success (Bryk & Driscoll; Deci et al.; Goodenow, 1993; Goodenow & Grady, 1993; Ryan, Stiller, & Lynch, 1994; Wentzel, 1998). In schools, both students and teachers share rights and responsibilities to promote a caring, supportive school community (Bryk & Driscoll). Interactions and Relationships For the purposes of this study, a school's sense of community was assessed by the degree to which five ethical principles were present within the interactions and relationships of students and teachers, specifically student to teacher, student to student, and teacher to student interactions and relationships. Attention to these three types of interactions and relationships is important in developing a positive sense of community within schools. According to Noddings (1988), in a caring, supportive school, students respond positively to teachers by actively engaging in school, and students encourage and support one another so that collaboration and cooperation, not competition, are the norm. Other researchers have found that in a caring school teachers support and respect students, which results in student engagement and achievement (Goodenow, 1993; Ryan et al., 1994; Wentzel, 1998). Wentzel contends that in order for prosocial development to occur, positive student to student interactions and relationships must exist. …