High School Students Research Articles

Relationships between high school students’ learning interest, learning motivation, and ocean literacy: a longitudinal study

Relationships between high school students’ learning interest, learning motivation, and ocean literacy: a longitudinal study

Students’ Perceptions of Factors Contributing to a Happy School Environment in Iran

Abstract Background School is not only a place for acquiring academic skills but also a social environment where students develop emotional abilities and awareness. Prioritizing well-being in schools can foster confidence, satisfaction, and emotional awareness among students, contributing to their lifelong success and mental health. Objective This research hypothesizes that students will emphasize the importance of individual choice, autonomy, and enjoyment in school, along with a desire for more meaningful activities beyond academics. The study aims to investigate adolescents' perceptions of a happy school and the strategies they believe are effective for fostering this environment. Method Employing a purposive sampling approach, the researchers conducted indepth, semi-structured qualitative interviews involving 41 middle and high school students in Iran to explore their perspectives on the factors contributing to their happiness within an educational setting. Through phenomenological data analysis, four principal themes and thirteen subcategories emerged. Result The main themes included: (1) Enhancing overall health; (2) Creating schools with collaborative decisionmaking; (3) Fostering a love of learning; (4) Supporting joy and well-being in school. Conclusions The identified themes provide new, valuable insights for improving school climate, particularly in relation to student happiness and promoting positive mental health and optimal performance among students.

Effectiveness of Health-Based Physical Fitness Training in High School Students

Effectiveness of Health-Based Physical Fitness Training in High School Students

The Impact of Sports Injuries on the Academic Performance and Mental Health of High School Students in Jeddah

The Impact of Sports Injuries on the Academic Performance and Mental Health of High School Students in Jeddah

Longitudinal associations between proactivity, rolefulness, and school maladjustment among Japanese high school students

Longitudinal associations between proactivity, rolefulness, and school maladjustment among Japanese high school students

Cluster profiles of high school students in cyber bullying, cyber victimization, aggression, and coping

Cyberbullying has become a significant concern, particularly among teenagers, due to the advancement of digital technologies. This study aims to identify the cluster profiles as well as the role of gender, time spent on networking and age on these clusters. This study employed a self-administered survey to investigate cyberbullying among 812 adolescents attending public and private high schools in Selangor, Malaysia. The quantitative data was obtained using validated measures of cyberbullying and cybervictimization scale, coping strategies, and aggression. Data analysis used in this research were two-stage cluster analysis and chi-square statistics. The findings revealed that these teenagers can be categorized into three distinct cluster profiles namely highly cybervictimization, aggressive and depressive; low cyber victimization, aggression, depression and coping; and lower scores in cyber victimization, aggression, depression and higher scores in coping. Unlike previous studies, cluster profiles revealed no substantial correlation with gender. Instead, this study found that cluster patterns were linked to demographic factors, such as age groups. This study also highlights the correlation between cluster profiles and the utilization of social media in the dynamics of cyberbullying. Teens in Cluster 1, who devoted more than four hours per day to social media, experienced the greatest influence of cyberbullying, highlighting the significance of their online environment. This study sheds light on the issue of cyberbullying among Malaysian adolescents and highlights its intricate nature. To foster safer online environments for teenagers in the digital age, educational institutions, parents, and governments can develop specific efforts that identify cluster profiles and demographic factors.

The Psychologically Rich Life Questionnaire in China

ABSTRACTResearch on psychological richness in China and in adolescents is limited. We validated the 17‐item Psychologically Rich Life Questionnaire in a sample of 1794 Chinese high school students. Internal consistency was adequate, and a two‐factor structure was found.

Co-Existence Patterns of Social Norms and Positive Defending Intention Among Adolescents as School Bullying Bystanders.

School bullying occurs frequently in primary and secondary schools, which is a global problem and it often brings serious physical and mental harm to the victims. When school bullying occurs, there may be a large number of bystanders in addition to the bullies and victims. What actions bystanders take affects the progress of school bullying. Relevant studies indicate that social norms including how peers around them react (descriptive norms) and how important adults such as teachers and parents demand (injunctive norms) play important roles in bystanders' action-taking, but limited studies have considered individual differences. Therefore, this study used a person-centered approach to explore the co-existence patterns of social norms and bystanders' defending intention to further understand their relations. We surveyed 1,384 junior high school students in China by self-report questionnaires, and they were asked to assess their defending intention when witnessing school bullying events under different contexts of social norms. Through latent profiles analysis, five co-existing patterns were identified: no norms-no defending group (4.8%), parent norms-no defending group (3.6%), weak norms-low defending group (24.3%), teacher-peer norms-medium defending group (40.6%), teacher-peer norms-high defending group (26.7%). In four out of the five patterns, students' levels of defending intention were highly consistent with the levels of peer and teacher norms, but largely contradicted parent norms. This suggests that descriptive norms from peers and injunctive norms from teachers, other than those from parents are crucial for promoting bystanders' defending intention, which provides important enlightenment for school bullying prevention. These findings provide important enlightenment for the prevention and control of school bullying in the future.

Improving the Learning Outcomes of Class VIII Students Through the Implementation of the Project-Based Learning (PjBL) Model in Science Learning

This research aims to improve the learning outcomes of junior high school students in science learning.This research is a type of classroom action research carried out in one of the public junior high schools in the Madiun district. The study population was class VIII with class VIII E samples. The data analysis technique used was to compare learning outcomes in the pre-cycle to the next cycle. The results of the analysis showed that the project-based learning (PjBL) learning model was able to improve the cognitive learning outcomes of junior high school students. The success indicator of the study was seen in the improvement in cognitive learning outcomes of students who achieved a minimum completeness criteria (MCC) score of 75. While the tang performance indicator used in this study is the success rate of cognitive learning outcomes up to 75%, in the pre-cycle, as many as 71.43% of the total students have not reached the specified minimum completeness criteria (MCC). While the remaining 38.10% have reached minimum completeness criteria (MCC). The implementation of the project-based learning (PjBL) learning model shows an increase in student success in learning. In cycle I, the percentage of student success reached 61.9%. In the second cycle, the percentage of student success reached 76.1%, so there was an increase of 33.4%.

Examining Emotional Regulation's Impact on Academic Procrastination in High School Students

This study investigates the relationship between emotional regulation and academic procrastination among Muhammadiyah 3 Reinforcement High School students. Utilizing a correlational quantitative approach, data from 193 students in grades 11 and 12 were analyzed using SPSS 22.0. The findings indicate a significant negative correlation (rxy = -.823, p < 0.05) between emotional regulation and academic procrastination. Lower levels of emotional regulation are associated with higher procrastination tendencies, while higher emotional regulation corresponds to lower procrastination tendencies. The results underscore the importance of promoting emotional regulation skills among high school students to mitigate academic procrastination, with implications for parental involvement and school interventions. Future research should expand the sample and consider additional variables to further explore these dynamics. Highlight: Negative correlation: Emotional regulation inversely related to academic procrastination (rxy = -.823). Intervention importance: Enhancing emotional regulation crucial to reduce academic procrastination. Research expansion: Larger sample size needed, explore additional variables for comprehensive understanding. Keywoard: Emotional Regulation, Academic Procrastination, High School, Correlation, SPSS

Suicide Prevention across the Community: Evaluation of Mental Health Training for Multiple Gatekeeper Groups

Introduction. The USA experiences higher suicide rates than the global average, with rural rates even higher. The present study examined whether a single suicide prevention training could increase knowledge, awareness, and intention to act among multiple gatekeeper populations in Kansas, a rural state with elevated suicide rates. Methods. An evidence-based suicide prevention training program was developed by licensed clinical psychologists at a public university in Kansas and offered online to multiple recruitment groups: university faculty/staff and students, healthcare workers, and other community members on a voluntary basis; high school staff and students on a compulsory basis. Participants reported knowledge, awareness, and intention on a Likert-type scale and indicated whether they had completed previous suicide prevention training. 865 participants provided retrospective pre/post results. Paired samples t-tests were run on the full set and each recruitment group. Repeated measures ANOVAs compared results by recruitment group and previously trained status. Results. Overall, by recruitment group, and by previously trained status, participants demonstrated statistically significant pre/post increases on all items. ANOVA found no significant differences between recruitment groups. Participants with previous training reported less change in scores but still increased scores significantly. Conclusions. Findings support the efficacy of using a single suicide prevention training across multiple populations. This has implications for allotting limited resources in an environment of high need.

Establishment of Physical Strength Evaluation Findings on Slim School Age Children: Analysis of Fifth Grade Primary School Students

Hypotheses on physical strength and athletic ability in people with slim body types have yet to be clearly proven. Certainly, several studies have been reported, but none have gone beyond the realm of speculation. This is due to the fact that an amount of data needed to statistically ensure conclusions on the slim body type have not been established. In this study we carefully the examined physique, physical strength and athletic ability over time obtained in a large-scale study conducted over seven years (2013 to 2019) in the Kansai region of Japan, and obtained measurement results for fifth grade elementary school students and second year junior high school students. Specifically, we applied the wavelet interpolation model to the trends over time in mean values and standard deviations for height, physical strength, and athletic ability (grip strength, repeated side jumps, sit and reach, sit-ups, 50 m run, standing long jump, 20 m shuttle run, and softball throw) in fifth grade boys and girls. We then constructed span evaluation charts. The height, physical strength, and athletic ability of fifth grade boys and girls judged from an aging span evaluation chart for BMI devised by Fujii [1] was then applied to this evaluation chart. The result was that the evaluation of physical strength and athletic ability in slim fifth grade elementary school students derived in this study clearly indicated that these students somewhat below average in grip strength and softball throw, which has not been reported from previous estimates. We submit that a physical strength and athletic ability evaluation in fifth grade boys and girls in elementary school with a slim body type has been established in this study

Communicative Competence and the Speaking Performance among Senior High School Students

This study was conducted to determine the relationship between communicative competence and speaking performance among senior high school students. Using a descriptive-correlational research design, thirty (30) Grade 11 STEM students from Padre Garcia Integrated National High School during the academic year 2023-2024 were selected as respondents of the study. Five expert teachers validated the instrument. The test questionnaires were used as the primary instruments to evaluate communicative competence among participants. The questionnaire consisted of a test aimed at gathering data regarding participants' communicative competence and a rubric to test speaking performance. Statistical tools such as frequency, percentage, and Pearson R were utilized to test the relationship of the independent and dependent variables. Hypotheses were tested and the findings revealed the following information: the hypothesis that there is no significant relationship between communicative competence and the speaking performance of senior high school learners is accepted. Having all those findings, this study recommends diversifying instructional strategies in enhancing sociolinguistic and strategic competence; conducting Focus Group Discussion (FGD); integrating speaking skills development across the curriculum and implementing cross-domain training. Future researchers may conduct a study on communicative competence and speaking performance of senior high school on a large scale such as regional or national level.

Inclusive School Policies and Practices and the Well-Being of LGBTQ + Students in Portugal

Abstract Introduction The school context can be particularly problematic for youth who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and queer or who hold other sexual and gender-minoritized identities (LGBTQ +). To address this issue, LGBTQ + inclusive policies and practices have been implemented in many schools around the world. Methods A cross-sectional sample of 989 LGBTQ + and cisheterosexual high school students residing in Portugal completed an anonymous online survey in 2020/21. Participants were asked about their perceptions of LGBTQ + inclusive policies and practices in their school, namely, an inclusive curriculum, comprehensive policies, and information and support regarding sexual orientation and gender identity in their school. We further examined associations between these perceptions and LGBTQ + student well-being (depression, resilience, and self-esteem). Results Perceptions of the existence of an inclusive school curriculum were lower among LGBTQ + students compared to their cisheterosexual peers. In addition, LGBTQ + students who perceived the curriculum as less inclusive were more likely to report higher levels of depression and lower levels of resilience and self-esteem. Conclusions The findings suggest that LGBTQ + students perceive the school curriculum to be less inclusive, and this is associated with poorer well-being. Policy Implications Concrete policies and practices that improve school climate and promote the well-being of LGBTQ + students are paramount. These may include awareness-raising activities for students and discussion of LGBTQ + issues in the classroom. Therefore, cultural competency training for school staff is essential.

Factors Associated with Mental Health Care among Adolescents in Southern California.

Mental health care is critical to improving mental health but factors associated with student utilization are poorly understood. Data were from high school students (N = 2933; mean age = 15.7 ± .6) enrolled in a California cohort. We examined associations of sociodemographic factors, substance use, and mental health symptoms at baseline (Fall 2021) with mental health care at follow-up (Spring 2022). At follow-up, 7.7% of students reported out-of-school therapy, and 16.0% reported in-school counseling. Generally, therapy was more common for female and gender minority (vs male), some sexual minority youth (vs heterosexual), black, non-Hispanic white, and multi-ethnic (vs Asian), and English language speakers. Higher socioeconomic status was associated with greater use of out-of-school therapy, but not in-school counseling. Students with clinical levels of mental health symptoms, or alcohol or e-cigarette use had greater odds of mental health care (ORs = 1.42-2.61;ps <.05), though utilization was less than 20% for out-of-school therapy and less than 30% for in-school counseling among these students. Mental health care is underutilized, and disproportionately used by certain student sub-groups. Findings indicate a need to increase mental health care utilization in- and out-of-school.

Investigation of the sense of school belonging and sportspersonship behavior of students playing traditional children's games.

The purpose of this study is to examine the sense of school belonging and sportspersonship behaviors of students who participate in traditional children's games. The research was designed using a quasi-experimental model with a pre-test and post-test control group and was conducted over a period of 16weeks. The study group consisted of a total of 1871 students, including 1379 middle school and 492 high school students, continuing their education in Eskil, Aksaray during the 2023-2024 academic year. The experimental group students participated in the games and inter-school tournaments within the scope of the "2nd I Live My Values with Traditional Games Project" No intervention was applied to the control group after the introduction of the games. The "School Belongingness Scale" and the "Physical Education Course Sportspersonship Behavior Scale" were used as data collection tools. For data analysis, MANOVA, paired samples t-test, and regression analysis were employed. The findings of the study indicated that both the experimental and control groups showed positive scores in pre-test and post-test measures of school belongingness and sportspersonship behaviors. However, the experimental group demonstrated significant improvements in their sense of school belonging and sportspersonship behaviors in favor of the post-test. While no significant change was observed in the control group's sense of school belonging, a decline was noted in their sportspersonship behaviors. The experimental group exhibited greater development in school belongingness and sportspersonship behaviors compared to the control group. Although middle school students showed improvements in their sense of school belonging, high school students experienced a more substantial emotional development. No significant differences were found in school belongingness and sportspersonship behaviors based on the students' gender. Sportspersonship behavior predicted school belongingness by 11%, suggesting that positive sportspersonship behaviors increased school attachment among children. In conclusion, it was determined that students participating in traditional children's games developed a more positive sense of school belonging and sportspersonship behaviors over time. Based on the positive outcomes of student participation in traditional games, it is recommended to promote these games, incorporate them into physical education classes, and increase participation in tournaments.

An in depth review of body shaming phenomenon among adolescent: Trigger factors, psychological impact and prevention efforts

Background: Body shaming, a pervasive issue, has severe psychological and societal repercussions, particularly for early adolescents. This study addresses the gap in understanding body shaming in smaller urban settings such as Jember City, often overlooked in favour of larger metropolitan areas.Aim: The study aimed to investigate the psychological effects, trigger factors and potential preventive measures of body shaming among junior high school students in Jember City.Setting: The study was conducted in junior high schools in Jember City, East Java, Indonesia.Methods: An observational, cross-sectional design with both quantitative and qualitative approaches was used. Data were collected through self-administered questionnaires and in-depth interviews. The quantitative analysis was performed using the Spearman’s rank test.Results: The study included 320 adolescents aged between 12 and 15 years. Of these, 6.3% were 12 years old, 31.2% were 13, 31.6% were 14, and 30.9% were 15. Additionally, 56.2% of the participants were female. The majority (95%) identified as Muslim, and 72.8% had parents with bachelor’s degrees. Parental occupations ranged from private business to civil service. In terms of body mass index, 34.7% were classified as very thin, 18.1% as thin, 40.9% as normal, and 3.1% as fat or obese. Body shaming was widespread, with 73.1% criticized for their clothing, 59.9% for their speech, and 66.7% compared to others. The main sources of body shaming were family, peers, media, and personal insecurities. There was also a significant correlation between body shaming and stress (ρ = 0.404, p 0.01).Conclusion: Body shaming affects mental health, particularly among adolescents. It stems from societal norms and media perpetuation.Contribution: This study provides insights into body shaming in smaller urban settings, highlighting the need for targeted prevention efforts to mitigate its effects and promote healthier self-esteem and body image.

Education – Language – Identity

AbstractIn our paper we explore the intricate relationship between language and identity within the Hungarian language minority residing in Slovakia, examining the patterns of identification among high school students in Western Slovakia. Focusing on upper-secondary Hungarian-medium high school students, we investigate the role of the Hungarian language in shaping identity patterns and cultural unity. Through a mixed-methods approach, combining a quantitative questionnaire survey with qualitative focus group discussions, we address research questions regarding the construction of community belonging and adolescents' attachments to their region and homeland. Our study, encompassing 414 students from five Hungarian-medium gymnasiums, sheds light on the identity formation of the Hungarian national minority and highlights divergent tendencies between different age groups. The findings are part of an ongoing state-level research project.

Running, walking, and cross-country skiing: how to shape adolescents’ personalities through physical activity?

Adolescence is crucial for personality development, and sports play a significant role. This study investigates the impact of various sports on the personality traits of junior high and high school students in Shandong Province, focusing on neuroticism, extraversion, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. Utilizing data from the “Database of Youth Health,” we employed Seemingly Unrelated Regression (SUR) and Generalized Structural Equation Modeling (GSEM) to analyze the effects of physical activity on personality development. Findings reveal that walking significantly enhances openness and decreased neuroticism, while jogging/running substantially improves extraversion, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. Cross-country skiing, however, negatively impacts all assessed personality traits. In addition, the importance of gender differences in the relationship between physical activity and personality development was revealed. The results offer insights for promoting adolescent personality development through targeted sports activities.

The role of attitude toward nature in learning about environmental issues

Attitude toward nature and environmental attitude are two distinct propensities that both further learning about the environment. The present study builds upon prior research by investigating the role of attitude toward nature in learning about environmental issues. In a sample of 1,486 university, middle and high school students (Mage = 15.25, SD = 3.2), we first calibrated a pool of items expressing attitude toward nature. We found differences in how adolescents expressed their appreciation for nature at different ages. It is essential to consider these differences to accurately ascertain adolescents’ attitudes toward nature. We then conducted a mediation test. Whereas attitude toward nature determined the levels of knowledge students gained and retained, environmental attitude fully mediated the environmental knowledge subsequently demonstrated by the students. Our research suggests that researchers and educators may benefit from taking an experiential approach to learning about sustainable development by promoting appreciation for nature.