The Reciprocal Relationships among Teacher-Child Relations, Working Memory, and Academic Achievement: From Kindergarten to Third Grade

• In Event: How and why teacher-child relationships matter in elementary school

Abstract

Introduction. As children enter elementary school and spend more time in school settings, teachers play a crucial role in shaping children’s daily lives. Evidence suggests that intimate relationships with teachers help children’s positive academic and cognitive development (e.g. working memory; ability to store information to complete the tasks) (McKinnon & Blair, 2019)).
Nevertheless, there are two major gaps in existing literature: First, limited attention has been paid to the potential reciprocal relationship between teacher-child relationships and children’s outcomes. In the present study, following the Cascade model (Masten et al., 2005), we argue that the relationships between teacher-child relationships, cognitive development, and academic achievement are reciprocal rather than unidirectional. Second, most previous studies have assumed a single dimension for teacher-child relationships. However, recent research proposed that students who experience conflict with teachers are more likely to have severe effects on their development compared to children close to their teachers (Rudasill et al., 2010), suggesting the potential difference in the relationship among variables. Accordingly, we measure teacher-child relationships with a closeness (referencing mutual expressions of warmth and positive affect) and a conflict (referring to a lack of affinity and negative affect). We present how the results are sensitive to the different measures of teacher-child relationships. To address those issues, this study examines the reciprocal relationships among teacher-child relationships (closeness vs. conflict) and children’s working memory and academic achievement using Random Intercept Cross-Lagged Panel Models (RI-CLPM).
Data and Measures. This study used data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study–Kindergarten (ECLS-K) 2010–2011 Cohort, a nationally representative sample of 18,200 U.S. children. Given the availability of relevant measures, this study used the data from four grades: kindergarten (2010–2011), first grade (2011–2012), second grade (2012–2013), and third grade (2013–2014). Final sample size is 17,578 children. Teachers rated their perception of the quality of his/her relationship with the student using the Student-Teacher Relationship Scale. Children’s working memory was measured using the Numbers Reversed test. Information on children’s academic achievement were derived from the reading and math tests that were administered in the ECLS-K group.
Methods. To investigate the reciprocal relationships between variables, we employed RI-CLPM. RI-CLPM can effectively disentangle between- and within-effects accounting for all unobserved stable confounding (Hamaker et al., 2015). Missing cases were imputed with full information maximum likelihood estimation.
Results. The results show the reciprocal relationships among variables in two models (closeness vs. conflict). To be specific, teacher-child closeness and working memory increases children’s later academic performance, this in turn, facilitates children’s subsequent working memory ability. Consistent with the argument of the adverse effects of teacher-child conflicts on children’s development, having conflicts with teachers influences children’s development more significantly. Namely, teacher-child conflict influences children’s working memory and academic difficulty, which dampen their relationship with teachers. In addition, delayed working memory impedes academic performance, which increases the conflict with teachers. This study provides insights into the mechanisms underlying children’s cognitive and academic development experiencing the unique relationship with their teachers. This study has practical implications for education and clinical work for children’s development.

Authors

• Soo Gyeong Ju, University of Pennsylvania
  Presenting Author

• Baeksan Yu, Gwangju National University of Education / Norwegian Institute of Public Health

• Douglas A Frye, University of Pennsylvania