Impact of Students' Socio-Economic Status on Classroom Engagement: A Case of Elementary Schooling

Abstract

The present study examines the impact of students' socioeconomic status (SES) on their classroom engagement during their elementary schooling, specifically among 7th graders at public sector schools. Following the positivistic and post-positivistic approach, in the light of critical theory to address social structures of inequality as prescribed initially by the necessary theory, a mixed method design, i.e., quantitative and qualitative, was applied for investigation and explanation of the phenomenon, related to students’ SES and their classroom engagement. For the purpose, the SES and classroom engagement of 406 students were measured through two self-rating scales, parallel at five-response levels. To analyse the collected data, Spearman rank correlation and regression were applied according to the categorical nature of the variables. The analysis results (N=406, r=413**, p=.000) explained students’ variations in their SES and their classroom engagement. At the next step, the identified cases with a marginal gap in their SES and engagement level were interviewed to explore the background reasons, implications, and interpretations as to why those with low SES vary in their engagement during the classroom instruction. The findings pave the way to encourage inclusive engagement of the disadvantaged in the classroom, through rapport, encouragement, positive expectations, and appreciation during the teaching-learning process in the school, particularly to those with marginal variations, i.e., one level beyond or below the related variable, i.e., SES and classroom engagement.