Morales Verdejo, Jocelyn Lissette; (2024) Students’ and teachers’ social representations of the student-teacher relationship within the classroom: A study of four disadvantaged secondary schools in small towns of the region of Valparaiso of Chile. Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).

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Abstract

There is robust evidence that the student-teacher relationship impacts students' cognitive, affective, and behavioural outcomes and contributes to the development of individual and academic secondary students; however, research carried out at disadvantaged secondary schools shows that stereotypes and myths about poverty mediate the student-teacher relationship hindering the development of strong student-teacher relationships. In Chile, this is a problem that impact the quality of education since teachers tend to convey low expectations and confidence to students or attribute low student performance to the social and family context from which they come. Likewise, students feel that their teachers stereotype and discriminate against them because of their origin, their family, and their performance. Consequently, problems as serious as academic delays due to repeating a grade and dropping out emerge. To address this research problem, I used the theory of social representations, which allowed me to explore the student-teacher relationship from how students and teachers interpret and give meaning to their experiences in a specific context. I conducted exploratory-qualitative research in four disadvantaged secondary schools in Chile, where 46 students, 27 teachers and 16 school management team members participated. The methods used were interviews, focus groups and lesson observations. The data were coded and interpreted using thematic analysis. Eight students’ social representations and eight teachers’ social representations were found, which grouped into four themes: social role (friendship, authority, family, guidance, with a form teacher), ways of treating (egalitarian, dignified) school climate (buena onda, mala onda, cosy, meaningful) and ideal (good). Although most of them reflect a good relationship, the analysis, in conjunction with the context, allows me to account for stereotyped practices supported by public policies that deserve attention. This thesis highlights the urgency of reflecting and questioning the stereotypes that damage the relationship and quality of education of students who need it most.

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