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How do peer relationships affect student classroom engagement and academic

outcomes in secondary schools?

In their 2011 research, Pike, Smart and Ethington found student engagement had a
positive effect on academic outcomes (p 568), Liem and Martin also found this in their
research, agreeing engagement affected outcomes, but Liem and Martin (2011, p ) also
found relationships between student peers had an effect on outcomes through increasing
or decreasing student engagement. Classroom engagement can simply refer to how
actively involved a student is in an activity, which can be broken down into behaviour,
emotion, cognition, and agency (Reeve & Lee, 2014, p 528). Dykstra and Watson (2015)
believe the many slightly different definitions for engagement in the classroom all have a
common theme of how well students participate in learning activities (p 2393).

Buhs (2005) found that negative peer relationships which include victimisation or
bullying can reduce classroom engagement and as a result, also academic outcomes (p
420). Interestingly, Buhs also found exclusion from or by peers, which is less overt and
often missed, as a factor which led to less engagement. He believed that exclusion was a
big factor as it happens more regularly and happens “identical across groups” of boys and
girls (p 419). His data was gathered from a longitudinal study of 378 students across 156
classrooms in the United States Midwest who came from a diverse SES range by collecting
surveys from students and teachers. Students had to rank how likely they were to spend
time with particular students and if they ever felt excluded or victimised, and teachers
ranked the student’s classroom engagement. Although Buhs mostly examined students
from a Caucasian background, and further studies may need to look at a broader range of
students, he showed that based on this sample, peer relationships affect classroom
engagement in both positive and negative ways depending on the relationship, and this
ultimately affects academic outcomes.

In 2011, Liem and Martin undertook a cross-sectional study to examine what was the link
between peer relationships and academic outcomes, believing the link was classroom and
school engagement, they engaged in a study of 3 Australian schools which consisted 1,436
students from years 7 - 12 (p 189). Their data agreed with that of Buhs (2005), but they
looked at the more overt aspects of peer relationships like conflict rather than exclusion.
The data for their results was gathered from surveys administered to each student and
looked at both same-sex peer relationships, and opposite-sex peer relationships (p 189).
Students were asked questions based on positively perceived relationships. Although
Liem and Martin (2011) believe more study is needed, they concluded that positive same-
sex peer relationships “yielded positive direct and indirect effects, mediated by school
engagement, in relation to academic performance” (p 200), but opposite-sex peer
relationships did not have a strong impact on students engagement.

Yibing Li, Doyle Lynch, Kalvin, Jianjun Liu, & Lerner (2011) agree with Liem and Martin
that peer relationships affect engagement (p 340). Their data was derived from a larger

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longitudinal study from the USA, looking into the social and emotional development of
1676 youths in grades 6-8. Students and parents from a wide demographic were
surveyed each year and Yibing Li (et al, 2011) focused on both negatively perceived peer
relationships such as problem-behaving friends and bullying involvement, and positively
perceived relationships which included peer support groups, and students rating
whether peers at their schools cared about them. Their findings showed that for both girls
and boys, classroom and school engagement was affected by peer-relationships more and
more as they grew older (p 340). Typically, students who were involved in negatively
perceived peer relationships were less engaged in school and students in positive peer-
relationships were more engaged in schools, but Yibing Li (et. al) believed more study
was needed for two reasons, firstly, students who engaged in both positive and negative
peer relationships and other intricate situations was unaccounted for, and secondly,
almost half of students involved in the study did not last the three years, and of those who
did, the majority were European-American (p 341).

A 2013 study by Cappella, Kim, Neal, Jackson. corroborated the same findings, agreeing
that peer relationships affect student’s engagement, but focused on whether social
structures in an elementary classroom can affect peer relationships amongst all students
in order to increase engagement(p 368). The researchers admit the study was very
limited, even though it had questionnaires and observations, they believe more observers
are necessary, and a larger than 80 sample size is required in further study, with a
demographic which does not consist of only low SES Latinos (p 375). Despite the
limitations, Cappella (et. al) believe that creating a classroom environment which
encourages peer relationships across amongst all students and not just a select few,
increases engagement.

A study by Engels, Colpin, Leeuwen, Bijttebier, Noortgate, Claes, Verschueren (2016)

looked at both peer status and teacher-student relationships. Where as these previous
studies found positive peer relationships affected engagement, Engels (et, al.) found that
poor teacher-student relationships led to students being more concerned with peer
status in a negative way which led to less classroom engagement (p 1204). This study
used an accelerated longitudinal design looking at data from 1116 students in grades 7-
9 over three years in Belgium. Admittedly, this study did not look at relationships and
friendships, but rather, perceived status amongst peers, but found students who were
more popular and well-liked by the peers were less engaged, where other studies showed
they were more engaged. The researchers believe this could be because they looked at
peer status rather than peer relationships, but also believe the effects could be greater
when looking at peer relationships. This study shows a more complicated aspect to peer
relationships, as students who were more concerned with popularity tended to be less
engaged, and was found to be exacerbated when there were poor student-teacher
relationships (p 1204).

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In a 2017 study, Moses and Villodas agreed with the previous assertions that peer
relationships do have an effect on engagement, but chose to look into how it affected
adolescent students who were considered at risk (p 2255). This longitudinal study looked
at the data of 831 diverse students from birth until the age of 16 (p 2255). They found
that low conflict, intimate and close peer relationships which have trust, generally lead to
greater school engagement in students who are from at risk backgrounds. These at risk
students are usually from broken families or have experienced abuse and potentially
traumatic experiences. Though positive peer relationships have a positive effect on
engagement, Moses and Villodas (2017) also found that students with peer relationships
or friendships which are high in conflict lead to negative perceptions of school and
increased dropout rates (p 2267). This U.S. study also pointed out that a limitation in this
study could be that this study was collected through self reporting methods and was not
able to break down the effects on different genders, even so, they believe the data clearly
shows peer relationships can affect engagement both negatively and positively
depending quality of the relationship.

No doubt, the research shows that peer relationships have an effect on classroom
engagement, and show that the complexities of peer relationships affect engagement in
different ways. These researchers show that positive peer relationships grounded in trust
and non delinquent behaviours lead to greater engagement, but negative relationships
greatly reduce engagement. All these researchers also agree that classroom engagement
has a direct affect on academic outcomes. Further study should look at what students,
teachers and parents view as negative and positive peer relationships and compare it to
the data on students classroom engagement.

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Part B: Data Collection Protocol

Dear Potential Participant:

I am working on a project titled “How do peer relationships affect student classroom engagement and
academic outcomes in secondary schools?” for the class, ‘Researching Teaching and Learning 2,’ at
Western Sydney University. As part of the project, I am collecting information to help inform the design
of a teacher research proposal.

This topic examines the effects student relationships have on their classroom engagement, this is
important as research shows classroom engagement is a great indicator for future academic
performance. We would like to find out what would be considered a positive opposed to a negative peer
relationship, whether these make a difference to how students engage in a classroom, and whether it
increases or decreases the engagement. This research will be conducted through a semi-structured
interview process between 10 min - 12 min under teacher supervision, and all data will be de-identified,
with no names of students, teachers or schools included.

By signing this form I acknowledge that:

● I have read the project information and have been given the opportunity to discuss the
information and my involvement in the project with the researcher/s.
● The procedures required for the project and the time involved have been explained to me, and
any questions I have about the project have been answered to my satisfaction.
● I consent to being interviewed.
● I understand that my involvement is confidential and that the information gained during this data
collection experience will only be reported within the confines of the ‘Researching Teaching
and Learning 2’ unit, and that all personal details will be de-identified from the data.
● I understand that I can withdraw from the project at any time, without affecting my relationship
with the researcher/s, now or in the future.

By signing below, I acknowledge that I am 18 years of age or older, or I am a full-time university student
who is 17 years old.

Signed: __________________________________
Name: __________________________________
Date: __________________________________

By signing below, I acknowledge that I am the legal guardian of a person who is 16 or 17 years old, and
provide my consent for the person’s participation.

Signed: __________________________________
Name: __________________________________
Date: __________________________________

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Research Question Big Conceptual Idea Interview Question

What is a positive and Student Perception How would you describe a

negative peer relationship?
Many of the studies assume
what a positive/negative
peer relationships are, but
students were never asked
their point of view (Liem &
Martin (2011). Buhs (2005)
was the only one to include
peer exclusion as a negative
peer relationship, but it
was quite insightful.
positive or good peer
relationship?
How would you describe a
negative or bad peer
relationship?
Would you consider a good
peer relationship a
friendship? (why?)

Do peer relationships affect Peer relationships and Describe the type of peer
classroom engagement, if Classroom engagement relationships you would
so, why, how? prefer in a classroom
setting?
Much of the data shows that
peer relationships do affect Describe what you think
classroom engagement, good classroom
noting that high conflict engagement would look
denotes less engagement like?
(Moses and Villodas 2017).
Are you able to participate
in class activities without
the teacher prompting you?
(how many times on
average does a teacher
prompt you?)

Would you be more

engaged or less engaged in
a classroom with people
you consider friends?
(why?)

How do you think it would

affect your classroom
engagement if you have
been bullied or excluded?

If other students are

distracting you, would you
consider that positive or
negative?

Are you more likely to

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engage with classroom

activities with your peers
or on your own? (why?)

Can teachers affect peer Teacher effect on peer Do you think a teacher
relationships in the relationships should help you have better
classroom, if so, how? peer relationships in a
Engels (et, al. 2016) classroom? (how could
believes good student- they do that?)
teacher relationships can
negate the effects of a Do you think group work
negative peer relationship helps you with classroom
and help improve the engagement, or hinders
positive. you? (Why)

Capella (et, al. 2013) What makes a fun

believed teachers can classroom?
create structures in a
classroom to help or Do you think it is possible
diminish peer to be engaged and still have
relationships. fun?

Does classroom Classroom engagement When you are more

engagement affect and academic outcomes engaged in the classroom,
academic outcomes? do you find your marks are
According to Pike, Smart better or worse in the long
and Ethington (2011), run?
students academic
outcomes improve with What reasons cause you to
greater classroom be more engaged in a
engagement. classroom?

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Part C

The data will be collected through a qualitative semi-structured interview process of

between 10 min - 12 min, with the potential of slightly more time if required and all
student’s parents will be required to sign consent forms after carefully reading all the
information. As suggested by Jacob and Ferguson (2012), when dealing with children, it
is best to have shorter interviews as they may become disinterested (et, al. p 5), and to
ensure the consent process is properly followed, anyone under 18 needs
parent/caregiver consent. 6 students from year 9 will be asked if they would like to
participate, with the aim of having at least 2 boys and 2 girls in the interviews, they will
be conducted through one on one interviews with another teacher their as supervision in
a quiet setting which will allow recording and note taking to a minimum (et, al. p 7). A
semi-structured interview was chosen as it allows pre-prepared questions which guide
the interview and keep it flowing, but also allows room for supplementary questions,
giving the participants time to elaborate or share other points which may not be in the
original questions (NCLC, 2010, p 1-2). Considering students in year 9 will be
interviewed, some questions may seem similar, succinct or simple, which has been done
to help them think about their answers in different ways and elaborate further.

The purpose of this data collection is to see what students perceive as positive and
negative peer relationships, and whether they as a student feel engaged in their
classrooms and school, and if so, why that might be. Students have been chosen as the
participants because they have the ability to give insight on their experiences with their
own peers and their experience in classroom engagement. The interviews will not target
students academic outcomes beyond asking how they perceive their outcomes, as the
research shows sufficient evidence that classroom engagement affects academic
outcomes. All research questions were created and guided by the literature review which
showed further study was needed and even suggested by each of the articles. A common
theme in the literature showed that students were not interviewed, which could
potentially be because it requires a lot of resources and makes the data collection process
much longer. Considering this, it was important to fill this hole in the data, and see how
students would define peer relationships, both negative and positive relationships to see
how they believed it affected their classroom engagement and how best to garner positive
relationships in a school and classroom setting. As much of the data already shows
classroom engagement directly affects academic outcomes, it was important to not focus
too many of the questions on academic outcomes, but still allow students to reflect on
whether they believe it affects theirs or others academic outcomes. This data will further
help educators determine best practice to engage students in the classroom.

Reference list

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Buhs, E. (2005). Peer rejection, negative peer treatment, and school adjustment:
Self-concept and classroom engagement as mediating processes. Journal of School
Psychology, 43(5), 407-424.

Cappella, E., Kim, H., Neal, J., & Jackson, D. (2013). Classroom Peer Relationships and
Behavioral Engagement in Elementary School: The Role of Social Network Equity.
American Journal of Community Psychology, 52(3-4), 367-379.

Dykstra Steinbrenner, J., & Watson, R. (2015). Student Engagement in the Classroom:
The Impact of Classroom, Teacher, and Student Factors. Journal of Autism and
Developmental Disorders, 45(8), 2392-2410.

Engels, M., Colpin, C., Leeuwen, H., Bijttebier, K., Den Noortgate, P., Claes, W.,
Verschueren, L. (2016). Behavioral Engagement, Peer Status, and
Teacher–Student Relationships in Adolescence: A Longitudinal Study on
Reciprocal Influences. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 45(6), 1192-1207.

Interviewing for action research. (2010). Retrieved from nclc203s10.onmason.com

Jacob, S. A., & Furgerson, S. P. (2012). Writing Interview Protocols and Conducting
Interviews: Tips for Students New to the Field of Qualitative Research. The
Qualitative report, 17 (42), 1-10. Retrieved from
https://nsuworks.nova.edu/tqr/vol17/iss42/3

Liem, G., & Martin, A. (2011). Peer relationships and adolescents' academic and
non-academic outcomes: Same-sex and opposite-sex peer effects and the
mediating role of school engagement. British Journal Of Educational Psychology,
81(2), 183-206.

Moses, J., & Villodas, O. (2017). The Potential Protective Role of Peer Relationships on
School Engagement in At-Risk Adolescents. Journal of Youth and Adolescence,
46(11), 2255-2272.

Pike, G., Smart, R., & Ethington, J. (2012). The Mediating Effects of Student Engagement
on the Relationships Between Academic Disciplines and Learning Outcomes: An
Extension of Holland’s Theory. Research in Higher Education, 53(5), 550-575.

Reeve, J., & Lee, W. (2014). Students' classroom engagement produces longitudinal
changes in classroom motivation. 106(2), 527-540.

Yibing Li, A., Doyle Lynch, Kalvin, Jianjun Liu, & Lerner. (2011). Peer relationships as a
context for the development of school engagement during early adolescence.
International Journal of Behavioral Development, 35(4), 329-342.

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