case study about student teacher relationship

Positive Teacher-Student Relationships

What are they.

Everyone can point to a teacher who made a difference in his or her life, and also to one who made life miserable for a short time. Why? Because the teacher-student relationship is at the heart of teaching. As Rita Pierson noted in her famous TED talk, “Kids aren’t going to learn from someone they don’t like.”

But what is a positive teacher-student relationship? Here are some examples based on research that asks both teachers and students what makes this relationship so special:

For Teachers: According to educators, a positive relationship with a student is close and supportive, but not overly dependent. A teacher who cares about his or her students believes that every child can learn, but differently and at different rates, sets high expectations, is warm and trusting, and strives to keep the relationship conflict-free. He or she also uses humor and admits mistakes, sets clear boundaries, and is open, honest, and approachable.

For Students: Students told researchers that good teachers listen to and take a personal interest in students’ lives. They show respect, value the individuality of each student, and are kind and polite. A caring teacher gives honest, but kind feedback, and offers second chances. They help students with schoolwork, manage the classroom well, and, perhaps most importantly, they plan fun activities.

For Higher Education: At the college level, students prefer professors who are approachable—they say “hi” on campus, smile often, and stay after class to talk to students. They also set high expectations, are fair, honest, trustworthy, respectful, open, supportive, and encouraging.

Why Cultivate Them?

Decades of research clearly show that positive teacher-student relationships are extremely important for student outcomes in all categories—feelings, attitudes, behavior, and achievement—and at all ages.

Students do better overall with caring teachers.

• Studies have found that for students from pre-K to 12, positive student-teacher relationships increase engagement , motivation , prosocial —kind and helpful—behavior, and academic achievement .

Seeing students as individuals is key to their well-being and success.

• When teachers use practices that are sensitive to students’ individual differences and needs and that also include student voice, their students tend to be more motivated and show higher academic achievement ; they also feel better about school, participate more, and show less disruptive behavior across grade levels.

Negative student-teacher relationships can have long-lasting impact.

• Conflict-ridden relationships with teachers in kindergarten predict worse grades, work habits, and discipline problems into late elementary or even middle school.

Relationships matter at every age.

• In preschool and kindergarten : When their relationships with teachers are more emotionally supportive and less conflictual, preschool students become more socially and academically competent; similar effects occur for kindergarteners.
• In elementary and middle school , close, positive student-teacher relationships are associated with greater student engagement in learning and better social and behavioral outcomes in general, including less risky behavior .
• In high school , students who connect with their teachers are less likely to engage in risky behavior , including substance abuse, sexual activity, and suicide.
• In university , students are less likely to drop out , and they show more commitment, engagement, effort, intellectual development, and academic achievement.

Teachers, too, benefit from good relationships with their students.

• They experience the joy of teaching, helping to maintain their commitment to the profession by preventing burnout .

Practice Collections

Courageous Connections that Challenge Your Biases

Assessing Your School Climate

Listening with Compassion

Look Up Vibe (LUV Moment)

Say “We” to Nurture Collaboration in Students

Music to Inspire Kindness

Kindness Art for Students

Family Business

Designing the Classroom to Promote Kindness 

Honesty Commitment for Students

Pleasant Events Calendar for Students

Imagining Flourishing and Kindness: A Mindfulness Practice for Adults

Where We Stand

Standing Up Against Discrimination

Understanding Prejudice Through Paper Plate Portraits

Understanding Justice

Mindful Reflection Process for Developing Culturally Responsive Practices

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Teaching and Learning for the Greater Good

Why Teacher-Student Relationships Matter

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Students spend more than 1,000 hours with their teacher in a typical school year. That’s enough time to build a relationship that could ignite a student’s lifetime love of learning—and it’s enough time for the dynamic to go totally off the rails.

Education watchers have long known that the relationship with a teacher can be critically important to how well students learn. But emerging research is giving a clearer picture than ever of how teachers can build and leverage strong relationships with their students.

“People sometimes mistake a kind of casual familiarity and friendliness for the promotion of really deep relationships that are about a child’s potential, their interests, their strengths, and weaknesses,” said Mary Helen Immordino-Yang, a cognitive neuroscientist at the University of Southern California who studies the effects of emotions and mindsets on learning.

“A lot of teachers ... have really strong abilities to engage socially with the students, but then it’s not enough,” she said. “You have to go much deeper than that and actually start to engage with students around their curiosity, their interests, their habits of mind through understanding and approaching material to really be an effective teacher.”

In a forthcoming longitudinal study with Bank Street College of Education, Immordino-Yang is tracking how the highly effective teachers of low-income students set classroom norms and feelings of trust and safety for students—but also leverage that foundation to promote students’ deeper thinking and engagement.

Why are teacher-student relationships important?

“The relational part of teaching may very well be its most underrated aspect. ... When teachers are good at building relationships with students, the skill is seen more as cover for a lack of content knowledge or wherewithal to instruct with rigor,” James Ford, the 2015 North Carolina State Teacher of the Year and the program director for the Public School Forum of North Carolina, told Education Week . To the contrary, he added, “Our first job as teachers is to make sure that we learn our students, that we connect with them on a real level, showing respect for their culture and affirming their worthiness to receive the best education possible.”

A Review of Educational Research analysis of 46 studies found that strong teacher-student relationships were associated in both the short- and long-term with improvements on practically every measure schools care about: higher student academic engagement, attendance, grades, fewer disruptive behaviors and suspensions, and lower school dropout rates. Those effects were strong even after controlling for differences in students’ individual, family, and school backgrounds.

Teachers benefit, too. A study in the European Journal of Psychology of Education found that a teacher’s relationship with students was the best predictor of how much the teacher experienced joy versus anxiety in class.

How does a teacher’s approach affect that relationship?

In a 2018 study, Arizona State University researcher Victoria Theisen-Homer found different teacher-training programs prioritized different kinds of relationships with students:

• An instrumental focus involved a limited, one-way relationship in which teachers cull bits of information about students specifically to motivate them to behave well and focus on teacher-directed tasks. The relationships “were structured as a controlled means to a particular end: student compliance,” she found. “Students learned that their value was tied to the degree to which they worked hard and behaved in line with what mostly white authority figures demanded.”
• A reciprocal focus required teachers to gather complex information and develop a holistic understanding of their students, inviting the students to grapple with content and problems together. “These students not only learned to think for themselves, but also had adults who affirmed and responded to their thoughts and experiences. Such interactions prepared them to engage with authority figures, and to someday hold positions of authority themselves,” Theisen-Homer said.

The study also found in an analysis of two of these programs that teachers trained in the instrumental focus were more likely to go on to teach in low-income, high-minority schools, while those trained in reciprocal relationships ended up in schools with more high-income and white students. It was not clear why teachers ended up sorting in this way, but it raised concerns about differences in the kinds of relationships high- and low-income students might experience with teachers.

“Sometimes teachers don’t understand the importance that their relationship with each student has on that student’s identity and sense of belonging,” said Vicki Nishioka, a senior researcher with Education Northwest who studies teacher-student relationships. “What gets in the way of that is a more authoritarian kind of discipline and interaction approach with students, which really doesn’t work.”

For example, a 2016 study randomly assigned teachers to increase their positive interactions with students. Students of teachers who boosted their ratio to five positive comments and interactions for every negative one had significantly less disruptive behavior and more time on task academically than the students of a control group of teachers.

How can teachers improve their relationships with students?

In a word: Empathy. Across several recent studies, researchers have found that teachers who cultivate empathy for and with their students are able to manage students’ behavior and academic engagement better.

Nishioka finds that trying to suppress biases or stereotypes about students can sometimes make them worse, but practicing perspective-taking—actively imagining how a student might perceive or be affected by a situation—can reduce bias and deepen teacher-student relationships. She recommended teachers:

• Talk to students to understand differences in their perceptions and expectations in class.
• Research cultural differences between teachers and students to head off cultural misunderstandings, particularly around norms, styles, and language.
• Teach and model perspective-taking for students in class.

How can teachers maintain healthy boundaries with students?

Experts caution that for teachers and students, “relationship” does not equal “friend,” particularly on social media. Many districts have rules against teachers following or friending current students on Facebook, Twitter, or other platforms, in part because it might open teachers to liability if they see inappropriate behavior from students online.

Teachers also should be upfront with students who confide in them that they are required by law to report evidence of abuse and can’t keep secrets that could put students in danger.

Teacher and education author Starr Sackstein, whose blog is hosted on the edweek.org website, also recommends that while teachers can and should share personal stories if they are “purposeful and appropriate” to the discussion, they should use these to model for students what level of detail is appropriate for sharing in social conversations.

How can relationships with students support teacher quality?

While student feedback is often incorporated into teacher evaluations in higher education, it is rarely a direct part of K-12 teacher evaluations. But that doesn’t mean districts can’t use student feedback to improve teaching practice, and in particular, such feedback can be used to help teachers build deeper relationships with students.

For example, the High Tech High Media Arts charter school in San Diego trains students using a six-week course to act as observers. The students met regularly with the teacher to give feedback about their communication skills and engagement in the classroom, and to brainstorm better ways to reach out to students. Teachers and administrators found that going through the training gave students better understanding of the teachers’ roles. School staff members said that teachers also “developed deeper relationships with students, interacted with students in a more positive way during class, communicated information about projects and assignments to students more clearly, generated better questions to stimulate student dialogue during Socratic seminars, and created more collaborative learning environments for students.”

A version of this article appeared in the March 13, 2019 edition of Education Week as Why Teacher-Student Relationships Matter

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Home > Open Access Dissertations > 266

Open Access Dissertations

A case study of student and teacher relationships and the effect on student learning.

Patricia Brady Gablinske , University of Rhode Island Follow

Date of Award

Degree type.

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy in Education

First Advisor

Patricia Cordeiro

This research study explored the affective domain of teacher-student relationships using a single case study design. This single case study produced a synthesis of information that guides a classroom teacher in the development and maintenance of her relationships with her students. The resulting analysis and interpretation provided a description of major themes that developed regarding strong teacher student relationships, as well as, specific components to the interactions considered essential for the student’s learning environment.

The outcome of this study is an account of experiences and procedures that guide the development and maintenance of relationships between a teacher and her students. Based on the findings, four primary categories emerged with supporting elements that were critical components of each category. These four primary categories represent an interpersonal framework for the learning environment.

The qualitative method in this study is derived from a constructivist viewpoint with a focus on deeply understanding this specific case of teacher-student relationships. My goal in conducting this study was to provide more specific examples of and empirical findings for how teacher-student relationships are created. Identifying specific factors associated with teacher-student interactions could provide valuable information to an educational learning community. Implications for how these findings can impact the learning environment are discussed.

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Recommended Citation

Gablinske, Patricia Brady, "A CASE STUDY OF STUDENT AND TEACHER RELATIONSHIPS AND THE EFFECT ON STUDENT LEARNING" (2014). Open Access Dissertations. Paper 266. https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/oa_diss/266

Since November 18, 2014

https://doi.org/10.28971/212014GP102

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The Importance of Student-Teacher Relationships

Reilly Fitzmorris, Sarina Russo, Shelbie Coristine, Gabby Rivolta, Patricia Beninato

Please cite this page as:

Coristine, S., Russo, S., Fitzmorris, R., Beninato, P., & Rivolta, G. (2022, April 1). The importance of student-teacher relationships . Classroom Practice in 2022. Retrieved [date], from https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/educ5202/chapter/the-importance-of-student-teacher-relationships/

What Is A Student-Teacher Relationship?

A student-teacher relationship in the classroom is a positive relationship between the teacher and the student in efforts to gain trust and respect from each other. This relationship may consist of getting to know your students better, providing choice and encouraging the students to become stronger learners everyday. By doing this teachers are showing respect to their students, valuing their individuality and being polite. Having a positive relationship with your students helps them become more successful in the classroom as well as makes your classroom a safe and welcoming environment for all.

Ways To Build A Student-Teacher Relationship

There are many tips and tricks that can be used to build a strong student teacher relationship. One way that a strong student teacher relationship can be created is by making it apparent that the teacher cares about the students (“6 Ways to Build Strong Teacher-Student Relationships with SEL”, 2022). This can be done by talking with your students, such as asking about their day. Another way could be by listening to your students, this can be done by hearing their opinions, taking into account their interests, and by learning each student’s unique learning styles (“6 Ways to Build Strong Teacher-Student Relationships with SEL”, 2022). As well you can develop mutual trust with your students, such as providing them with choices and always having their best interest in mind (“6 Ways to Build Strong Teacher-Student Relationships with SEL”, 2022). In addition, you always have to be respectful and fair with each and everyone of your students (“6 Ways to Build Strong Teacher-Student Relationships with SEL”, 2022). You can ensure this by not picking favorites and having the same corrected behavior for each student. Furthermore, you can get to know your students and their families. This can be done by paying attention to your students during class and offering them opportunities to talk or share what they want about their families. Lastly, by giving your students positive words of encouragement and constructive criticism (“6 Ways to Build Strong Teacher-Student Relationships with SEL”, 2022). This is important due to the fact that it creates trust with your students, as they know they can rely on you to be honest. Of course, there are many other alternative ways to build a positive student teacher relationship, but these are some great examples of how to start.

Advantages of a Student-Teacher Relationship

Student- teacher relationships have displayed many advantages in the classroom. To start, students who share a positive relationship with their teacher develop stronger social-emotional skills. In addition, these students are more likely to absorb an increased amount of academic knowledge (Positive teacher-student relationships have cascading benefits, 2021). The result of a strong student-teacher relationship is that it allows students to feel confident through exploration and taking risks in their academic tasks. In short, students who have a positive student-teacher relationship demonstrate a stronger performance in the classroom (Positive teacher-student relationships have cascading benefits, 2021). However, one of the most important impacts of a positive student-teacher relationship is the production of an environment that incorporates mutual respect. One way an educator can produce a strong relationship with a student is to explicitly define learning goals and expectations in a positive manner. This could look different for groups of students or individual students. The strong relationship will allow for educators to be aware of their students’ learning and adjust their learning goals and expectations as needed (Admin, 2017). In the same manner, the educator should allow opportunities for students of all learning styles to participate in class discussions through oral and written communication. In addition to academic advantages, positive student-teacher relationships improve mental health and assists students in developing self-worth (Admin, 2017). Oftentimes, students look up to their educators as mentors. With this in mind, students are likely to feel pride when the educator encourages them in their learning and social interactions. Social competence, problem-solving abilities, autonomy, and a feeling of a bright future or purpose are protective elements that boost resilience, these all can be developed in a supportive teaching atmosphere (Bondy et al., 2007). As noted, students benefit from positive student-teacher relationships. Likewise, educators benefit as well. While creating strong relationships with their students, educators are strengthening their own interpersonal and professional skills (Admin, 2017). By strengthening their interpersonal communication skills, educators are more likely to respond effectively to stressful situations. In addition, educators are able to form relationships with parents and coworkers. In summary, it can be noted that students and educators equally benefit from the creation of positive student-teacher relationships.

The Importance Of Student-Teacher Relationships: Short and Long Term

As stated, student-teacher relationships are highly essential in an effective classroom. Specifically, student-teacher relationships are important for students in their short term and long term education. Student-teacher relationships are important in the short term because it creates a thriving classroom environment, helps students develop self worth and improves student mental health (Buffet, 2019). In the same manner, these positive relationships may decrease behavioral problems and promote academic success. Student- teacher relationships help foster the academic success of students. With this being said, student-teacher relationships assist students in the short term. These relationships support students for the specific year they spend in that educational setting with the educator (Buffet, 2019). Likewise, a positive student-teacher relationship is very important in the long term because it gives students confidence as well as ensuring that they know that their ideas are valuable. In turn, this allows students to carry this confidence throughout their future years pursuing academics. Also, this confidence and recognition of self-worth can be seen in social and emotional aspects of the students life. Another long term effect is that positive teacher relationships teach students that mistakes are an indication that they are learning. Learning is ongoing and students are able to identify this through the production of positive student-teacher relationships. This type of relationship will foster confidence in the long-term for the student.

Causes of Poor Student Teacher Relationships

Poor teacher-student relationships result from the instructor’s lack of awareness. Some students require tailored educational approaches since they do not respond to learning in the same way as others. When a teacher fails to regard an individual student’s educational needs, relationship problems between teachers and students arise. Each student’s ability to learn and interact with educators is influenced by their personality, family backgrounds, mental processes, learning styles, priorities, maturity levels, and academic ambitions (Tucker, 2021). When possible, teachers should treat each student as an individual who deserves one-on-one attention and specialized, concentrated education. In addition, a poor student-teacher relationship will develop if the educator’s main or only priority in the classroom is academics (Tucker, 2021). In correspondence with academics, students need to feel cared for and have the chance to feel strong emotions. Educators are responsible for building relationships with students that are not surface level or academically focused. Students should feel that their educator is someone they can trust and communicate freely with. The lack of empathy displayed by an educator can result in a poor student-teacher relationship.

We interviewed 8 individuals all in different sections of the educational field. We asked them a series of questions on student-teacher relationships. The interviewees requested to stay anonymous, but all are familiar with different roles within the education community. The following are their answers.

First Interviewer

Grade(s) you teach or please indicate role if not in a classroom teaching role:

• Grade 2, Grade 3

What do positive teacher-student relationships look and feel like in the classroom?

• mutual respect – respectful interactions
• Open communication
• Teacher is supportive but encourages independence
• Individuality of each student is valued
• Kind and polite interactions
• Honest and kind feedback is given to students
• Teachers get to know their students and their differences
• Teacher believes in each student
• Simple gestures shared (hello and goodbye, a smile, a tap on the shoulder) What do you believe is the strongest indicator of positive teacher-student relationships?
• Communication that is respectful between the two

What factors influence the teacher-student relationship in the classroom?

• Treating students with respect and supporting them encourages them to be more motivated and engaged. When students know that their teacher loves and supports them, they are more likely to be more self-directed and want to succeed. This positive teacher-student relationship also encourages positive relationships with peers.

Second Interviewer

• Grade(s) you teach or please indicate role if not in a classroom teaching role: Grade 4, Grade 6, Grade 8
• In order for any relationship to be successful, there has to be respect and trust. The teacher is the adult and the student is the child. It isn’t a friendship. There have to be boundaries or else nothing would be accomplished. As an adult, you will wear many hats… doctor, parent, nurse, psychiatrist. The child needs to know you care. Caring means listening, showing empathy and sensitivity. Caring also means correcting children when they make a mistake, academically and with the choices they make. Establish clear and concise rules. Address inappropriate behavior, but also praise the positive. It’s okay to provide incentives, however some things are non- negotiable. Structure is so important, as is routine. Be fair and consistent. Treating everyone fairly does not mean you treat everyone the same. Depends on the needs of the child. Laugh with them. Laugh at yourself.

What do you believe is the strongest indicator of positive teacher-student relationships?

• Get to know your students. Talk to them. Learn what’s important to them, what motivates them, what shuts them down. Communication with home keeps everyone on the same page. Try to formulate your own take on a child. Some people just don’t click, meaning a child maybe struggled with a former teacher, but don’t let that teacher’s opinion cloud your judgment.
• Pay close attention to how a child interacts with other children. Be a confidence builder. Be a coach. Offer suggestions when there is conflict, but let them work it out. Be a mediator. Allow and encourage them to own their behaviour, the good and not so good. Make every child feel important and relevant. Let them know their ideas are helpful and appreciated. Empower them. Acknowledge their strengths and achievements.

Third Interviewer

• Literacy Teacher
• Positive teacher-student relationships look and feel calm, positive, respectful, open, safe and flexible.
• Respect. I think that both the teacher and the student need to feel respected. When a student feels respected, they feel safe and are able to share ideas, take risks and focus on learning.
• number of students in the classroom
• number of adults in the classroom
• student needs

Fourth Interviewer

• Kindergarten Prep
• Good listener
• Kindness/Caring
• Communication
• Value individuality
• Open minded
• Positive interactions
• Empathy and communication.
• Building a safe environment for the student through good communication allows the students to feel like they can trust their teacher.
• Also having empathy for and with your students will allow you to manage students’ behavior and academic engagement.
• The attitude of the educator towards a student is a major influencing factor to the teacher-student relationship. Positive student relationships (good rapport) are fundamental to success. When students feel safe and supported, they’re more likely to engage in learning and have better educational outcomes. Plus, when students have positive interactions with teachers, they have fewer behavioral problems.

Fifth Interviewer

• Program Resource Teacher
• Mutual respect, trust, communication that is open and honest-student can share their needs and the teacher can share their needs and both trust that each will do their best to meet those needs
• Engaged learners- if they are engaged it is because the teacher has met their unique learning styles/levels/needs through differentiation and universal design
• Teacher has to have constant and consistent and honest conversations with students about their needs, teacher has to show students that they took their conversation seriously and honoured their conversation, student will develop trust over time that the teacher is doing their best and then student will learn to listen to what the teacher or adult needs and do their best to honour it
• Team work between home school and student- but student has to have at least one adult at home that cares and shows a effort on a consistent basis
• This conversation was a scripted and works with every student Dr Ross Greene (conversations are modeled) and Shanker’s self regulation research
• I took the lense of a struggling student, which all students can become if their needs are not met

Sixth Interviewer

• Elementary Curriculum Consultant
• In a classroom with positive teacher/student relationships you would feel it when you walk in the room- a sense of calm and belonging. It would be a warm and inviting classroom. Every student would know they are valued and cared for. It would look like a community of mutual respect, open dialogue/communication, and students engaged in learning. Opportunities for students to demonstrate their learning in ways that build their confidence and belief in themself would be evident.
• A caring teacher who knows and believes in their students
• Teachers who take time to get to know their students- the ways they learn best, what motivates them, what is important to them, background etc can build stronger relationships with their students.
• It is important that teachers build positive relationships with the student’s family/caregivers as well.

Seventh Interviewer

• Technology Support Teacher
• Student – teacher relationships develop over the course of the year. At the beginning of the year, it’s critical that the teacher intentionally work towards getting to know each student. Asking questions about their day, evening prior, how they’re doing, etc. helps to show students that the teacher cares about them. Setting a positive, calm tone in the classroom environment also contributes to the development of relationships. Students should feel comfortable sharing their learning, problems and everything from wiggly teeth to conversations about world events with their teacher.
• The strongest indicator is a functioning classroom where learning is possible. When you walk into these classrooms, students feel safe, trusted and that their voice is heard. Time is spent positively communicating. They might be communicating about a math lesson or during their breaks socializing with friends. A positive relationship leads to more time spent learning and less on repairing conflicts occurring between peers or student- teacher. Trust and a sense that their teacher cares about them contributes to this environment. What factors influence the teacher-student relationship in the classroom?
• Teacher mental health and personality, student mental health and personality, time spent getting to know students, teacher sharing some personal experiences or a bit about their family, pets, travels, etc., teacher creating interesting learning experiences that invite student voice, opinion, discussion, how teachers handle conflict or disruptive behaviour (does it build a safe space or deteriorate the relationship), taking time during recesses to talk one on one with students, making students feel special and heard, relationship between parents and teachers

Eighth Interviewer

• System Literacy and Numeracy Facilitator
• Positive student teacher relationships involve a caring teacher that treats students equitably, believes that all learners can succeed and gets to know each student’s strengths and needs to help them grow in their learning and confidence in themself. It looks like open conversation, listening and timely feedback. In rooms where this is very successful you see teachers making students feel supported by including them in lessons, choosing topics to suit individuals, guiding the learning and celebrating small successes. It looks like learning from mistakes and valuing each moment together.
• Belief that all students can be successful.
• Student experiences with adults in and out of school, class size, student individual needs and classroom support, interruptions, teacher excitement for student learning and building relationships, support of administration

From a Student’s Perspective

Oftentimes, educators fall victim to assuming their students’ needs before addressing them with the students. With this being said, educators view students’ needs from their own perspective, rather than the students. Educators have the responsibility to communicate with students in regards to their needs in their intellectual, social, and emotional development. This can be completed through journals, check-ins, or conversations. In this specific assessment, we asked a variety of students, “What do you wish your teacher knew or would do?” Within the video, the answers from a wide range of students are shown. Most importantly, the answers are displayed from the student’s perspective.

John Hattie and His View On Student-Teacher Relationships

“It is teachers who have created positive teacher-student relationships who are more likely to have above average effects on student achievement.” – John Hattie

Professor John Hattie is an educational researcher. Performance indicators, models of measurement, and evaluation of teaching and learning are among his research interests. With his two books Visible Learning and Visible Learning for Teachers, John Hattie gained a wider audience. Visible Learning is the result of a synthesis of over 800 meta-studies involving over 80 million students. Visible Learning, according to John Hattie, is the product of 15 years of research on what works best in schools for learning. “Possibly the world’s most influential education academic,” according to TES (Visible Learning, n.d.).

The meta study Visible Learning (2009) by John Hattie is a defining moment in educational research. It was deemed the “holy grail of teaching” by the Times Educational Supplement. Hattie’s book answers the question, “What works best for student achievement?” (Visible Learning, n.d.).

John Hattie created 10 mindframes that teachers need to adopt in order to maximize student success. Mind Frame 7: “Teachers/leaders believe that it is their role to develop positive relationships in classrooms/staff rooms” (Hattie, 2012). Teachers must establish a positive interpersonal interaction with each student, and kids must feel safe, fair, and compassionate in the classroom. “How can I instil a high level of trust in my students?” “Do my students feel comfortable expressing what they don’t know or understand?”

The teacher-student interaction has a .72 effect size on student accomplishment, according to John Hattie, author of Visible Learning: A Synthesis of over 800 Meta-Analyses Relating to Achievement. To put that into perspective an effect size of .4 and above is highly significant for student achievement. Listening skills, empathy, mutual respect, care, and positive regard for students were found to strengthen connections, according to the research (Turner et al., 2016).

It can be concluded that student-teacher relationships result in a positive classroom environment and experience. Evidence has been provided through scholarly sources and the interviews completed by individuals who are first-hand witnesses to student-teacher relationships. The information gathered demonstrates the increase of engagement, confidence, and motivation displayed by students who have a strong relationship with their teacher. Likewise, teachers are strengthening their communication and professional skills while building these relationships. In summary, student-teacher relationships foster a welcoming environment and produce success for both the student and the educator.

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Bondy, E., Ross, D. D., Gallingane, C., & Hambacher, E. (2007). Creating environments of success and resilience. Urban Education, 42(4), 326–348. https://doi.org/10.1177/0042085907303406

Buffet, –T. S. and J. (2019, October 31). Positive teacher-student relationships. Greater Good In Education. Retrieved March 3, 2022, from https://ggie.berkeley.edu/school-relationships/positive-teacher-student-relationships/#:~:t ext=For%20Teachers%3A%20According%20to%20educators%2C%20a%20positive%2 0relationship,trusting%2C%20and%20strives%20to%20keep%20the%20relationship%2 0conflict-free

Hattie, J. (2012). Visible learning for teachers: Maximizing Impact on learning. Routledge.

Positive teacher-student relationships have cascading benefits. Network for Educator Effectiveness |. (2021, July 22). Retrieved March 3, 2022, from https://neeadvantage.com/blog/positive-teacher-student-relationships-have-cascading-benefits/#:~:text=When%20students%20have%20a%20positive,or%20referred%20for%20sp ecial%20education.

Tucker, K. (2021, November 5). What are the causes of a poor relationship between a student &amp; teacher? The Classroom | Empowering Students in Their College Journey. Retrieved March 3, 2022, from

Turner, D. M., Aljure, I., & Canevari, P. (2016, April 1). 7 powerful actions you can take to improve relationships with your students – brain based learning: Brain based experts. Brain Based Learning | Brain Based Experts. Retrieved March 2, 2022, from http://www.brainbasedlearning.net/improve-relationships-with-students/

Visible learning. VISIBLE LEARNING. (n.d.). Retrieved March 2, 2022, from https://visible-learning.org/

6 Ways to Build Strong Teacher-Student Relationships with SEL. Social and Emotional Learning – Aperture Education. (2022). Retrieved 2 March 2022, from https://apertureed.com/5-strategies-building-relationships-students/.

Classroom Practice in 2022 Copyright © 2022 by Dr. Catherine Vanner is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Why are there more cases of teachers sexually assaulting students? | Opinion

There is no pinpointed reason why we are seeing an increase in teacher-student relationships. some experts say it comes down to access and lack of boundaries..

Things have changed a lot since I was in high school. I remember not even knowing any of my teachers' first names. It was usually Mr. (last name) or Mrs. (last name). We didn’t talk outside school hours.

Which makes the trend we're witnessing today all the more baffling. A recent FOX News study found that 349 public educators were arrested for child related sex crimes in 2022 alone.

There is no pinpointed reason for why we are seeing an increase in teacher-student relationships. Some experts say it comes down to access and lack of boundaries. Social media has made communication more accessible; simple chats over assignments can quickly become inappropriate.

Why do college students protest? They know truth about Israel's genocide in Gaza

Equally troubling is that sexual abuse is often not reported, and there is a lack of comprehensive data on instances of teacher sexual abuse toward students. For instance, a 20-year-old analysis by the U.S. Department of Education revealed that during their K-12 education, approximately one in 10 children experience some form of sexual misconduct from an educator. Data concerning this disturbing trend needs to be updated.

“I’m not an expert on the sex offender mind, but what I can say is that those who commit these crimes can come from all walks of life and genders,” said Ian Henderson, policy and systems director with the Madison-based Wisconsin Coalition Against Sexual Assault .

Gov. Tony Evers signed bipartisan law on sexual misconduct

In March, Gov. Tony Evers signed a bipartisan law that further criminalizes sexual misconduct by school staff members or volunteers against students. Sexual misconduct is defined as any verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature. Any educator who is convicted of this crime could face up to 3-1/2 years in prison, as well as have their teaching license revoked by the state's Department of Instruction.

"As a former educator, I'm thinking, how can we ever get to this point that we need a bill (for this)," Evers told the Journal Sentinel after signing the legislation. 

Over the past several years there have been numerous cases where Wisconsin educators have been accused of sexual misconduct with a child. These cases involve male and female teachers of varying ages accused of inappropriate behavior. Here are just a few:

• Kevin Buelow , 50, a former Catholic school teacher, was sentenced to 20 years in March for sexually assaulting students in Waukesha and Milwaukee counties. In January, a Milwaukee County jury found Buelow guilty of two counts of first-degree child sex assault, where the child was under the age of 13, in incidents at St. Matthias Parish School in Milwaukee from 2010 to 2012. He was convicted in January 2023 of inappropriately touching three students while he was a fourth-grade teacher at Holy Apostles in New Berlin between 2013-2018.
• Jessica Kelbel , 29, a former special education teacher at The Richardson School in Madison, was charged in February for sexual assault of a student. Her relationship with the student allegedly went on for more than a year. She initially denied the allegations but admitted to having oral sex with the student in October 2023. She resigned in February . The victim’s mother contacted authorities, saying her son had a crush on the teacher and knew personal information about Kelbel and her children.
• Anne Nelson-Koch , 75, was convicted on 25 separate counts, all relating to months of sexual abuse of a teenage boy. In November, a Monroe County judge sentenced her to 10 years in prison, followed by 15 years of probation.
• Christian Enwright , 29, a teacher at Kenosha School of Technology Enhanced Curriculum West, was charged in May with 22 counts of misdemeanor disorderly conduct for allegedly grooming a student. According to a criminal complaint, Enwright had an "inappropriate relationship" with a 14-year-old female student. The girl told school officials the two were "friends" on Snapchat and TikTok since June 2023. When authorities searched her phone they found Enwright sent her inappropriate photos of himself. He was fired May 7.
• Rebecca Kilps , 35, a former Two Rivers Spanish Teacher, was found guilty in a student sex assault case. Kilps was sentenced in January 2023 after she entered a “no contest” plea to charges of sexual assault of a student by school staff and sexual intercourse with a child 16 or older. In a plea agreement, two counts were changed to a misdemeanor, and the other felony charge was kept with a deferred judgment agreement. Kim's husband called the police on his wife after looking through her messages. He said the messages showed Kilps and the victim talking about having a future together and being in love, the complaint said.

It is worth noting that some of these teachers are married and have children. Inappropriate relationships between teachers and students have been a longstanding issue. However, the problem has received more attention in recent years , as pointed out by Henderson. He attributed this to increased media coverage, the #metoo movement, and increased interactions between teachers and students through text and social media.

Two egregious case of rape and misconduct stand out

While all of the cases I highlighted are disturbing, two stand out and illustrate the need for additional research and efforts to combat sexual abuse of students.

The first involves Rachel Goodle, a former Oak Creek High School teacher. Goodle was charged in July with second-degree sexual assault of a child and sexual assault of a student by school staff for an alleged incident on Dec. 2, 2022.

According to a criminal complaint, Goodle, an English teacher, was seen last December sitting together with a student at a school basketball game. The male student told authorities that he and Goodle had sex in the back of her classroom and that there had been “rumors for months about an inappropriate relationship between himself and Goodle.” If convicted, she faces up to 46 years in prison.

Goodle, 22, sued the district in July to block the release of her records.

When I was in high school, I didn’t have any 22-year-old teachers. Most of my teachers were in their 40s and 50s, and a few were close to retirement age. Due to this age difference, a clear sense of respect was established between the students and the teachers. I have spoken at schools where I didn’t know the teacher was the teacher based on their age and how they presented themselves.

The other case involved Tyesha Bolden, 35, a former teacher at a private school in Wauwatosa, who admitted to having a sexual relationship with a 13-year-old male student and purchasing him a handgun for his 14 th birthday.

Bolden, who taught eighth grade at Pilgrim Lutheran School in Wauwatosa, became the boy’s teacher in October 2022. Shortly after, she began texting him, and in early 2023, she started sending him provocative photos of herself. According to a criminal complaint, she even told him she loved him unconditionally.

Bolden allowed the boy to spend the night at her home several times, and the victim told investigators that he and Bolden had sex in a wooded area before summer break.

To add to all of that, the victim even convinced Bolden to give him money and got her to buy him a Glock 19 for his 14 th birthday. It’s mind-boggling that a 35-year-old woman would even be attracted to a 13-year-old boy.

Not only did she rape this young man — yes, it's rape because he could not legally consent at 13 — but she bought him a gun, which he could have used to commit a robbery, shooting or homicide.

In March, she was sentenced to six years of confinement and seven years of extended supervision. She’s lucky because had he used that gun to hurt someone, that could have easily been on her.

These relationships can have devastating consequences

The first teacher-student sex case that I remember is when Washington state teacher Mary K. Letourneau admitted to having sex with then-12-year-old student Vili Fualaau in 1997. To call it a sensational story in the pre-social media era would be an understatement.

The Letourneau story was a case study of what would become a bigger problem. The middle-school teacher seemed like she had it all. She had stunning good looks. She was married and a mother of four. In June 1996, she was caught having sex in a minivan with her 12-year-old student.

Mother's Day apology: As a new mom, I realize I could have been better friend

By the time of her arrest, she was already pregnant by her 12-year-old victim. To compound matters, after she was released on probation, she was ordered to stay away from the victim, but weeks after her release, she was with him again. She gave birth to her second child behind bars.

The two got married in May 2005. They divorced in 2019. Letourneau, 58, died of colon cancer on July 6, 2020 .

It's been 27 years since Letourneau became a household name but today, there are so many cases it's hard to keep up and experts are trying to determine why these cases continue. Some cite the unlimited access teachers and students have to one another.

When I was in school, as the bell rang at 2:45 p.m., marking an end to the school day, I didn’t see my teachers or have any contact with them until the next day. Today, teachers can communicate with their students via text, Facetime and social media.

This can open Pandora's box. Something can start innocent and turn into something criminal. Many criminal complaints show how these inappropriate relationships start innocently enough.

Bolden, the teacher who purchased a gun for a student, first began texting with her victim. Their conversations escalated to the point where she sent him suggestive photos of herself. He promised not to tell anyone when she told him to delete the images.

The situation went too far and resulted in Bolden losing her career and freedom over her inappropriate relationship with a 13-year-old student.

While teachers who engage in such behaviors are punished, the long-term physical and mental damage inflicted upon the students they teach cannot be overlooked.

Henderson, from the Wisconsin Coalition Against Sexual Assault, said that when a teacher crosses the line with a student, the effects on the child can be far-reaching. When a child is sexually assaulted by someone they trusted, it can leave them feeling confused and vulnerable.

“The long-term effects can have devastating consequences,” he said.

If a child tells you they have been sexually assaulted, Henderson says, "Believe them."

Then contact the police.

Reach James E. Causey at  [email protected] ; follow him on X @jecausey .

• Open access
• Published: 13 May 2024

Bridging the gap between research evidence and its implementation in public health practice: case studies of embedded research model

• Abisope Akintola 1 , 3 ,
• Dorothy Newbury-Birch 2 &
• Stephanie Kilinc 2  

BMC Public Health volume  24 , Article number:  1299 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

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Metrics details

To investigate the potential of embedded research in bridging the gap between research evidence and its implementation in public health practice.

Using a case study methodology, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 4 embedded researchers, 9 public health practitioners, and 4 other stakeholders (2 teachers and 2 students) across four case study sites. Sites and individuals were purposively selected. Sites included two local authorities, one secondary school, and one sports organisation. Thematic data analysis was adopted to analyse the qualitative data.

Four themes were identified: (1) building and maintaining relationships, (2) working with stakeholders, (3) informing practice, and (4) critical reflection.

Conclusions

Embedded researchers build and maintain relationships with practitioners and other stakeholders to produce research. Evidence from the co-produced research informs future practice and research to improve service and delivery rendered to the public. Thus, embedded researchers use their role to bridge the research evidence - implementation gap in public health practice.

Peer Review reports

Implementation science is widely recognised as a study of methods to adopt and utilise evidence-based interventions in specific locations or settings to improve the health of the population [ 1 ]. However, the gap between research evidence and its implementation in public health practice is still globally recognised [ 2 ]. According to scholars, some of the factors associated with the problem of inadequate implementation of research evidence in practice could either originate from the researchers or the practitioners [ 3 , 4 , 5 ]. This implies that both researchers and practitioners could be responsible for the creation of the gap between research evidence and its implementation in public health practice.

Evidence suggests that lack of access to research evidence is one of the barriers to the implementation of research evidence in practice [ 6 , 7 , 8 ]. One report suggests that increased connectivity between researchers and practitioners would enhance the practitioners’ accessibility to research evidence [ 9 ]. The report explained further that creating some forums where practitioners and researchers could interact would not only bring about easy access to relevant research evidence, but also would serve as a means to share learning, and link researchers and practitioners who have a common interest. Similarly, other scholars report that increasing the interaction between researchers and practitioners among other factors could facilitate the use of research-based evidence in practice [ 10 , 11 ]. To that end, there is a need to increase the opportunities for practitioners and researchers to interact in order to facilitate the utilisation of research evidence in public health practice.

As there are many identified barriers to the use of research evidence in practice, the disparity between the context and the language by which researchers and practitioners operate has also been identified as one of the barriers. The incompatibility in the language spoken by the researchers with respect to the scientific methods and the evidence generated could be ambiguous for practitioners [ 12 ]. Therefore, to overcome this challenge, scholars advise that practitioners and researchers should work collaboratively from the onset of the research while putting into consideration each other’s differences [ 13 , 14 ]. Furthermore, it has been recommended that researchers need to present their research findings and explain the relevance to solving practical problems to the practitioners in a simple language without ambiguity [ 15 ]. This suggests a need for an approach that would involve practitioners and researchers undertaking the research agenda together, and also a need for effectively communicating research findings and their relevance in a simple language to the practitioners.

The context in which the researchers operate could also serve as a challenge to the utilisation of research evidence in practice [ 9 ]. As such, competing pressures such as teaching commitments and publishing academic papers [ 16 ] could pose a challenge to the researchers’ involvement in practical problems that could inform their research questions. Hence, there is a need for an approach for researchers to be more involved in practical problems to facilitate the conduction of research that is relevant and applicable to problem solving. It was noted that not all researchers have the relevant skills to conduct co-produced research [ 17 ]. There is a need to create opportunities for researchers who have relevant skills to co-produce research, to conduct research with suitable practitioners.

On the other hand, organisational factors such as time constraints are contributing factors to the gap between research evidence and practice as most practitioners do not have the skills nor the time needed to implement research outcomes in practice [ 18 ]. To tackle these challenges, some studies recommend continuous training and commitment to quality health delivery on the part of practitioners. They also recommended advancements in technological decision support systems as instruments to combat barriers between research evidence and practice [ 19 , 20 ]. There is an argument that achieving these may be difficult as a result of inadequate funds in health services [ 21 ]. Hence, there is a need for the adoption of a method that will bring about building the capacity of the practitioners towards conducting research that is achievable based on the available budget.

Furthermore, the disparity of influence and power between academics and practitioners could be responsible for the wide gap between research and practice [ 22 ]. This means the relationship between academic researchers and practitioners plays a vital role in the use of research evidence. Therefore, there is a need for a method that would enhance or build mutually beneficial relationships between academic researchers and practitioners to bridge the ‘research evidence-implementation’ gap.

The separation of the development of research evidence from the places it is to be used contributes to the challenges of using research evidence in practice [ 23 ]. This implies that the creation of research knowledge where it is to be utilised could bridge the ‘research evidence-implementation’ gap. As such, co-production has been recommended by scholars to bridge the ‘research evidence-implementation’ gap as co-production involves the collaborative working between the researchers and the practitioners [ 24 ]. Hence, the adoption of co-production to produce public health knowledge by researchers, practitioners, and other stakeholders in non-clinical settings [ 13 , 25 ]. This is essential in tackling the challenges of inadequate implementation of research evidence in public health settings.

Being involved in co-production could result in reputational risk for the researcher involved as the researcher could be used by politicians to enhance authenticity to their political stand [ 26 ]. Thus, being viewed to approve such a political stand can limit the researcher’s ability to work only with a certain political group – this can also impact the researcher’s personal safety [ 27 ]. Also, this can impact negatively on the credibility of the co-production findings as it might be viewed as biased and not a true representation but a narrative to back up a political viewpoint, thus generating “policy-based evidence” [ 28 ] rather than “research-based evidence”. On the other hand, policy-makers might be at risk of sharing sensitive information while participating in co-production work [ 29 ] such as disclosing political errors.

Also, co-production can be costly as it usually involves the stakeholders travelling to the co-production site. This could be viewed as challenging for those that are involved in the co-production project, as their presence at meetings for the co-production work is seen as crucial. Also, funding and sustainability of co-production can pose a great risk to the adoption of co-production [ 48 ]. However, the challenges associated with co-production can be overcome if stakeholders are involved and are carried along at every stage of co-production, from design to implementation [ 30 ]. The success of co-production depends on but is not limited to the following: the individuals involved; how clear the aims and objectives of the project are to all those involved, and how duties are allocated [ 31 ]. This also suggests a need to critically analyse the role of stakeholders involved in co-production to overcome the challenges associated with co-production, to achieve success.

Embedded research, also known as ‘researcher-in-residence’, is becoming popular as a type of co-production research [ 3 ]. Different authors used different terminologies for embedded researchers such as insider researcher [ 32 ], knowledge broker [ 33 , 34 ], or scholar-practitioner [ 35 ]. Within an embedded research model, one of the distinguishing features is that the researcher is located in the host organisation as a member of staff to carry out a research agenda with the host organisation’s staff, and at the same time maintaining affiliation with an academic institution [ 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 ]. In this paper we investigate how an embedded research model can help bridge the gap between research evidence and its implementation in public health practice.

We conducted qualitative case studies and drew data from semi-structured interviews with four embedded researchers, nine public health practitioners, and four other stakeholders (two teachers and two students) across four case study sites including two local authorities (Sites one and two), one secondary school (Site three), and one sports organisation (Site four) in the Northeast of England.

One of the advantages of qualitative research is the ability to generate rich in-depth data or knowledge that can serve as a basis for health and social practices being effective and relevant to the contexts they are applied to [ 40 ]. We adopted a qualitative multi-site case study to understand the context by providing in-depth description and analysis within sites and as well by comparing data between sites in order to identify the similarities and differences between the sites explored [ 41 ]. Thus, this will assist to maximise the applicability of the findings on how an embedded research model can help bridge the gap between research evidence and its implementation in other similar settings.

In site one, the embedded research project aimed to understand and make recommendations regarding population changes, and service needs, including health, education, housing, and social care, in the local communities. In site two, an embedded researcher works at the local authority to provide research support to the local authority’s public health team to secure their targets which include commissioning evidence-based services and interventions, and promotion of healthy lifestyles. Site three conducted an embedded research project to explore the academic and health impact of the recent changes to the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) system on both staff and students. Site four was established to encourage more people to engage in physical activities to improve their health and well-being. In order to improve the service rendered to the public, an embedded researcher was employed in site four to co-produce research with the sports organisation members of staff. All the embedded researchers across the four case study sites were PhD holders. The amount of time spent in their respective host organisations varied from one hour per fortnight to two and a half days a week to suit the embedded researchers and the host organisations. The embedded researchers’ positions were funded either by the University they are affiliated with, or their host organisation.

Purposive snowball sampling was used in this study. Requests for participants and sites who could volunteer to be part of the study were sent out via relevant professional contacts and networks. The participants and sites that volunteered to take part in this research were asked to assist in the search for participants and/or sites by circulating the study’s details to those who might meet the study’s criteria and would be willing to take part in the study. The inclusion criteria were: (1) being a public health embedded researcher, and (2) being a public health practitioner or stakeholder who is working or has worked with a public health embedded researcher. Potential participants were assessed for eligibility before being interviewed. A total of 17 participants were recruited for the interviews across the four case study sites. The sample size would have been larger than 17 but for the Covid-19 pandemic. Ethical approval was obtained from the Teesside University School of Health and Life Sciences Research Governance and Ethics Committee in November 2019. Data was collected between November 2019 and April 2020.

To facilitate participation, participants were offered alternative modes of interview for their convenience: face-to-face, telephone, and Skype-based interviews. The Covid-19 pandemic occurred during the interview period, but most interviews conducted before COVID-19 were face-to-face. All interviews conducted during the pandemic (March 2020 and onwards) were either Skype or telephone-based, as advised by the Ethics department at Teesside University and as per the requirements of the interviewees’ workplaces. Before each interview, oral and written informed consent was obtained from each participant. Each participant was asked to complete two copies of the consent form, one for their own records and one for the researcher.

Following each interview, a reflective note was taken to identify what went well and what could be done differently in the next interview. Since there were three categories of interview participants – embedded researchers (ERs), public health practitioners (PHPs), and other stakeholders (students (STs) and teachers (TRs)–three sets of interviews were prepared. Although the interview questions were nearly the same for each category of participants, some of the interview questions differed in the way they were structured. Here is an example of how a question was worded differently depending on the participant: (ERs) Can you cite an example where you have built practitioners and other stakeholders’ confidence to conduct their own research? (PHPs, TRs, and STs) Can you cite an example where an embedded researcher has built your confidence to conduct your own research? A full outline of the interview guide is in Appendix .

A summary of each interview was noted in a research diary for reference. Details noted included where each interview took place, the date of the interview, the length of the interview and how the interviewee responded to questions. Each interview lasted between 40 and 90 min. The interviews were recorded, and data was transcribed. We analysed data using inductive thematic analysis [ 42 ] to allow new themes besides the preconceived ones to emerge from the coding of the interviews. Trustworthiness of the analysis was assessed by triangulating between data sources.

Four themes emerged from the analysis of the interview data on the potential of embedded research in bridging the gap between research evidence and its implementation in public health practice: (1) building and maintaining relationships (2) working with stakeholders, (3) informing practice, and (4) critical reflection.

Building and maintaining relationships

All participants across the four case study sites, irrespective of their age, years of experience, or education, recounted the significance of this theme to the embedded research projects in their respective sites. They articulated the benefits of the role of the embedded researchers in building and maintaining relationships with the public health practitioners and other stakeholders to facilitate the co-production of research evidence. They all agreed that building and maintaining relationships played a vital role in the utilisation of the co-produced research evidence and in the closing of the gap between research evidence and its implementation. Overall, the strategies adopted by the embedded researchers to achieve this theme were identified as: (1) building internal/external relationships and sharing skills, and 2) maintaining regular contact with practitioners and other stakeholders.

Building internal/external relationships and sharing skills

Participants agreed that the embedded researchers’ role entails having diverse connections built on good relationships. These relationships assist the embedded researchers in connecting their partners to other relevant organisations such as academic institutions and third sector agencies.

“I think some of that is around having this kind of good grounding so sort of beginning the role with already having made, a lot of kind of contacts, a lot of sort of good relationships been built. [..] I have a line manager in the council, who was the project manager for the first phase so we’ve got that continuity there [..] I also have an academic supervisor who is also my kind of my line manager from the academic side” [ERsite1] .

“I can say that’s [having connections] actually key because they are straddling both worlds. [..] not somebody who sat in the academic institution who didn’t understand the wider context. I think these roles are really key in bridging the institutions” [PHP2site1] .

It was clear that building relationships and connecting the ‘two worlds’ is not only advantageous to both institutions but also assisted the embedded researchers to seek support from both their academic supervisor at the University they were employed and the local authority (LA) they are working with. Therefore, this enables the embedded researchers to be supported fully to carry out their role successfully. It was also recognised that while embedded researchers play their role in building relationships and connecting relevant organisations, the role assisted them to understand the context in which research evidence is to be utilised. Thus, the relevance of research evidence to the host organisation facilitates its use.

This relationship-building was seen as crucial to the success of the role, and it was felt that these relationships could determine the success of any work carried out.

“[..] I would go as far to say I think it’s the relationship that’s built with the individuals who developed that project was important. [..] are the most important elements of co-production” [ERsite2] .

This implies that lack of relationship-building between researchers and public health practitioners can serve as a barrier to embedded research project. Furthermore, it was evident that the relationship built with the stakeholders who were involved in the embedded research was crucial to the projects. For instance, an embedded researcher from site two used her skills to build relationships with the volunteers that participated in the project.

“She [embedded researcher] has been there longer, excellent relationships with the volunteers, that helped to build and shape this project, so she has a very useful experience in terms of relationship-building” [PHP6site2] .

Thus, this assisted in structuring the work which had a positive impact on the project. This two-way relationship with other organisations, including the local universities and research participants, was seen as a benefit of embedded research.

Findings showed that embedded researchers used their contacts and good relationships to facilitate the sharing of skills useful in carrying out embedded research projects and also enable working with other academics at the University.

“[..] even for me just working as an individual in that organisation, I don’t know everything about the research, but because you are linked with the University, that gives an avenue to ask questions and link up with people with expertise to then support an evaluation” [ERsite2] .

These connections and relationships, therefore, enable the sharing of skills useful to co-produce relevant high-quality research evidence useful to host organisations and policy makers.

Within this current study, it was clear that if the embedded researchers were not located or had spent time in the sites, they felt it would be difficult for them to build relationships, and understand the context in which the co-produced research is to be utilised.

“So, having the researcher embedded within in what we do, the researcher has the understanding of the project, and initially she has been with it from the start to finish, so she understands the journey that’s been on, and she understands why it’s been done, how it’s been done [..] So, I think, so the embedded researcher role in what we do is infallible resource really” [ PHP1site4 ] .

The ‘embeddedness’ gave the researchers an understanding of the projects they were involved in. As such, the embedded researchers were seen as ‘insiders’ and their ‘embeddedness’ was seen as key to the success of the work.

It is worth noting that the amount of time spent by the embedded researchers in their respective host organisation varied and was negotiated at the sites to suit the embedded researchers and the host organisations.

“[..] I was familiar with quite a lot of people but obviously kind of being there regularly I have got to know them much better basically. [..] I mean it really varies; I would say probably kind of at least a couple of days in a week” [ERsite1] .

“Being embedded within their team I spend half of the week working within the organisation. It’s been a real pleasure to work alongside them” [ERsite2] .

“ So, we tend to have meetings where I will go in for a few hours at a time. I would probably say, maybe an hour in a fortnight ” [ERsite3] .

“[..] I spend two and a half days working within the organisation. [..] you want to be seen as part of that team and not somebody who just pops up every now and again” [ERsite4] .

However, building relationships and sharing skills was not seen as without its challenges with some tension between roles and expectations.

“[..] it has become trickier splitting myself now between the organisations as they all have their roles and expectations on how they want things to be done” [ ERsite2] .

“The structure can be quite challenging as well, but probably [..] just having that balance in the relationships with the organisation you are working for and the organisation you are evaluating for. And I think yeah you have got to have that one, but that is a challenge of working in large organisation” [PHP6site2] .

The embedded researchers from sites one and two found there was some tension in working in both ‘worlds’ as a result of the responsibilities associated with it, such as building relationships, and balancing diverse responsibilities. This is due to their dual affiliation as such, they are expected to manage a large workload, managing both successfully. A practitioner from site two added that the structure of the organisations the embedded researcher works could also be a challenge, therefore, it is important for an embedded researcher to be able to discuss this with both sides in order that they balance the relationships between the host organisation and the academic institution.

Another notable challenge is having to manage diverse expectations including the ability to balance competing interests of the different organisations.

“There is sort of difference in expectations because I think from the academic point of view, [..] we want publications, we want things that give us an academic output, whereas someone who works in the school is not going to be bothered about that sort of things. They have to see where it positively affects their school, [..] so I think having that difference in agendas on what you want to achieve from this school research can be quite hard to manage. [..] you want different things from this piece of research is quite hard, and make sure that both sides are happy at the end of the day, and I think we did that quite well” [ERsite3] .

For instance, an embedded researcher from the school stated that the expectations from the embedded research project did differ. That is, while part of the aim of the academic input was to publish the outcome of the project to improve or boost their academic output, the school aimed for a practical positive impact of the project on the school, such as improvement in students’ engagement in academic activities. Hence, it was essential to balance the competing interests of the school and the academic side of the embedded research project.

Maintaining regular contact with practitioners and other stakeholders

Based on the participants’ experiences, the embedded researchers built relationships with the practitioners and other stakeholders by maintaining regular contact.

“I think what we did was to help build that relationship. It was not just a telephone conversation just to discuss. We actually worked side by side so there was time to actually do that embedded research. We spent time in the office, we spent like one or two days a week” [PHP1site2] .

“Yeah, but then we did send them emails and stuff, in between [..] yeah we did have time outside of the face to face sessions and sending stuff to the teachers to encourage them, ‘can you remind the students that we have got to do this week’, we have got to get this done by then, so I would say obviously we had the face to face sessions but then we had email correspondence as well” [ERsite3] .

The practitioners from site two reported that the embedded researcher maintained regular contact by face to face, or by telephone. They further explained that they worked side by side with the embedded researcher to build relationships. This implies that if the practitioners and the embedded researcher were not chanced to work together, which assisted in maintaining regular contact, it would have been difficult to build relationships. Thus, this widens the gap between academia and practice. The embedded researchers had similar experiences. For instance, an embedded researcher from site three (school) confirmed that she maintained regular contact to build relationships with the students and the teachers by email and face to face. This shows that it is important to develop project strategies in order to maintain regular contact with the practitioners and other stakeholders to build relationships.

According to the embedded researchers, building mutually beneficial relationships was achieved by maintaining regular contact not only with the stakeholders but also with their academic supervisors which enabled the embedded researchers to have the necessary support to achieve their role.

“I mean knowing that I do have kind of the support at the University to draw on and also have a kind of a good working relationship with my line manager in the council as well really. I don’t feel that I am lacking in any kind of support, which is a good kind of place to be in yeah. So I have monthly meetings in the University and that’s very much really useful in times of keeping track of some of the other parts of my roles so around kind of trying to ensure that we can get some like academic publications and things like that so yeah” [ERsite1] .

Another strategy that was mentioned regarding how the embedded researchers maintained regular contact to build relationships with the practitioners and other stakeholders was ‘attending formal meetings’.

“Interestingly, the researcher has always been on the co-production committee and she attends the meetings, so she is excellent, much better than me because she has been there longer, [..] that helped to build and shape this project [..]” [PHP6site2] .

“So, I have to go to all their team meetings that’s gonna help you form a lot of relationships. Meetings are where the real connection starts to happen. So, you have to invest that time ” [ERsite4] .

As well as making use of formal meeting, the embedded researchers adopted ‘informal conversations’ to maintain regular contact to build relationships with the public health practitioners and other stakeholders.

“For me, I am quite like a chatty person and I think that’s like the characteristics of an embedded researcher. You need somebody who is easy to get on with lots of different people. You need to have that ability to do that. Otherwise, you gonna struggle to form a relationship especially if you aren’t there as often as what you would be if it’s a full-time job” [ ERsite4] .

A practitioner from the sports organisation added that engaging in informal conversations also helped in building a trustworthy relationship with the embedded researcher.

“[..] We have that relationship and some other things you can visit, particularly when things get tough, it’s easy enough to fall back on different conversations on sport [..] These conversations increase our relationship and trust, we trust each other” [PHP1site4] .

The practitioner further explained that he has a good relationship with the embedded researcher and so they engage in informal conversations at difficult times thereby developing a relationship that is based on trust.

Working with stakeholders

Results showed that the embedded researchers build and maintain relationships with the practitioners, and with other stakeholders in order to effectively work together to produce research. This, therefore, facilitated the production and the use of the co-produced research evidence at the embedded sites and helped close the gap between research evidence and its implementation as results were shared quickly with all those that were involved. All participants across the four case study sites unanimously agreed that this theme is one of the primary roles of an embedded researcher, and the strategies identified include: (1) co-producing research, and (2) building research capacity.

Co-producing research

The participants confirmed that they worked together to identify, plan, and conduct research intended to help the host organisations improve their services and meet the needs of the communities with which they work.

“We liaise with the researcher to develop the initial kind of overview of that population [..] the researcher supports us in developing the initial questions, the questionnaire, and the initial research” [PHP1site4] .

“[..] embedding research into the public health team. [..] then helping us to explore the questionnaires. The embedded researcher helps us with the development of that work including the formulae and evaluation for the intervention. We design and develop and embed and undertake the research together. She is very much a part of the team and a core within the team” [PHP4site2] .

“[..] So, really it’s about giving us the exposure to that sort of research. Well, honestly, I have learnt how to conduct research” [ST1site3] .

The participants acknowledged that working together to co-produce research with the embedded researchers encouraged adjustments to and engagement with research-related activities. Furthermore, embedded research was considered a cost-effective research approach.

“ I have been out in a couple of beneficiary interviews with the researcher. Certainly, I would not normally get involved with going out to see clients, but I have gone out a couple of times with the researcher, so that was interesting” [PHP5site2] .

“[..] the embedded researcher worked alongside the public health practitioners [..] how to shape some of the evaluations, including how to be really clear about the methodology, the approach [..] And how to write protocol [..] So, I think that was the aim of it, it was to ensure that we have much more effective and cost-effective research ” [PHP2site1] .

One public health practitioner reported that she participated in several research activities with the embedded researcher at site two. She recognised that working with the researcher enabled her to do research work that she would not have ordinarily done. This suggests that not working together with practitioners to co-produce research may potentially prevent practitioners from being meaningfully involved in the research process. In such situations, the gap between the development and implementation of research evidence may actually become wider. One practitioner from site one explained that embedded research was adopted in the LA so that the authority could conduct cost-effective research. This only further indicates that having an embedded researcher on-site working collaboratively with practitioners and stakeholders to conduct cost-effective research can help bridge the research implementation gap.

However, it was noted that the process of co-producing research between the embedded researchers and the public health practitioners and other stakeholders also facilitated shared learning.

“Despite the fact that we went in obviously thinking of teaching them but the fact that we can learn from them about what was important to them, what was important to young pupils in schools, and how to speak to young pupils because that is schooling in itself. [..] and I think also you learn new skills [..] so I think you get sort of practical experience and learn new skills sort of more practical skills I suppose, not just research skills, so yeah that is why I think I say it’s the most important thing” [ERsite3] .

“[..] and when I have been out with staff members, they will ask questions that I would never have thought of asking, because of their knowledge at work. [..] I have been learning a lot as well from the staff, and that shows the importance of doing it together” [ ERsite2] .

One embedded researcher from site three (school) reported that although their aim was to teach the students how to conduct research, they were able to learn what was important to the young people among other things from the students. Another embedded researcher from site two shared a similar experience and confirmed that during the co-production work, the public health practitioners used their tacit knowledge of their field to ask relevant questions that had not occurred to her. Since the practitioners are more knowledgeable than the researcher regarding actual on-site practices, they added substantial value to the project. This indicates just how much learning is a two-way process, and demonstrates co-production of knowledge which involves the amalgamation of the practitioners’ tacit knowledge and the researchers’ explicit knowledge.

Researchers were explicitly recognised for their ability to co-produce research with the public health practitioners and other stakeholders. Thus, the co-produced research was jointly owned by those involved in the embedded research projects. As the research was co-produced with the intention to assist the organisations to improve the service they render to the public, thus, the embedded researchers’ role assisted in facilitating the utilisation of research evidence. In addition, given the embedded research projects focused on meeting the needs of the host organisations, there were no instances where there were conflicts related to the research emerged.

Building research capacity

The embedded researchers explained that they conducted training, and other developmental activities to help develop the practitioners’ and other stakeholders’ research skill-set.

“I have done a kind of number of training sessions with staff and actually with volunteers that will want to get involved in collecting data [..] so I have run workshops, training workshop, so that means that when I go out there for collection the staff can come and do it with me” [ERsite4] .

“[..] another element of my role is to deliver training to staff around the use of data around the benefits of collecting relevant information, how that information can be used to inform practice in decisions and planning and things like that, we just had a conference couple of weeks ago which was very much about kind of sharing the learning and then sort of getting people involved in the work that we do really, so they are my kind of key targets really” [ ERsite1] .

Research-based training were offered by the embedded researchers in a variety of forms, such as using workshop training, one to one training and through seminars and conferences. For instance, an embedded researcher from site four (sports organisation) reported that she taught the practitioners to collect data at a training workshop that she organised. She explained that this training assisted the embedded research project because it helped the practitioners to get involved in the data collection phase as they had the skills from the training. Similarly, another embedded researcher from site one reported that getting the practitioners involved in the embedded research work facilitated the sharing of learning, which was one of her main goals while working at the LA. This particular researcher trained the public health practitioners to collect data and taught them how research evidence can inform practical decision making.

The participants agreed that working together with the embedded researchers strengthened their ability to conduct high-quality research capable of benefiting their respective organisations.

“ It also allowed us to utilise and build the capacity of public health practitioners who would often not undertake any research for some time” [PHP2site1] .

“So, it’s more like continuous professional development [..] So, the research skills are learnt such that at the end of the day, next time the research could be conducted independently, even if we didn’t have somebody coming from the outside. That’s the whole approach [..] is for developing public health practitioners to the extent that research can be conducted in a rigorous manner” [PHP1site1] .

“I think probably when I attended two beneficiary interviews with her and just seeing how to speak to people when you are asking them questions so there is a way to ask the questions so that they understand, probably by listening to the researcher at that point I sort of learnt how” [ PHP5site2] .

As the above suggests, the embedded researchers encouraged some practitioners who would ordinarily not participate in research to engage in research activities. This implies that working together with researchers may be a significant facilitator to building practitioners’ research capacity and closing the research implementation gap. The absence of an embedded researcher may even serve to widen the gap. Indeed, the public health practitioners observed that working with embedded researchers could eventually build their research capacity to independently conduct high-quality research in the future.

Overall, it was clear that the participants were aware of the importance of working together with embedded researchers, and the researchers were acknowledged for their ability to assist greatly with research-related training and support to build their research capacity. It would have been difficult for these organisations to generate high-quality on-site research if the embedded researchers had not been present. Consequently, the embedded researchers helped work to close the research evidence implementation gap.

Informing practice

The embedded researchers built and maintained relationships with the practitioners and other stakeholders to work together with them to co-produce research. The participants from the four case study sites reflected upon how the embedded researchers informed the sites of relevant research-based evidence, which helped in the development of future practice and research. By doing so, the embedded researchers bridged the gap between the discovery and implementation of research-based evidence. The results showed that all participants across all the four case study sites, irrespective of age, years of experience, and education, agreed that the role of the embedded researchers includes this theme.

The strategies adopted by the embedded researchers include: (1) identifying challenges in the host organisations, (2) utilising research experience, (3) implementing research evidence, (4) disseminating findings, identifying future research areas, and applying for funding, (5) presenting and publishing findings.

Identifying challenges in the host organisations

Participants agreed that the research skills of the embedded researchers are essential to the process of identifying the practical challenges facing the research sites. For instance, an embedded researcher used their research skill to unravel the root cause of the challenges facing a school (site three) through a thorough investigation by developing and conducting relevant research with the students and the teachers.

“[…] the GSCE reforms of the time that was taking place, it was causing a significant amount of stress and pressure for the teachers. In the first instance, teachers were having to grasp new skills at work, they were having to understand the new curriculum and subject knowledge. Some of the teachers weren’t particularly strong, there was a level of undue pressure and stress being put on the students, so pupils nationally were having to learn lots of different contents, they were sort of taken away the security blankets of things like modular testing in course work and what that meant was that students will now have to recall so much more knowledge in exam conditions” [TR1site3] .

Following the identification of these challenges, research-based recommendations were offered through the co-production research. By using research evidence to help tackle the school’s challenges, the researcher bridged the gap between the discovery and implementation of research-based evidence.

Utilising research experience

It is worth noting that the embedded researchers used their research experience to inform their host organisations of relevant existing and newly co-produced research evidence. The embedded researchers’ research-related expertise and the time they spent searching for relevant evidence were both seen as useful to the public health practitioners and other stakeholders.

“The beauty is that because it is their bread and butter, doing reviews and searching for evidence […] one of the things the embedded researcher did to help me with it was to do that literature review [..] it would have taken me much longer [..], so that’s the benefit [..] it is their strength and their experience and skills which they have got and which we may not have and the time to do it which we may not also have because we are constantly under the treadmill” [ PHP1site1] .

It was evident that the practitioners’ busy work schedules often restrict their ability to develop and implement their own research skills. Thankfully, the embedded researchers were able to assist the practitioners by using their research skills to overcome research-related challenges, and in the process taught them how to look for research evidence effectively. This, therefore, facilitates the implementation of evidence-based practice. The implication of this is that practitioners’ lack of research skills and time would have served as a barrier for evidence-based practice in the research sites.

It was clear that the research-based evidence searched for, or co-produced by the embedded researchers and the public health practitioners including other stakeholders was used to inform practice and make positive changes. Evidence showed that the embedded researchers had informed the host organisations of relevant research evidence and had used their research experience and skills to make research-based recommendations. In other words, the embedded researchers made valuable research evidence, and knowledge accessible. As such, this brought about desirable changes that improved service and delivery in the research sites.

“ So the way this works here is that you do the final report which has the recommendations in form of what we feel there should be changes to in practice, and that goes to their public management team and then they will look at that” [ERsite2] .

Furthermore, the embedded researchers also discussed how they helped make positive on-site changes occur. For instance, an embedded researcher from site two reported that positive changes were made in practice after developing recommendations in the form of a report submitted for management’s approval. It was clear that the practitioners take evidence-based advice from the embedded researcher to improve the quality of the services being offered to the public. Thus, this closes the gap between research evidence and its implementation.

Implementing research evidence

The interviews inquired as to how research-based evidence was translated into practice at the four research sites. As the interview process continued, it became clear that desired changes and improvements were achieved through the on-site application of research-based evidence. The results showed that across the four research sites, this process did indeed happen.

“[..] as it is very much about kind of being a resource to implement the recommendations and embed kind of the key findings from the research, again my role is trying to get some of these things into practice really so its embedded research but the main one of the main things is around embedding the recommendations as well, so that’s sort of work my role is around doing” [ ERsite1] .

“ [..] at the same time, it also helps the researcher coming in to understand what goes on in practice so that you don’t just go and conduct a piece of research that goes on the shelves. [..] So we would then need to weigh the evidence and the circumstances under which we are going to implement an intervention but we still take advice from the researcher on the evidence of what works. They could advice on what works [..] It’s more about the outcome of research being used to influence practice for quality improvement” [ PHP1site1] “There are changes that are made with how they recruit their staff for the delivery staff […] that changes were made and that was in practice, and they also kind of put it in a set of recommendations as to the ones to be delivered in schools” [ERsite4] .

Participants reported that the embedded researchers recommended existing research evidence, co-produced research evidence with the intent of informing practice, and also used relevant evidence to help improve service and delivery. In other words, the role of embedded researchers provided accessibility to research-based evidence that was utilised to develop solutions to on-site challenges and create positive change.

Disseminating findings, identifying future research areas, and applying for funding

The embedded researchers reported that having to present reports to diverse audiences prompted them to produce easily understandable, user-friendly reports that did not rely heavily on academic language.

“[..] so I have quarterly reports that I have to produce which has to be user-friendly and appeal to a various range of agencies within the organisation [..] we had, basically we have had quite a few different presentations to different kind of groups or the senior management team and departmental teams and things which was about and sharing the results and recommendations, we have follow-ups sort of things from that” [ ERsite1] .

“[..] Yeah, just into writing report so she will do like verbal update or she provides like some blueprints in an email ” [PHP5site2] .

The reports created by the embedded researchers avoided scientific terms that might be difficult for public health practitioners and other stakeholders to understand. Furthermore, practitioners and other stakeholders were informed of relevant research evidence in an unambiguous way. It is important to add that it would have been difficult for the embedded researchers to appropriately simplify their language if they had not had the opportunity to spend time on-site becoming familiar with the language used by the practitioners and stakeholders.

The participants also reported that the embedded research projects effectively discovered potential areas for future research. By making suggestions regarding future research, the embedded researchers furthered each host organisation’s potential to engage in relevant, change-creating research.

“[..] then the research outcomes were used to inform the next phase, so obviously that was the first phase, which we felt was really successful and worked really well, so then we took those sort of the things we learnt to the next phase” [ERsite3] .

For example, an embedded researcher from site three (school) stated that the first phase of their embedded research project was such a success that the findings of the first phase informed the direction of the second phase, thereby ensuring continuous research activities in the school.

Furthermore, participants agreed that the outcomes of the embedded research projects assisted with the application for future funding.

“[..] the results of the work that we did has been kind of used in terms of future funding opportunities, for providing data, providing kind of context information that was used in sort of proposals and in bids pushing and for applying for future funding” [ERsite1] .

It was evident that the presence of the embedded researchers in their host organisations encouraged the push to apply for funding to develop projects. This, therefore, facilitates continuous engagement in research activities. The practitioners felt that the role of the embedded researchers is crucial to producing funding applications and program development.

Presenting and publishing findings

Once embedded researchers succeeded at co-producing relevant on-site research evidence with practitioners and other stakeholders, and offering practical solutions to on-site challenges, it became clear that it would be necessary to present and publish the outcomes of the projects. Consequently, embedded researchers used their academic skills to publish the findings with practitioners and other stakeholders as co-authors. One of the benefits of publication is that published research can inform the host organisation, and other organisations facing similar challenges. Another significance of the role of embedded research pertaining to this, is that as the embedded research project is co-produced by both the embedded researcher and the host organisation, the findings from the research are jointly owned by both parties. This also assisted in integrating research into the host organisations culture.

“We wrote a book chapter with their names on the published book chapter. We got all of them involved with the writing of the chapter [..] that makes a sort of massive difference ” [ERsite3] .

“We co-authored a chapter of a book. We used the findings to create a book chapter but all of us has input into it including the researchers” [ST2site3] .

For example, participants from site three (school) reported that a book chapter based on co-produced research that they had worked on with the embedded researcher had been published [ 43 ]. Co-produced and co-published research evidence informs the school and research community of the institutional value of embedded research projects. The embedded researcher from site three (school) added that the names of the students and staff involved in the research and writing processes were included in the book chapter. The book chapter was co-edited by both an academic and a public health consultant. This publication has made a tremendous positive difference to how a school labelled as ‘deprived’ views itself. Indeed, being involved in the co-production of valuable research has encouraged both students and teachers.

To further explore how embedded researchers can inform public health practice, the participants were asked whether any other evidence-sharing processes had been used by the embedded researchers. The embedded researchers in this study were connected to more than one organisation. Consequently, they have access to organisations with information that can benefit public health practitioners and other stakeholders. The participants felt that participating in other organisations helped the embedded researchers fulfil their role as the discoverers and sharers of information. The participants viewed this role of the embedded researcher in their sites important as it informs them of the latest research evidence and activities in the field. This could also be seen as a way to sustain evidence-based practice in the sites. As the practitioners are regularly informed of the latest relevant evidence by attending research-based programmes, it facilitates the integration of research into the host organisations’ culture.

“When I see opportunities for conferences or local events, I will send an email or circulating them, there might be public health conference, it might be a Fuse conference that’s linked in erm linked in heavily with the thing we have worked on and I circulate that to the staff member, to say here is an opportunity” [ERsite2] .

For instance, an embedded researcher from site two stated that she regularly informed the practitioners of programmes and events presenting research relevant to their practice. By attending such events, practitioners can stay informed and up to date and are more likely to make changes to their practice based on timely research evidence. Consequently, the findings of this study indicate that staying familiar with the latest relevant research is one of the ways to close the gap between the discovery and implementation of research-based evidence.

Overall, it was evident that the embedded researchers’ ability to inform the organisations with relevant co-produced research evidence, and the ability to identify relevant information and opportunities and then circulate these to public health practitioners and stakeholders helped to inform the sites in creating relevant, research-based changes to benefit their public health practices. The positive outcomes they generated indicate that the role of embedded researchers can seriously contribute to closing the gap between the discovery and implementation of research-based evidence in the research sites.

Critical reflection

Twelve out of seventeen participants across the four sites discussed this theme as part of the role of the embedded researcher in their respective organisations. Participants felt that critical reflection was an important process an embedded researcher must engage in throughout the ‘journey’ of becoming an agent of closing the gap between research evidence and its implementation in practice. The identified strategy adopted by the embedded researchers within this theme is continuous reflection.

“I constantly reflect on my role to know what I am doing right, and what can be done differently” [ERsite1] .

“I have to spend really more time reflecting” [ERsite2] .

“It might be while you drive home [..] might be in the shower [..] might be when I take the dog out for a walk and tea time to reflect because you do need time to reflect on your research, on your methodology [..] about what the findings need to show [..] at times my bag is full of paper everywhere, millions of notes in here and I have to open and jot down some questions so that I won’t forget them because they are so important” [ERsite4] .

“I think it’s always good to sort of like reflect on what we have done, how we do things I personally want to think about whether I could have done things better […] so I think it’s quite important to sort of reflect on how you have done things, and how you could do things in the future, like what lessons you have learnt, I think it’s important to sort of reflect, to sort of think more about how you have done things and whether it could be practiced in the future” [ERsite3] .

Overall, the participants agreed that reflection helps embedded researchers assess their roles and constantly improve their work. Therefore, reflection is crucial to successfully co-producing research and closing the research implementation gap.

All participants, irrespective of their age, working experience and education, acknowledged that the relationships between the people involved in an embedded research project are crucial to the project’s success. This is in keeping with those made in previous studies that have concluded that building and maintaining mutually beneficial relationships with practitioners and other stakeholders significantly helps embedded researchers co-produce public health knowledge in non-clinical settings [ 33 , 44 ]. The study participants were also unanimous in their view that the ‘embeddedness’ of the researchers, or the degree to which they become part of or spend time within the host organisation, is significant. A higher degree of embeddedness appears to lead to the development of beneficial relationships and also helps researchers develop a better understanding of organisational contexts, that in turn leads to the development of effective solutions and useful, co-produced research. Notably, becoming embedded to a significant degree helps others see the researchers as part of the team. Previous studies have also indicated it is the duty of the embedded researcher to become part of the host organisation by working collaboratively with practitioners and other stakeholders [ 17 , 45 ].

Although the amount of time each embedded researcher spent within their host organisation varied, the interview data gathered from all sites confirmed that embedded researchers felt they were able to develop meaningful relationships with the host organisation. The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) embedded research team reported similar findings and observed that the amount of time spent within an organisation can depend on the intensity of a project [ 46 ].

Among other strategies, informal conversations with the practitioners and other stakeholders also assisted the embedded researchers to build relationships. This was confirmed only by the embedded researchers in case study sites two and four who had worked in the host organisations for more than three years. This might be because the embedded researchers from the local authority (site two) and the sports organisation (site four) had worked and familiarised themselves with the members of the host organisation staff. Consequently, this could have facilitated easier informal conversations, unlike the embedded researcher in site one who has just spent seven months in the site. This confirms that it takes time for embedded researchers to build trustworthy relationships in the host organisation and they recommend an ‘introductory period’ of a minimum of three months for familiarisation before an embedded research project starts [ 39 ]. This was beneficial to the three case studies explored in an earlier study as it allowed the embedded researchers to familiarise themselves with their host organisations and as well build relationships with the host organisations’ staff [ 39 ]. This also aligns with the view of other scholars that an ‘introductory period’ is important before the commencement of an embedded research project [ 44 ]. It is worth noting that the practicability of an ‘introductory period’ may depend on the agreement between the parties involved.

Furthermore, embedded researchers must build relationships not only with practitioners and other stakeholders, but also with their academic supervisors. Having a successful relationship with the academic supervisor can help the embedded researcher overcome the challenges that arise as a consequence of having a dual affiliation and needing to manage diverse expectations and competing interests. The embedded researchers interviewed in this study had the support of their academic supervisors. Thanks to the vast experience of their supervisors, they are often excellent at mitigating unforeseen challenges. Indeed, among other factors, the success of an embedded researcher depends on the relationship between the researcher and his or her academic supervisor [ 13 , 39 ].

The interview participants recounted that it is important to work together to co-produce relevant research which is useful to the organisations. Other scholars have similarly concluded that embedded researchers work with members of their host organisations to identify, plan, and conduct research that will meet the needs of the organisation [ 36 ]. By working collaboratively, embedded researchers were able to train the practitioners and other stakeholders and improve their ability to help co-produce meaningful and valuable research that can be used to implement evidence-based adjustments to on-site practices.

The findings of this study indicate that working together produces meaningful research and also teaches practitioners and other stakeholders who assist embedded researchers, how to conduct research. Similarly, an earlier study concluded that embedded researchers encourage practitioners and other stakeholders to participate in research activities and increase an organisation’s capacity to conduct research [ 17 ]. In other words, the collaborative work that accompanies embedded research helps close the research implementation gap. However, it was noted in this current qualitative inquiry that having the right researchers assisted in carrying out the projects successfully. This is similar to an earlier study that argue that having the right combination of researchers and practitioners in co-production is crucial to the success of such project [ 13 ]. Also, other scholars pointed out that not all researchers have the relevant skills to conduct co-produced research [ 17 ]. Therefore, it is essential to have the right combination of researchers, practitioners, and other stakeholders while working together to co-produce research to ensure its success.

Based on the current qualitative inquiry, the role of the embedded researchers includes informing practice by making recommendations and positive changes that utilise both existing and newly co-produced research evidence. Doing so makes research evidence more accessible to public health practitioners and other stakeholders and ultimately improves service and delivery. An earlier study similarly revealed that informing practice has been identified as a way by which embedded researchers communicate new and existing relevant research evidence and integrate research findings into practice [ 3 ].

As discussed earlier, two of the factors responsible for the gap between the discovery and implementation of research evidence are the disparity between the language spoken by the researchers and practitioners and the complexity of the language spoken by researchers, which is often include scientific jargon. Such complex language can be difficult for practitioners to understand or lead to ambiguities in interpretation [ 12 ]. To discover whether language differences was an issue in this study, the interviews included questions regarding how research evidence and recommendations were communicated to public health practitioners and other stakeholders. These questions were designed to create an understanding of how the embedded researchers had communicated. The interviews revealed that the embedded researchers communicated research outcomes and recommendations effectively to the practitioners by using simple, unambiguous language. Using such language helped make research evidence more accessible to the practitioners.

Providing evidence for reports and future funding applications was identified as an important part of the embedded researchers’ work within their host organisations [ 17 , 47 ]. The interview participants agreed that the researchers sometimes helped secure funds needed to conduct research at the host organisation. Doing so encouraged each host organisation’s staff to participate in research that could prove useful to the organisation in the future.

Critical reflection helps embedded researchers evaluate the role they play within their host organisation and keep track of their progress [ 33 , 48 ]. In other words, reflection helps researchers identify and improve upon the areas that are not meeting expectations and discover what approaches are working successfully. This corresponds with the findings from this current qualitative inquiry. The interview participants acknowledged that the embedded researchers continuously reflect on their role and their work in order to identify what is and is not working. This assists embedded researchers to think of ways to apply acquired learning to daily on-site practice to improve their role in the co-production of research to bridge the gap between research evidence and its implementation in public health practice.

Limitations of the study

One of the limitations of this study was the sample size. A total of 17 participants was recruited for this study, although the sample size would have been larger than 17 but for the COVID-19 pandemic. Another consideration of this piece of work, being qualitative research, was subjectivity. The information provided by the participants was based on their point of view. Hence, it might be difficult to objectively verify the qualitative information provided to ensure that accurate information was provided by the participant regarding the phenomenon of interest. Nevertheless, some practical measures were undertaken to ensure the credibility of this work. Data triangulation and site triangulation [ 49 ] were adopted in this study. These were done to increase the confidence in the outcome of the qualitative multi-site case study.

Overall, the success that the embedded researchers experienced, including building relationships, co-producing research, translating research into practical changes, evaluating projects, and informing future public health practices as well as future research, justifies increasing the amount of embedded research being conducted in public health practice. Embedded researchers also bring the tremendous benefit of strengthening the research capacities of public health practitioners and other stakeholders by providing research-based training and support. Such developments have the ability to prove the potential of embedded research projects. Finally, the relevant research-based recommendations made from the co-produced research guided by the embedded researchers are used to inform practice. The positive outcomes generated by the embedded research process indicate that embedded researchers can meaningfully contribute to closing the gap between the discovery and implementation of research evidence.

Availability of data and materials

The datasets generated and/or analysed during the current study are not publicly available. They are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request, subject to approval from the Teesside University School of Health and Life Sciences Research Governance and Ethics Committee.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the participants for sharing their expertise and time. We are grateful for the contribution of Ronnie Ramlogan who supported us in the preparation of this manuscript.

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Abisope Akintola

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Interview schedule for embedded researchers

Role identification and background information about the embedded research initiative.

What is your role in your organisation? Prompt - Job title, Daily task, Responsibilities. B) How long have you been in this role? C) Can you tell me about your background and what you do? Prompt -The journey so far- How do you get to where you are now?  D) As an embedded researcher where is your academic affiliation?

How long has your embedded research initiative been going on in your organisation? B) Do you know the rationale for employing an embedded researcher in your organisation? C) Who funds your project? D)What is the management arrangement?

Moving on to look at the embedded research initiative more specifically

What is the aim of the embedded research project you are involved in? B) How many hours/days do you spend in your host organisation in a week, and in the academic institution?  C) Why? D) How often do you contact your academic supervisor?

How has embedded research gone so far in your organisation?  B) How many people are involved in the co-production/embedded research you are involved in? or who do you work with? C) How many embedded researchers are involved in the project? Prompt - How many professionals/stakeholders?

What are your views and experience of embedded research? Prompt - what have you learnt? What, if anything, has helped?  (Why do you say that?) What, if anything, has been more difficult or challenging? (Why do you say that)? What difference has embedded research made in your organisation?  (so if embedded research has been useful, why and how?)

Looking more specifically at the role of the embedded researcher in the organisation

What is your role, as an embedded researcher in bridging the gap between research evidence and its implementation in practice? Prompts - How do you inform practice with research evidence?  How do you communicate research evidence to practitioners and other stakeholders to facilitate its use in practice? B) Does your role involve the translation of research evidence into practice? If yes, what is the process? can you please cite an example? What evidence-sharing methods or processes do you use?

Can you think of any changes in practice/policy as a result of research evidence being used? Prompt – What role did you play? Who was involved? What changed? How? For who?

Tell me what you think are the benefits of working as an embedded researcher? Why do you say that? B) How do you manage the dual affiliation? Prompt -what are the benefits (What has helped?) and also what are the challenges?

Tell me what you think are the challenges of working as an embedded researcher? Prompt - Why do you say that? B) What are the barriers to data sharing, if any?

Do you think building mutually beneficial relationships with the host organisation staff is important to the success of an embedded research project? If yes, Why? B) How do you build relationships with the host organisation’s staff?

Can you cite an example of where you have built practitioners and other stakeholders’ confidence in conducting their own research?

Does your role requires managing research funds? If yes, how do you manage this?

 How often do you reflect on your role? Prompt- To know what works and what needs to be improved?  Why is this important?

Do you think the development of a toolkit on the role of embedded research in bridging the gap between research evidence and its implementation in public health practice would be useful? If yes, Why and how do you think it could be used in practice?”

Any top tips for other researchers considering embedded research?

Please don’t mention names, but can you think of any potential participants- people you are working with or have worked with that you can pass on the details of this research?  B) Would you be happy to be contacted afterward to circulate details of this research to those you have identified, to see if they will be willing to participate in this research?

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Akintola, A., Newbury-Birch, D. & Kilinc, S. Bridging the gap between research evidence and its implementation in public health practice: case studies of embedded research model. BMC Public Health 24 , 1299 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-024-18727-z

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The quality of social relationships with students, mentor teachers and fellow student teachers and their role in the development of student teachers’ emotions in the practicum

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• Gerda Hagenauer   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-0508-2848 1 ,
• Diana Raufelder   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-2977-4459 2 ,
• Mishela Ivanova   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-0447-8346 1 ,
• Andreas Bach   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-0088-2392 1 &
• Doris Ittner   ORCID: orcid.org/0009-0001-7716-1115 3  

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The emotional well-being of individuals is largely dependent on the quality of their social relationships, as acknowledged by self-determination theory and the belongingness hypothesis. While the significance of high-quality relationships for teachers has received increasing attention in empirical research, little is known about the impact of social relationships on student teachers' emotions in the practicum, especially from a quantitative perspective and considering multiple relationship qualities simultaneously. Research on this topic is highly topical as emotions have been found to be important drivers both for professional behaviour in the classroom and professionalisation processes in general. Against this backdrop, our study examined how the quality of social relationships between students in class, mentor teachers, and fellow student teachers influences the development of emotional experiences of student teachers in a school practicum. We conducted an online survey with 203 Austrian student teachers studying secondary education, inquiring about their emotional experiences and social relationships before and after their practicum. The results revealed that the quality of relationships with students in class was the most influential factor determining changes in student teachers’ emotional states during their practicum. These findings emphasise the importance of cultivating positive relationships with students in the classroom, especially during the school practicum in teacher education.

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Introduction

Despite substantial empirical work on in-service teachers’ emotions while teaching, the emotional experiences of student teachers during their practicum have only recently received scholarly attention (Hascher & Waber, 2020 ). Research on the emotions of in-service teachers has repeatedly shown that teacher emotions are of the utmost importance for the quality of teaching and teacher well-being (for overviews, see Frenzel, 2014 ; Frenzel et al., 2021 ; Sutton & Wheatley, 2003 ). Emotions hold additional significance because they are “contagious,” that is, they transfer between students and teachers (Frenzel et al., 2018 ; Tam et al., 2020 ). Student teachers also experience a diverse array of emotions during their school practicum. While studies have mostly observed a preponderance of positive emotions in these settings, the frequency with which negative emotions also arise reflects the emotional challenges associated with the practicum (Anttila et al., 2017 ; Chen, 2019a ; Darge et al., 2018 ; De Zordo et al., 2019 ; Hascher & Hagenauer, 2016 ; Yang, 2019 ).

The purpose of this paper is to clarify the conditions that influence student teachers' emotional experiences during their practicum. Due to the multiple social relationships in the school practicum and the fact that teaching is itself a social endeavour (Butler, 2012 ), we aim to examine whether the quality of these social relationships has a significant impact on the emotional experience of student teachers during a teaching practicum. The results of our study not only contribute to better understanding this underexplored research field regarding student teachers’ emotional experiences, they also carry practical implications for designing more constructive practica, which are crucial experiences in the development of prospective teachers.

Student teachers’ emotions in the practicum

Emotions are understood as multifaceted phenomena consisting of several aspects, such as affective, motivational, cognitive, expressive, and physiological components. From an appraisal-theoretical approach, emotions arise due to the cognitive evaluation of a situation (Ellsworth & Scherer, 2003 ; Scherer et al., 2001 ). Thus, the emotions of student teachers are likely to vary depending on how they appraise their respective situations. For example, a classroom disruption in the school practicum may be experienced as annoying by one student teacher while causing anxiety in another. Differences in how the situation is evaluated yield various emotional reactions. While the situation in the first case still seems controllable, the second student teacher might be afraid of losing control of the situation (see model on teacher emotions; Frenzel, 2014 ).

In the practicum, emotions can be regarded as crucial for several reasons. First, the practicum serves as an orientation for the student teachers’ career choice (Bach, 2020 ; Cohen et al., 2013 ). A positive emotional experience acts as a sign of suitability for the teaching profession. Second, emotions guide behaviour and are intertwined with the development of a teacher’s professional identity (Timoštšuk & Ugaste, 2012 ; Yuan & Lee, 2016 ). Regarding professional behaviour, studies focusing specifically on the school practicum have revealed that student teachers’ emotions are associated with high-quality behaviour in the practicum, such as an openness to reflecting practical experiences based on theories, which is a core competence of reflective teachers (Hascher & Hagenauer, 2016 ). Third, the emotions experienced during a school practicum can also significantly impact the students’ overall well-being in the teacher education program beyond the setting of the specific teaching practicum (Fives et al., 2007 ; Kaldi, 2009 ). Student teachers frequently report that joyful experiences during their practica give them positive energy since, through such experiences, they feel confirmed in their career choice and respected and valued as future teachers (Poulou, 2007 ). Conversely, feeling disrespected and unaccepted by students in the classroom setting can result in student teachers feeling overly anxious (Ozmantar, 2019 ; Vandercleyen et al., 2014 ). These anxieties can hamper processes of professionalisation by inducing avoidance behaviours, such as limiting one’s willingness to get involved in new things and try out new teaching methods. Similar associations have been made with anger (Chen, 2019b for in-service teachers). A study conducted by Timoštšuk et al. ( 2016 ) found significant correlations between student teachers’ emotions and the way they teach. Anger, anxiety, and shame correlated negatively with student-centred teaching methods, while pride and enjoyment correlated positively. In another study, Yang ( 2019 ) observed that positive emotions among student teachers were linked to increased creativity and innovation in their teaching methods.

The results of the studies pointing to the beneficial functions of positive emotional patterns do not necessarily preclude the possibility that negative emotions also fulfil important functions in professionalisation processes. However, it can be assumed that intense or prolonged negative emotions could lead to adverse outcomes if they supersede more positive emotional experiences.

Student teachers often feel more anxiety or emotional exhaustion at the beginning of their practicum (Fives et al., 2007 ; Yang, 2019 ); however, these anxieties typically diminish once student teachers experience a feeling of success or when they feel efficacious (e.g., high student engagement, building a positive student-teacher relationship, or experiencing successful mastery in classroom management) (Porsch, 2018 ; Porsch & Gollub, 2018 ; Poulou, 2007 ; Yang, 2019 ). This suggests that emotions and perceptions of self-efficacy are also closely linked (Bach & Hagenauer, 2022 ; Chen, 2019a ).

However, apart from anxiety, little is known about the developments of other emotions during the practicum. It can be expected that enjoyment is higher on average than anger, as students attribute a high value to the internship (Clarke et al., 2014 ). Whether enjoyment continues to increase during the practicum or how anger develops over the course of the practicum has not been examined so far. In theory, it can be assumed that this development also depends on the design of the practicum conditions (e.g., König et al., 2018 ). Darge et al. ( 2018 ) showed that, for a sample of German student teachers, more student teachers reported an increase in enjoyment during the practicum than those who experienced a decrease in enjoyment. However, the overall mean value in relation to enjoyment did not change significantly from pre- to post-measurement in this study.

Furthermore, previous studies have generally shown that the emotions of student teachers (and in-service teachers) correlate. For example, (student) teachers who experience high anxiety tend to experience less enjoyment and vice versa. Similarly, high anger is also associated with lower enjoyment (Chen, 2019a ; Hagenauer et al., 2015 ). Due to this high interrelatedness of distinct emotions indicating emotional patterns (Anttila et al., 2017 ), it can be assumed that changes in emotions over time (e.g. the change of emotions over the period of a school practicum) are also highly associated.

To conclude, emotions fulfil many important functions in the school practicum, and it is essential to foster more positive emotional patterns in student teachers during their practicum. By saying “positive emotional pattern”, we also acknowledge the fact that negative emotions can serve significant functions in professionalisation processes as well; however, these negative emotions must not be too intense, prolonged, or outweigh the positive emotions. Therefore, the goal should be for student teachers to experience an overall positive emotion pattern during their practica; at the same time, they must also be taught and encouraged to deal with negative emotional experiences in a productive way (such as training their social-emotional competencies; e.g., Schelhorn et al., 2023 ).

On the role of social relations in the school practicum

There are many ways to foster positive emotions in student teachers. In our contribution, we focus on the quality of social relationships, which are strongly intertwined with one’s emotional experiences (Parkinson, 1996 ). Self-determination theory (Ryan & Deci, 2017 ) suggests that human beings experience positive development and flourish if the three basic psychological needs are fulfilled: the need for autonomy, competence, and social relatedness. Similarly, according to the premises of the belongingness hypothesis (Baumeister & Leary, 1995 ), human beings have an innate need for secure and positive relationships with others. Following this argument, we posit that the perceived quality of social relationships in the practicum is fundamental to student teachers’ emotional experiences.

Existing empirical evidence indicates a strong link between the quality of social relationships and the emotional well-being of teachers (Aldrup et al., 2018 ; Hagenauer et al., 2015 ) and students (Goetz et al., 2021 ). However, similar evidence on student teachers in the practicum is scarce. We know that the interactions between students and the mentor teacher evoke a diverse array of emotions, both positive and negative, in student teachers (Yang, 2019 ). For example, Yuan and Lee ( 2016 ) found that student teachers have more negative emotional experiences if the mentor teachers do not allow them to develop their own teaching style and, instead, force them to teach according to the mentor teachers’ own norms and values. In turn, if student teachers perceive their mentor teachers as highly supportive (both emotionally and instrumentally), their enjoyment in the practicum increases (Darge et al., 2018 ; see also Hagenauer et al., 2023 ). Furthermore, Bach’s ( 2022 ) findings suggest that student teachers experience more positive and fewer negative emotions when they receive positive feedback in the form of verbal persuasion from their mentor teacher during their teaching practicum.

In a similar vein, Waber et al. ( 2021 ) demonstrated that student teachers have varying emotional experiences in a team practicum. This study goes beyond those previously described in that it also highlights the impact of fellow student teachers on one’s emotional experience in a team practicum. Similar to the results regarding mentor teachers, Waber et al. ( 2021 ) found that the support of one’s fellow student teacher was vital for fostering a positive emotional experience, while factors such as failed communication or differences in the teaching style yielded negative emotions in student teachers in team practica. Additionally, as fellow student teachers also provide feedback to their peers, positive feedback from fellow students, in the form of verbal persuasion, has been shown to be correlated with more positive emotions and fewer negative emotions among student teachers during their teaching practicum (Bach, 2022 ).

Finally, it is imperative not to disregard the role of students. As we have already described in the section on emotions, students in the classroom are highly influential on student teachers’ emotional experiences (Timoštšuk & Ugaste, 2012 ). The perception of being accepted and valued by them as basic dimension of a high-quality relationship goes together with strong positive emotions and provides further support for the student teachers’ career choice (e.g., Ozmantar, 2019 ; Vandercleyen et al., 2014 ). Shoffner ( 2009 ) also showed that whether student teachers are successful in building satisfying relationships with students is a significant source of concern. Again, positive feedback by students in class increases student teachers’ positive emotional experiences while assuaging their apprehensions (Bach, 2022 ).

Together, these studies suggest that social interactions in the practicum are powerful factors contributing to student teachers’ emotional experiences. However, it should be noted that interactions and relationships should not be equated, as relationships are the product of interactions (Wettstein & Raufelder, 2021 ). This is also where the present study comes in: We are not concerned with the question of how concrete behaviours (of the mentor teacher, students or fellow student teachers) are experienced, either positively or negatively, by the student teachers; instead, we ask to what extent is the quality of social relationships (resulting from interactions) related to the development of student teachers’ emotions during a practicum.

The present study

Given the lack of research on the topic, our study investigates the association between the quality of social relationships and the development of student teachers’ emotions in the teaching practicum. In so doing, our study extends previous research in two regards. First, it investigates the effects of these relationship qualities on changes in student teachers’ emotions. Second, it examines these effects in one joint model that considers three relationship categories simultaneously: the relationship with students in class, the relationship with the mentor teacher, and the relationship with fellow student teachers. With regard to discrete emotions, we have included the emotions joy, anger and anxiety as Frenzel et al. ( 2016 ) argue that enjoyment and anger are emotions frequently felt by all human beings, including teachers. In addition, anxiety has a crucial function for teacher well-being and thus, can be regarded as an important emotion; in particular for student teachers with little teaching experience (e.g. Porsch & Gollub, 2018 ). Previous studies revealed that these emotions are prevalent during a teaching practicum (Hascher & Hagenauer, 2016 ; Timoštšuk & Ugaste, 2012 ).

Based on previous research, we propose the following hypotheses:

(H1) Self-reported anxiety decreases from the beginning of the practicum to the end. Self-reported enjoyment and anger also change during the practicum. Due to the lack of previous empirical studies, the direction of these changes in enjoyment and anger is not specified.

(H2) The perceived quality of the social relationships with students, mentor teachers, and fellow student teachers predicts how student teachers’ emotions develop over time. If the perceived quality is high, student teachers’ enjoyment is expected to develop positively, while low quality relationships should lead to an increase in anger and anxiety.

(H3) Changes in student teachers’ perceptions of enjoyment will be (negatively) associated with changes in their perceptions of anger and anxiety, while changes in anxiety and anger will be positively associated with each other.

Context and Participants

The survey for this study was conducted online. It was administered mainly in regular classrooms on-site or in online courses by trained staff members. Overall, 203 Austrian student teachers took part in the survey at both measurement points.

Of these 203 student teachers, 67% ( n = 136) were female, 32% ( n = 65) were male, and two student teachers identified themselves as diverse. The participants were student teachers studying secondary education. In Austria, two subjects or one subject and a specialisation (e.g., inclusive pedagogics) must be studied to obtain a teaching degree for secondary schools (grades 5-12/13). Around 28% of the sample ( n = 57) studied English (first foreign language), another 26% ( n = 52) studied German, and 18.3% of the student teachers ( n = 37) studied mathematics (the so-called “core subjects”). Many student teachers also studied the so-called “subsidiary subjects” in Austria, including history ( n = 45; 22%), geography ( n = 40, 20%), physical education ( n = 29, 14%) and biology ( n = 25; 12%). Other subjects were, for instance, chemistry ( n = 10), religion ( n = 12), psychology and philosophy ( n = 14), and others (French, Spanish, Latin, music education, etc.).

On average, the student teachers were 22.41 years old ( SD = 3.10; Range = 19-37 years). Most were in their 5th semester (87.1%, n = 175, range: 2-14 semesters; M = 5.33; SD = 1.20) of their bachelor’s degree, which is the semester in which two practica are recommended in the curriculum, one for each subject studied. These practica last one semester each, and the student teachers complete them alongside their courses at the university. According to the curriculum, these are the first practica in which the student teachers hold lessons in their studied subjects. Students usually complete each practicum in teams of two to four student teachers who are supervised by a mentor teacher who is an experienced teacher at the school.

In the present sample, 163 student teachers had their practicum in both subjects (A + B), and 40 student teachers had their practicum in only one subject (A).

Prior to the practica (t1), the student teachers had little teaching experience in school (on average they have taught 2.76 lessons; SD = 6.30).

Compared to the few self-administered lessons, the student teachers reported at the beginning of the study significantly more observed lessons ( M = 27.70 lessons; SD = 6.30), which was expected, as in the 2nd semester, there is a so-called “orientation practicum” in which student teachers are primarily given the task of observing lessons of experienced mentor teachers.

After the practicum (t2), the student teachers reported that they had taught, on average, 6.62 lessons in their practicum ( SD = 4.57). Furthermore, they observed another 28 lessons of the mentor teacher or their fellow student teachers on average ( SD = 12.33). Thus, the student teachers significantly broadened their experience of teaching in schools through the practicum.

Measurements

All measurements used were based on the student teachers’ experiences during their last practicum. At t1 , they were asked to rate their previous emotional experiences of teaching in a school practicum; at t2 , they were asked to rate their emotional experiences as well as the quality of the perceived social relationships in the school practicum they had just completed. This focus on the practicum experiences was communicated very clearly by a test administrator; it was also repeated in the introduction to the questionnaire and, finally, the focus was also repeated in the item formulations and introductions to the individual question areas.

Teacher emotions

The teacher emotions scales (Frenzel et al., 2016 ) were used to measure student teachers’ enjoyment, anger, and anxiety during instruction, with the items being slightly adapted to the practicum context. These emotions were assessed before (t1) and after (t2) the practicum. Joy was measured with four items (e.g., “During my previous practical experiences of teaching in school, I generally enjoyed teaching”; α = .72 t1 ; .82 t2 ). Anger was also assessed with four items (e.g., “During my previous practical experiences of teaching in school, I often had reasons to be angry while teaching”; α = .73 t1 ; .79 t2 ). Finally, anxiety was measured with four items as well (e.g., “During my previous practical experiences of teaching in school, I generally felt tense and nervous while teaching”; α = .74 t1 ; .76 t2 ). The items were rated on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from 1 = strongly disagree to 4 = strongly agree.

Quality of the student-teacher relationship

The quality of the student-teacher relationship as perceived by the student teacher was measured with five items (e.g., “The students respected me”) based on the scale developed by Aldrup et al. ( 2018 ) (4-point Likert scale; 1 = not true at all; 4 = very true). The original scale consisted of six items, but we only included five items in the scale since the item “The students have also turned to me with private problems” was not appropriate for the practicum context, as student teachers did not have much contact with students outside of the classroom. If the student teachers attended practica A and B, they assessed the quality of the relationship with the students for each practicum site separately (α = .75 A ; .86 B ) .

Quality of the relationship with the mentor teacher

The quality of the relationship with the mentor teacher was assessed using seven items from a scale developed by Bach ( 2013 , adapted from Schüpbach, 2007 ). A sample item is: “I could rely on my mentor teacher” (4-point Likert scale, ranging from 1 = not true at all; 4 = very true; (α = .91 A ; .94 B ).

Quality of the relationship with fellow student teachers

Finally, the same items that described the quality of one’s relationship with their mentor teachers (Bach, 2013 ) were also used to describe the quality of their relationship with fellow student teachers. For instance, a sample item was: “I could rely on my fellow student teachers” (4-point Likert scale, ranging from 1 = not true at all; 4 = very true; α = .91 A ; .93 B ) .

Student teachers’ gender, teaching experience, and observation experience were considered as covariates. These variables were chosen for several reasons. Gender, for instance, has been shown to be an important factor when describing emotions in people (e.g., Timmers et al., 2003 ; Wester et al., 2002 ). Additionally, as addressed before, prior teaching experience also factors into student teachers’ emotional experiences, such as decreasing one’s anxiety (Porsch & Gollub, 2018 ). The same can be assumed for the observation experience. Studies have demonstrated that observation experiences, which facilitate vicarious learning in line with self-efficacy theory (Bandura, 1997), are correlated with one’s emotions depending upon whether they have a positive or negative experience (Bach, 2022 ; Pfitzner-Eden, 2016 , van Rooij et al., 2019 ).

Data analysis

The data were analysed through latent change modelling (LCM) (McArdle 2009 ; Steyer et al. 1997 ) using the statistical software Mplus 8.8 (Muthén & Muthén, 1998 - 2018 ). LCM enables the assessment of within-individual changes by employing two measurement time points of a latent variable (Steyer et al., 1997 ). It conceptualizes the scores of a single student (s) on enjoyment, anger, and anxiety at time (t) as a function consisting of an autoregressive component and a residual term: \({Enjoyment}_{s,t2}={Enjoyment}_{s,t1}+\Delta {Enjoyment}_{s,1}\) , \({Anxiety}_{s,t2}={Anxiety}_{s,t1}+\Delta {Anxiety}_{s,1}\) , and \({Anger}_{s,t2}={Anger}_{s,t1}+\Delta {Anger}_{s,1}\) . Accordingly, the regression weight of each variable at t2 and t1 was fixed to 1. Therefore, the change score was equal to \(\Delta {Enjoyment}_{s,1}={{Enjoyment}_{s,t2}-Enjoyment}_{s,t1}\) , \(\Delta {Anxiety}_{s,1}={{Anxiety}_{s,t2}-Anxiety}_{s,t1}\) , and \(\Delta {Anger}_{s,1}={{Anger}_{s,t2}-Anger}_{s,t1}\) . By implementing this method, a latent change factor could be defined as \({\Delta Enjoyment}_{1}\) , \({\Delta Anxiety}_{1}\) , and \({\Delta Anger}_{1}\) , where the changes could be captured between t1 and t2 by fixing the factor loadings at t2 to t1. Lastly, a regression parameter ( \(\beta\) ) was introduced to the change score to investigate whether the extent of change was influenced by the scores at t1 (Kievit et al., 2018 ; McArdle, 2009 ). Furthermore, LCM enables the identification of interindividual differences in intraindividual change because the true intraindividual change is modelled between two measurement points as the value of a latent variable (Steyer et al., 1997 ).

We additionally followed a stepwise procedure: First, measurement invariance (configural, metric, and scalar) over time was tested for each emotion variable because strong factorial measurement invariance is a prerequisite for conducting latent change analyses (Geiser, 2013 ; McArdle, 2009 ; Millsap, 2011 ). Subsequently, we examined whether the sequentially imposed measurement invariance constraints led to a significant decrease in the model fit by computing differences in the comparative fit index (CFI), the Tucker-Lewis index (TLI), and the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) (Chen 2007 ) with the latter one controlling for parsimony (Marsh, 2007 ). Accordingly, models with \(\Delta CFI\le 0.010\) , \(\Delta TLI\le 0.010\) , and \(\Delta RMSEA\le 0.015\) were favoured (Chen, 2007 ). Second, to test H1, an unconditional LCM was conducted for each emotion separately. These unconditional LCMs allowed us to assess whether student teachers’ emotions significantly decreased or increased from t1 to t2. Third, to test H2, the control variables (gender, previous teaching experience, and previous observation experience) were included in each of the unconditional LCMs, as well as the predictors (the perceived quality of social relationships with students, teacher mentors, and fellow student teachers) of the change in enjoyment, anxiety, and anger, where the predictors were stepwise included. Finally, all three emotion variables were integrated into one LCM with control and predictor variables to test H3.

Missing data were handled using full-information maximum likelihood (FIML) estimation in Mplus. This approach was chosen because the missing data were found to be completely random based on Little's MCAR test (enjoyment: χ2 (14) = 8.43, p >.05; anxiety: χ2 (28) = 32.45, p >.05; anger: χ2 (21) = 21.39, p >.05). Good model fit was indicated with TLI/CFI values close to 0.95, RMSEA values close to 0.06, and SRMR values less than or equal to 0.08, as suggested by Hu and Bentler ( 1999 ).

Descriptive statistics and intercorrelations

The descriptive statistics and intercorrelations for all variables are presented in Table 1 . As expected, enjoyment exhibited a moderate negative correlation with anger ( r = -.35 t1 / -.50 t2 , p < .001) and anxiety ( r = -.33 t1 / -.47 t2 , p < .001). Anger and anxiety correlated positively, with the intercorrelation being stronger at t2 ( r = .22 t1 ; p < .01; r = .46 t2 , p < .001). Comparatively, the empirical mean level was highest for enjoyment, followed by anxiety and anger.

Regarding the quality of different social relationships, the strongest intercorrelations were found for student teachers’ emotions and the quality of the relationships with students in class. Overall, enjoyment correlated most strongly with the perceived relationship with students in the class ( r = .38 t2 ; p < .001). Additionally, there were significant intercorrelations between student teachers’ anxiety ( r = -.34 t2 ; p < .001) and anger ( r = -.26 t2 ; p < .001) with the quality of their relationships with students. Anxiety also correlated negatively with the quality of the relationship with the mentor teacher ( r = -.25 t2 ; p < .001) and fellow student teachers ( r = -.16 t2 ; p < .001).

Preliminary analyses concerning the covariates

We then conducted some initial analyses with the covariates by testing whether there were differences between male and female student teachers regarding their emotional experiences. As shown in Fig. 1 , while female student teachers reported higher anxiety at t1 ( d = 0.37), they also exhibited higher enjoyment at t2 ( d = 0.35). The other independent t -tests did not reveal significant mean differences, although the effect sizes also point to more prevalent experiences with anger for male student teachers at t2 ( d = -0.28) and still slightly higher anxiety in female student teachers at t2 ( d = 0.20).

Gender differences in emotions. *** p < .001, ** p < .01, * p < .05

Finally, we examined the emotional patterns of student teachers depending on their prior teaching experience and experience observing lessons of in-service teachers. Intercorrelations (Pearson, 2-tailed) showed that student teachers with higher teaching and observing experiences at t1 reported more joy (teaching experience: r = .15, p = .04, observing lessons: r = .20, p < .01), and less anxiety (teaching experience: r = -.23, p < .001; observing lessons: r = -.17, p = .02), while the correlation with anger was nonsignificant ( p > .05). These prior experiences, however, did not correlate with student teachers’ emotions reported at t2 ( p > .05).

Explaining the change in student teachers’ emotions – Latent Change Modelling (LCM)

The results of the invariant testing are shown in Table 2 .

Our findings of the unconditional LCMs to investigate H1 revealed that student teachers’ perception of enjoyment significantly increased from t1 to t2 (Δ M = 0.43, p < .001; σΔ2 = 0.18, p < .001), while there was no significant difference in student teachers’ perception of anger (Δ M = 0.30, p > .05; σΔ2 = 0.14, p < .001). Additionally, there was a significant decrease in student teachers’ perception of anxiety (Δ M = -0.80, p < .001; σΔ2 = 0.22, p < .001). All three latent-change scores had substantial variances, indicating significant interindividual differences in student teachers’ intraindividual changes.

The model fit of the LCMs with covariates and stepwise-included predictor variables (i.e., quality of relationships with (1) students, (2) mentor teachers, and (3) fellow student teachers) are shown in Table 3 .

The final LCM to test for H2 showed that only student teachers’ perception of the relationship with students was significantly associated with the change in their enjoyment, anxiety, or anger in class. Specifically, the more positive the student teachers perceived their relationship with students, the greater the increase in enjoyment during the practicum and the greater the decrease in anxiety and anger (see Table 4 and Figs. 2 , 3 , and 4 ). Conversely, neither the relationship with the mentor teacher nor the relationship with other fellow student teachers accounted for substantial increases in explained variance once the quality of the relationship with students was considered in the model. For anxiety, there was a marginally significant effect for the relationship with mentor teachers, as more positive relationships with these individuals were associated with a greater decrease in anxiety.

LCM for student teachers’ enjoyment during practicum with predictor variables and covariates

LCM for student teachers’ anxiety during practicum with predictor variables and covariates

LCM for student teachers’ anger during practicum with predictor variables and covariates

The negative correlation between the initial state of each emotion at t1 and the change (Δ) can be explained by the following statistical effect: According to the covariance calculation rules (Rice, 2007 ), the association between t1 and Δ must be negative, because the association between t1 and Δ is weaker at t2 than it is at t1. This observation can also be interpreted in the context of possible changes: A higher baseline emotional level at the beginning of the practicum is associated with a lower level of change during the practicum and vice versa. Therefore, an expected finding is a negative correlation between the initial measurement point and the extent of change.

In order to test H3, we conducted a final LCM with all three emotion variables in one model, including all covariates and all three relationships, which indicated a satisfactory model fit (χ (389) = 568.66; p <.001; CFI = 0.91; RMSEA = 0.05 (0.04–0.06); SRMR = 0.08). The results of this model supported H3; for instance, changes in student teachers’ perception of enjoyment were associated with changes in their perceptions of anger and anxiety: Δ enjoyment and Δ anger (estimate = -.68, SE = .06, p <.001), Δ enjoyment and Δ anxiety (estimate = -.66, SE = .08, p <.001), and Δ anxiety and Δ anger (estimate = .71, SE = .07, p <.001) Fig. 5 .

Final LCM with all emotion variables, predictor variables and covariates

The purpose of this study was to explore changes in student teachers’ emotions (enjoyment, anger, and anxiety) during their teaching practicum and understand how these changes relate to the quality of perceived social relationships with students (in class), the mentor teacher, and fellow student teachers. Previous studies (for example, Ozmentar, 2019; Timoštšuk & Ugaste, 2012 ) have already revealed, primarily through qualitative examinations, that the quality of social relationships influences student teachers’ emotional experiences. The present study attempted to build upon these findings by testing the joint impact of these social relationships on changes in student teachers’ emotions during one practicum.

As expected, we found a decrease in students’ anxiety from t1 to t2, in line with Hypothesis 1. This finding parallels previous research, which has indicated that anxiety typically decreases as one’s teaching experience increases (Porsch & Gollub, 2018 ). Relatedly, Rupp and Becker ( 2021 ) also detected an increase in (Swiss) student teachers’ perceived self-efficacy during a three-week practicum. Since perceptions of self-efficacy appear to be related to control beliefs, an increase in self-efficacy is also typically connected to a decrease in anxiety (see also Lazarus, 1999 , and his definition of the secondary appraisal, which relates to a person’s perception of the coping potential during a stressful event). Indeed, studies have demonstrated that an increase in self-efficacy during a practicum is negatively correlated with adverse emotions (Bach, 2022 ; Pfitzner-Eden, 2016 ). Additionally, we found a general increase in enjoyment over the course of the practicum. This suggests that, overall, the student teachers had positive experiences with their practicum that further enhanced their already high sense of enjoyment at the beginning of the internship. The specific practicum we examined was the one in which they were allowed to teach independently for the first time in the subjects studied. Thus, it is possible that these experiences further bolstered the student teachers’ confidence in their career choices and suitability as teachers. Anger did not change significantly between t1 and t2, which may be explained by a higher fluctuation of anger across (concrete) situations. For example, Frenzel and Goetz ( 2007 ) found, based on diary entries, that teacher anger varied more between different classrooms compared to joy. Similar studies focusing on the subjective experiences of student teachers could provide a more in-depth examination of this assumption regarding the greater within-person variability of anger.

Regarding Hypothesis 2, the results clearly indicate that the perceived social relationships with students in class best explained student teachers’ emotions across all models. In the joint model, only the relationships with the mentor teacher contributed to the explanation of anxiety ( p = .055), while social relationships with fellow student teachers did not vary significantly above and beyond the other predictors. However, one must keep in mind that there were some intercorrelations between the quality indicators of social relationships. In exploratory stepwise models (entering each predictor separately), we also found a positive association between the quality of the perceived relationship with the mentor teacher and student teachers’ enjoyment and anxiety, although this relationship (mostly) disappeared once the quality of the relationships with students in the class was considered in the model as well. From these results, we can conclude that, from the student teachers’ perspective, relationships with the students in the class are the most important factor contributing to their emotional experiences, while there was no substantial incremental validity concerning the other predictors in a joint model. This finding mirrors what student teachers have mentioned in previous qualitative studies: Feeling respected and accepted by students is central to the emotional experience of student teachers while feeling disrespected and unaccepted causes anxiety and worry among student teachers (Ozmantar, 2019 ; Poulou, 2007 ).

The slight positive correlation between the relationship quality with the mentor teacher and student teachers’ change in anxiety is also in agreement with the existing literature. Anxiety levels are largely contingent upon how supportive mentor teachers are (e.g. in terms of feedback, dealing with mistakes, autonomy support) (Hagenauer et al., 2023 ). Correlational findings by Bach ( 2022 ) show that student teachers experience less negative and more positive emotions during their practica when they receive positive feedback from their mentor and are given the opportunity to observe their mentor teaching successfully. These experiences, in turn, have been associated with an increase in self-efficacy, which underlines the central role of mentors in shaping the quality of the practicum.

In our research, the fellow student teachers in the practicum were less integral to the emotional experiences of the student teachers. However, this result must be interpreted in light of the present context: Student teachers do not have to co-teach with fellow student teachers in this specific practicum. Ultimately, student teachers observe each other’s lessons and provide feedback together with the mentor teacher. However, there are no other cooperative assignments. It can be assumed, then, that practica in which planning and teaching are also done cooperatively are much more likely to elicit emotional responses based on fellow student teachers (Waber et al., 2021 ).

Finally, as expected, changes in the students’ emotional experiences were characterised by their interactions. If student teachers experienced an increase in enjoyment, they simultaneously experienced a decrease in anger and anxiety (and vice versa) (Hypothesis 3). Therefore, one can definitively speak of an emotional pattern that student teachers experience in the practicum. Emotions are strongly interconnected, and negative emotions typically correlate positively with negative emotions and negatively with positive emotions (see also Chen et al., 2019a; Hagenauer et al., 2015 ). So far, however, this interconnectedness has primarily been considered cross-sectionally. This study now indicates that even changes in distinct emotions do not happen at the single-emotion level; rather, they are strongly intertwined. Based on the present findings, if emotional changes occur in the practicum, these changes usually take place regarding several emotions. Person-centred analyses could build upon this by modelling and mapping these emotional profiles and their changes statistically (see Anttila et al., 2017 , for a qualitative approach to mapping emotional patterns).

Strengths, limitations, and future directions

Due to its longitudinal design, this study could test the joint influence of different social relationships during a teaching practicum on the varying emotional experiences of student teachers. However, this design also presented some noteworthy challenges. Since the majority of students did the practicum in two subjects during this period, the assessment of relationship qualities was related to two contexts. To overcome this challenge, we asked the student teachers to assess practica A and B separately and only combined these two assessments in the analyses by calculating the mean of the perceived relationship between A and B. We opted against two separate analyses differentiating between practica A and B since the change in emotions is highly contingent upon the entire internship experience.

Regarding social relationships, we did not include university teachers in our study. They are not on-site at the school during the practicum (they also do not make any observation visits there) but only teach an accompanying seminar at the university. It can be assumed that they play a subordinate role in the emotional experience of student teachers during the practicum in this Austrian setting. Future studies could investigate the role of university teachers, particularly those engaged in on-site school practice while also serving as supervisors (see, for example, Caires & Almeida, 2007 ). Additionally, it should be noted that we were unable to identify individuals who participated jointly in an internship, which could pose an interesting avenue for future research endeavours.

Furthermore, it must be noted that all assessments were self-reports. Errors could have arisen here, especially if student teachers assessed the quality of their social relationships more positively than they actually were. Future studies could possibly also take into account other people’s assessments - specifically the students’ views on the teacher-student relationship in class.

In addition, in terms of student teachers’ emotions, we only assessed enjoyment, anger, and anxiety. Recognising that student teachers experience a plethora of different emotions during the teaching practicum (Anttila et al., 2016 ; Waber et al., 2021 ), future studies could include further emotions, such as pride, relief, shame, and disappointment, among others. In addition to considering several other emotional facets, it would be essential to consider emotions more explicitly against the background of situational influences to obtain a better understanding of the emotional experiences of student teachers (see, for example, Rupp & Becker, 2021 for student teacher’ self-efficacy across situations/lessons during a practicum).

Finally, we would like to emphasise again that the results allow a first generalisation for the Austrian context and the design of practicum phases. In Austria, shorter internships are frequently implemented in Bachelor’s degree programs in initial teacher education. However, internships are structured very differently between countries and students often find themselves in internships that are much more intensive (e.g. in terms of duration but also in terms of expected cooperation). Future studies should therefore examine whether the strength of the correlations between the different relationship qualities and student teachers’ emotions change when practicum conditions are implemented differently depending on the context. It can be assumed, for example, that the role of fellow students is stronger in a team practicum with team teaching (including planning and evaluating) as well as the role of the mentor teacher in a long-term practicum. Apart from this, it needs to be emphasised again that the role of quality of the relationship with students in class has often been overlooked in previous (quantitative) studies. It could be expected that the role of students could possibly become even more prominent in a more intensive practicum.

Conclusion and Implications

This study clearly demonstrates that social relationships in the practicum are highly relevant to the emotional experience of student teachers. Specifically, it is the students in the class and the relationship with them that the student teachers perceive as emotionally triggering. While a high-quality teacher-student relationship has already been highlighted in previous research as playing a substantial role in the emotional experiences of in-service teachers (Aldrup et al., 2018 ; Hagenauer et al., 2015 ), the quality of the student-student teacher relationship and its impact on student teachers’ emotions has been studied rather marginally thus far (see also Pattison-Meek, 2024 ). Hence, it can be deduced that, on the one hand, greater consideration should be given to the role of students in the class and their function in the practicum for the professionalisation of teachers; on the other hand, the topic of relationship building should be emphasised much more concretely in initial teacher training.

Regarding the students in class, it would be important to anchor the topic of forming positive teacher-student relationships much more firmly in the curricula in initial teacher education. While this topic is usually strongly represented in curricula for primary school teachers in Austria, it is often treated rather marginally for student teachers studying secondary education, especially in the context of student teachers’ emotions. How can student teachers succeed in building a respectful, warm and mutually appreciative relationship with students? Seminars and workshops on social-emotional competencies of teachers seem promising here (Jennings & Greenberg, 2009 ).

Mentor teachers also need to enhance the awareness on the importance of building high-quality social relationships with student teachers, as – most importantly - these positive and trusting relationships can help to reduce anxiety in student teachers. Attributes such as appreciation, reliability, trust, support, feeling cared for, being treated as an equal and authentic enjoyment of working with student teachers are essential conditions for a positive relationship quality between mentor teachers and student teachers (see for example the previous qualitative studies done on this topic: Hagenauer et al., 2023 ; Waber et al., 2020 ).

Awareness on the importance of social relationships in the school is also relevant to the work of mentor teachers. They can directly support the student teachers on site in building positive relationships with the students during the practicum.

Even if the quality of the social relationship with the fellow student teachers in our study did not play a major role in the explanation of the development of student teachers’ emotions, it needs to be pointed out in conclusion that their role should nevertheless not be underestimated, especially in internships that require intensive cooperation. It can be assumed that the development of cooperation skills is very important for the development of positive collegial relationships among student teachers themselves. This brings us directly back to the first implication: The stronger integration of trainings on social-emotional competencies in initial teacher education curricula, would strengthen student teachers with regard to establishing quality interactions with different interaction partners and thus contribute to the promotion of positive relationship qualities, which ultimately is likely to positively impact the emotional experiences in the practicum (and beyond).

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Gerda Hagenauer, Mishela Ivanova & Andreas Bach

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Gerda Hagenauer. Department of Educational Science and School of Education, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria. Email: [email protected].

Current themes of research:

Emotions, motivation and social relationships in school, higher education and teacher education; mixed methods.

Most relevant publications in the field of Psychology of Education:

Hagenauer, G., Wallner-Paschon, C., & Kuhn, C. (2021). Austrian students’ experiences of supportive relationships with teachers, peers, and parents and the mediating effect of school belonging in the context of their academic and non-academic outcomes. Zeitschrift für Bildungsforschung [Journal of Educational Research], 11 (1), 93-116. https://doi.org/10.1007/s35834-021-00300-y .

Hagenauer, G., Hascher, T., & Volet, S. E. (2015). Teacher emotions in the classroom: associations with students’ engagement, discipline in the classroom and the interpersonal teacher-student relationship. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 30 (4), 385-403. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-015-0250-0 .

Diana Raufelder. Institute of Educational Science, University of Greifswald, Ernst-Lohmeyer Platz 3, 17487 Greifswald, Germany. Email: [email protected].

Social relationships in school, motivation processes, self-directed learning, neuroeducation, teacher education, stress and test anxiety.

Raufelder, D., Hoferichter, F., Hirvonen, R., & Kiuru, N. (2022). How students’ motivational profiles change during the transition from primary to lower secondary school. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 71 . https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2022.102117 .

Raufelder, D., & Kulakow, S. (2022). The role of social belonging and exclusion at school and the teacher-student relationship for the development of learned helplessness in adolescents. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 92( 1), 59-81. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjep.12438 .

Mishela Ivanova. Department of Educational Sciences and School of Education, University of Salzburg, Austria. Email: [email protected].

Critical Migration Research, Questions of pedagogical professionalism and professionalization.

Ivanova, M., Aytekin, V., & Epp, A. (2021). Zugriff auf natio-ethno-kulturelle Differenz(-konstruktionen) im Rahmen pädagogischer Forschung und Praxis [Access to national-ethno-cultural differences (constructions) within the framework of educational research and practice]. In S. Gabriel, K. Kotzyba, P. Leinhos, D. Matthes, K. Meyer & M. Völcker (Hrg.), Soziale Differenz und Reifizierung. Theoretische Zugänge und forschungspraktische Bearbeitung (S. 77-100). Springer. Online available: https://link.springer.com/book/ https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-31066-0 .

Ivanova, M. & Hagenauer, G. (2021). Schulisches Wohlbefinden als Faktor für Akkulturationseinstellungen bei Jugendlichen mit und ohne Migrationshintergrund [School well-being as a factor for acculturation beliefs in adolescents with and without a migration background]. In K. Resch, K.-T. Lindner, B. Streese, M. Proyer & S. Schwab (Hrg.), Inklusive Schule und Schulentwicklung (pp. 55-64). Waxmann.

Andreas Bach. Department of Educational Science and School of Education, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria. Email: [email protected].

Teacher self-efficacy, teacher education, field experiences.

Bach, A. (2022). Selbstwirksamkeit im Lehrberuf. Entstehung und Veränderung sowie Effekte auf Gesundheit und Unterricht [Self-Efficacy in the Teaching Profession: Formation and Change, as well as Effects on Health and Teaching] . Waxmann.

Bach, A., & Hagenauer, G. (2022). Joy, anger, and anxiety during the teaching practicum: How are these emotions related to dimensions of pre-service teachers’ self-efficacy?  Zeitschrift   für Bildungsforschung [Journal of Educational Research],   12 , 295–311. https://doi.org/10.1007/s35834-022-00343-9 .

Doris Ittner. Institute of Secondary Education, Bern University of Teacher Education, Fabrikstrasse 8, CH-3012 Bern, Switzerland. Email: [email protected].

Educational governance, digital literacy in teacher education, learning spaces and instructional designs in education, moral education & health.

Most relevant publications in the field Psychology of Education:

Ittner, D., & Hascher, T. (2021). Towards a model of teachers’ moral health: Professional satisfaction, moral emotions and teacher ethos. In F. Oser, K. Heinrichs, J. Bauer, & T. Lovat (Eds.), The International Handbook of Teacher Ethos (pp. 211-234). Springer.

Ittner, D., Hagenauer, G., & Hascher, T. (2019). Swiss principals’ emotions, basic needs sat-isfaction and readiness for change during curriculum reform. Journal of Educational Change, 20, 165-192. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10833-019-09339-1 .

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Hagenauer, G., Raufelder, D., Ivanova, M. et al. The quality of social relationships with students, mentor teachers and fellow student teachers and their role in the development of student teachers’ emotions in the practicum. Eur J Psychol Educ (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-024-00847-0

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UK students bring social studies lessons to Fayette County elementary school

LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 16, 2024) —   For Jennifer Rosas, a University of Kentucky student majoring in elementary education, a recent class assignment was a chance to share part of her life with local elementary students.  

“I am Latina and becoming a teacher for all types of students. It is especially an honor to be a part of the education field for Latino students and for them to have someone to look up to. I will never shy away from saying that I was a multilingual student in the free-and-reduced program and never got to see a representation for myself, so I am here for those, and all, students,” Rosas said.  

Rosas, along with classmates in the UK College of Education, recently gained experience preparing and teaching social studies lessons at Rosa Parks Elementary in Lexington.  

The school librarian selected children’s books that represent the cultures of the school community. Then, it was up to UK students to read the books to classes at Rosa Parks and create a lesson to help students analyze and share what they learned. 

Rosas and her partner for the project read " My Two Border Towns " and created a lesson about borders that included a bird’s eye view of counties in the state of Kentucky. They zoomed out to show all the U.S. states and eventually zoomed out to show the borders of Canada, the U.S. and México. Then, they led a discussion.  

Helping young students develop foundational skills in social studies is crucial, says Laura Darolia, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. 

“Through social studies, students learn to answer compelling questions by analyzing sources about civics, economics, history and geography and ideally become engaged citizens. The collaboration with Rosa Parks Elementary was designed to provide pre-service teachers with the opportunity to plan and teach interdisciplinary lessons that included literacy (read aloud books) and social studies (primary sources) that highlighted the cultural diversity of the school community,” Darolia said. 

The read aloud assignment is part of the Elementary Social Studies Methods course (EDC 326). Taught by Darolia, with an emphasis on addressing the individual needs of a diverse student population, the course includes critical analysis of a variety of objectives, instructional materials and strategies as well as evaluation techniques. 

Some of the UK students taking the course are special education majors. ShoShana White plans to become dual certified to teach in two areas — learning and behavior disorders and moderate and severe disabilities.  

“I loved this class and learning all the ways to incorporate social studies . It has taught me how important it is for students and I think it’s a subject that’s vital to help create independent students within the special education community,” White said. 

Caroline Andres, an elementary education major, saw one of the students in her classroom immediately brighten as her group started to read the book "Lost and Found Cat: The True Story of Kunkush’s Incredible Journey ," about a family from Iraq that flees their homeland when it becomes unsafe.  

“He was so excited to see his country represented in the book and it was the sweetest sight to see,” Andres said. “He wrote his name in Arabic and was so proud to show the class. His ideas for helping his community demonstrated how much some of these sweet kids have gone through and was really eye opening to me. He captioned his pictures, ‘People rebuilding the building, people dropped resources at the village and people finding a village to live in.’” 

Rosas said the course has helped students like herself become better teachers by thinking outside the box.  

“We have learned ways to pre- and post-assess student learning and make what is a difficult subject for many students much more fun and engaging,” she said. “Having a social studies course has been very important in my development as a future educator and creating an environment where we can talk about the past and how to create a better future.”  

Soon, the UK students will be in the final stages of the educator preparation program. White said she looks forward to becoming a teacher to share her love of learning with her students.  

“I think it's so amazing to watch students learn and grow,” she said. “I feel like all my life things have worked out for me and now it's my time to give back to my community and be a good change for individuals who can’t advocate for themselves.”  

As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.   

In 2022, UK was ranked by Forbes as one of the “Best Employers for New Grads” and named a “Diversity Champion” by INSIGHT into Diversity, a testament to our commitment to advance Kentucky and create a community of belonging for everyone. While our mission looks different in many ways than it did in 1865, the vision of service to our Commonwealth and the world remains the same. We are the University for Kentucky.   

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Charges: St. Paul substitute teacher had sexual relationship with student

A now-former St. Paul City School substitute teacher accused of having a sexual relationship with a student is wanted on criminal charges.

Caitlyn Kalia Thao, 24, of St. Paul, was charged with one count of third-degree criminal sexual conduct earlier this month.

Court records state that school officials asked to meet with Thao after hearing complaints about inappropriate behavior between her and students.

Thao resigned during that meeting on Feb. 26.

The victim told law enforcement that Thao would buy him stuff and talk to him through messenger apps, according to the criminal complaint. He also said that Thao told him to meet her in a classroom at the school earlier in February, then started performing sexual acts when he got there. She then solicited him for additional relations at later times, the victim said, adding that he declined.

A police investigation revealed that Thao completed a child maltreatment form at Regions Hospital on March 9, reporting that she had had a sexual relationship with a student who attended the school where she taught.

The report from Regions added that Thao’s husband found out about the conduct and informed the victim’s parents on March 8.

A spokesperson for St. Paul City School released the following statement on Thursday:

“A former teacher at St. Paul City School has been charged by the Ramsey County Attorney related to a relationship she allegedly had with a student. “The teacher involved resigned from the school before any knowledge of this incident was shared with our leadership. As it does for all employees, SPCS followed all human resources processes including a criminal background check. The employee was a licensed substitute teacher and resigned from SPCS on February 27.  “Any inappropriate relationship between a teacher and a student will never be tolerated. We strive every day to foster a genuinely safe and caring community for each student.  “SPCS is supporting the student and family. The former teacher was officially charged and SPCS will continue to cooperate and work closely with the authorities.” Eric Fergen, Interim Executive Director for St. Paul City School District

Thao is charged via warrant and, therefore, doesn’t yet have any future court dates set.

Former Nixa, Mo., teacher faces sex crime charges for inappropriate relations with student

NIXA, Mo. (KY3) — The Nixa School District fired a teacher accused of having an inappropriate relationship with a student.

Chelsea Harper, 34, faces four counts of second-degree statutory rape, two counts of second-degree statutory sodomy, and three counts of sexual contact with a student. She worked as a paraprofessional for the district when the incidents happened. She later earned her certification as a teacher.

Investigators say the incidents happened between January 2022 and August 2022. Investigators say the sexual acts involved a student less than 17 years old. Besides sexual acts, investigators say both admitted to exchanging nude photographs through Snapchat.

Nixa school leaders say they learned of the allegations in April. The district immediately placed her on administrative leave pending the investigation. The Nixa School Board terminated Harper during its May 6 meeting. District leaders say they will follow policy and procedure and cooperate fully as the authorities’ investigation continues.

She also taught in the Willard School District. The district released this statement to KY3 News:

“We are aware of the allegations regarding a former staff member’s alleged misconduct at another institution. We want to clarify that the individual in question is not currently employed at Willard, nor have there been any discussions or agreements regarding future employment with our district. During her tenure at Willard from August 2022 to May of 2023, there were no reports or findings of misconduct regarding any student of our district.”

To report a correction or typo, please email [email protected]

Copyright 2024 KY3. All rights reserved.

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‘Didn’t Expect Him to Do Nothing Like This’: ‘Cool’ Former Baltimore Teacher Allegedly Drove Car As Student Shot Another Teen In Murder Plot, Police Say

Baltimore police allege that a former teacher involved in an “inappropriate relationship” with a student helped that teenager shoot another boy last summer.

That educator, 38-year-old Matthew Biegel, now faces a dozen charges in the case, including attempted first-degree and conspiracy to commit murder, according to local reports.

Biegel was an agriculture teacher at Reginald F. Lewis High School of Business, Law, and Agriculture. According to a Baltimore City Schools spokesperson, he worked there from September 2015 to August 2023.

The case against Biegel stems from a shooting on July 10, 2023, in which a teen shot a 17-year-old in the face and torso. Detectives learned both teenagers were involved in a “volatile, on-again, off-again relationship” and that “physical altercations” happened frequently between the two.

Officers found the injured teen at a home on McElderry Street. From there, he was rushed to the hospital in critical condition.

He survived his wounds, and the teen who shot him was later taken into custody and charged with attempted murder.

In the moments that led up to the shooting, investigators say that the arrested teenager got out of the passenger seat of a black SUV, shot the other boy, then got back into the car, and fled the scene.

Police found the suspected shooter at Biegel’s home and arrested him there, The Baltimore Banner reports . Through “additional information,” detectives discovered that Biegel was in an “inappropriate relationship” with the teen.

Although police knew of Biegel’s ties to the shooter, Biegel wasn’t charged in the case until last month.

The shooting victim spoke to police on April 23 and told them he knew the driver’s name was “Matthew.” Court records indicate that Biegel drove the SUV to the shooting scene and that the car belonged to his parents.

Biegel was arrested on April 24 and booked into a local jail. He was later released after posting a $500,000 bond.

Biegel’s students spoke to WBAL-TV , expressing shock that their former teacher had been implicated in a crime like this.

“I graduated from Reginald. I was in Mr. Biegel’s class in ninth and 10th grade,” one former student who remained anonymous told the outlet. “He was one of my favorite teachers, but I didn’t expect him to do nothing like (this). He was like more the motivational type, like ‘Keep going, you can do it.’ I didn’t expect that.”

“I can’t believe it’s Mr. Biegel,” another student said. “It was real surprising, I wasn’t expecting it. He was a regular, cool teacher, like one of the cool teachers that let the students come in the room when you’re not supposed to, one of them teachers. He was nice, cool, and you wouldn’t be expecting this from him.”

While Biegel’s involvement might have been a surprise to students, a former teacher told Fox45 News that the school system had received several reports alleging that Biegel had other inappropriate relationships with students at Reginald F. Lewis.

The whistleblower, who chose to speak out on the condition of anonymity, went to school administrators with complaints about Biegel’s behavior at least “four or five times.”

In an email sent to the Baltimore Teachers Union in 2020, an employee claimed that Biegel routinely hosted “vulnerable young male students, former and current, at his home.” The school’s principal was also aware of this claim.

Fox45 also obtained a text between Biegel and another person in which Biegel said students stopped by his house after a minor car accident.

Baltimore City Schools declined to speak with Fox45 about the allegations against Biegel but sent a statement calling them “deeply disturbing.”

“City Schools is committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of all our students and staff,” the statement reads. “As this is an active investigation involving law enforcement and personnel matters, we must limit our comments to protect the integrity of the judicial process.”

Biegel’s next court appearance is on May 28.

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Ex-Kenosha teacher accused of inappropriate relationship with student pleads not guilty

Posted: May 15, 2024 | Last updated: May 15, 2024

Christian Enwright, a former Kenosha teacher accused of an inappropriate relationship with an underage student, appeared in court Wednesday, where his attorneys sought the dismissal of all 22 counts of disorderly conduct filed against him. The defense argued that the criminal complaint did not meet the state statute's criteria for disorderly conduct, emphasizing that there must be intent to cause a disturbance at the time of the act. They claimed that Enwright had no such intention.

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