This paper explores teachers’ perceptions of their role on student engagement. According to Skinner & Pitzer (2012) Williford, et. al, 2013 & Hamre et al. (in press) three features of teacher-child interactions promote... [ view full abstract ]
This paper explores teachers’ perceptions of their role on student engagement. According to Skinner & Pitzer (2012) Williford, et. al, 2013 & Hamre et al. (in press) three features of teacher-child interactions promote children’s engagement. In particular, when teachers provide emotionally and instructively supportive interactions to students within a properly structured classroom, children are more engaged (Aydogan, Farran & Sagsoz, 2015; Curby et. al, 2014; Sakellariou, 2012; 2005; Pakarinen, 2011). Nevertheless, what happens when some students show high levels of disengagement, despite teachers’ support? Can this disaffection affect teachers’ feelings and consequently undermine their relations with the disengaged students?
While there is a growing international research interest in engagement variables and teachers’ role there is a gap in qualitive and quantitative investigation into teachers’ perspectives and emotions. Through one to one, semi-structured interviews, we investigate 50 Greek teachers’ perceptions and emotions of their role as a key factor on preschoolers’ engagement. We also examine whether teachers’ emotions affect and are affected by students’ engagement levels. The interviews are developed based on Creswell’s (2008) interview model, with a mixture of open-ended and close-ended questions.
Based on qualitative and quantitative data analysis, we infer that Greek kindergarten teachers are conscious of their responsibility on motivating each student. They identify that it’s difficult to activate disengaged students, but when they foster authentic and caring relations with their student and provide structure and autonomy support with a variety of constructivistic teaching strategies, they manage to increase student’s engagement level. Greek teachers also admit that classroom engagement affect their emotional state. More specifically, when their students are engaged, they are overwhelmed by enthusiasm or experience frustration due to their disaffection. Most teachers also identify that students’ disaffection challenges them, but doesn’t undermine their emotional and instructional support and relations for those who are disengaged.
