Belonging correlates with talking about important topics at school
For the past three years, Springtide Research Institute has surveyed nearly 50,000 students in Catholic high schools across the United States. We find that students’ feelings of comfort and safety discussing important topics at school are related to their feelings of belonging1.
Talking about what matters to students
In the Catholic schools we surveyed, 46% of students say that they feel safe enough at school to talk about what matters to them. Those who feel safe talking about what matters have higher levels of belonging than those who don’t. Those who experience this safety feel significantly more noticed, named, and known at school than those who don’t experience it.
Talking about Religion and Spirituality in Catholic Schools
In the Catholic high schools we surveyed, most students “agree” or “strongly agree” that they feel comfortable discussing their religious and spiritual lives with others, including those at school. Most often, students feel comfortable discussing their religious and spiritual lives with their family (66%) and friends (60%). Similar portions of students feel comfortable discussing their religion and spirituality in Catholic spaces (57%), in school (56%), and in other religious spaces (53%). Least often, students report comfort discussing these topics in public (43%).
Students in Catholic high schools who agree that they’re comfortable discussing their religion and spirituality at school have higher levels of belonging than those who disagree. Those who experience this comfort feel significantly more noticed, named, and known at school than those who don’t experience it.
Note: The data featured in this Data Drop come from Springtide Research Institute’s ongoing research on Catholic school students. You can review the Springtide Catholic School Dataset Methodology here. For further information on the Catholic School Dataset or how your school can get involved, contact the Springtide Research Team at research@springtideresearch.org.
1Our surveys of Catholic students include the Springtide Belonging Index, which measures students’ sense of belonging. The index measures three aspects of belonging: feeling noticed, feeling named, and feeling known. Noticed measures the extent to which students feel acknowledged and remembered by adults. Named measures the extent to which students feel safe being themselves and cared for. Known measures the extent to which students feel genuinely listened to and supported.
