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Abstract

This paper is based on data from a phenomenological study with 79 primary school students of Grade 5 (aged 11–12 years) recruited through purposive and maximum variation sampling from both urban and rural areas of Bangladesh. Semi-structured one-on-one and focus group interviews were conducted with students to gain an in-depth understanding of their conceptualisation of a sense of belonging at school. Interpretative phenomenological analysis is used to analyse the data. The study's findings showed that students’ conceptualisation of a sense of belonging was multiple and interrelated. They comprised (1) a sense of belonging as being loved and cared for by teachers and peers, (2) a sense of belonging as being supported by teachers for academic progress, and (3) a sense of belonging as a feeling of accomplishment in academic success. The findings have implications for schooling practices in Bangladesh.

Keywords

Bangladesh phenomenology primary school sense of belonging

Introduction

The need to belong has biological roots, and the human desire to form and maintain a relationship may have both survival and reproductive benefits (Allen et al., 2025; Baumeister & Leary, 1995). In the school context, a sense of belonging is “the extent to which students feel personally accepted, respected, included and supported by the others in the school social environment” (Goodenow, 1993, p. 80). It is more than mere enrolment or attendance; it is a social bond among peers, teachers, and other school staff (Allen et al., 2021). A growing body of empirical research has shown that students’ sense of school belonging has a direct and significant impact on their academic engagement, achievement, and attendance (Allen et al., 2021; Barron et al., 2024; Korpershoek et al., 2020). Sense of belonging to school is also positively related to psychological well-being and negatively connected to emotional problems (Arslan & Allen, 2021). Lack of belonging can lead to social exclusion and play a critical role in developing strong negative emotions such as hopelessness, anxiety, hostility, withdrawal, and depressive symptoms (Dutcher et al., 2022; Fisher et al., 2015). Conversely, students with a strong sense of belonging are motivated, engaged, participatory, and more likely to learn (Barron et al., 2024; Firouzjah et al., 2024; Korpershoek et al., 2020). Most empirical studies conducted in the United States on school belonging focused on quantitative measures to identify relationships between different senses of belonging and their influence on school outcomes (Slaten et al., 2016). In contrast, little is known about how students experience a sense of belonging through documentation of insider perspectives, particularly in Bangladeshi cultural contexts.

The development of schools where all students feel connected to learning remains one of the most critical issues facing Bangladesh's education system. Bangladesh has developed key education policies and legislation to promote inclusive education for all students since 2001 (e.g., the National Plan of Action 2003–2015 and the Persons with Disabilities Welfare Act 2001). These policies aim to support effective education and make students feel welcome at school, regardless of their gender, ability, ethnicity, or socio-economic status. Despite ongoing initiatives and continued government policies and funding to categorised school-aged population (children with disabilities, working children, children from low-income families, and ethnic groups), many Bangladeshi students remain out of school, irregular and disengaged from school learning activities (Ahmed et al. 2016).

Recent understandings of student diversity in educational and social science focus not on discrete concepts of race, gender, disability, or socio-economic status but rather on “centring on issues of power and language and the lived experience of curriculum and pedagogy” (Moss, 2013, p. 148). A key measure of inclusion of children from diverse groups is their experience of meaningful participation in school and their sense of belonging (Long & Guo, 2023). The concern is that students’ understanding of belongingness and their emotional and social bonding have not been extensively explored. Limited studies have investigated the lived experiences of what makes students feel connected to school and how motivated and engaged they are in learning.

The study is set to critically explore and analyse issues related to primary school students’ sense of belonging in Bangladesh. The study uses a phenomenological qualitative research approach and postcolonial theorising to explore how Bangladeshi students might perceive and experience such belonging. The study aims to explore the meanings ascribed to these experiences for grade five primary students. The main question underlying this research is as follows:

How do Bangladeshi primary school students conceptualise a sense of belonging?

Method

This study employed a phenomenological research approach to explore the lived experiences of school belonging among primary school students in Bangladesh. The central aim of phenomenology is to illuminate the essential structures of a shared phenomenon as it is experienced by individuals (Creswell, 2014). Given that the “essence” of such experiences emerges through the researcher's systematic analysis of detailed participant descriptions (Giorgi, 2009), this approach was deemed most appropriate for uncovering the nuanced meanings of school belongingness from the students’ own perspectives.

The study participants comprised 88 Grade 5 students (female = 43) recruited from 13 government primary schools across Bangladesh. Grade 5 students were selected purposively, as it was assumed that their age and prolonged exposure to the school environment would enable them to articulate their experiences of belonging with greater depth and reflection. To capture a wide spectrum of experiences, a combination of purposive and maximum variation sampling was employed (Creswell, 2014). Participants were selected from three distinct districts representing key socio-economic and ethnic contexts:

Kurigram: Representing a region with low socio-economic status.

Rangamati: Representing a region with a predominant Indigenous population.

Naraynganj: Representing a general population with mixed and varied backgrounds.

Within each district, schools were further stratified by location (urban/rural) and academic performance (high- or low-performing), as detailed in Table 1.

Table 1.

Sampling by District and School Types.

District	Nature of the school		No. of primary schools	No. of focus group interviews (6–7 students)	No. of individual interviews
Narayangonj (General)	Urban	High performing	1	1
	Urban	Low performing	2	2
	Rural	High performing	1	1
	Rural	Low performing	1	1	1
Rangamati (inhabited by predominantly Indigenous people)	Urban	High performing	1	1
	Urban	Low performing	1	1	1
	Rural	High performing	1	1
	Rural	Low performing	1	1	2
Kurigram (Low socio-economic)	Urban	High performing	1	1	1
	Urban	Low performing	1	1	1
	Rural	High performing	1	1	2
	Rural	Low performing	1	1	1
Total			13	13 (79 students)	9

One-on-one and focus group interviews, each lasting between 60 and 90 min (with an average length of 75 min), were conducted to collect data. Interviews were conducted in Bangla (participants’ first language). Data was collected with ethics approval from Monash University Australia [(Project Number ####) ]. Along with nine individual interviews, 13 focus group interviews were conducted. Approximately 6 to 7 students participated in each of the focus groups. The interview sessions engaged students through the use of post-it notes, mind mapping, brainstorming, probing questions, and discussion.

These interviews were semi-structured, meaning that the interview questions were based on a set of preconceived topics and areas, although modified as needed during the interview (Lichtman, 2013). Interview questions were based on constructs identified in previous literature and aligned with the research aims of this study, which aimed to depict participants’ experiences of school belonging, encompassing dimensions of relationships with peers, teachers, staff, and the physical environment. Sample questions included: How do you know others in the school care for students? How do students see an adult in the school who respects students? What makes students want to do their best at school? What do teachers do to make you want to do your best? Using a conversational style, probes — rather than leading questions — were employed throughout the interview, such as “Can you give me an example of that?” and “Tell me more.” Individual interviews consisted of semi-structured questions, similar to those in focus group interviews. However, with a more personal or individual focus, for instance, What do you think teachers need to know about you? How do you know others in the school care for you? How do you see an adult in the school respect you? What do you think about your school facilities? What parts of the school make you most comfortable?

A key reflexive consideration was the potential influence of cultural norms, particularly deference to authority, on student responses. In Bangladeshi society, children are often socialised to show respect to adults and may be hesitant to express critical opinions. To mitigate this, the interviewers explicitly framed the session as a unique opportunity for students’ voices to be heard, assuring them that there were no right or wrong answers. The use of focus groups, while potentially susceptible to peer influence, was also strategically used to build collective confidence, allowing shyer students to contribute after hearing their peers. In individual interviews, questions were carefully phrased to reduce evaluative pressure (e.g., “Why might a student not attend school?” rather than “Why don't you attend?”), and prolonged engagement through activities helped build rapport and trust.

All interviews were conducted in Bangla, the participants’ first language, using semi-structured protocols that incorporated participatory activities, such as post-it notes and mind mapping, to encourage open expression. All the interviews were audio-recorded and subsequently transcribed verbatim in the original language before data analysis began. To ensure accuracy, the Bangla transcripts underwent a rigorous two-stage verification process: an initial review by the researcher, followed by a secondary check by the co-author. Any discrepancies were resolved by re-listening to the original audio recordings until a consensus was reached. These verified Bangla transcripts served as the primary text for thematic analysis and the identification of relevant participant quotes and extracts. Pseudonyms were used while reporting the data to ensure the anonymity of the participants.

The present study employed a modified approach, based on the work of Moustakas (1994) (See Figure 1). We adapted this approach to explicitly account for our position as interpreters within a specific cultural context. This process, detailed in Figure 1, involved immersion in the transcripts, identifying significant statements, and constructing meaning units to develop textured descriptions of the participants’ experiences.

Figure 1.

Adapted from Moustakas (1994).

Crucially, our approach was interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA), which acknowledges the double hermeneutic: we are interpreting the participants who are interpreting their own world (Smith, 1997; Smith et al., 2013). This required constant, critical self-awareness of how our own positions as researchers familiar with both Bangladeshi culture and Western academic frameworks shaped the analysis. We actively interrogated our assumptions to ensure that the emerging themes were grounded in the data rather than imposed upon it.

Multiple strategies were employed to ensure the trustworthiness of the findings. Data triangulation was achieved by comparing themes from individual and focus group interviews. Furthermore, an external check was conducted where the second author independently reviewed the coded data and themes, leading to a refined and agreed-upon thematic structure through discursive consensus.

A paramount concern was the preservation of linguistic and cultural meaning during translation and transcription. The process was not a simple literal translation but a hermeneutic exercise. All interviews were first transcribed verbatim in Bangla. Initial coding and thematic identification were conducted in Bangla to remain as close as possible to the original emotional and cultural connotations. Key excerpts were then translated into English for reporting. This translation was a collaborative effort among the bilingual research team, focusing on capturing the meaning of idioms, metaphors, and emotional tone, rather than just lexical accuracy. For instance, culturally specific concepts such as shoman (equal treatment) or bhalobasha (deep, affectionate love) were discussed at length to find the most fitting English equivalents that convey their contextual weight, acknowledging that some semantic nuance is inevitably lost in this process.

To ensure the rigour and accuracy of all translations, a verification procedure was implemented. Following initial theme and code development, a random sample of the original Bangla quotes was selected. These were re-translated on the spot and compared against the pre-existing translated texts in the dataset. Any discrepancies were discussed collaboratively to arrive at a final translation that most accurately reflected the participants’ intended meanings, with careful consideration given to cultural context and colloquialisms.

This reflexive approach to methodology—acknowledging the influence of cultural power dynamics, the interpretative role of the researcher, and the complexities of cross-language research—was integral to producing a rich, credible, and contextually grounded understanding of school belonging in Bangladesh.

Findings

Theme One: Being Loved and Cared for by Teachers and Peers

Love and care from the school community, particularly from teachers and peers, were the most common aspects that students described when discussing how they felt a sense of belonging to their school, as shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2.

Themes and sub-Themes Related to Being Loved and Cared for by Teachers and Peers.

Teachers’ love and care made the students feel at home and part of the school. As such, students’ narratives evidenced:

“When teachers adore us, I feel this school is mine.” (Sumona, Girl, Rural)

“When the teacher adores me, then I feel the class is mine.” (Rani, Girl, Rural)

“When teachers behave well with us, I feel [I] belong to the school.” (Ratul, Boy, Urban)

“I like my school very much. Teachers take care of us a lot. I feel I belong at this school.” (Robin, Boy, Rual)

The data showed that students have varied views about teachers’ “care” and “love.” Students repeatedly used Bangla words such as ‘Valobasa,’ ‘Pochondo kora,’ ‘Ador kora,’ and ‘Maya kora,’ which equate to English words for love, like, adore, and kindness, in describing the teacher's love and care, as well as their sense of belonging. Though students usually use these words to symbolise love and care, there are subtle differences. While students use ‘love’ and ‘like’ to describe a teacher's general liking, they use ‘adore’ and ‘kind’ to describe a friendly and kind teacher.

In this study, students understood teachers’ love and care in terms of (i) being nice, (ii) encouragement, and (iii) the absence of punishment. Teachers who behave nicely, encourage students, and refrain from using punishment in class are perceived as loving and caring. Teachers’ polite behaviour, kind gestures, warmth, attention, and care made them pleasant. Some students understood teachers as being nice when they took extra care of them and gave them individual attention. For example,

Sir [teacher] loves me very much. Once I lost my notebook and reported it to my teacher, the teacher gave me 10 taka to buy the book and return to class. If students’ tiffins get spoiled, teachers buy tiffins for us. (Rakhi, Girl, Rural)

A few students mentioned that teachers being friendly, in terms of their physical closeness, was a sign of their love and care. As such, “[Teachers] talk to us nicely. They come to sit next to us. They are very kind to us. She puts her hand on my head and says, “Study well.” (Shanta, Girl, Rural)

Some students described teachers’ love and care as encouragement through storytelling, advice, and kind words. For example, “When the class lesson is completed, teachers tell us stories about something good. Advise us to live like those characters in the stories. Encourage us for good work” (Onick, Boy, Urban).

Students also highlighted the absence of corporal punishment as a sign of teachers’ love and care. The following narratives were significant: Amin:

Sir, this school has many students, and the teachers are very good. They love us as their children.

Interviewer:

How do you know that?

Amin:

Sir, the teachers of this school adore us.

Interviewer:

How?

Amin:

Sir, [teachers] never beat us.

Soma:

Sir loves me medium [sic] when I can perform my class task; [teacher] loves us [me] more.

Interviewer:

What do you mean by that?

Soma:

Sir adores us, so do not scold or beat [us]. Teacher says, “You will study more. You can do better.” (F₁₃HRL)

Shishir:

I like [the school] very much because the Madam [teacher] behaves very well with us.

Interviewer:

How?

Shishir:

Teacher] does not beat us. (F₅-LUG)

Besides teachers, students’ narratives revealed the importance of love and care from peers. They identified peers’ love and care, as well as the sense of togetherness among peer groups, through their presence at school, spending time together, and interactions. Meeting friends is the most desirable aspect of attending school. Students’ comments revealed the connection between peer friendship, psychological state, attendance, and feelings towards the school.

When friends come to school, I feel better. (Sadik, boy, Urban)

Everybody in the class is like my friends, and I feel like they are like brothers and sisters to me, so I feel good. Hence, I feel good coming to school. (Shilu, Girl, Urban)

When friends behave well and play with me, I feel like I belong in school (Tonmoy, Boy, Rural).

Students mostly mentioned chatting and playing as ways to enjoy the company of their peers. Playing with peers was the most significant event, specifically in terms of how students interacted with their peers.

Students also described sharing tiffin or snacks with friends as a way of showing love and care. The following quotes show how Ferdousi, Sumon, and Tuni found sharing food with friends. Ferdousi:

Sir, we share. If one cannot bring a tiffin, we will share [tiffin].

Interviewer:

What do you give?

Ferdousi:

Rice, whatever we bring, we share. (Girl, Urban)

Sumon:

When they play, they take me with them. When they eat anything, they share it with me. (Boy, Rural)

Tuni:

I really like this school. ….because, during the tiffin break, we all share our food with others. If anybody does not bring it, we will share it. (Girl, Rural)

Students’ narratives revealed that peer relationships were often limited to a select group of friends or peers. Instead, students desire a whole-school acceptance, including participation and success in school activities. For example:

I feel best when every student can do the class task very well. (Ratul, Boy, Rural)

Everybody in the school remains together to have fun. When everybody helps everybody. If we all study together in the school and succeed together, it feels like we belong to the school (Tanjim, Boy, Urban)

Theme Two: Being Supported for Academic Progress

Students in the present study feel they belong to the school through the academic support provided by their teachers and peers, as depicted in Figure 3. Teachers’ academic support (or lack thereof) was the most frequently mentioned aspect of students’ sense of belonging to their school. Students’ perceived teachers’ academic support varied by individual student and school. Students mainly described two key elements of teachers’ academic support: teachers’ regular attendance in class and the quality of instruction.

Figure 3.

Themes and sub-Themes Related to Being Supported by Teachers for Academic Progress.

Many students mentioned the importance of teachers’ presence in class and being on time in class in connection to their sense of belonging to school. In response to the question about when you feel you belong to the school, students’ written comments on post-it notes in focus groups include the following quotes:

When the teacher takes our class regularly (Tapan, Boy, Rural).

When Madams come to class, we feel good; we study well (Roy, Boy, Urban).

I feel good when teachers take the class on time (Soma, Girl, Urban).

Besides, regarding the quality of instruction, students’ narratives revealed that how teachers explain lesson content and make learning joyful matter the most. Students recurrently mentioned how their teacher presents the lesson in class in connection to their sense of belonging to the school. Students noted that a good learning experience is often associated with positive feelings about their school, and vice versa. In response to the question of how students perceived effective teaching, they primarily identified how clearly teachers explained the lesson to them, as indicated in the following exchanges: Riken:

The Teacher teaches me the lessons correctly.

Interviewer:

How do you know the teacher is teaching you properly?

Riken:

[Teachers] explain [the lesson to] me, and I understand the explanation.

Silu:

The Teacher explains the lessons well.

Interviewer:

What do you mean? Can you explain further?

Silu:

What we do not understand, [teachers] explain orally and by writing on the board. (F₁₀HUL)

Both focus group and individual interview data indicated that teachers’ instructional methods were associated with students’ positive classroom experiences. Students identified different instructional strategies, such as “discuss that (difficult) part of the text,” “explain by drawing a picture,” or “repeat again and again,” that make them feel good about classroom instruction. The data indicated that interactive activities in classroom teaching provided positive classroom experiences. Simple classroom activities, such as the freedom to ask questions and the opportunity to write in their notebooks or on the blackboard, made some students feel better about their school.

Joyful teaching-learning methods, such as reciting, singing, acting, and telling jokes and stories, improve the instructional quality and make the students more engaged and attached to the class and the teacher. In focus groups, students provided rich discussions about their classroom practices.

Interviewer: What makes you feel the happiest in class, Tuni?

Tuni: English and science are the most interesting classes, and we laugh a lot. Sabrina Madam takes the English class and presents English dialogue lessons using drama. And Saiful Sir takes a science class. He really can explain everything [lessons] through laughter and fun. (Girl, Urban)

Puspo: If any of us is [sic] being inattentive in class, teachers understand that we do not feel good. Teachers ask us to tell a story or to sing a song. Teachers make us feel good by reciting a poem or singing a song. When we feel good again, they return to teaching from the textbook. (Girl, Urban)

Students also associated peers with study support and encouragement when asked what made them feel like they belonged to the school. Peer support in studying, preparing for a task, or just letting the class know tasks for upcoming classes was revealed as peers caring for their classmates. Roky and Joy provided examples of academic support from peers. Rocky:

We stay together. If I don't understand anything, my friends help me. When I do not get a word, a friend tells me. (Boy, Urban)

Interviewer:

Joy?

Joy:

If I cannot do any task, [peers] help me. Help me when I do not know a word's pronunciation. They let me know about the homework if I don't come to school. (Boy, Urban).

Theme Three: Feeling of Accomplishment

Figure 4 presents the third theme emerged as an individual's connection to school. Students primarily indicated performance concerning: a) being capable of completing the class task (“when I can do/ complete the class task every day”), b) performing well in classroom tasks (“when I study well”), and c) recognition for doing well (“I do better in the examination”).

Figure 4.

Themes and sub-Themes Related to Feeling of Accomplishment.

Most students indicated that being “able to do the class task/answer the question from the task” influenced their school attendance. When asked when the students like to come to school, one student replied, “When we prepare the lesson and finish our homework well” (Tony, Girl, Urban). Conversely, when the students asked why some students did not like to come to school, one student replied, “Teacher will ask [students] for the task, [but as they] do not prepare the lesson, so they do not come to school” (Rafi, Boy, Rural).

However, motivations for preparing class tasks varied among students. Several students associated their motivation with being recognised, loved, or praised by teacher or peers: “When I can do the class task, the teacher says, ‘thank you’ and everybody claps for me”; “patting on the head”; “when teachers are happy to see our lesson done”; and “when I can give my lesson, and teachers adore me.” Several others commented that the motivation for doing tasks came from not being mocked or punished in class. Students described their fears: “When I cannot do the class task, everybody makes fun of me, I feel [like] crying”; or “When [we] cannot do the study [class task], [teachers] beat us.”

Students’ sense of belonging emerged not from their ability to complete a classroom task but when they could “complete the task well” or “study well.” One of the students explained: “If [we] can perform class task [complete class task, oral or written] every day in class” (Tara, Girl, Rural). Students described their consistent classroom performance in terms of their connection with and attachment to school. For example, “I can give class tasks every day, for this, I feel great about it,” or “When I can do the class task in every class.” Other students associated performing best in the class “can perform the best in most of the tasks”; “Can perform the most [in class]” with feeling good about the classroom.

While some students connected their belonging experiences to classroom recognition through class performance, others associated personalised feelings of happiness or satisfaction with their studying or homework in class or at home with their sense of school belonging. For example, one student elaborated, “When I can understand the lesson well, I feel good” (Sonjoy, Boy, Rural). Conversely, students’ narratives revealed that when they did not understand class activities, they did not feel a sense of belonging to the school.

Some students reported not only individual but also whole-class or whole-school academic performance in relation to their sense of belonging to the school. Students highlighted their combined success in class activities, which connected them to a sense of belonging. When asked when they felt a sense of belonging, one student responded with similar statements:

When all the students study attentively. Perform well in the class; it feels good (Raju, Boy, Rural)

We all performed well in the exam. Nobody failed. It felt good (Tonni, Girl, Rural)

Getting recognition for good performance is also related to students’ sense of belonging to the school. Students described recognition in terms of school grades, academic standing, and praise from the teachers, peers, and others. In response to the question of when they feel like they belong to the school, students replied on a sticky note, “I feel [I] belong when I stood first in the examination and got praise from all at school” (Shan, Boy, Urban).

In addition to academic performance, some students identified participating in co-curricular activities, such as annual sports or performance days, as their best days at school. Ankhi (Girl, Urban) depicted her performance at a cultural function at school:

In 2011, on Rabindranath Tagore's [a Bengali poet] birthday celebration programme, I was in grade three…I have got a chance to recite ‘Dui Bigha’ [poetry]. I also got a prize on that day. I feel excellent on that day. (F₈HRG)

Another student recalled his sports achievement as one of the best days: “When I was in grade four, there was a football game at the end of the year. We won the game, and I felt excellent” (Ratul, Boy, Urban).

Discussion

The findings of this study illuminate three primary conceptualisations of school belonging among Bangladeshi students: (a) being loved and cared for by teachers and peers, (b) academic support, and (c) a sense of personal accomplishment. While the first two dimensions align with established Western psychological frameworks in some respect (Baumeister & Leary, 1995; Ryan & Deci, 2000), the third—and its central role—compels a critical re-examination of the universal applicability of these dominant models. This discussion employs a postcolonial critique to argue that the students’ experiences are not merely cultural variations but are profoundly shaped by the colonial legacies and neocolonial realities of their educational system, thereby challenging the sufficiency of Western-centric conceptualisations of belonging (Chin, 2019).

The first point of tension lies in the conceptualisation of belonging as an innate, affective need. While consistent with the global literature, our findings confirm that positive emotional relationships with teachers and peers are a strong component of belonging (Baumeister & Leary, 1995; Mahar et al., 2013). However, the data complicate this view by positioning belonging as equally conditional and instrumental. The finding that “a feeling of personal accomplishment at school was also important “ directly challenges the purity of the Western model. A similar notion is found in Juliyabadu Gunathilake et al.'s (2025) study with Indian students, where school belonging was found to be conditional upon academic performance. From a postcolonial perspective, this cannot be dismissed as a mere cultural variant; it must be seen as a manifestation of an education system moulded by a specific historical trajectory (Adjei, 2010; Davids, 2025). The students’ linkage of belonging to academic accomplishment and the fear of punishment for failure reveals a system in which a student's worth is contingent upon their performance (Agbenyega, 2008). This aligns with the historical function of the British colonial education model, which was designed not for holistic development but for the stratified production of a clerical class through rigid, examination-focused instruction (Adjei, 2010; Bhambra, 2014; Davids, 2025). The contemporary Bangladeshi system, with its documented emphasis on rote memorisation (Nath & Sylva, 2007), is a direct descendant of this structure. Consequently, the Western ideal of a relatively unconditional relational belonging appears as a luxury not afforded in a context where educational survival is predicated on measurable performance within a colonial-derived framework.

Furthermore, the notion of “reciprocal” relationships with teachers, often emphasised in Western literature (Hill, 2006; Kiefer et al., 2015; Mahar et al., 2013), requires critical interrogation through a postcolonial lens. In the Bangladeshi context, the reciprocity described is inherently asymmetrical. Students bond with teachers who offer “kind, encouraging words and equal treatment,” but the power dynamic remains fundamentally vertical, a residue of the guru-shishya (teacher-disciple) tradition often reinforced by colonial-era authoritarian pedagogy (Agbenyega, 2008; Davids, 2025; Seth, 2007). The students’ belonging is contingent on navigating this hierarchy successfully. The “love and care” they seek is not the egalitarian friendship of Western models but a benevolent paternalism. Beyond general emotional support, students directly linked their sense of belonging to academic encouragement and pedagogical practices.The finiding is in accorance to that of the study by Khuhro and Khuhro (2023) in Pakistan, suggesting that educational support provision offered to children belonging. Students in the present study felt a stronger connection to the school when given support to fulfil their learning needs and given ownership over their learning through choice, challenge, and collaboration. This suggests that instructional interactions are not merely academic transactions but are central to students’ feelings of being valued and included members of the classroom community (Allen et al., 2025; Toshalis & Nakkula, 2012). The shared experiences like “school excursions” or “classroom singing” provide temporary affective relief, but they do not dismantle the underlying power structure that defines the student's primary role: to “study” and meet academic expectations. This interrogates the Western view by showing that in a postcolony, relational belonging is often mediated through, and subordinate to, structures of authority and performance. The student's sense of value is not inherent (as Mahar et al.'s 2013 concept of “value and respect” might imply in a Western context), but is bestowed by the teacher based on the student's adherence to the system's rules.

The most significant contribution of this analysis is the re-framing of academic accomplishment not as an outcome of belonging, as frequently posited in Western research (Firouzjah et al., 2024; Korpershoek et al., 2020; Walton et al., 2012), but as constitutive of belonging itself. This reversal, we argue, is a manifestation of what postcolonial theory terms epistemic violence. The colonial project systematically devalued local knowledge and ways of being, instituting a Western curriculum where the sole measure of value was examination success (Seth, 2007). The students’ internalisation of this logic—expressed in the belief that they are “not worthy of being at school” if they fail—and the school's practices of ranking and labelling demonstrate the hegemony of this imported epistemic model. The resulting “binary identity” of being either a “first girl” or a “bad student” is a direct mechanism through which this conditional belonging is enforced, transforming the school from a site of community into a site of social stratification.

The study findings demonstrate that the dominant Western conceptualisation of school belonging—as a primarily psychological and affective need—is insufficient for understanding the lived reality of students in postcolonial contexts, such as Bangladesh. The students’ conceptualisation is a hybrid formation, intertwining a desire for emotional connection with a conditional, performance-based belonging forged by colonial history. This critique moves beyond identifying a cultural difference to actively deconstructing the universalist claims of Western psychological theories.

These findings have critical implications for research and practice. For researchers, they underscore the necessity of adopting a pluriversal approach to educational concepts—one that recognises multiple, co-existing worldviews rather than measuring all experiences against a Western standard. Future studies should explicitly interrogate the historical and power-laden dimensions of belonging rather than taking its definition for granted. For practitioners and policymakers in Bangladesh and similar contexts, this analysis highlights an urgent need to reform pedagogical practices and assessment systems. Efforts to foster belonging that focus solely on improving interpersonal relationships without addressing the systemic, colonial-rooted pressures of high-stakes academic performance are likely to be incomplete. True inclusion requires dismantling the structures that make belonging a reward for accomplishment rather than a fundamental right of every student.

Limitations, Recommendations, and Conclusions

The study had several limitations regarding methodology, context, translation, and participant age. The first challenge was the semantic analysis/linguistic connotation of the word ‘belonging’ itself. First, the word is abstract, and spoken Bangla has no direct synonym. The closest synonym the author I could find was ‘apon,’ which, when translated into English, means something close to belonging and ownership. The author knew there could be different meanings, such as a ‘sense of possessiveness.’ Second, the construct of a sense of belonging is abstract, and the participants of this study were young.

The authors attempted to reduce connotative variation by breaking down the belongingness construct into distinct behavioural expressions (e.g., participants could respond to questions with examples). Most research conducted in English employed a limited set of words (e.g., sense of belonging, school connectedness, school membership). Though some researchers have studied belongingness in non-English-speaking countries, it is surprising that none mentioned any language challenges. Third, sense of belonging is related to students’ emotions and personal experiences, which take time to explore, particularly with young children. Building a rapport with young children within two school visits was also a significant challenge. In this brief interaction, it was particularly challenging for female students and those from remote areas to share their experiences with an unfamiliar researcher. Furthermore, students were culturally accustomed to not expressing their opinions in a significantly negative manner against their schools or teachers.

The implications of the research findings led to several recommendations aimed at enhancing students’ sense of belonging. As such, firstly, given the absence of corporal punishment, teachers’ nice gestures and encouraging words are important for improving students’ sense of belonging to the school; positive discipline strategies and good practices of alternative disciplinary management should be shared in cluster training sessions (teachers in Bangladesh have school-based training once every two months, in which teachers from neighbouring schools gather). Central administration can provide teachers with booklets, CDs, DVDs, or stories of alternative behaviour and school management strategies from other countries.

Secondly, reflective practices and school-university collaboration (Deppeler, 2012) could provide teachers with homegrown and international sources of good practice and evidence-informed pedagogical innovations to enhance student learning. For example, reflective training about how students might feel when exposed to degrading language and situations in the classroom could be arranged. Students’ documented lived experiences can be shared with teachers to facilitate an understanding of how teachers’ behaviour may impact students’ emotional and mental processes.

Thirdly, as highlighted in this study, teachers’ regular attendance is critical to providing the students academic support in class and supporting their belongingness along the lines of raising school administrative monitoring and accountability; it is recommended that a pool of reserve teachers be developed to substitute regular teachers in their absence to deliver the lessons (see Gershenson, 2012). The existing Upazila Resource Centre (URC), a subdistrict-level resource centre for primary education, can assume the management role of substitute teachers and provide teachers to neighbouring schools on demand.

Fourthly, students also feel they belong to school when they experience quality instruction and can learn in class, as underscored in the study findings. Going beyond teacher-centred pedagogical practices and applying constructivist approaches to teaching and learning through teacher training, reflective practices, and sharing best practices is recommended to enhance teacher motivation and knowledge, making Bangladeshi classrooms more attractive, interactive, and learning-centred.

Finally, given the importance of feeling accomplished in enhancing school belonging, the study suggests that schools create more avenues for students to experience accomplishment, illustrating the need for formative assessment (assessment for learning) practice in schools, in contrast to summative assessment, which is only used for grading and does not enhance learning. The limited practice of using alternative assessment tools might also exclude students from the school who cannot meet the demands of memorising texts. Formative or learning assessments encourage and support the learning process for both learners and teachers, for example, by providing useful feedback during the learning process instead of a single judgment at the annual examination (Shute & Kim, 2014). The research indicates that formative assessment practices, such as classroom dialogue/questioning, peer and self-assessment, and even the formative use of summative tests (peer marking), not only improve students’ engagement and achievement but also accelerate student–teacher and peer interactions (Black & Wiliam, 2012). It is also recommended that teachers reemphasise the affective domain of the taxonomy of educational objectives in the teaching-learning process. This taxonomy values students’ attitudes, feelings, and beliefs, focusing on their interests and experiences (Sawyer et al., 2012). Further, it promotes joy and ownership of students’ learning environments, which can increase their sense of belonging.

To conclude, the study underscored that school belonging within the context of the Global South, such as Bangladesh, is a complex, multi-layered phenomenon situated at the intersection of global inequities, colonial histories, and vibrant local cultures. It is less a psychological universal and more a socio-political construct. Meaningful efforts to foster it must therefore go beyond interpersonal interventions to include curriculum reform, teacher training that is sensitive to local context, addressing material inequalities, and ultimately, working to decolonise the very purpose and practice of schooling itself.

Footnotes

Acknowledgement

This research is funded by the Monash University Australia

ORCID iDs

Md Ahsan Habib

Saira Hossain

Ethical Considerations

This work was approved and supported by the Monash University Human Research Ethics Committee, project number CF12/2722 - 2012001487

Author Contribution(s)

Md Ahsan Habib: Conceptualization; Formal analysis; Investigation; Methodology; Project administration; Validation; Visualization; Writing – original draft; Writing – review & editing.

Saira Hossain: Formal analysis; Methodology; Visualization; Writing – review & editing.

Funding

The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Data Availability Statement

Data for this review may be accessed by contacting the corresponding author.

Author biographies

Md Ahsan Habib is a Professor in Education. His research focuses on students' voices and well-being in educational psychology. He therefore investigates how students' own perceptions of their school experiences directly shape their academic motivation and mental health.

Saira Hossain is an Associate Professor of Education at the Institute of Education and Research, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Her research interests are centred around strength-based approaches to support the positive development of children and young people, including student voices, well-being, positive youth development, and participatory research. She strongly advocates promoting the well-being of children, young people, and teachers in the Global South.

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How do Students Conceptualise a Sense of Belonging at Primary Schools in Bangladesh?

Abstract

Keywords

Introduction

Method

Findings

Theme One: Being Loved and Cared for by Teachers and Peers

Theme Two: Being Supported for Academic Progress

Theme Three: Feeling of Accomplishment

Discussion

Limitations, Recommendations, and Conclusions

Footnotes

Acknowledgement

ORCID iDs

Ethical Considerations

Author Contribution(s)

Funding

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

Data Availability Statement

Author biographies

References