The effect of a belongingness strategy on online higher education student performance measures

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether the implementation of a belongingness strategy positively influences student performance in an online higher education environment. Belonging is defined as a student’s sense of being accepted, respected, encouraged and supported in their college environment by both peers and faculty. This study’s problem relates to the lack of belongingness which ultimately impedes a student’s ability to thrive academically. Researchers have investigated the relationship between a student’s sense of belonging and their academic performance and how the lack of a sense of belonging leads to disengagement and negative implications. The current literature is predominantly anecdotal, and we found that most studies did not conduct quantitative analyses. To address the gap in the literature, our methodology utilized student performance metrics which were assessed for a six-month period in 2021 prior to the implementation of a belongingness strategy and for a six-month period in 2022 after the implementation. The results of the empirical analysis (t-test) indicated that the student performance metrics increased with the implementation of the belongingness strategy, with all metrics having a p value of less than .05. The conclusion of this study is that students’ sense of belongingness positively impacts academic performance.

Keywords:

• Student belongingness
• student performance
• belongingness strategy
• online higher education
• belongingness strategy framework
• belongingness strategy best practices

REVIEWING EDITOR:

• Stephen Darwin
• Universidad Alberto Hurtado
• Chile

SUBJECTS:

• Adult Education and Lifelong Learning
• Classroom Practice
• Higher Education
• Education - Social Sciences
• Teaching & Learning - Education

Research summary

This research focuses on the relationship between student belongingness and their performance in an online higher education environment. The research team explored existing research about student belongingness and student performance to understand the different perspectives on what defines student belongingness as well as how it relates to student performance. The team’s research shows that a student belongingness strategy increased student performance. The research quantified the connection between student belongingness and student performance. This is significant because the reviewed literature included gaps due to being mostly anecdotal about student’s feelings of belongingness with a decided lack of quantitative research on the relationship between student belongingness and student performance. We believe that this manuscript is appropriate for publication by Cogent Education because of its focus on student learning as well as research and practices relating to teaching.

Introduction

In today’s online learning environment, a challenging aspect of the student experience is the cultivation of a sense of belonging. According to Murray et al. (2022), belonging is defined as a student’s sense of being accepted, respected, encouraged and supported in a college environment by both peers and faculty. A persistent concern for campus administrators, professors and researchers is to gain a better understanding of exactly how to facilitate a college student’s sense of belonging. As discussed in Lathram (2021), educators have a responsibility to, through intentional shifts and strategies, create conditions where students experience a sense of belonging and psychological safety. The overarching goal of all campus administrators, professors, researchers, and academics is to increase student knowledge; therefore, there is a need to continuously improve student performance. The issue addressed in this research was to quantify if a strategy that was used in an online learning environment to enhance student belongingness resulted in an improvement of student performance.

Previous empirical studies conducted at brick-and-mortar university campuses have consistently found that students who feel welcomed, supported, respected, and safe tend to have better academic outcomes than those who do not feel this way (Jiang & Jiang, 2015; Suhlmann et al., 2018). In a study by Sotardi (2022), the author determined that a sense of belongingness was positively correlated with end-of-year Grade Point Average; consequently, both social and learning-related dynamics correspond to better academic performance. A study by Strayhorn (2018) determined that positive interpersonal experiences at universities increase student belongingness which facilitates increased student success.

Online students encounter unique challenges that traditional face-to-face students do not. It is a continuous challenge to become engaged with the course material, other students, college life and the instructors. Dhir et al. (2021) suggested that the main barriers to online learning were a lack of self-motivation, social interactions, appreciation for the student’s contribution and a lack of a relationship with the instructor. Online learners may be missing out on the opportunity to make social connections, and as a result, struggle to become engaged with the online course. Students may become more engaged with their online course when strategies are put in place to facilitate improvements. Gillen-O’Neel (2019) noted that there is a correlation between a student’s sense of belonging and student engagement. When a student has a sense of belonging, they become more connected with the online class, thereby becoming more engaged.

Our review of the literature found gaps in the research connecting online higher education learners and strategies to increase student belongingness. There was minimal research outlining belongingness strategies to enhance student engagement and increase student success. Though the plethora of studies in our literature review touched on the topic of belongingness, the research still lacked specific details about the strategies implemented to cultivate such belongingness and lacked a methodology that quantified the results of the strategy. Another limitation of previous studies is their lack of focus on online higher education learning environments. To help address these gaps in the literature, our research focused on the impact of the implementation of a specific belongingness strategy with online university students using quantitative methodology.

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether the implementation of a belongingness strategy positively influences student performance in an online higher education environment; thus, we developed a specific five element strategy to facilitate a sense of belonging, reviewed in detail later in the article. Fostering a sense of belongingness plays an essential role in enhancing students’ academic performance. To understand the connection further, we will transition to exploring the research on student belongingness and student performance.

Exploration of the literature

Studies focused on student belonging

The reviewed literature revealed three gaps: (1) Most results were found using qualitative methods, (2) only a few studies (two) related to implementing some kind of belongingness intervention and (3) the majority of the literature focused on student belonging in a traditional on-campus learning environment and less studies examined the online learning environment. These gaps become clear when reviewing the studies in more detail.

Traditional learning environments

Existing research on student belonging offers a variety of student belonging definitions. A few studies offered no specific definition but explored factors relating to belongingness either directly or considered belonging as an element of a larger concept of community. Foxx (2021) defined student belonging as the alignment between a student’s ability to learn, their learning environment and relationships connecting the two. The study was an exploration of how safe spaces provided care and resources for Black students. Findings showed that Black students actively sought safe spaces for acceptance, understanding, social, academic and financial resources with the spaces focused not on places but people. Similarly, Weiss’s (2021) defined student belonging as the feeling of being connected and important to others. Through student interviews, Weiss found that mass lectures hindered peer connections and that spaces were important for socialization. Faust et al. (2014) posited that student belonging is an essential human need that strongly relates to self-esteem, acceptance, and positive interpersonal relationships in secondary education but is usually absent from school services. Faust’s study found that as teacher-to-student relationships decreased student satisfaction and sense of belonging decreased. For Bettencourt (2021), a sense of belonging encapsulates students’ relationships with their campus community and others on campus through support, connectedness, mattering, value, respect and importance. The Bettencourt study examined belonging using qualitative narrative inquiry centering on students’ lived experiences exploring how individual experiences are shaped. Findings indicated that students developed academic and co-curricular spaces of connectedness to challenge the broader campus culture that they saw as catering to middle- and upper-class students. Mendoza et al.’s (2016) study investigated the sense of community (of which belongingness was considered to be a part) among marginalized students. Findings demonstrated students were not thriving and were at risk of dropping out of school due in part to a weak sense of community. Using an index they created, Davis et al. (2019) determined that student belonging has two aspects: belonging to the institution and belonging to the student’s major, which they referred to respectively as Social Belonging and Academic Belonging. The index was implemented in a survey given to incoming freshmen. The study found that social belonging had a much stronger impact on retention than did academic belonging. Continuing the theme of social belonging and community in one of the few quantitative studies found in literature, Garza et al. (2021) who created a model (including student belonging) to help community colleges improve persistence. Student belonging was operationalized as socio-academic integrative moments (combined social and academic opportunities of interaction for students) and learning communities (cohorts of students that take courses together). Both socio-academic integrative moments and learning communities were found to have a significant and positive effect on student belonging. Continuing the theme of community, a study by Johnson et al. (2020) defined student belonging as being connected, feeling cared about, accepted, respected and valued on campus. The researchers looked at how a place-based learning community would impact belonging and persistence. Findings showed that the place-based learning community on campus improved relationships and belonging as well as GPA (Grade Point Average) and persistence. Gao and Liu’s (2021) study explored themes from student input to define belonging. Similar to Johnson et al. (2020), student belonging was defined as being comfortable, being respected and accepted and additionally found that many students considered the ranking of the university as contributing to their sense of belonging. Findings suggested that being connected to the program and university, as well as the depth and quality of intragroup dynamics, are key to a sense of belonging among ethnic minority students. Patterson et al.’s (2021) intervention-based study focused on social belonging using an experimental group and a control group, defining belonging as the sense of fitting in on campus. The control group received a PowerPoint presentation about on-campus student support, while the experimental group was presented with a video featuring current students empathizing with new school challenges, followed by a group discussion. Quantitative analysis revealed a significant difference in reenrollment rates, with only 58.5% of the control group (PowerPoint intervention) reenrolling compared to 76.2% of the experimental group (video/group discussion intervention).

Four studies did not specifically define belonging but did explore factors that were found to influence belonging such as developmental relationships between teacher and student (Scales et al., 2020), faculty support of students (Posselt, 2018), ill health, grief, domestic responsibilities and financial challenges (Russell & Jarvis, 2019). Lastly, Murphy et al. (2020) did not explicitly define belonging but was more focused on how belonging might impact student persistence.

Online learning environment

The literature emphasizes the crucial role of fostering student belongingness in online learning as well. Susan and Cowan (2019) stress the importance of tutors in building trusting relationships, enhancing learners’ Student belongingness, self-confidence, self-efficacy and self-esteem, aligning with Garrison’s (2017) view on the centrality of belonging and collaboration. Stephens and Morse’s (2023) study supported this by demonstrating the efficacy of immersion courses in bridging gaps in belonging and satisfaction between online and on-campus students. Susi et al.’s (2020) findings highlight the vital role of cultivating a sense of belonging for online postgraduates, focusing on key themes such as interaction/engagement, learning culture and support. Additionally, Thomas et al.’s (2014) study reinforced the significance of Student belongingness in online education, suggesting strategies to foster belonging enhance the learning experience and retention, collectively emphasizing the multifaceted impact of Student belongingness on various aspects of online education.

Literature review summary

The research explored how students feel they belong in both on-campus and online learning settings. Most of the on-campus studies used different ways to gather information, like surveys and interviews, with a mix of stories and statistical analysis. Though most studies were about on-campus learning and were mostly qualitative, all the research consistently found a link between student belonging and their academic performance.

In summary, more studies focus on how students belong in traditional classrooms than online ones. Most studies use stories and experiences, with only a few trying out different ways to improve student performance. These gaps indicated a need for further research which prompted our study.

AIU School of Business implemented belongingness strategy framework

AIU School of Business holds weekly meetings for faculty that teach specific courses (introductory courses and courses with a large number of students). The meetings traditionally involved reviewing course performance metrics. In May of 2022, the group incorporated discussions on student belongingness into the meeting. Along with faculty anecdotes, YouTube, Linked-In Learning and Ted Talk videos on belongingness, empathy and procrastination were reviewed by faculty to encourage discussion and sharing ideas. The group shared best practices and techniques used to create a culture of belongingness and faculty were encouraged to implement these in their classrooms. The group discussed anecdotal results, faculty feedback and continued to discuss course performance results from session to session. At the end of each session, student feedback was shared with the group to identify student recognition of belongingness activities. Out of these activities and best practices, we identified themes that formed the elements of a belongingness strategy.

The strategy includes several elements that can promote connectivity between instructors and students. Figure 1 visually illustrates the key elements of the belongingness strategy – student engagement, faculty empathy, student connection, faculty-student rapport and sense of community. We consider these elements to be integral in creating a strong and inclusive learning environment, where they play a crucial role in promoting student success and overall well-being within the classroom setting. The elements are not independent of one another; they intertwine to support student belongingness.

Figure 1. Model of belongingness strategy implemented by the AIU School of Business.

Faculty Empathy serves as the cornerstone, developing an understanding of students’ diverse experiences and needs. This lays the foundation for meaningful Student-Faculty Rapport, where positive relationships are cultivated through open communication and mutual respect. As students and faculty rapport builds, the framework expands to include Student Connection, emphasizing the importance of peer relationships and collaborative learning experiences. Student Engagement then comes into play, encouraging active participation in academic and extracurricular activities. Finally, a Sense of Community contributes to a collective identity and shared values. Importantly, these elements are not siloed but rather inter-connected, with each element influencing and reinforcing the others. This interdependence creates an approach that fosters a supportive environment where each element contributes to the overall sense of student belongingness. The five strategic elements are further discussed below.

Student engagement

Over the last decade, the higher education sector has experienced a surge in the adoption of online learning, witnessing a notable increase in enrollment rates for virtual courses in recent years. Scholarly literature underscores the pivotal role of learner engagement as a critical component for ensuring quality in online education. Effectively measuring learner engagement becomes imperative for gauging student performance and successful achievement.

Promoting student engagement entails cultivating a fervor for learning through the integration of dynamic course materials, instructional methods and personalized experiences (Cents-Boonstra et al., 2021). In their recent study, Cents-Boonstra et al. (2021) investigated the impact of student engagement with the Blackboard learning management system (LMS) on academic performance amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The research sought to explain the extent to which varying levels of student engagement with Blackboard correlate with academic outcomes. The findings of Cents-Boonstra, et al. offer compelling evidence indicating a significant positive association between heightened student engagement with Blackboard and improved academic performance. Also, the authors discerned that this association’s nature depends on the specific blended learning formats employed. Notably, the beneficial effects of increased engagement are particularly accentuated in scenarios where synchronous online lectures and face-to-face tutorials are incorporated into the learning experience.

While the prevailing consensus among scholars asserts a positive correlation between student engagement and academic achievement, dissenting perspectives have surfaced. To challenge this notion, Lei, Cui, et al. (2018) conducted a comprehensive meta-analysis encompassing 69 independent studies and involving 196,473 participants. The outcomes of their investigation unveiled a positive correlation between overall student engagement and academic achievement.

Faculty empathy

Empathy involves actively seeking to understand and share the feelings of others, fostering stronger connections and promoting kindness and understanding between faculty and students. Empathy has been shown to be important to a student’s sense of belonging and student performance and retention at various levels of learning. According to Faust et al. (2014), positive student-teacher relationships are important for increasing student satisfaction and belonging. Encouraging students by being cheerful and helpful, showing kindness, patience and respect for students were all highlighted as being desired by students in this study of secondary education. Studies also show that feedback from young student mothers at the college level showed a desire for more understanding and increased sensitivity to the challenges the students were facing from their faculty members (Lynch, 2008 as cited in Dickson & Tennant, 2018). Additionally, empathy has also been identified as creating space to provide care and understanding to learners (Howlett, 2022). According to Wu et al. (2022) empathy can be connected to individual support and creating an environment where students feel connected and cared about. Furthermore, empathy and building student-faculty rapport are important as they are integral in building rapport with learners (Weiss, 2021). While empathy is a key element in building belongingness it works in coordination with many others.

Student connection

This includes hosting virtual office hours, fostering open discussions and tailoring content to students’ interests to ensure an ongoing meaningful connection. According to Murray et al. (2022), early and often instructor feedback will help build and maintain a continuous connection with students throughout the term. Likewise, Faust et al. (2014) determined that meetings and continuous teacher support throughout the course are indicative of an effort to maintain connections with students over time.

Student-faculty rapport

This involves creating a warm and relatable atmosphere by sharing personal stories and addressing students by name to ensure an approachable teaching atmosphere that resonates with each student. In the context of building student belongingness in an online classroom, the insights from Wilson et al.’s (2010) study on professor-student rapport become particularly relevant. Their findings highlight the significance of fostering positive relationships between instructors and students, emphasizing qualities like encouragement, open-mindedness and approachability. Such qualities can serve as a foundation for creating a sense of belonging among online learners, making them feel valued and connected in a virtual learning environment. Additionally, Lowman’s (1994) two-dimensional model of effective college teaching, with its focus on intellectual excitement and interpersonal rapport, offers valuable guidance for online educators seeking to enhance student engagement and belongingness. By embodying the roles of both performers, who stimulate enthusiasm and clarity and motivators, who exhibit positive attitudes and effective leadership styles, online instructors can effectively contribute to students’ sense of belonging in the digital classroom. Exploring how these factors align and contribute to the development of student belongingness in an online learning context could provide valuable insights into creating a more inclusive and supportive virtual educational environment. By drawing from the principles of professor-student rapport and the two-dimensional model of effective teaching, this study can shed light on practical strategies and approaches for online educators aiming to cultivate a sense of belonging among their students.

Sense of community

In the classroom, this is related to developing an inclusive and supportive environment where students connect, collaborate and thrive. Best practices include gamification and open-answer discussion board questions which facilitate the building of a sense of community. An article by Conroy (2022) provided eight strategies to build a sense of belongingness in the classroom which included virtual field trips and scavenger hunts. Games allow students to explore individually and then come together to share findings. A study by Pang (2020) determined that the use of a social media platform among students outside the classroom created a community where students felt more connected and more socially accepted. Research by Ahn and Davis (2020) further justify Pang’s work as their study indicated that the use of social engagement is the most salient factor that strongly and consistently enhanced a students’ sense of belonging. Cooper (2021) developed an orientation framework aimed to foster a sense of belonging entitled PECS which stands for ‘Purpose, Expectations, Connections, and Support’. The findings of the study indicated that the use of the PECS framework helped students feel more connected and welcome at the university which created a sense of community.

Belongingness best practices

In alignment with the belongingness strategy, the instructor-student best practices outlined in Table 1 were implemented to impact student performance.

Table 1. Mapping of belongingness strategy elements to best practices.

Strategies	Best practices examples
Student engagement	Conduct live chats weekly. Provide learners with a specific plan for improvements and follow the plan. Identify high performers and ask them to provide their process and share that with other learners –peer coaching. Respond to every student’s main discussion board post
Faculty empathy	Call learners, see how they are doing, demonstrate understanding of their situation and ask questions to explore their feelings. Always make sure students who are falling behind understand that it’s not too late to get caught up
Student connection	Introductory communication to ask students questions to get them engaged. Maintain communication throughout the course
Student/faculty rapport	Always use the student’s name in communications   Individual messaging
Sense of community	Gamification encourages peer-to-peer interactions in discussion boards and live chats. Use discussion prompts to encourage student engagement

Overall, best practices for student belongingness include providing weekly live chats on course content and an open forum for students to engage with the instructor, peers and the ability to ask questions. The instructor should consistently track conversations with students to monitor and maintain an awareness of each student’s situation and course progress. In the classroom, instructors can demonstrate care and attention when responding to every student’s main discussion board post. Thoroughly reading through each post and responding with key elements from their initial discussion, asking follow-up questions, or adding additional instruction will expand the conversation of the student’s contributions.

Additionally, communications between the course instructor and student are essential to the belongingness strategy. Introductory communications with students can include questions to get them engaged. Communication with every student, both high-performing and struggling, can occur at least once a week, either through phone, text, email, or discussion board. Connecting with students every week allows for continuous contact and provides a pathway for two-way communication between the instructor and student. Communications with students can include the students’ name in the classroom or sending messages. Instructors can adopt practices of sending individual messages for repeat students, calling learners to see how they are doing, demonstrating understanding of their situation and asking questions to explore their feelings to promote belongingness in the classroom.

Finally, the instructor can provide learners with a specific improvement plan as they progress through the course. Improvement feedback to students may occur in assignment feedback, discussion boards, or other communications with the student. Active communication with students falling behind and clarifying that there is still time to get caught up is vital to pulling students into the course and communicating how to help them succeed. Instructors may also identify high performers in the course and ask them to provide their process and share with others how they approached specific assignments in the course. Belongingness in the classroom is a continuous practice using these approaches to create a safe space for students and encourage a positive educational setting.

Research Design

Background

In May of 2022, the School of Business (SoB) at the American Intercontinental University Online (AIU Online) began a student belongingness initiative based on the five-element belonging strategy model described above in 10 of their undergraduate business courses. The courses in this initiative were chosen as they are either introductory courses, have a high volume of students, or due to course performance issues. These courses are listed below:

•  ACCT205: Principles of Accounting I·

•  ACCT310: Managerial Accounting·

•  BUSN105: Introduction to Business·

•  BUSN150: Legal and Ethical Environment of Business·

•  FINA310: Financial Management·

•  HLTH215: Introduction to Healthcare·

•  HLTH225: Health and Public Policy·

•  HLTH310: Survey of Healthcare Management·

•  MGMT215: Decision Making and Communication·

•  MKTG205: Principles of Marketing

The faculty teaching these classes attended weekly meetings to discuss and research methods for improving student belongingness. In those meetings, faculty discussed course performance and best practices for enhancing student belonging. This involves instructors engaging in activities beyond their usual teaching responsibilities in the classroom such as grading, sending messages to students, responding to student questions and course preparations. The deployed strategy was discussed above in the Belongingness Strategy section.

Design

The research addressed the question as to whether the utilization of a belongingness strategy affected student performance. The study analyzed the results of the implementation on student performance levels for various metrics listed below for students enrolled in the same online courses before and after the strategy was implemented.

Course metrics and definitions

We selected the university metrics for measuring course and student performances and compared the results for the two years under review (2021 and 2022). Our decision to assess these metrics during the same six sessions of each year was to avoid any potential seasonal bias in the study. These course metrics and their definitions are listed below:

•  Completion Rate: The percentage of students that were retained and passed the course.

•  Pass Rate: The percentage of students that passed excluding students that withdrew.

•  Persistence Rate: The percentage of students that continued onto their next session or graduated.

•  Retention Rate: The percentage of students that did not withdraw during the session.

•  Submission Rate: The percentage of assignments submitted.

•  Course Grade: The average of all grades in the course

The study used a quantitative descriptive methodology using secondary data obtained from the American Intercontinental University Online database. The university collects end-of-course data for every course at the end of every five-week session. This data is pulled by a system called Tableau to create student performance reports including Completion Rate, Pass Rate, Persistence Rate, Retention Rate and Submission Rate.

The study compared data from a two-year period: a year prior to the strategy’s implementation and the year it was implemented. The study used the same sessions each year to eliminate the effect of seasonality on the results. The sessions and start dates are listed below in Table 2. The first six sessions represent courses considered in 2021 before the implementation of the belongingness strategy, and the other six sessions after the implementation are shown in succession. Each course lasted five weeks.

Table 2. Sessions and course start dates.

Courses	Start dates
Sessions before (five weeks)
2102B	12 May 2021
2103 A	16 June 2021
2103B	21 July 2021
2104 A	25 August 2021
2104B	29 September 2021
2105 A	3 November 2021
Sessions after (five weeks)
2202B	11 May 2022
2203 A	15 May 2022
2203B	20 July 2022
2204 A	24 August 2022
2204B	28 September 2022
2205 A	3 November 2022

Table 3 represents the 10 courses selected for the study and the number of students enrolled in each course for the two sessions. We consider that the entire number of students (N = 22,118) enrolled to be significant enough to avoid sampling bias.

Table 3. Courses and student enrollment.

Session	ACCT 205	ACCT 310	BUSN 105	BUSN 150	FINA 310	HLTH 215	HLTH 225	HLTH 310	MGMT 215	MKTG 205	Total
2102B–2105 A	1825	604	2270	2117	666	415	314	265	1732	1444	11,652
2202B–2205 A	1592	499	2097	2211	559	334	274	234	1233	1433	10,466
Total	3417	1103	4367	4328	1223	749	588	498	2965	2877	22,118

In addition to the two-year comparison, we also looked at the performance metrics from 2019 to 2022 (see Figure 3) to ensure the results of the intervention were not part of a long-term increase in metrics. The same faculty taught the same classes included in the study from session to session over the two-year period. Specifically, the analysis did not account for other mediating factors such as age, gender, ethnicity and experience. Any impacts relating to individual students were mitigated by the large sample size used in the study (see Table 3).

Results

To begin answering the research question, we prepared a bar chart to examine course metrics for the periods in 2021 and 2022 as shown in Figure 2. We specifically examined the six sessions before and after the implementation of the belongingness strategy 2102B–2105 A and 2202B–2205 A, respectively. The results revealed that the 2022 sessions outperformed the 2021 sessions in all the course metrics.

Figure 2. Comparison of the two sessions 2102B–2105 A and 2202B–2205 A course metrics.

Furthermore, to ensure that this increase was not part of a long-term trend, we compared students’ performance over a four-year period. We collected longitudinal data from the same sessions in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022. The results showed that while students’ performance in 2019, 2020 and 2021 sessions remained relatively steady, the course metrics for the 2022 sessions increased significantly (see Figure 3). It should be noted that the 2020 student performance results, during the COVID pandemic, were not significantly different from the results in 2019 and 2021.

Figure 3. Longitudinal data showing students’ performance in the course metrics.

Hypothesis testing

Data was analyzed using a one tailed t-test to address the following research question (RQ) and associated hypotheses:

RQ: Did the deployment of the belongingness strategy increase the course metrics in 2022?

H_0: The deployment of the belongingness strategy in 2022 did not result in an increase in course metrics in 2022.

H_a: The deployment of the belongingness strategy in 2022 resulted in an increase in course metrics in 2022.

We conducted a one-tailed t-test for each course metric for evidence of a statistically significant increase in mean scores. A one-tail t-test is used to show that one group is statistically different from another group in a specific direction. If we were only interested in stating that the two groups were different, we would have conducted a two-tailed t-test. The results of the one-tail t-test revealed the increase in student performance in all the course metrics in 2022 was statistically significant at a confidence interval of over 97%. Based on the one-tail t-test results, we reject the null hypothesis and conclude that students’ performance in 2022 was statistically higher than student performance in 2021.

Effect size

Furthermore, there was a significant increase in Effect Size for each course metric as indicated by a Cohen’s d of 1.13 and above (see Table 4). Effect Size is anything that impacts the study that is of interest, such as mean differences (Cohen, 1977; Cumming, 2012). Effect Size reveals the practical significance of a research outcome. It describes how meaningful the relationships between variables are. According to Cohen, a large Effect Size of 0.8 or greater means the research finding has practical significance, medium effect size of 0.5 indicates medium practical significance, and less than 0.2 indicates limited practical implication. In general, the greater Cohen’s d, the larger the effect size. As stated previously, the Effect Size for this study for each metric was 1.13 or greater. Based on this we conclude that not only was the 2022 student metrics statistically higher than 2021, the 2022 metrics are also significantly higher than 2021 from a practical standpoint.

Table 4. Statistics for comparing course metrics data for 2021 and 2022.

Course metrics data for 2021 and 2022
Course metrics	p Value (one tailed t-test)	df	Confidence level	Mean 2021	Mean 2022	t-value	Size effect (Cohen’s d)
CR	.007	5	99.2%	66.7%	72.7%	3.668	1.306
PR	.017	5	98.2%	76.9%	80.8%	2.852	1.165
RR	.004	5	99.5%	86.7%	89.9%	4.206	1.376
CP	.020	5	97.9%	80.8%	84.1%	2.720	1.137
ACG	.016	5	98.3%	73.0%	75.1%	2.903	1.175
SR	.008	5	99.1%	74.7%	78.1%	3.483	1.279

Note. CR: completion rate; PR: pass rate; RR: retention rate; CP: course persistence; ACG: average course grade; SR: submission rate.

Discussion

The two-year analysis of student performance at the AIU Online School of Business demonstrated a significant positive correlated relationship between the use of a belongingness strategy and student performance. This connection is consistent with the literature identified relating to student belongingness and student performance. Our study supports the findings of Wilton et al. (2019) and Sotardi (2022) who showed that the use of belongingness best practices improves student performance.

The AIU School of Business developed a belongingness strategy which consisted of five elements working in tandem which is supported by the literature reviewed for this study. Sense of Community for students in the online classroom is the first element. Pang (2020) investigated the use of a social media platform named ‘WeChat’ where students engaged in conversations beyond the classroom setting. The findings of Pang verified that online social support created a community and ultimately enhanced a sense of belonging. For example, gamification was implemented as a best practice in the AIU School of Business belongingness strategy. The next strategy element is student engagement. Engaged students tend to develop a sense of belonging within their school community, fostering positive relationships with peers and educators (Goins, 2023). As a result, students are more likely to exhibit higher levels of self-esteem and emotional well-being. Aligned with the findings of Pathway2Careers (2023), our best practice of weekly live chats with students facilitated student engagement and contributed to student performance as demonstrated in our results.

Another strategy element was to continually connect with the students. Our best practices involved faculty connecting with students through all means within the online classroom (email, instant messaging, discussion boards, live chats), as well as through phone calls and texts. This practice is supported by Glazier (2021) and Garza et al. (2021), who recognized the importance of continuous support and frequent contact, fostering a sense of belonging for online students. Eckles (2022) also stated that a continuous connection with traditional students created a sense of belongingness. An additional strategy element is Faculty Empathy. Best practices relating to empathy include calling learners to see how they are doing, demonstrating understanding of their situation and asking questions to explore their feelings. Another example would be to always make sure students who are falling behind understand that it’s not too late to get caught up with their assignments. These best practices demonstrate instructor empathy which can reduce student burnout and enhance resilience in higher education as shown by Wu et al. (2022). The final strategy element is related to building student-faculty rapport. In a study conducted by Wilson et al. (2010), professor-student rapport was defined as a positive relationship between teachers and students, characterized by qualities such as encouragement, open-mindedness, creativity, approachability and fairness, and it was measured from the students’ perspective using a newly developed scale. The AIU School of Business’ best practices related to customizing communications with students and always referring to the student by their name. The best practices utilized, aligned with Lowman’s (1994) perspective on the importance of interpersonal rapport. Lowman’s model underscores the importance of instructors as both performers, focusing on qualities like enthusiasm and clarity and motivators, emphasizing positive attitudes and leadership styles, in enhancing student engagement and overall teaching effectiveness.

While our study’s overall results quantitatively demonstrated that the implementation of a belongingness strategy improves performance, the results were statistically significant for all metrics measured across all courses regardless of size, level, or topic. In addition, every metric had a Cohen’s d coefficient of 1.13 or higher indicating a high practical significance for the results. This finding is consistent with a high effect size (Cohen, 1977). Based on this coefficient, we have high confidence that implementing a belongingness strategy led to an increase in student performance measures from a statistical and practical standpoint.

Contributions to research

This study added to the overall knowledge documented in the literature by quantifying the connection between student belongingness and student performance. Our research confirmed a positive correlation between several student performance factors, including completion rate, pass rate, retention rate, course persistence, average course grade and submission rate and the implementation of a student belongingness strategy. The study showed that implementing a belongingness strategy positively increased academic performance. Contrary to previous studies (Lei, Hao, et al., 2018; Rajabalee et al., 2020; Russell & Jarvis, 2019), which mostly focused on qualitative analysis, our study successfully quantified the relationship between the use of a student belongingness strategy and student performance. An important outcome of our study was the increase in student performance across all the courses included in the study ranging from statistics to marketing to healthcare.

Study limitations

The results align with the overall research question and associated null hypothesis, but some important limitations follow. The hypothesis analysis covered only two six-month periods and included only ten undergraduate courses. There were no advanced or graduate-level courses reviewed. The study was restricted to business course offerings and did not consider general education courses. Additionally, only online courses were examined, excluding face-to-face learning experiences. Finally, this study reviewed data from only one institution – American Intercontinental University. While we believe these limitations have not impacted the critical outcomes of our study, they can be used as avenues for future research.

Conclusion

The study has contributed to the understanding of the relationship between student belongingness and academic performance in an online learning environment. By empirically demonstrating a strong positive correlation between belongingness best practices and improved student performance, the study aligns with the findings from previous research like those of Wilton et al. (2019) and Sotardi (2022). Its primary contribution lies in quantitatively establishing this relationship across a diverse range of courses and metrics, including completion, pass and retention rates, thereby offering a measurable perspective where previous studies primarily focused on qualitative analysis. This research affirms the critical role of belongingness in improving student performance and sets a precedent for future research to explore the longitudinal impact of such strategies.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

David Bull

Dr. David Bull teaches Healthcare Administration at American Intercontinental University, United States since 2014.

Ashley Johansen

Dr. Ashley Johansen teaches Accounting at American Intercontinental University, United States since 2022.

Dawn Kaiser

Dr. Dawn Kaiser teaches Business Management at American Intercontinental University, United States since 2004.

Samirah Merritt-Myrick

Dr. Samirah Merritt-Myrick teaches Healthcare Administration at American Intercontinental University, United States since 2022. Dr. Patrice Nybro teaches Finance at American Intercontinental University, United States since 2005.

Dan Santangelo

Dr. Dan Santangelo teaches Human Resources at American Intercontinental University, United States since 2021.

Lori Slater

Dr. Lori Slater teaches Project Management & Operations Management at American Intercontinental University, United States since 2021.

James Tarr

Dr. James Tarr is the Program Director and teaches Operations Management at American Intercontinental University, United States since 2005.