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This professional learning presentation provides a high-level overview of the research on belonging-supportive learning environments; includes examples of what belonging-supportive learning environments look like in practice; and connects participants with existing resources for applying insights from the research. The presentation is customizable and is designed to be relevant for a range of audiences in K-12 education in the United States, including teachers, school and district leaders, teacher educators, and intermediary organization staff. The presentation contains up to three hours of presentation and activity time.

This one-pager draws on research from the Inclusive Mathematics Environments Early Career Fellowship to illustrate how the learning environment can shape student experience in the context of mathematics. It is designed to serve as a starting point for learning about the research that was completed through the fellowship.

This synthesis discusses both K-12 and postsecondary educational contexts, and includes research from diverse academic disciplines including social psychology, cultural psychology, sociology, adolescent development, neuroscience, economics, and education. It discusses structural factors related to belonging in four overlapping categories: access to learning environments; relationships with educators, peers, and families; instructional resources and pedagogy; and system-level policies and practices. Throughout, it identifies implications for system- and institution-level decision-makers in the education sector, who play a role in shaping students’ experiences of belonging just as much as classroom educators and peers do.

This research snapshot provides an overview of a SERN-funded project led by Andrei Cimpian and Nim Tottenham. The project explored whether and how children’s beliefs about their ability to learn might have a buffering effect against the negative academic effects that are commonly associated with adverse experiences. The snapshot shares key findings, insights, and future directions for the project.

This research snapshot provides an overview of a SERN-funded project led by Sidney D'Mello, Angela Duckworth, Margo Gardner, and Donald Kamentz. The project analyzed language used by students in their college applications to explore the connections between extra-curricular/work experiences, psychological factors, and college success (as measured by graduating within four or six years). The snapshot shares key findings, insights, and future directions for the project.

This research snapshot provides an overview of a SERN-funded project led by Camille Farrington and Shanette Porter. The project leveraged a rich dataset that was designed to compare individual students to themselves across two different classroom environments. The research team completed a detailed analysis of classroom learning environments, identifying aspects of teacher practice, teacher mindsets, and classroom composition factors that were related to students’ perceptions of the environment. The snapshot shares key findings, insights, and future directions for the project.

This research snapshot provides an overview of a SERN-funded project led by Katie McLaughlin and Rob Crosnoe. The project explores whether exposure to common forms of childhood adversity is associated with children’s learning mindsets, including growth mindset, sense of belonging at school, perceived utility value of school, and purpose for learning, as well as how these associations vary across different types of adversity. The snapshot shares key findings, insights, and future directions for the project.

This research snapshot provides an overview of a SERN-funded project led by Barbara Schneider, John Yun, and Soobin Kim. The project analyzed the impact of online learning mindset interventions administered to prospective Michigan State University students in the summer before matriculation. The study evaluated the impact of the interventions on students’ academic performance and persistence and explored the impact of pairing the online mindset interventions with an on-campus mentoring program. The snapshot shares key findings, insights, and future directions for the project.

This research snapshot provides an overview of a SERN-funded project by Thomas Dee and Emily Penner that analyzed the impact of the African American Male Achievement (AAMA) program in Oakland, California. The AAMA is the first program in the nation to embed a culturally-centered curriculum specifically targeted to black male students into the regular school day at the district level. The study used data from a 12-year period to assess the program's impact on high school persistence. The snapshot shares key findings, insights, and future directions for the project.

This research brief provides an overview of a paper by Parker Goyer, Geoffrey Cohen, Jason Okonofua, Gregory Walton, and colleagues, exploring recursive cycles between students and teachers that are fueled by harmful stereotypes that allege that black and Latino boys are "troublemakers," and that lead to disproportionate rates of exclusionary discipline for these groups. The brief outlines two studies in which the researchers used interventions to affirm students' identities and provided students an alternate narrative with which to understand interactions with teachers. The brief describes the study design, key findings, and implications.

This research snapshot provides an overview of a SERN-funded project led by Stephanie Fryberg and Mary Murphy that explored growth mindset classroom climates, defined as students’ shared perception that the teacher believes that all students can master the class material using hard work, effective learning strategies, and asking for help when needed. The study uses a nationally representative sample of 9th grade students in regular U.S. high schools.