Capacidad predictiva de la influencia de la familia, el profesorado y los pares sobre el compromiso escolar afectivo, cognitivo y conductual en estudiantes de educación primaria y secundaria
School engagement has been proven to be a crucial factor in the development of a successful educational trajectory. It is a multidimensional concept encompassing affective, cognitive, and behavioral aspects, all of which are influenced by the social support students receive from the contexts in which they grow, with the most significant being family, teachers, and peers. The primary objective of this study is to analyze the impact of family, teacher, and peer support on students’ levels of affective, cognitive, and behavioral school engagement in the subsequent year while also examining variations between primary and secondary school students. This study involved 927 elementary and secondary school students who were assessed over two consecutive years. The results of the multigroup structural equation analysis revealed that family, teacher, and peer support levels had distinct predictive capabilities on different components of school engagement at both educational levels. Specifically, family support predicted levels of cognitive engagement, while peer support predicted levels of affective engagement. Furthermore, for elementary school students, teacher support emerged as a predictor of behavioral engagement, while for secondary students, it was identified as a predictor of cognitive and affective engagement. This study highlights how important family, teacher, and peer support are for shaping different aspects of school engagement. By understanding these distinct influences, educators and families can work together to create supportive environments that help students thrive academically and emotionally.
Associations between contextual factors and school engagement: a longitudinal study of profiles
School engagement, encompassing affective, behavioral, and cognitive dimensions, is key to promoting school retention and preventing absenteeism. Previous research has shown that maintaining high engagement is crucial for a positive educational trajectory. This study investigates the individual contributions of contextual factors, including family, teacher, and peer support, on students who initially had a lower level of school engagement in one dimension and then advanced to a higher level in the same dimension over time. The study involved students enrolled in their first year of secondary education in public schools in Chile during 2021, with the same students being evaluated again the following year. We used means cluster analysis to identify a group of students who initially had low school engagement but showed high engagement by the second evaluation. This allowed us to identify profiles of school engagement longitudinally. Our results indicated that contextual factors had a stronger association with affective engagement, followed by cognitive and behavioral engagement, respectively. Among the contextual factors, family and teachers had a stronger impact compared to peers. These findings highlight the importance of adults, particularly family and teachers, in enhancing school engagement during secondary education.