The Association Between Student-Teacher Relationship Quality and Exclusionary Discipline
Date
2022-12
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Abstract
Exclusionary discipline practices routinely exclude students from the academic environment through means such as office discipline referrals, suspension, and expulsion. These strategies, in turn, initiate student involvement in the School to Prison Pipeline (STPP). This form of discipline also affects minoritized students disproportionately. Potential points of intervention and prevention of the STPP such as Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports and Restorative Practice have been discussed by researchers, but student-teacher relationships have not. Student-teacher relationships may be significantly related to exclusionary discipline and thus be a possible point of intervention for educational professionals. The current study investigated the association between student-teacher relationship quality and exclusionary discipline in the form of office discipline referrals (ODR), as well as the role of student minoritized status. Elementary teachers from a suburban school district provided data regarding student-teacher relationship quality, ODRs, and special education classification. Results indicated that student-teacher relationship quality, especially student-teacher conflict, is significantly related to the risk of receiving an ODR. Special education classification was not a significant moderator of these variables. Implications for practice and limitations are discussed.
Description
Dissertation completed in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Psychology degree in School Psychology at Alfred University, Alfred, NY.
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Dissertation
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Keywords
Exclusionary discipline, Discipline, Student-teacher relationships