NAVIGATING THE COLLEGE EXPERIENCE: EXPLORING THE ROLES OF SENSE OF BELONGING, ACADEMIC STRESS, ACADEMIC MOTIVATION AND DEMOGRAPHICS AMONG COLLEGE STUDENTS

Abstract

The College of Education is a social institution where learning takes place. However, the transition of individual students from different secondary schools, to the college of Education may come with a lot of stress, little to no motivation consequently raising the need for belonging to survive and thrive. The aim of this study was to explore the roles of sense of belonging, academic stress, academic motivation and demographics among college students. The researcher adopted the quantitative approach. The study used Wesley College of Education students in Kumasi. The target population for this study included all students at Wesley College of Education, 181 students found the sample of the study. Questionnaire were used to collect data. One-way and Two-way Multivariate Analysis of Variance were used in the analysis. The study revealed that there was no statistically significant difference between the demographics (Age, Gender, level of Edu. And First-generation status) of students and the academic stress, academic motivation and sense of belonging as all P-Values were greater than .05 (p>.05). However, a statistically significant difference between males and females existed only for the dimensions of academic stress. It is recommended that since males were found to perceive academic stress slightly high as compared to females, then, males should be initiated into counselling seminars or stress coping workshops in order to be able to cope with academic stress.