How to support the teacher-student bond

As educators, we all hold dear those few and far between quiet moments when we can catch our breath and reflect.  The start of the New Year is one of those rare times.

So, as the bustle of December concerts and festivities now gives way to the hustle of January mid-terms and second semester, I want to be sure to recognize and celebrate the most powerful force in education: the special connection between teachers and students.

It is the special connection—the magic—that happens between teachers and students that is at the heart of student learning. It is the centerpiece of school success: a teacher forming a bond with a student, triggering the student’s desire to learn, and guiding it in the right direction.

Every big success I had as a teacher grew out of that teacher-student bond. And so did every big success I had as a student. Think about your biggest successes in school. Now think about your strongest teacher-student bond. Are these two related? I would bet they are.

A powerful teacher-student bond is not just something that is just comfortable and fun. That can make a teacher or a class likeable or popular, but not powerful. The power of the connection starts with setting high expectations and important goals— when adults tell kids: “I respect you enough to push you.”

Of course, goals and encouragement are not enough to make the most of this bond. At some point, you need success. We’ve shared time and again in our Focus on Teachers series how teachers come to know students, appeal to their interests, and guide them in tackling significant tests and trials. Students’ success in difficult but do-able work builds their self-confidence.  It builds their trust in their teacher. It shatters limits.  And, it is happening across the country.

We see the power of the teacher-student bond in recent stories about Washington DC teacher Tanesha Dixon, Brooklyn teacher Aaron Kaswell and Summit Public Schools (California) teacher Brian Johnson.  All of these educators, along with their school colleagues, are creatively tapping into technology to better know, understand and engage their students.  In these classrooms, technology fosters the teacher-student connection.  It doesn’t replace it.

We also see meaningful teacher-student connections happening in high schools in cities such as Bridgeport, CT.  There, teachers have completely reorganized their day to allow for large blocks of time to work closely with groups of students in research, science experiments, writing workshops and more.  They also use their new schedule to meet with parents and students together during the school day.

And, we are seeing how the tools, curriculum and collaboration opportunities from the Literacy Design Collaborative(LDC) and Mathematics Design Collaborative  (MDC) provide teachers with important supports for their work with students and save them precious time.  Teachers who are using these tools say that their kids are doing better work against higher standards and loving it!

There is no doubt that the teacher-student connection is at the heart of learning.  It’s what the research shows. It’s what we are seeing in districts and classrooms across the country.  It’s what we all know from personal experience.

And, it’s why the teacher-student interaction is at the heart of our work here at the Foundation.  Going into 2015, our commitment is as strong as ever for supporting teachers in having what they need to form a powerful connection with their students. We’re so looking forward to the upcoming year!

This article is published in collaboration with Impatient Optimists. Publication does not imply endorsement of views by the World Economic Forum.

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Author: Vicki Phillips is the Director of College-Ready Education.

Image: A teacher gives a lecture at a cram school in a Goshichon, which means “exam village” in Korean, in Seoul December 13, 2012. REUTERS/Lee Jae-Won.