School Experiences

Children’s school experiences are an important predictor of their personal well-being and academic success. School experiences, including sense of safety and belonging at school, have been shown to foster school success in many ways. When children have positive experiences at school, they are more likely to report feeling a sense of belonging in school, have higher levels of motivation and school engagement, and achieve greater academic success.

The MDI's Measures of School Experiences

School Climate

School climate refers to “patterns of people’s experiences of school life and reflects norms, goals, values, interpersonal relationships, teaching and learning practices, and organizational structures”. A healthy school climate promotes healthy development; a healthy school climate also reduces stress – a known barrier to learning. In addition, a positive and supportive climate at school can boost academic achievement, improve student engagement, and reduce the impacts of poverty on students’ academic success .

School Belonging

School belonging is the degree to which children feel connected and valued at their school . Feelings of school belonging are associated with more positive views of learning, better academic motivation and competence, higher self-esteem, and greater happiness. Children who feel they belong at school are less likely to be late or absent and more likely to graduate from high school. They also show lower emotional distress and fewer negative behaviours, such as bullying .

Academic Self-Concept

Academic self-concept refers to a child’s beliefs about their own academic ability, including their perceptions of themselves as students and how interested and confident they feel at school. Positive academic self-concept is related to higher levels of engagement at school and achievement .

Victimization & Bullying

Victimization and bullying can increase the risk of social, emotional, and mental health challengesMcDougall & Vaillancourt, 2015. Bullying is a distinct form of aggressive behaviour in which one child or a group of children act intentionally and repeatedly to cause harm or embarrassment to another child or group of children who have less power. Higher reports of peer victimization, such as bullying and social exclusion, are linked to higher levels of depression and anxiety, whereas feeling connected to one’s peers is linked to lower depression and anxiety Guhn et al., 2012.

The MDI questionnaire asks children about their experiences of victimization with respect to four different types of bullying: Cyber Bullying (being threatened or embarrassed online or through text messages), Physical Bullying (being physically hurt or threatened, or having possessions taken or damaged), Social Bullying (feeling intentionally excluded, or being the victim of gossip or rumours), and Verbal Bullying (being called names, teased, or feeling coerced)
Trach et al., 2010.

Explore other dimensions

For more detailed information on the measures included in the School Experiences dimension of the MDI including a full list of questions that contribute to each measure, how each measure is scored, and how the results are visualized, please consult the MDI Companion Guide.

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MDI Companion Guide

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Related Tools and Resources

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MDI Quicksheet: School Experiences

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