Action Research Plan-Problem Statement

Teacher-Student Relationships

I have been told by many wise and gifted teachers that the kids don’t care what you know until they know that you care. Of all of the advice given to me, I believe this one holds the most wisdom. However, there is also an expression given to new teachers that recommends that they not smile until Christmas. These expressions are polar opposites of one another, so they both cannot be true.

Throughout my career, I have witnessed the effectiveness of a positive teacher-student relationship wherein it resulted in fewer office referrals and, more importantly, higher student achievement. It seems that many times the hardest working teacher on the campus is actually less effective than some of the other teachers who seem to be working almost effortlessly. The hardest working teacher spends many more hours working on grading and planning, but still has a higher failure rate and highest number of referrals. The other teacher who seems to be working without much extra time spent after school and far fewer office referrals has a higher success rate in student achievement. What is the correlation?

Jan N. Hughes and Timothy A. Cavell, psychologists from Texas A&M University, conducted a study that shows that a “warm, close relationship between a child at risk for behavioral problems and his or her teacher reduces the chances of aggressive behavior in the future” (2007). When the students are not feeling defensive and aggressive they are better able to focus on the content of the curriculum and make connections in their learning. Hughes goes on to explain that when students are in conflict with the teacher they feel less motivated to please the teacher and therefore less motivated to follow the classroom rules.

Cindi Rigsbee, author of Finding Mrs. Warnecke, writes, “Students who are humiliated, especially in front of an audience, are rarely receptive to learning” (Jossey-Bass, 2010). She goes on to explain that students who are angry, afraid, or humiliated cannot be reached in the classroom. She asserts that students must have an atmosphere of respect where they can learn not only the curriculum, but also those very valuable social skills involving respectful interaction (2010).

The questions that I am researching are then involving the teacher-student relationship and it effect on student learning. They are as follows:

• What are successful strategies to improve teacher-student relationships?
• Will improving the teacher-student relationship reduce the number of office referrals?
• How does the teacher-student relationship impact student learning and achievement?
• What components of teacher-student relationships are conducive to optimal student learning and decrease discipline referrals?

Hughes, J. N., & Cavell, T. A. (2007). Teacher student relationships: a supportive one can
reduce aggression. Family Corner, Retrieved from http://www.familycorner.com/cgi-
bin
Rigsbee, C. (2010). The Relationship balance. Educational Leadership, 67. Retrieved from
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/summer10/vol67