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Alexandra Irvin
Professor Deby Jizi
UWRT 1102-29
29 April 2016
Caring and Positive Student-Teacher Relationships = Successful Classrooms
Fifth grade was a defining year in my educational journey. I was attending school in a
school district that had an Intermediate School which was for fifth and sixth graders. The school
was new, and I was in class with students that were coming from four other elementary schools.
As the year started my hopes were high that this was going to be a wonderful experience and I
was excited about the possibilities that laid ahead. However, my spirits were quickly deflated by
a classroom environment that was chaotic, unwelcoming, and cold. My teacher that year did not
try to create a classroom community and did not attempt to create relationships with the students.
Students with dominate and inappropriate behaviors controlled and dictated the classroom
environment. School had always been a place that I enjoyed and looked forward to going and
learning each and every day, yet, by the middle of my fifth grade year I would wake up and beg
my parents to not make me go to school. I started out by saying that this was a defining year in
my life, the reason being, that it was at this point I realized that not all teachers care and want
what is best for their students learning experience. Up until this point, I had been blessed by
teachers that genuinely cared about their students and created meaningful relationships with
them. This fifth grade year was even more impactful because I was coming off the heels of a
fourth grade teacher that was phenomenal. She had complete control of her classroom and
expected each student to perform to their highest potential, yet, she showed each student every
day that she cared about them and wanted them to be successful. I still have a close relationship

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with this teacher today, and was thrilled when she took time to attend my graduation party last
June. The compassion, dedication, and motivation that my fourth grade teacher showed to her
students was one of the major factors in my deciding to become an elementary education teacher.
Even though I was only in her class for one school year, her impact has been life changing for
me. Both of these experiences in my early educational journey have led me to want to research
the impact of teacher relationships on the educational success of their students.
When I consider my own educational career and reflect on the teachers that I have had a
positive impact on my life, I realize that all of those involve a positive relationship. My mother
is an elementary school teacher and often when I visit her school, I hear caring teachers that are
firmly, yet gently guiding their students. While a few do not interact in the same positive manner
and obviously have not established a bond with their students. Is this issue of student/teacher
relationships present at all schools? Yes, I believe that it is present and real. In all schools around
the world, there are going to be educators that have lost the desire or perhaps never had the
desire to create a positive, nurturing relationship with their students. Are students being
negatively impacted by this lack of relationship building? Absolutely, based on my personal
experiences shared earlier, I do believe that students are missing out on the benefits of positive
relationships with their teachers. Caring and positive student-teacher relationships benefit the
student by influencing and leading to educational success and improved emotional well-being.
These relationships also benefit the teacher by creating an environment that is welcoming and
conducive to learning and growing.
The Australian Society for Evidenced Based Teaching has published research stating that
strong teacher student relationships are crucial (Teacher Student). Their research suggests that
students that have a constructive relationship with their teachers will perform better in school.
Good student-teacher relationships result in students that are more apt to attempt difficult tasks

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and try to understand areas that they are confused about (Teacher Student). According to the
Australian Society, the quality and nature of the relationships you have with your students has a
larger effect on their results than socio-economic status, professional development or Reading
Recovery programs. This research also shares evidence on how to build effective and positive
relationships with students. One of the most important findings states, Students dont care how
much you know until they know how much your care (Teacher Student). How profound, yet
true. If a student knows a teacher does not have a stake in their success, they are obviously not
going to take their teaching seriously.
A recent National Education Association (NEA) article focused on the importance of
building positive student relationships. A second grade teacher shared how she has worked to
create a safe and caring environment with her students. Her classroom in the morning is filled
with laughter and children talking with one another, yet when it is time to begin the day the
students quickly give their attention to the teacher (Sears). She has created an environment of
respect with them and they are responding in a positive manner. Eloy Gonzalez, a retired teacher
from Mexico discussed the importance of asking students about life outside of school. Simply
taking an interest in their personal lives conveys to them that you genuinely care about them
(Sears). By creating this caring relationship and getting to know students on a more personal
level, a teacher is able to individualize instruction for the child. Through positive relationships
students will be more likely to share areas they are having trouble in with the teacher, because
they feel safe. The ideas shared in this article for building relationships were simple and took
little time, yet they could have an enormous impact on the educational well-being of a child.
In an article written by Jo Worthy and Elizabeth Patterson from the University of Texas
at Austin, they researched the importance of personal relationships with students and how those
relationships impacted the students lives. The impact of teachers creating a caring relationship

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was studied and their research revealed that it is a basic human need to want to be cared for
and nurtured (Worthy 308). They shared that true caring comes from stepping out of ones own
personal frame of reference into the others (Worthy 308). Additional findings revealed that
students who felt that their teachers cared about their success and their personal life, were more
willing to attempt difficult academic challenges. The students did not want to disappoint the
teacher by not trying, so they worked harder to be successful. The obvious benefit being that
both parties are benefiting from this positive relationship. The student feels valued and
important, so they try harder to be successful in school, whereas, the teacher receives their
reward when the student achieves academic success (Worthy 309).
Furrer, Skinner, and Pitzer, in their article title The Influence of Teacher Peer
Relationships on Students Classroom Engagement and Everyday Motivational Resilience,
noted that caring and positive student teacher relationships lead to increased school
engagement, motivation, learning, and performance (Furrer 102). They express the importance
of creating relationships that are based on trust and respect. If the relationships are created and
maintained in the manner, they will become a natural part of the learning environment (Furrer
106). If a teacher provides a warm and safe learning environment, students will feel like they
belong and will want to be a part of the classroom learning community. These feelings of
belonging and security will also be beneficial for students and help them deal with difficult
situations they may face during their academic career (Furrer 106). As in the previous research
article, these authors also note that students who feel cared for will be more likely to accept
challenging academic situations and will want to be successful academically (Furrer 106). This
article highlights that teachers and students working together in a positive and respectful manner,
in which they have built a trusting relationship, will achieve genuine and authentic learning.

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In the Handbook of Motivation at School, Kathryn Wentzel adds to the research on the
importance of student teacher relationships, by noting that these relationships can ultimately lead
to students becoming knowledgeable and productive citizens. (Wentzel) She also states that
teachers are often classified as effective when they create a classroom environment that is built
around caring, community, and expectations. (Wentzel) This type of safe learning environment
allows for children to express their natural learning curiosity in a setting in which they feel a
higher sense of self-worth and acceptance. (Wentzel) As in the previous research, these positive,
caring relationships between students and teachers lead to higher academic success for the
students.
Growing up with a mom that is a fourth grade teacher, I have seen the importance of
student-teacher relationships within the classroom. My mother once shared a story of a child that
literally had no one at home that cared about their education, so upon entering her classroom the
child did not have a desire to learn as a result of their home life. However, within that 4th grade
year, my mother developed a strong relationship with this child and helped them realize that
someone did care about them and wanted them to be successful. After researching this topic my
understanding of the importance of these relationships in the classroom has been strengthened.
There are so many benefits for students and teachers when they develop a strong, caring and
trusting relationship within the classroom. I am definitely going to apply the suggestions that I
learned about in my research, as well as, observations from my moms class into my own
classroom in the future. It is going to not only be my job to teach my students curriculum, but it
will also be my job to provide them a safe nurturing environment in which they can grow and
thrive academically, socially, and emotionally.

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Works Cited
Furrer, C., E. Skinner, and J. Pitzer. "The Influence of Teacher and Peer Relationships on
Students Classroom Engagement and Everyday Motivational Resilience." National
Society for the Study of Education 113.1 (2014): 101-123.
Sears, Nina. "Building Relationships with Students." Rss. National Education Association, 2011.
Web. 31 Mar. 2016.
"Teacher Student Relationships Crucial to Results." The Australian Society for Evidence Based
Teaching. Web. 25 Feb. 2016.
Wentzel, Kathryn R. "Teacher-Student Relationships." Handbook of Motivation at School. New
York: Routledge, 2009.
Worthy, Jo, and Elizabeth Patterson. ""I Can't Wait to See Carlos!": Preservice Teachers,
Situated Learning, and Personal Relationships with Students." Sage Journals 33.2 (2001):
303-44. Web. 27 Mar. 2016.