Journal of Education and Health Promotion

Determinants of well‑being of middle‑school students in Moroccan urban and rural areas: A comparative study

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

. Salah‑Eddine Khzami
. Abdelaziz Razouki
. Sabah Selmaoui
. Boujemaa Agorram
Abstract
CONTEXT: Well‑being in schools is often considered in relation to the educational and academic
success of students. However, it is difficult, at present, not to consider the well‑being of a student
without an ecological and holistic perspective, in view of the interaction principles implemented in
schools. This research aimed to identify the representations hold by Moroccan teenagers about
well‑being. It aimed, also, to do a comparison between two groups of teenagers: one belonging to
urban and the other to rural areas.
METHODS: This quantitative study concerns a sample of 1444 pupils (755 girls and 689 boys)
enrolled in middle school. Research instrument for this study was questionnaire that includes 15
questions relating to well‑being at school, relationships with the teacher, relationships between
students, violence experienced, and coeducation.
RESULTS: From the analysis of data, pupils in the rural areas seem to be most sensitive to the
“emotional” aspects of the teacher–pupil relationship. The girls are more satisfied in middle school
than boys. This fact seems to be a very important factor in their retention and in reducing their dropout
rate. As expected, academic success is highlighted in the two groups of students as an indicator
of well‑being. However, the fact of not knowing which orientation to choose constitutes a factor of
ill‑being for pupils, especially for girls. The results show also that well‑being is not taken care of in
the two environments (urban and rural). This will explain the results of Moroccan students assessed
by the Program for the Monitoring of Student Achievement.
CONCLUSIONS: Training programs should focus on the development of teachers communication
skills, ability to manage behavioral problems of their students and use teaching approaches to develop
positive relationships between students.

Keywords

Middle school
representations
rural world
urban world
well‑being
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Journal of Education and Health Promotion
Volume 10, Issue 10
October 2020
Pages 1-7

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