How Student-Teacher Relationships Relate to Academic Success

Josh Soto
Sociology 1010
Marsha Miskin
14 November 2015

INTRODUCTION
Academics, an important piece of our lives to do well in. Often times students,
regardless of their grade level or age, fall behind with school. Either in test and assignment
scores or falling behind in their relationships with their instructors. Making them fall behind in
the subject matter itself. Relationships are very important throughout our lives. Countless times
its been correlated that a good relationship with anyone in anything results in a positive
outcome. Yet, the importance of having a good relationship with our teachers is not stressed.
Most students who have a good relationship with their teachers are referred to as a teachers
pet or something negative that discourages putting forth an effort in having a relationship with
your teacher.
Students who come from low-income neighborhoods and are at a socioeconomic
disadvantage can benefit more from having a relationship with their teacher because of all the
threats and challenges that they may face, such as: gangs, drug dealing, stealing, and vandalizing.
A lot of times those types of situations or communities are looked at as they dont have enough.
When more of the problems can be solved if the teachers would just go for it and push for that
closer relationship to their students. And the younger they are, the more impactful itll be.
To have a teacher that wants to get to know a student could mean so much. Everyone
wants to feel wanted, and for someone as important as a teacher to make a child feel wanted
would be that much more encouraging to attend class regularly as well as pushing themselves to
achieve academic success. I work at a school and I have personally noticed the productivity of
the students from when I first started to now. The students complete more homework

assignments and challenge themselves by wanting to finish a certain amount in a fixed time
frame.
The approach for a teacher is an important step in creating a connection with his or her
students. When the teacher approaches their class in a democratic way, its proven that students
are more responsive and engaging with that class and teacher. An adequate and purposeful
connection was found between math teachers democratic delivery and the students success in
math performance. (Yilmaz 2014: 637).
A mutual respect is what is needed for there to be trust between a student and teacher.
Students have a great trust for teachers, you believe what they say and you do not think that they
will lie to you. Students that have a trusting relationship with their teacher are able to handle and
cope with negative events better than those who dont have that type of relationship with their
instructor.
INFORMATION ABOUT RESEARCH
A positive teacher-student relationship is a critical component of an engaging climate in
pluralistic music classrooms. (Ruth 2015: 84). Whether it is a music teacher or a math teacher, a
trusting relationship is important for the student to progress with subject matter. Its also critical
for the teacher to get the class engaged. Create an environment that encourages students to
participate. And it doesnt matter what the subject is. I have observed History, English, and Math
classes with multiple students raising their hands to answer questions as well as ask them. From
being a student since the age of 5, I can easily recall the classes that I did a lot of participation in
were the classes that teacher created that atmosphere. Students naturally wont participate unless
they are encouraged to do so for fear of announcing the wrong answer.

A common trait that I noticed in each of the classrooms that I observed was that the teacher
constantly kept their class involved and asked the class questions and would just call on students
even if their hand wasnt raised. I feel that decision is smart. It puts students in a mindset that
they must focus, because what if they get called on and they werent paying attention? It also
keeps the students engaged.
Teachers behavior, attitude, and deeds clearly have an effect on student behavior. (Bulut
and Yilmaz 2014: 632) Classrooms are a reflection of the teacher. If the teacher has respect for
their students and expects that same level of respect in return then it should be granted. As with
anything that has to do with earning respect is that it is earned. If the teacher has a positive and
optimistic attitude towards the class then majority of the class should replicate that. If the
teachers behavior is maybe not high energy, but they implement a lot of emotion in their then
thatll get the students involved.
I believe from personal experiences that patience is an underestimated part of teaching. I
tutor students and manage a classroom. In essence those students look at me as their teacher.
Each child is so very different, some catch on to certain subjects quicker than others. And I think
its very easy for teachers to give up on students who are having a hard time, because it can be
a little exhaustive. However, the satisfaction and self-appreciation that the student receives when
they comprehend the issue that was giving them so much trouble, is motivation in of itself to be
patient. You start noticing that they would rather go to you than anyone else because they know
that you will do everything that you can to help them.
A study was done on kindergartners who were at a socioeconomic disadvantage, and the
focus was on how a positive kindergarten experience could play an important role in their

developing characters and learning enthusiasm. The results showed that the relationship plays a
huge role in determining how they will engage in a classroom. (Bierman 2015: 409) This
information could help with solving poverty. If teachers build a strong relationship with their
students while theyre young. We could set them on the right path for the rest of their academic
careers. By having a positive kindergarten experience, this can encourage them to keep up their
enthusiasm to learn and to gain knowledge.
CONCLUSION
A lot of research has been done on the relationship between a student and their teacher on
how that correlates to the students academic progression. I personally do not think that it is too
much to ask for a teacher to be more caring, patient, and trying to connect with their students on
more than just an academic level, trying to connect with them on a personal level. I feel strongly
about this, my grandmother was an elementary teacher and she taught this way her whole career.
I am in a teaching position at my job and I do this every day because those students deserve it. If
a teacher does not want to engage more with their students then they shouldnt be teaching. It has
been shown countless times that a strong personal relationship between a student and their
teacher leads them on the right path for gaining a better understanding of that class as well as
setting them up for the future.

Annotated Bibliography

Conner, J., Miles, S., & Pope, D. (2014). How Many Teachers Does It Take to Support a
Student?: Examining the Relationship between Teacher Support and Adverse Health Outcomes
in High-Performing, Pressure-Cooker High Schools. The High School Journal, 98(1), 22-42.

This article studied the importance of the relationship between teacher and student, but
focused on high performing high schools. The study was done in California. The sample size was
well, containing fourteen high schools with 5,557 students in total. The study showed the
students who have a belief in a teacher that they genuinely care for them as well as an adult at the
school who they can trust generally can control mental and emotional barriers like, academic
anxiety, internalizing symptoms, and physical problems related to school stress, better than
students who werent supported as well. Their results showed that having a relationship with
their teacher was better than entrusting a single adult within the school.
Bulut, I., & Ylmaz, F. (2014). The Relationship between Mathematics Teachers Democratic
Behavior and Students Mathematics Success. IOJES International Online Journal of
Educational Sciences, 6(3), 626-637.
This article explores the connection between math teachers democratic behavior in the
learning progression and elementary/middle school students. The sample size was 276 females
and 246 males from grades sixth through eighth. Six schools were selected at random during the

second term of the 2011-2012 school year in Diyarbakir, Turkey. Information was collected by
using a "Democratic Behavior (DB) Scale" developed by the researchers. An adequate and
purposeful connection was found between math teachers democratic delivery and the students
success in math performance.
Lee, P., & Bierman, K. (2015). Classroom and Teacher Support in Kindergarten: Associations
with the Behavioral and Academic Adjustment of Low-Income Students. Merrill-Palmer
Quarterly, 61(3), 383-411.
This article focuses mainly on kindergartners who are at a socioeconomic disadvantage
and how a positive experience in kindergarten may play a very important role in developing the
behavioral adjustment and learning enthusiasm necessary for academic success. Earlier research
has recognized supportive relationships between student and teacher as well as classroom
emotional support as two features of the classroom setting that can encourage student
adjustment. A notable observation is that, very few studies have examined these two parts of the
classroom setting simultaneously. The studys sample size was 164 kindergartners, and it
followed their transition from Head Start into elementary school. The results showed that the
relationship plays a huge role in determining how they will engage in a classroom. Different
types of support revealed unique relations with their aggressive behaviors, social withdrawal,
learning engagement, and developing learning skills.

References
Conner, J., Miles, S., & Pope, D. (2014). How Many Teachers Does It Take to Support a
Student?: Examining the Relationship between Teacher Support and Adverse Health Outcomes
in High-Performing, Pressure-Cooker High Schools. The High School Journal, 98(1), 22-42.

Bulut, I., & Ylmaz, F. (2014). The Relationship between Mathematics Teachers Democratic
Behavior and Students Mathematics Success. IOJES International Online Journal of
Educational Sciences, 6(3), 626-637.

Lee, P., & Bierman, K. (2015). Classroom and Teacher Support in Kindergarten: Associations
with the Behavioral and Academic Adjustment of Low-Income Students. Merrill-Palmer
Quarterly, 61(3), 383-411.