"Teacher-Student Bonds"
Article by Lindsey Askew
Description:
In September 1999, Robert Putnam and Thomas Sandler wrote an article for the American Association of School Administrators called “Rebuilding the Stock of Social Capital.” In it they drafted nine innovative points to increase the amount of social capital in schools:
1. Spur Greater Parental Involvement,
2. Make Schools Smaller,
3. Utilize Community Service to Foster Civic Engagement,
4. Teach Civics Effectively in Schools,
5. Fund Extracurricular Activities,
6. Model a High School on a Community,
7. Create Opportunities for Meaningful Youth Contribution,
8. Establish Mentoring Programs that Work, and
9. Ask Youth for Solutions.
The fourth point, “Teaching Civics Effectively in Schools” made me immediately think about teacher-student bonds. Theses important bonds can enable students to become more interactive in and out of the classroom.
Supportive and caring relations within families promote academic achievement and protect against involvement in health-risk behaviors by adolescents. Similarly, supportive and caring relationships within schools promote academic motivation among adolescents. A 2004 Wingspread Report entitled “School Connectedness – Strengthening Health and Education Outcomes for Teenagers” in the Journal of School Health (vol. 74, no. 7) found that receiving empathy, praise and attention from teachers creates a sense of belonging and increases engagement and academic motivation.
Looking at the bigger picture, if teachers formed more critical and close-knit bonds with their students not only would academic motivation increase, but social capital could increase, too.
Let’s look at two different students. One doesn’t know any of his teachers well and feels that he doesn’t belong. It seems to him that his teachers do not care about his education, or who he is as a person, so he decides to drop out. The other student is very acquainted with all four of his teachers, has joined multiple clubs, and passed all of his classes with an “A.” I understand that this is hypothetical, but what if it weren’t? Could it be our teachers that are inhibiting students from excelling in classes? When teachers fear to care does this minimize social capital?
I attended a predominantly white middle school and did not feel like I was shown the attention I needed to excel. I didn’t take part in extracurricular activities and I had to have special tutoring because I wasn’t doing well in my classes. In high school I was surrounded by students and teachers of my ethnicity. My teachers paid special attention to me offering their assistance in many ways. I became involved in student activities and my grade point average rose significantly. I am now the senior class president of Middleton High School. I achieved this not only from my connections, but also from the teachers that made an effort to support me.
In urban neighborhoods many students desire a close bond with teachers though outsiders do not often realize this. It is important that a student comes to school knowing that they are there for a purpose. Yes, parents play an intricate role rearing the student’s mind and morals, but the majority of a student’s time is spent with the teachers telling them that they can or can’t overcome their obstacles.
Teachers need to understand that they have a very powerful position in the development of a child. If teachers adopted the love initiative instead of the zero tolerance plan, I believe that dropout rates would decrease, and graduation rates would increase. More importantly students’ social capital would increase, creating larger, more advantageous networks for students to work from.
Funding for Academic Year: 2004-05