The Challenge for the Square peg and the Round Hole: A Sense of Belonging to School

Abstract

Since the start of formalised education for all, there has been much discussion about the nature of the bond between pupil and school. The school holds particular functions for society: to credential, to contain and to shape the citizens of the future. One much discussed function is the influence of school on the morality and behaviour of young people. With the bond to school – as a conforming institution – being claimed as essential for controlling delinquent drives, this chapter explores from a different perspective the dimensions of the nature of the bond between pupil and school and how it affects behaviour. The chapter integrates academic paradigm and theory as well as professional practice in previously separate fields: criminology, education and psychotherapy. Sociological concepts such as Hirschi's bond to conformity (1969) are revisited from a psychotherapeutic standpoint, thus leading to an expansion of the concept to incorporate pupils’ perceptions of the bond. This is defined as a sense of belonging.

Citation

Sills-Jones, P. (2012), "The Challenge for the Square peg and the Round Hole: A Sense of Belonging to School", Visser, J., Daniels, H. and Cole, T. (Ed.) Transforming Troubled Lives: Strategies and Interventions for Children with Social, Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties (International Perspectives on Inclusive Education, Vol. 2), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 273-288. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1479-3636(2012)0000002020