The first two years of school: Teacher-child relationships and deflections in children's classroom adjustment

Abstract

Teacher reports of children's competence and problem behaviors are an important source of information on psychopathology. The school context is also an agent of developmental change. This study examines teacherchild relationships and deflections in child adjustment over the school-entry to grade 2 period in 436 children. The Student-Teacher Relationship Scale (STRS) was related to two indices of deflections in predicted child adjustment: (a) residual scores obtained from regressing teacher reports from grade 1 on kindergarten teacher reports, and (b) false positive predictions of retention or referral for special education in the K-l period.Children with whom kindergarten teachers reported a positive relationship were rated in spring of grade I as better adjusted than was predicted on the basis of identical ratings from the fall of the kindergarten year; the converse was also true. False-positive retention/referral predictions had more positive relationships with kindergarten teachers than did true positives. A second set of analyses examined second grade teacher ratings of child adjustment and child-teacher relationships in two groups of children with different child-teacher relationship histories in kindergarten. Children with warm, close, communicative relationships with kindergarten teachers were better adjusted and had more positive child-teacher relationships in second grade than those with angry, dependent child-teacher relationships in kindergarten. Results supported the view that children's relationships with teachers are an important component of adaptation in school, and that they can play a role in deflecting the course of development in the school context.

Classroom engagement mediates the effect of teacher–student support on elementary students' peer acceptance: A prospective analysis

“…Consistent with previous findings (Ladd, 1990;Ladd et al, 1999;Pianta et al, 1995), early elementary children with high externalizing problems are least likely to enjoy supportive relationships with teachers and peers. However, previous research suggests that children with high levels of externalizing behaviors are the very children who are most likely to benefit from a supportive relationship with their teachers, in terms of decreases in aggressive behaviors (Silver et al, 2005).…”

“…Students whose relationships with teachers are characterized by greater closeness and less conflict exhibit lower levels of aggression and other conduct problems (Birch & Ladd, 1998;Hughes, Cavell, & Jackson, 1999;Ladd, Birch & Buhs, 1999;Pianta, Steinberg, & Rollins, 1995;Silver, Measelle, Armstrong, & Essex, 2005) are better accepted by classmates (Hughes, Cavell, & Willson, 2001;Ladd et al, 1999), and achieve at higher levels (Birch & Ladd, 1997;Skinner & Belmont, 1993).…”

“…Importantly, the quality of teacher-student relationships in the early grades has implications for children's future academic, social, and behavioral outcomes (Hughes et al, 2001;Ladd et al, 1999;Ladd & Burgess, 2001;Pianta et al, 1995;Pianta & Stuhlman, 2004). For example, Silver et al (2005) found that conflict in the teacher-child relationship contributed to faster growth in externalizing behavior from kindergarten to third grade, after accounting for children's negative parenting and kindergarten levels of externalizing problems.…”

Supportive adult relationships and the academic engagement of Latin American immigrant youth

“…Even studies benefiting from longitudinal designs typically have modeled baseline perceptions of school support onto changes in adjustment, resting on the notion that such perceptions remain stable over multiple years amidst changes in schools and teacher assignments. This view is valid only to the extent that perceptions of support actually reflect fixed, intrinsic qualities or characteristics of the student (e.g., attachment style, personality) (Pianta, Steinberg, & Rollins, 1995).…”

Erzieherin-Kind-Beziehungen und kindliche Entwicklung: Der Einfluss von Geschlecht und Migrationshintergrund

“…B. Ahnert, Hawardt-Heinecke, Kappler, Eckstein-Madry & Milatz, 2012;Pianta, Steinberg & Rollins, 1995).…”