School Sense of Community, Teacher Support, and Students' School Safety Perceptions

Spotlighting racism in schools: Teacher mentors and the mediating effect of school safety

Youth are more likely to succeed when they feel safe at school and have access to caring relationships with adults. Systemic racism interrupts access to these assets. Within schools, racially/ethnically minoritized youth encounter policies rooted in racism, leading to decreased perceptions of school safety. Having a teacher mentor may mitigate some of the harmful effects of systemic racism and discriminatory practices. Yet, teacher mentors may not be accessible to all students. In this study, the authors tested a putative explanatory hypothesis for differences between Black and white children's access to teacher mentors. Data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health were used. Linear regression models were used to predict access to teacher mentors, and a mediational analysis was conducted to determine the effect of school safety on the relationship between race and teacher mentor access. Results indicate that students from higher SES backgrounds and those with parents who have greater educational attainment are more likely to have a teacher mentor. Furthermore, Black students are less likely than white students to have a teacher mentor, and school safety mediates that relationship. The implications of this study suggest that challenging institutional racism and structures may improve perceptions of school safety and teacher mentor accessibility.

Factors Affecting the Prevention of Violence Questionnaire in Female Students: Design and Psychometric Properties

Background: There are scarce Iranian and worldwide research articles on designing the questionnaires of the factors influencing violence prevention. This indicates the need to design a specific questionnaire on factors affecting violence prevention and examine its psychometric properties before using it. Objectives: The present study aimed to design and evaluate psychometric properties (the reliability and validity) of factors affecting violence prevention questionnaire in female students. Methods: The current psychometric research was conducted in Rudsar, Iran during 2017 - 2018. In the first part (designing the questionnaire), data were collected from 50 participants by purposive sampling and using Waltz methodology. In the second part (evaluating psychometric properties of the questionnaire). The validity of the questionnaire was assessed using face, content, and structural validities. Reliability was evaluated using Cronbach’s alpha and intra-class correlation coefficient, and SPSS 20 software was used for data analysis. Results: The initial version of the questionnaire was designed with 212 items. After confirming the validity and reliability, the second version of the questionnaire was extracted with 56 items with an impact score of > 1.5 for all 56 items, the mean CVI = 0.94, and the mean CVR = 0.88. Concerning construct validity, 48 items were extracted with a predictive power of 38.16 based on exploratory factor analysis. The Internal Consistency of Reliability (α = 0.88; ICC = 0.92) was also confirmed. Conclusions: In general, the questionnaire represented acceptable reliability and validity for use in the student population. Therefore, the present questionnaire can predict the risk of violence against female adolescents.

A Multi-Country Study of Risk and Protective Factors for Emotional and Behavioral Problems Among Early Adolescents

PURPOSE

Early adolescence (ages 10-14) is a critical period for psychosocial development, but few studies have focused on risk and protective factors for emergent psychosocial challenges among youth living in low- and middle-income countries. This study explored the contribution of social environmental factors to patterns of emotional and behavioral problems among early adolescents across four low- and middle-income countries.

METHODS

Participants were drawn from the Global Early Adolescent Study, and included 10,437 early adolescents from six low-resource urban settings in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Indonesia, and China. Multivariate latent class regression was used to examine the associations between distinct patterns of emotional and behavioral problems and risk and protective factors across the family, peer, school, and neighborhood levels.

RESULTS

Across countries, childhood adversity, peer bullying behaviors, and a perceived lack of school safety were consistently associated with emotional and behavioral problems. With some contextual variability, peer substance use and a perceived lack of neighborhood safety also emerged as significant risk factors. The magnitude of these associations was generally greatest among a subgroup of early adolescents with co-occurring emotional and behavioral problems.

DISCUSSION

The overall consistency of findings across countries is suggestive of the generalizability of risk factors in early adolescence and indicates that interventions bolstering psychosocial adjustment among this age group may have applicability in diverse cross-national settings. Given the significance of peer bullying behaviors and school safety, multicomponent school-based interventions may be an especially applicable approach.

"We can't share things with our teachers": Narratives of mistrust and disconnect between South African female learners and their teachers

The quality and nature of student-teacher relationships have implications outside of the academic domain. Support from teachers plays a significant protective role in the mental and emotional well-being of adolescents and young people, and can help to reduce or delay their engagement in risk behaviours, thereby decreasing negative sexual and reproductive health outcomes such as teenage pregnancy. Using the theory of teacher connectedness, an element of school connectedness, this research explores the narratives surrounding teacher-student relationships amongst South African adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) and teachers. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with 10 teachers, and 63 in-depth interviews and 24 focus group discussions with 237 AGYW aged 15-24 from five South African provinces characterised by high rates of HIV and teenage pregnancy amongst AGYW. Analysis of the data followed a thematic and collaborative approach, comprising coding, analytic memo-ing, and verification of emerging interpretations through discussion and participant feedback workshops. Findings related to perceptions of support and connectedness in teacher-student relationships centred around AGYW narratives of mistrust and a lack of support from teachers, and the consequential negative implications for academic performance and motivation to attend school, self-esteem, and mental health. Teachers' narratives centred around challenges providing support, feeling overwhelmed and incapable of fulfilling multiple roles. Findings provide valuable insight into student-teacher relationships in South Africa, their impact on educational attainment, and on the mental health and sexual and reproductive health of AGYW.

Feeling Unsafe at School and Associated Mental Health Difficulties among Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review

This study systematically reviewed the literature on perceived school safety. We investigated the prevalence, factors and associated mental health difficulties, as well as cross-cultural findings. Five databases were searched up to 9 February 2021 for peer-reviewed papers published in English. We included quantitative studies that explored the perception of school safety among children and adolescents. The reference lists of the selected papers were also searched. We conducted a narrative synthesis of the included studies. The review included 43 papers. The mean prevalence of the students who felt unsafe at school was 19.4% and ranged from 6.1% to 69.1%. Their perceived safety was associated with a wide range of personal, school, and social factors. Not feeling safe at school was related to being victimized and mental health difficulties, including depressive symptoms and suicidal behavior. Higher perceived school safety was associated with measures such as the presence of a security officer and fair school rule enforcement. The results showed the lack of cross-cultural studies on perceived school safety. Empirical studies are needed that examine the mechanisms of school safety, using valid measures. A clear definition of school safety should be considered a key aspect of future studies.