Positive Student-Teacher Relationships

Positive student-teacher relationships have been defined as occurring when students feel that their teachers value, respect, and support them (Doll et al., 2004). This occurs when the relationships are warm, responsive, engaged, contain high demands and expectations, and provide the class with structure and clear limits (Pianta, 1999). Conveyed and perceived social support is essential for healthy relationships, with four distinct types of support identified as being appropriate for addressing various situations and needs – emotional, instrumental, appraisal, and informational (Tardy, 1985). Emotional support includes perceptions of love, trust, empathy and care. Instrumental support includes providing tangible assistance in the forms of one’s time, skills, or services. Appraisal support includes providing evaluative, critical feedback on behaviours. Informational support involves providing guidance, advice and information to aid in problem-solving. All four forms of social support fall within a teacher’s duty of care, and are therefore essential in developing positive relationships with students.

Pianta (1994) identified six types of student-teacher relationships by measuring teachers’ responses on the Student Teacher Relationship Scale (Pianta, 1991) and scoring them according to the five dimensions that underlie teachers’ perceptions of their relationships with students (Pianta & Steinberg, 1991). The five recognised dimensions were: conflict/anger, warmth/closeness, open communication,

dependency, and troubled feelings (items include “This child does not accept my help when s/he needs it” and “I often think about this child when not at work”). Based on the five dimensions, the six groups identified (characteristics of the relationship in parentheses) were: positively involved (warmth, communication), average-functional (midrange scores on all scales), dependent (excessive reliance), dysfunctional (low involvement, anger, annoyance), angry (high conflict), and uninvolved (low warmth, low communication, low anger). These six groups were then redistributed to two broad groups: generally positive relationships (positively involved, average- functional) and generally difficult relationships (dependent, dysfunctional, angry, uninvolved) (Pianta, 1994).

Classical person-centred education and learner-centred models are notably similar with respect to their student-teacher relational variables (Cornelius-White, 2007). Student-teacher relationships have been shown to have effect sizes within the zone of desired effects (d = 0.4 and above) on six variables emphasized by the classical approach and the learner-centred psychological principles outlined by the American Psychological Association (1997). According to Hattie (2009), the six relational variables that had effect sizes within the zone of desired effects were: non-directivity, empathy, warmth, encouragement of higher order thinking, encouraging learning, and adapting to differences. As emphasized by two different holistic education models and having been shown to be positively responsive to teacher-student relationships, these relational variables can be regarded as components of positive student-teacher relationships.

Wilkins (2006) examined secondary student and teacher perspectives on the

components of good relationships. Secondary students identified teacher conduct that contributed to good relationships as: demonstrating caring and concern, offering help, providing academic support, interacting positively, being respectful and fair, making learning enjoyable, and treating students as adults (p. 123). Conversely, teachers identified student activities that contributed to good relationships as: demonstrating engagement and interest in school work, being respectful, and demonstrating maturity and positive personality traits (p. 126). The disparity in the number of contributing activities by teachers as compared to students reinforces the notion that these dyadic relationship systems contain asymmetry that places a disproportionate amount of responsibility on the teacher for the quality of the relationship.

The model depicted in Figure 2 illustrates the variables and components that combine to form positive student-teacher relationships. The model emphasizes the variables identified in the research (Cornelius-White, 2007; Hattie, 2009; Wilkins,2006) as necessary for positive relationships, and underpins the asymmetry inherent in the student-teacher dyad, as there are more teacher regulated variables than student regulated variables (Wilkins, 2006). The variables represent broad constructs that are enacted through interactive behaviours that this study attempted to identify.

The model depicted in Figure 3 combines Figures 1 and 2 to illustrate the components required in the information exchange process of the student-teacher relationship for the relationship to be positive. The feedback processes identified by Pianta (1999) as the second component of student-teacher relationships are represented in this model by the variables identified by Cornelius-White (2007), Hattie (2009), and Wilkins (2006) as essential for positive student-teacher relationships. The model also takes into account the influence of internal and external factors on the relationship system identified by Pianta (1999). The teacher and student regulated variables are identified by the arrows, which display whether the variable is regulated by the student, teacher, or both. The variables in this figure are composed of the interactive behaviours identified in the research (Cornelius-White, 2007; Hattie, 2009; Wilkins, 2006) that make up the information exchange processes in a positive relationship.

Figure 2 - Positive Student-Teacher Relationships

EFFORT TOWARDS POSITIVE BEHAVIOURS

EFFORT TOWARDS SCHOOL WORK RECOGNITION OF INDIVIDUALITY COMMUNICATION RESPECT SUPPORT - Emotional - Instrumental - Appraisal - Informational WARMTH ENCOURAGEMENT OF CRITICAL THINKING EMPATHY NON-DIRECTIVITY ENCOURAGING LEARNING

TEACHERS

STUDENTS

Teacher regulated variable Student regulated variable Symmetrically regulated variable

Figure 3 - Positive Student-Teacher Relationship Systems

P

IC 

EFFORT TOWARDS POSITIVE BEHAVIOURS EFFORT TOWARDS SCHOOL

WORK RECOGNITION OF INDIVIDUALITY COMMUNICATION RESPECT SUPPORT - Emotional - Instrumental - Appraisal - Informational WARMTH ENCOURAGEMENT OF CRITICAL THINKING EMPATHY NON-DIRECTIVITY ENCOURAGING

T 

s 

This theoretical framework has established a clear definition of how gifted and talented students and students with EBD are identified in Western Australia and the participating Canadian provinces. It has also identified the variables that play a part in the development of the student-teacher relationship, as well as the components necessary for those relationships to be positive ones. With an established framework for understanding the classification of students in Western Australia and Canada, the nature of student-teacher relationships, and what constitutes positive relationships between teachers and their students, the methodology of this study will now be examined.