Discussion
To best understand the positive benefits resulting from teachers cultivating relationships with high school students it is necessary to include a psychological lens to aid in the explanation of how the positive benefits result from relationships, and to better understand the positive benefits themselves.
Attachment Theory
Attachment theory can be applied to the positive benefits that can result from the teacher cultivating a relationship with their students. Students can form attachments to their teachers and it is important that the attachment they form through relationship building is a ‘secure base’ (Rimm-Kaufman and Sandilos). The creation of a secure base leads to feelings of safety that allow students to feel safe making mistakes in their learning and being more willing to engage in cognitive struggles in academics (Rimm-Kaufman and Sandilos). Furthermore, the development of a secure base with a teacher can play a role in off-setting the negative effects on academics that an insecure attachment between a parents and child can have (Rimm-Kaufman and Sandilos).
Social Cognitive Theory
Social Cognitive theory, when applied to students in the context of positive benefits from the student-teacher relationship, is especially important for the process of modeling (Rimm-Kaufman and Sandilos). Teachers are key players in modeling positive behaviours and communication skills for developing learners (Rimm-Kaufman and Sandilos). The process of relationship building as a vehicle through which modeling can impact a student's life, as students observe how teachers act and how a teachers interacts with themselves.
Self-System Theory
The Self-System theory is predicated upon the significance of a student's motivation (Rimm-Kaufman and Sandilos). Students enter the school environment with the need for competence, autonomy, and relatedness (Rimm-Kaufman and Sandilos). These three base needs can be directly affected by students’ relationships with their teachers (Rimm-Kaufman and Sandilos). When the need of competence is met, then students feel that they are capable in academics (Rimm-Kaufman and Sandilos). When the need of autonomy is met, then students feel that they are able to make their own choices and decisions (Rimm-Kaufman and Sandilos). When the final need of relatedness is met, students feel that they are socially connected (Rimm-Kaufman and Sandilos). Through relationship building and specific actions that are encompassed in the process of relationship building, teachers can help students achieve these three needs (Rimm-Kaufman and Sandilos). For example, teachers who give supportive feedback, show in interest in their students’ interests, remember individual attributes of their students, act caring and respectfully, and encourage positive social behaviours help meet the three needs (Rimm-Kaufman and Sandilos).
The following is a discussion of key factors that influence the successful achievement of positive benefits that result from relationship building actions and components of relationships that teachers cultivate with their students. The degree to which these relationship actions and components are developed impacts the positive benefit outcomes for students.
Communication
Communication is a cornerstone of relationship development. For students, communication skills are key predictors of a student's learning and motivation in the classroom (Frymier and Houser 215). Additionally, referential skills, also known as content explanation, impact the understanding of a student (Frymier and Houser 216). Consequently, strong communication skills in the student-teacher relationship can lead to increased student learning, motivation, and understanding. Communication is critical to positive benefit achievement because when communication in the student-teacher relationship is unclear, then students experience feelings of frustration and are more likely to fail at the task because they do not understand content delivery and are uncertain of teacher expectations (Frymier and Houser 216). In a domino effect of understanding, when a student does not understand content, it can cause hem to dislike the subject matter, which in turn can result in a reduction of a students ability to remember and apply the information at another time (Frymier and Houser 216 and Berger and Calabrese (1975) –find maybe).
Ego Support
Teachers can achieve positive benefits from relationship building with students by providing ego support. Ego support is the act of encouraging the student and providing confirmation of student success(Frymier and Houser 216). This is key because sentiments of competency and empowerment strongly correlate in increased learning and increased motivation in comparison to students that are not experiencing empowerment and confirmation from their teachers(Frymier and Houser 216).
Immediacy
Immediacy is key to achieving positive benefits because it causes students to feel less distant from their teachers, leading to improved communication, which in turn results in achievement of positive benefits associated with strong communication between students and teachers (Frymier and Houser 216). Specific to immedicacy, verbal immediacy is a strong factor in learning and motivation (Frymier and Houser 217). Interestingly, female students rate communication and immediacy as more important in their interactions with a teacher than male students, but in practice both are impacted similarly by the use of communication and immediacy (Frymier and Houser 217).