Students’ well-being is a cornerstone of a safe and supportive learning environment and a strong predictor of learning motivation, behavior, and achievement (Barosso et al., 2020; Kozina, 2020; OECD, 2023, 2024). Recent international large-scale assessment studies (e.g. PISA, TIMSS, PIRLS) which involve representative samples of students in different countries and economies have increasingly focused on studying students’ well-being, and the latest results highlight concerning findings in Slovenia. The latest PISA 2022 results (OECD, 2023) show that Slovenian 15-year-olds report below the OECD average well-being indicators, including a weaker sense of school belonging, low perceived social-emotional support from teachers, and lower positive emotions and life satisfaction. In Slovenia, similar findings have been confirmed in TIMSS and PIRLS for primary school students (Magdič & Štraus, 2022). The results of national and international large-scale assessment studies to date therefore suggest that the well-being of students and, consequently, the creation of a safe and supportive learning environment needs further in-depth attention in the Slovenian educational arena.

            In response, the Slovenian Ministry of Education launched a study in 2024 to conduct secondary analyses of large-scale assessment data, focusing on vulnerable student groups and areas of well-being that require national-level support. First results of this study are presented in the continuation. Given the international emphasis on different areas of well-being in PISA 2022, this study relied primarily on its data, targeting key aspects of well-being such as student-teacher relationships, school belonging, safety and bullying in schools, family and teacher support, academic anxiety, perseverance, curiosity, stress resistance, and emotional control. These areas of well-being were selected based on below the OECD average results in PISA 2022 in Slovenia and their predictive value for student learning outcomes identified in different national and foreign studies (e.g. OECD, 2024; Singh & Manjaly, 2022; Štremfel et al., 2024; Usán Supervía & Quílez Robres, 2021; Wentzel, 2024). Furthermore, previous national secondary PISA analyses (e.g. Šterman Ivančič et al., 2023) indicate that different aspects of students’ well-being vary significantly by gender, socioeconomic background, immigrant status, and educational programme of students. For this reason, this study examines these student characteristics to identify vulnerable groups of students and the well-being dimensions needing the most support.  In the context presented above, this study aims to answer two key questions i) Which student groups in Slovenia are the most vulnerable and require additional support to enhance their well-being? and ii) Which well-being areas require the most support within these groups?

            As such the study contributes to the growing body of research on students’ well-being by providing a detailed national-level analysis of vulnerable student groups and critical well-being dimensions in Slovenia. By leveraging large-scale assessment data, the findings tend to offer evidence-based insights for policymakers, educators, and researchers to develop targeted interventions aimed at fostering a more supportive learning environment. Additionally, the study aligns with international research on students’ well-being, enhancing comparability and broadening the understanding of factors that influence students' educational outcomes across diverse educational contexts.

For the analysis, data from the PISA 2022 survey was used, which in Slovenia includes students aged 15 years and 3 months to 16 years and 2 months. The multi-level, stratified sampling covers all secondary education programs in Slovenia. In PISA 2022, 6721 students participated. To examine gender differences in well-being, the analysis included 3584 male (53%) and 3137 female (47%) students. For differences by educational program, we analyzed 5591 students: 1486 (27%) from general gymnasium programme, 2766 (49%) from technical education programmes, and 1339 (24%) from vocational education programmes. Regarding immigration status, we included 5866 (87%) non-immigrant students and 378 (6%) students with first-generation immigrant status. For socio-economic status, we included 819 (12%) students who reported their socioeconomic status in the bottom two-quarters of the range of socioeconomic status index values and 665 (10%) students who reported their socioeconomic status in the top quarter of the range of socioeconomic status index values. In PISA 2022, the student questionnaire was used to identify different aspects of students’ well-being. For the analyses, we used separate scales addressing student-teacher relationships, belonging to school, safety and bullying in schools, family and teacher support, academic anxiety, students’ perseverance, curiosity, stress resistance, and emotional control. All scales showed good internal consistency in the PISA 2022 sample of Slovenian students, with coefficients ranging from α = 0.65 to α = 0.87 (OCED, 2024). We analyzed standardized well-being indices for Slovenia from the PISA 2022 database. Descriptive analyses were conducted for all well-being aspects by gender, educational programme, immigrant background, and socioeconomic status of students. High and low socioeconomic groups of students were defined based on Slovenia’s index distribution, including students in the top quarter and bottom two quarters. Group differences were tested using a t-test at p ≤ 0.05. Data were analysed using the statistical programme IEA IDB Analyzer (Version 5.0.39), which, in processing data due to two-stage sampling in the study in addition to the use of weights for individual students (W_FSTUWT), also allows us to use sample weights to properly assess the standard parameter errors in the population using the Bootstrap method.

The findings of this study indicate significant disparities in students’ well-being in Slovenia with specific vulnerabilities varying across demographic groups. Girls, students in vocational education programmes, and those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds are particularly at risk within the Slovenian educational context. The analysis further highlights key dimensions of well-being that require greater attention and targeted support to foster a safe and supportive learning environment for all students. These include students’ sense of school belonging, academic anxiety, and socio-emotional competencies - particularly perseverance, curiosity, stress management, and emotional regulation. These results align with previous research across OECD countries (e.g., Alivernini et al., 2020; Obermeier et al., 2021), which underscore the role of gender, socioeconomic status, and educational pathways in shaping students’ well-being. The observed disparities highlight the critical compensatory function of schools in mitigating these differences by ensuring equitable access to a supportive and nurturing learning environment. Given these findings, the establishment of a national system of interventions aimed at strengthening Slovenian students' socio-emotional competencies is essential. A strategic shift towards a more holistic educational approach - one that integrates well-being alongside academic achievement - is necessary to better support the most vulnerable student populations. By contextualizing the OECD PISA 2022 findings within Slovenia, this study provides an empirical basis for identifying students in need of targeted well-being interventions. Its theoretical, empirical, and applied contributions underscore the importance of prioritizing student well-being as a fundamental component of a high-quality and equitable education system.

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