Does School Resources Impact School Adjustment and Academic Achievement? A Study of Higher Secondary School Students in India

Abstract

School resources are generally expected to contribute to students’ learning and their adjustment to the school environment. The evidence from developing countries remains limited and inconclusive, particularly at the higher secondary stage in India. The present study examined whether school resources predict school adjustment and academic achievement among Grade 11 students and compared students studying in CBSE- and UP Board-affiliated schools through survey method. Simple linear regression and independent-samples t-tests were used for analysis. Findings indicated that school resources did not significantly predict academic achievement in either the UP Board (p = .951) and CBSE (p = .606), and similarly did not significantly predict institutional adjustment (p = .073 and .220, respectively). The regression models explained less than 2.2% of the variance in academic achievement. No significant differences were found between CBSE and UP Board students in school resources, t(298) = 0.80, p = .425, or academic achievement, t(298) = 0.40, p = .687. However, a significant difference was observed in school adjustment, t(298) = 2.64, p = .009, d = .30. The findings suggest that resource availability alone may not determine student outcomes; effective utilisation, teaching practices, and school climate and other psychosocial factors may be more influential.