A Sense of Belonging

This study examined whether participation in high school instrumental ensembles (such as marching band, concert band, wind ensemble, and jazz band) impacts students’ overall sense of belonging in school. Other studies out there show a positive situational correlation: band kids feel more connected to school. But is this true overall?

613 students from a suburban high school in New England completed the School Belongingness Scale (SBS). The study compared SBS responses between two groups: musicians and non-musicians, and tested the variation in results for statistical significance.

This study showed no statistically significant difference in overall school belonging between musicians and non-musicians. However, musicians scored significantly better on two individual items on the survey (I see myself as a part of this school, and In this school, my friends, teachers, and managers usually ignore me) and on the social-exclusion subscale, suggesting they felt less socially excluded than non-musicians.

No significant differences were found across grade levels.

There is not a strong correlation between being in band and being more connected to school in general, but perhaps there may be specific areas of “belongingness” that band kids experience more intensely than non-band kids such as feeling more socially included at school, and feeling seen by their peers and music teacher(s).

In an era when stress on teens has hit a never-before-seen high, being in band may be a more positive thing for high school students than we think. Even if being in band doesn’t dramatically increase overall school belonging, there is still value in feeling more seen and feeling more included socially among peers.

The school in this study had a fairly high sense of belonging score on the SBS, I wonder what a similar study would show in a school struggling with low student connection.

I don’t think this study really tells us anything we didn’t already know (or, at least what we think we know) about the value of band in kids’ social lives. If you’re reading this, you probably have your own story about how band was the only reason you went to school, or maybe even the first place you felt like you “belong.” I know that is my story!

Honestly, I thought there would be more statistical differences across more items on the SBS, but that tells us something too! There is a difference between the OVERALL sense of belonging to the school as a whole and the SITUATION belonging of how we feel in band class. Digging deeper into that is another study for another time!