School is Cool: The Importance of Faculty Trust for Student’s Social Integration in Technical/Vocational versus Academic Schools

Educational systems worldwide apply some form of tracking which stratifies students according to their ability. Our study shows that teachers’ perceptions of intergenerational bonding in school diff er according to the track in which the teacher-student relationships take place. Moreover, this mechanism is responsible for the students’ lower sense of belonging in technical/vocational schools compared to academic schools. In terms of strengthening students’ connectedness to a technical/vocational school environment, we indicate that strengthening the level of trust in students on behalf of the teachers could be a crucial step that needs to be undertaken.