Belonging in Online Synchronous Classrooms: Experiences of Minoritized Students in Dutch Higher Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, higher education in many countries suddenly moved online. The sudden move to online education forced teachers to adapt their teaching to an online context. The concept of belonging has been described as the next evolution of, and a characteristic that is central...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-09-01
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| Series: | Education Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7102/13/10/986 |
| _version_ | 1797574034549899264 |
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| author | Tisja Korthals Altes Seda Muftugil-Yalcin Marieke Slootman |
| author_facet | Tisja Korthals Altes Seda Muftugil-Yalcin Marieke Slootman |
| author_sort | Tisja Korthals Altes |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, higher education in many countries suddenly moved online. The sudden move to online education forced teachers to adapt their teaching to an online context. The concept of belonging has been described as the next evolution of, and a characteristic that is central to, inclusion. Many have argued that inclusion can never be truly achieved without the presence of belonging. In this paper we ask important questions, such as how does the move to online education, with its lack of personal cues and heightened anonymity, influence minoritized students’ sense of belonging? What is the role of the sense of belonging for inclusion in education? From our data about the minoritized student experiences of belonging in online classrooms, three patterns emerged. (1) The most dominant experience was that the lack of connection in online classrooms reduced students’ sense of belonging. (2) In a few instances, however, the lack of connection and the heightened anonymity of online classrooms led to an increased sense of belonging and safety in online classrooms. (3) However, not all students experienced the switch to online education as a major change. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T21:18:35Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-5a30839f5dbc4886b0854b48004a178a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2227-7102 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T21:18:35Z |
| publishDate | 2023-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Education Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-5a30839f5dbc4886b0854b48004a178a2023-11-19T16:16:31ZengMDPI AGEducation Sciences2227-71022023-09-01131098610.3390/educsci13100986Belonging in Online Synchronous Classrooms: Experiences of Minoritized Students in Dutch Higher Education during the COVID-19 PandemicTisja Korthals Altes0Seda Muftugil-Yalcin1Marieke Slootman2Teachers and Teacher Educators in Inclusive Learning Environments, Windesheim University of Applied Sciences, 8017 CA Zwolle, The NetherlandsDepartment of Organization Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The NetherlandsYouth and Society, Research Group, Inholland University of Applied Sciences, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The NetherlandsIn response to the COVID-19 pandemic, higher education in many countries suddenly moved online. The sudden move to online education forced teachers to adapt their teaching to an online context. The concept of belonging has been described as the next evolution of, and a characteristic that is central to, inclusion. Many have argued that inclusion can never be truly achieved without the presence of belonging. In this paper we ask important questions, such as how does the move to online education, with its lack of personal cues and heightened anonymity, influence minoritized students’ sense of belonging? What is the role of the sense of belonging for inclusion in education? From our data about the minoritized student experiences of belonging in online classrooms, three patterns emerged. (1) The most dominant experience was that the lack of connection in online classrooms reduced students’ sense of belonging. (2) In a few instances, however, the lack of connection and the heightened anonymity of online classrooms led to an increased sense of belonging and safety in online classrooms. (3) However, not all students experienced the switch to online education as a major change.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7102/13/10/986online educationminoritized studentsinclusion in educationsense of belonginghigher education |
| spellingShingle | Tisja Korthals Altes Seda Muftugil-Yalcin Marieke Slootman Belonging in Online Synchronous Classrooms: Experiences of Minoritized Students in Dutch Higher Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic Education Sciences online education minoritized students inclusion in education sense of belonging higher education |
| title | Belonging in Online Synchronous Classrooms: Experiences of Minoritized Students in Dutch Higher Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic |
| title_full | Belonging in Online Synchronous Classrooms: Experiences of Minoritized Students in Dutch Higher Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic |
| title_fullStr | Belonging in Online Synchronous Classrooms: Experiences of Minoritized Students in Dutch Higher Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic |
| title_full_unstemmed | Belonging in Online Synchronous Classrooms: Experiences of Minoritized Students in Dutch Higher Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic |
| title_short | Belonging in Online Synchronous Classrooms: Experiences of Minoritized Students in Dutch Higher Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic |
| title_sort | belonging in online synchronous classrooms experiences of minoritized students in dutch higher education during the covid 19 pandemic |
| topic | online education minoritized students inclusion in education sense of belonging higher education |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7102/13/10/986 |
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