Teacher Burnout and the Classroom Social Context: Implications for Teacher-Student Interactions in High-Needs Schools

• In Event: The Consequences of Teacher-Student Relationships Across Academic Contexts

Abstract

Teacher-student interactions profoundly impact students’ learning (McLean & Connor, 2015); however, teacher burnout may undermine contributions to student success. Within 60 high needs elementary schools, we explored how teacher burnout (i.e., emotional exhaustion, personal accomplishment) and classroom social contexts (i.e., classroom-level student aggression, classroom-level teacher-student closeness) explained variation in observed interaction quality in the Spring, controlling for earlier observations. While burnout in the Fall was not associated with changes in interaction quality across the year, results highlighted the importance of the classroom social context. More teacher-reported classroom-level aggression was associated with poorer interaction quality, while student-reported classroom-level closeness was linked to increased interaction quality.

Authors

• Nicole Capobianco, University of Virginia

• Jason Downer, University of Virginia

• Joshua L. Brown, Fordham University

• Amy Lowenstein, Fordham University