Strangeness and sense of belonging at school: Disadvantaged students in the public education system. A qualitative case study in an Capital City school
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17627/ALKPSZICH.2025.4.225Keywords:
learning environments, psychiatric diagnosis, atypical talents, alternative learning environmentsAbstract
Background and Aims: In professional discussions about the role and tasks of modern education, the possibility of supporting individual learning paths is regularly raised (Molnár, 2010). Since each person perceives and interprets the world around them differently, we believe that individual learning processes can only be truly supported–in both pedagogical and psychological terms–if we recognize and integrate into pedagogical practice the personal characteristics and individual competencies that determine an individual’s ideal learning environment (Kálmán, 2011). This is especially true for children whose learning path differs from the “traditional” one due to their psychiatric diagnosis and who are difficult to fit into the current and, unfortunately, very rigid conditions of the public education system (Hegedüs, 2024). We believe that the learning environment of these students is just as complex and dynamically changing as that of “typical” students in public education, in which learning support and learning shaping factors have a complex effect on learning participants, and regulatory systems, influence the methods and tools chosen, and have clearly describable spatial-ergonomic implications (Szőcs et al., 2022).
Method: During the research, we conducted a cross-sectional qualitative study using the snowball sampling method. A total of 20 teachers and other qualified support professionals were selected for the sample. During the research, we first observed the interviewees’ lessons and activities, highlighting pedagogical moments and teacher-student interactions, followed by semi-structured life history interviews. During the interviews, based on the interviewer’s instructions, a freehand mental map of the school was drawn. The interviews and drawings were coded, followed by Grounded Theory.
Conclusions: The study highlights pedagogical methods and spatial arrangements tailored to the specific characteristics and needs of individual students. In our research, we systematically analyzed the characteristics of the socio-physical space and sought to observe and describe the dynamically changing spaces in an unusual school. At the end of the research, we can ask ourselves whether the difference between the “unusual” and the familiar is an advantage or a disadvantage. What kind of spatial arrangement better facilitates active learning processes and supports experience-based pedagogical approaches?
