From leadership research to district action: What facilitates a sense of belonging amongst Australian teachers?

AI-assisted editorial implementation guide. Proposed district actions are separate from the original authors’ findings and recommendations. Independent peer review of this guide is not asserted.

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Evidence and transfer

Education-related source: verify which participants, institutions and outcomes were actually studied before district adoption. Source publication type: research-article. License and identity checks do not establish study quality or causality.

Original authors’ abstract, reproduced under the source license:

ABSTRACT Objective Enhancing a sense of belonging among teachers could be key to mitigating global teacher shortages. This study aimed to investigate teachers' sense of belonging in the Australian educational context. Method A sample of 3,206 teachers answered a survey with open-ended questions that were analysed using thematic analysis. Results The analysis identified six key themes influencing teachers' sense of belonging: Interpersonal relationships (peer relationships, student and parent relationships); Support and collaboration (providing and receiving support; team dynamics and collaborative efforts); Professional and personal growth (influence and contribution to society, professional learning opportunities, individual professional identity and characteristics); Institutional factors (leadership support, positive school environment, employment stability), Motivators (teaching passion, acknowledgment and appreciation); and External networks (engagement in professional networks). Conclusions The findings provide insights into strategies for enhancing teacher belonging, with potential implications for improving retention and addressing teacher shortages. KEYWORDS: Sense of belonging, Australian teachers, teacher shortage, thematic analysis Key Points What is already known about this topic The increasing rates of teacher attrition have been identified as a significant issue worldwide, with negative impacts on student outcomes, organisational stability, and the overall educational system. Factors contributing to attrition include high workloads, lack of support, and misalignment of values between teachers and educational institutions. Research has shown that a strong sense of belonging in the workplace is associated with various positive outcomes, including higher productivity, reduced distress, enhanced resilience, and increased intent to stay in the profession. Previous studies have highlighted the importance of interpersonal relationships, particularly with colleagues, in fostering a sense of belonging in the workplace. In educational settings, strong collegial relationships are critical for teacher satisfaction and retention. What this topic adds This study identifies six key themes that contribute to Australian teachers’ sense of belonging: Interpersonal Relationships, Support and Collaboration, Professional and Personal Growth, Institutional Factors, Motivators, and External Networks. By highlighting the specific factors that enhance teachers’ sense of belonging, this research offers actionable insights for policymakers and educational leaders to develop targeted strategies aimed at improving teacher retention, thereby addressing the teacher shortage crisis. The study reveals the significant role of external professional networks, including unions and online communities, in fostering a sense of belonging among teachers. This expands the understanding of belonging beyond the immediate school environment, emphasising the importance of broader professional engagement.

Study methods

The sample consisted of 3,206 participants which included men (n = 229), women (n = 2744), non-binary/gender diverse (n = 13), and unlisted/prefer not to say (n = 8). Career stages ranged from early career (0–5 years, n = 572) to late career (n = 846). While participants in this data set come from a range of educational backgrounds (early childhood -n = 146-, primary education -n = 1,238-, secondary education -n = 958-, school leadership -n = 489-, and other teaching fields -n = 163-, including tertiary educators, special education teachers, inclusive education teachers, or learning support teachers) they are referred to as teachers within this study. Further details on participant demographics can be found in the Appendix A see (Tables A1–A6).

Limitations

This study has several important limitations to consider. First, since the data came from a larger project examining various aspects of teachers’ work (including job satisfaction, safety, and working conditions), analysing only the belonging-related responses may not capture the full complexity of teachers’ experiences. While our findings provide valuable insights, a study specifically designed to examine professional belonging would be beneficial to extend this work.

A 90-day district inquiry

Days 1–15 · Appraise. Read the source methods, recruitment, comparator, outcomes and limitations. Record how the study setting differs from your district and which claim the design can support.
Days 16–30 · Design. Choose one school improvement question with teachers. Protect a short shared planning cycle, agree an instructional change and use a common rubric for examining student work. Agree participation, privacy protections, baseline and stopping rules before starting.
Days 31–60 · Observe. Collect the pre-agreed measures, keep a log of implementation changes and invite confidential voluntary feedback. Preserve existing support for staff and learners.
Days 61–90 · Decide. Review implementation fidelity, teacher time and independently scored student work against a recorded baseline. Examine access differences and competing explanations before attributing changes to leadership. Make a dated decision to stop, revise or extend the inquiry.

Board decision brief

Present the local problem, source setting, evidence limits, intervention, responsible owner, total cost, measured changes and uncertainty. Separate staff perceptions, implementation measures and student learning outcomes.

Attribution and reuse

Kelly-Ann Allen; Fiona Longmuir; Megan G Thorn; Ebony Melzak; Emily Berger; Beatriz Gallo Cordoba; Michael Phillips; Andrea Reupert. What facilitates a sense of belonging amongst Australian teachers?. Australian Journal of Psychology (2025-02-05). https://doi.org/10.1080/00049530.2025.2459190

Prepared 2026-11-07. Source authorship and DOI are preserved. The abstract and source passages are attributed extracts; this editorial guide is offered under the same CC BY 4.0 license.