Open Collections

Gist, Alexander

University of British Columbia

A solid research base has linked student-teacher relationships to student motivation, engagement and academic performance for students learning in person. However, this research may not be generalizable to students learning online because the learning context is thought to impact the relationships students and teachers can develop. Therefore, the factors that help or hinder the development of positive student-teacher relationships in online and in-person learning contexts may differ. Nascent research on student-teacher relationships in online learning has established that teachers can develop supportive relationships with students in online learning contexts and that these relationships are positively related to students’ learning, motivation, and engagement. However, there is limited research on how student-teacher relationships are effectively formed and fostered online. This study aimed to fill this research gap by exploring online secondary school teachers’ perceptions of the factors that helped or hindered them in forming, developing, and sustaining supportive relationships with their students. The Enhanced Critical Incident Technique (ECIT) was used to systematically gather, analyze and categorize interview data. Individual, in-depth, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 secondary teachers from nine distinct online learning programs in British Columbia, Canada. A total of 301 Critical Incidents (CIs) were extracted from the interviews, including 179 helping CIs, 77 hindering CIs, and 45 wish list items. Using the ECIT categorization process, 12 thematic categories were created of factors that help, hinder, or would be desirable for student-teacher relationships in online learning: (1) Time challenges, (2) School-based supports, (3) Synchronicity of learning, (4) Starting the course off strong, (5) Commitment to supportive relationships and learning environments, (6) Curriculum and course design, (7) Student-specific barriers, (8) Technological barriers, (9) Parent involvement, (10) Regular and effective communication, (11) Feedback, and (12) Extracurriculars and events. Key findings in four broad areas, (1) Program Context, (2) Teacher Characteristics and Approaches, (3) Student and Family Characteristics, and (4) Student-Teacher Interactions, are discussed in relation to existing literature. Overall, this study provides a deeper understanding of the factors teachers perceive as helping, hindering, or desirable for supportive relationships with their students in asynchronous, self-paced, continuous entry and exit programs.

Text

2024-02-09

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/87422

Human Development, Learning, and Culture

University of British Columbia

UBCV

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/