Determining Whether I Want to Belong: Seventh-Grade Black Girls’ Conceptualization and Identification of Sources of Belonging Within the Math Classroom

Belonging supportive environments have been positively associated with increased academic achievement, engagement, and persistence. Yet there may be differences in what an individual construes as a belonging-supportive versus belonging-threatening environment. This study takes a race-reimagined view of belonging rooted in an Axiom of Black Brilliance. In this phenomenological study, the lived experiences of 10 seventh-grade Black girls are explored as they share their conceptualizations and sources of belonging within the math classroom. Drawing from multiple data sources, the participants highlight the construct's dynamic nature and named competence, teachers, peers, and academic support as sources of belonging within the math classroom.