Teacher Care and Students’ Sense of Connectedness in the Urban Mathematics Classroom

Abstract

<jats:p>This multimethod study draws on theories of teacher care, dispositions, and culturally relevant pedagogy to examine how 12 urban mathematics teachers’ perceptions of their own care practices align with their Black and Latinx students’ (<jats:italic>n</jats:italic> = 321) sense of connectedness in the mathematics classroom. A qualitative analysis of in-depth interviews with the teachers established three typologies of care: <jats:italic>empathetic</jats:italic>, <jats:italic>transactional</jats:italic>, and <jats:italic>blended</jats:italic>. A questionnaire measure of mathematics classroom connectedness revealed that students in classrooms led by teachers who enacted an empathetic caring pedagogy were more likely to agree that their teachers provided emotional support, their classroom felt like a family, and their contributions were valued in class. Furthermore, students’ sense of classroom connectedness mediated the link between teacher care and the students’ perceived value and relevance of mathematics.</jats:p>

Formative Learning Experiences of Urban Mathematics Teachers’ and Their Role in Classroom Care Practices and Student Belonging

“…These teachers viewed people-support as enabling their perseverance in mathematics and also a means to get their students to persevere. Teachers who cited people-support during seasons of math crisis were also likely to discuss three distinct patterns of empathetic care , described in prior research on this same sample of teachers (Maloney & Matthews, in press). These patterns were (a) emotional consciousness to understand student frustration, (b) affirmation of students’ self-identity in mathematics, and (c) partnering with student struggles in mathematics and beyond.…”

“…In this text, Mr. Espada exhibited multiple empathetic care patterns (Maloney & Matthews, in press), such as sensitivity to students’ emotions (Pattern 1) and a willingness to partner with students during their difficulties in and outside of school (Pattern 3). Mr. Espada’s comments also reflected a critical consciousness, which epistemologically supported his care practice.…”

“…The messages personal-initiative teachers shared with students possessed commonalities in that they were almost always directed toward activating the student’s internal fortitude, infrequently addressed mathematical thinking, and rarely sought to understand the antecedents of students’ lack of motivation. Similar to what Maloney & Matthews (in press) have coined as transactional care , these messages took a generic “cheerleader” quality that wished students well but did not actively support them in becoming successful.…”

“…Despite this distinction, the links from formative experiences to ontological beliefs, purpose, self-perceptions, and action possibilities seemed consistent across these two typologies. Teachers who discussed the role of caring allies in their own mathematical development were more likely to also discuss engaging students with empathetic care (Maloney & Matthews, in press) and the necessity of this support for their students’ mathematical perseverance. They were also more likely to demonstrate a critical consciousness of the sociopolitical and hegemonic factors that made their support imperative (see examples from Mrs. Baker and Mr. Espada).…”

“…He has not yet found a way to harmoniously integrate high expectations and high warmth into a warm demander pedagogy (Ware, 2006). Mr. Tobe understood care conceptually (i.e., transactional care; Maloney & Matthews, in press), but this remained inert knowledge infrequently enacted with his students. Thus, he was categorized as turbulent within the personal-initiative profile (see Table 1).…”