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Engagement with an Educational Issue

Positive relationships between students and teachers are known to have advantageous influences
on their academic performance, social and emotional wellbeing (Capern & Hammond, 2014). It
becomes increasingly important for students of diverse needs including gifted students and those
with emotional/behavioural disorders (EBD) to develop positive relationships with their teachers
(Capern & Hammond, 2014).

Research has found that gifted students have issues with underachievement as there is a gap
between student potential and achievement. This gap can lead to negative attitudes of the school
environment, low academic self-perception and low motivation (Dowdall & Colangelo,
1982; Reis & McCoach, 2000; Whitmore, 1980). However, research has found positive student-
teacher relationships helps to change these views and encourages students. Furthermore, EBD
students often face academic difficulties, are more susceptible to lower grades, failure at school,
more likely to be diagnosed with a learning disability (Frank, Sitlington & Carson, 1995; Koyangi &
Gains, 1993) and have a 50% dropout rate (Bullock & Gable, 2006; Marder, 1992). Although,
research has illustrated with positive student-teacher relationships it benefits the academic
performance of these students.

Socio-emotional development of students are also effected by relationships with their teachers.
Common traits gifted students have include depression, anxiety, perfectionism, sensitivity and
social isolation (Blass, 2014). However, a sense of belonging at school can help to protect against
these issues in gifted students through meaningful and positive relationships with their teachers
(Capern & Hammond, 2014). This can also relate to adolescents with EBD as they experience
increased risks of jail time in the future, delinquency, school dropout and classroom problems
including disruptive and off-task behaviours (Sutherland, Wehby, & Yoder, 2002).

A dramatic push to increase student’s knowledge in science is due to job growth and demand.
Today, scientific knowledge is highly regarded in society as it is used to make every day decisions
(National Research Council, 2012). Science is a mandatory subject for secondary students in
Australia as vital skills and knowledge need to be taught. The learning challenges faced with both
gifted and EBD students make the acquisition of knowledge from this evidence based subject
contesting (Capern & Hammond, 2014). However, positive relationships between students and
teachers assist to ease the learning challenges allowing students to engage in the subject (Capern
& Hammond, 2014). In saying this, pedagogy is an equally important factor to how students will
learn the content. Traditionally, science has been taught through discrete factual knowledge where
textbooks and lecture approaches were used (Singer, Hilton & Schweingruber, 2006). More
recently, this approach has changed to hands-on inquiry methods where students direct their own

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learning (Singer, Hilton & Schweingruber, 2006). However, students with EBD are susceptible of
off-task behaviours and could put these students at a disadvantage in the subject. It is also
recognised that gifted students need more guidance in learning that previously thought. A common
misconception is that gifted students do not need scaffolding or academic guidance (Singer, Hilton
& Schweingruber, 2006). Although they may seem more fitted to this method of teaching, gifted
students still require guidance although different from EBD students. Therefore, pedagogy and
student-teacher relationships play a significant role in academic success of students (Capern &
Hammond, 2014).

Capern and Hammond (2014) attempted to fill a gap in literature by investigating particular teacher
behaviours that contributed to positive student-teacher relationships between secondary students
who are gifted and secondary students with EBD. The research article compares and contrasts the
results of both groups of adolescents to determine which behaviour is most effective with each
group (Capern & Hammond, 2014). The article provides a thorough literature review with many
studies supporting the topic, however, more recent evidence could have been used.
The research was conducted over an 18-month period in Western Australian secondary schools
which offer academic programs to gifted students (N=58) and behaviour programs to students with
EBD (N=40) (Capern & Hammond, 2014). It was stated the research consisted of quantitative and
qualitative methods in the form of surveys and focus groups, respectively (Capern & Hammond,
2014). Participants in years 9 and 10 were given surveys made up of 70 items representing a
teacher behaviour (Capern & Hammond, 2014). They were scored on a six point Likert scale
where 6 represented very strongly agree and 1 represented very strongly disagree (Capern &
Hammond, 2014). The survey also had an open-ended question at the end in order to investigate
other teacher behaviours which may have not been listed otherwise (Capern & Hammond, 2014).
Cronbach’s alpha was calculated as a means of determining the reliability of the surveys (Capern
& Hammond, 2014). The focus group was made up of 12 students with EBD and 6 gifted students
(Capern & Hammond, 2014). This qualitative data was conducted to validate and verify the results
from the quantitative data as well as uncover any new information (Capern & Hammond, 2014).

Limitations of many aspects of the method in the research can be critically analysed. The time of
the research (18 months) does not seem to be extensive enough for this type of investigation.
Perhaps for future research, the time of research should be extended and students from a larger
range, if not all year groups could be investigated instead of only years 9 and 10 (Gall, Gall & Borg
2015). Also, the research could be conducted over a range of schools in different demographic
areas to analyse if responses are consistent thus, would have increased the reliability and validity
of results (Gall, Gall & Borg 2015). Differentiation of boys and girls and specific ages of
participants could have been useful as results could have been affected due to varying opinions
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(Gall, Gall & Borg 2015). With such a large number of items on the survey (70) students could
become disengaged and not answer questions accurately (Gall, Gall & Borg 2015). In terms of the
focus group, the qualitative research does pose disadvantages as it is an open discussion where
students could be influenced by their peer’s answers and not want to share their own opposing
thoughts (Gall, Gall & Borg 2015). The research paper also states that the focus group was
implemented as a way of validating and verifying results from the survey (Capern & Hammond,
2014). However, as only 12 EBD students and 6 gifted students participated in the focus groups it
is not an effective means of verifying and validating the results from a total of 98 students who
initially participated in the surveys (Gall, Gall & Borg 2015).

Despite limitations in the method, the results illustrated both similarities and differences between
the two diverse learners (Capern & Hammond, 2014). Both groups suggested that in order to build
positive relationships the most desirable primary behaviours they prefer in teachers include those
that are respectful, warm and friendly and help them with their school work (Capern & Hammond,
2014). These results correspond with the cited background research in the article where a South
Australian longitudinal study (conducted from 1997 to 2005) identified that it was the small things
teachers (such as respectful attitudes) do daily to promote resilience and help develop positive
relationships (Johnson, 2008). Differences in the results formed when assessing secondary
behaviours. Correlating with results from other countries, gifted students have more focus on
teachers who promote academic success and achievement (Gentry, Peters & Mann, 2007; Suk-
Un Jin & Moon, 2006). On the other hand, EBD students prefers teachers who are more
understanding, have patience and listen. Similar findings are evident involving EBD students
globally where a study found the primary criticism of these students was that teachers lack
understanding and support thus, feeling isolated and victimised (Cefai & Cooper, 2010). Although
there were similarities between the two groups, the recommendations from the article were that
individual groups preferred different behaviours specific to their needs to develop positive
relationships with their teachers (Capern & Hammond, 2014). It was evident through the results
that EBD students emphasised greater on the emotionally supportive behaviours in comparison to
the gifted students who were more concerned with the academically supportive behaviours
(Capern & Hammond, 2014).

The learning activity that has been selected is a Year 10 science exercise based on the influences
of climate change on animal adaption and evolution (Coolaustralia, 2011). It satisfies the dot point
of the year 10 science Australian curriculum stating “The theory of evolution by natural selection
explains the diversity of living things and is supported by a range of scientific evidence” (Australian
Curriculum, 2016). This activity supports the modern way of teaching science where students
direct their own learning. It is designed for students to work independently as they are required to
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use prior knowledge to answer two questions relating to climate change and evolution, then watch
a video in their own time (Coolaustralia, 2011). Students are then meant to answer five other
questions based on the video in class (Coolaustralia, 2011). This type of activity places the
responsibility of learning on the students and helps to recognise cause and effect. However, it is
important to differentiate activities to suit the diverse needs of learners. In the Australian
Professional Standards for Teachers, Standard 1.5 explains the necessity of differentiation to meet
the specific learning needs of students across the full range of abilities (AITSL, 2011). In terms of
gifted and talented students, this activity supports deeper thinking as it gets them to think critically
for themselves nevertheless, more guidance would be beneficial (AITSL, 2011).

Discovered through the article, it is important to recognise that positive student-teacher


relationships significantly influence student learning as well as their overall wellbeing (Capern &
Hammond, 2014). It is important to build a sense of trust and respect with the students to create
an inclusive environment thus, making them feel comfortable and to create a sense of belonging
(Capern & Hammond, 2014). Through the study, these behaviours were highly rated for both
gifted and students with EBD hence, are beneficial to them in academic, social and emotional
aspects (Capern & Hammond, 2014). Especially for students with EBD, it is evident that the better
the relationship and more comfort they felt with the teacher, the more successful their learning
outcomes are (Capern & Hammond, 2014). It is important to have this relationship with gifted and
EBD students however, still maintain teacher professionalism.

The learning activity could be modified to become more inclusive to cater to various student’s
needs. From the findings in the article, it illustrates that EBD and gifted students have similarities
and differences from what they prefer in behaviours of their teachers (Capern & Hammond, 2014).
EBD students prefer teachers who demonstrate patience, understanding and who display active
listening skills while gifted students placed a greater emphasis on academic behaviours (Capern &
Hammond, 2014). Mutually between these groups, they both prefer teachers who are respectful,
friendly and help them with their school work (Capern & Hammond, 2014).

Watching the video as a class instead of having the students watch it on their own accord can
assist in their learning. The video can be paused to discuss particular sections which might need
further clarification or discussion. It involves the students and allows them to actively think about
the information being conveyed. By watching the video as a class, it creates a safe environment
where students are free to ask questions and are not judged due to the positive student-teacher
relationship created (Capern & Hammond, 2014). After the video, students should be placed into
small groups to discuss and answer the questions together. Collaborating with peers is a useful
way for students to participate in their work. To help prevent off-task behaviour which is known to
EBD students, teacher expectations should be set out before the task thus, a goal is present for
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students to reach (Capern & Hammond, 2014). This will help encourage students to complete the
set task and actively participate. As well as this, teachers should have the initiative to approach
the groups and discuss the questions which they might have problems with. It is important for the
teacher to approach the students instead of waiting for the student to approach the teacher
(Boynton & Boynton, 2005). By doing this, it creates a friendly and open environment thus, a less
autocratic teaching style which can be confronting to all students. According to the findings in the
article, gifted students would prefer their teacher to allow them to get help from other students
(Capern & Hammond, 2014). Therefore, gifted students would also benefit from working in small
groups as peer support is provided. Furthermore, the findings show that teachers who utilise
different resources other than a textbook is favoured by students (Capern & Hammond, 2014).
This activity supports this as students will learn from the graphics of the video.

In conclusion, through the research article’s recommendations and findings, it is evident that gifted
students and those with EBD benefit from positive student-teacher relationships though aspects
including academic, social and emotional wellbeing (Capern & Hammond, 2014). It is also clear
that the two groups of students have similarities and differences between behaviours they favour
in teachers (Capern & Hammond, 2014). In relation to classroom activities, the better the
relationship with the teacher the more comfort the students will feel and willingness to participate
will be increased (Capern & Hammond, 2014). It is also noted that differentiation of tasks needs to
be taken into account to cater to individual needs and abilities of the students (Capern &
Hammond, 2014).

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References:

Australian Curriculum. (2016). Curriculum. Retrieved from


http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/science/curriculum/f10?layout=1#cdcode=ACSSU185&lev
el=10

AITSL. (2011). Australian professional standards for teachers. Retrieved from


http://www.aitsl.edu.au/docs/default-source/apst
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Blass, S. (2014). The relationship between social-emotional difficulties and underachievement of


gifted students. Australian Journal of Guidance and Counselling. 24(2), 243-255. doi:
10.107/jgc.2014.1

Boynton, M., & Boynton, C. (2005). Educators guide to preventing and solving discipline problems,
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students with emotional/behavioural disorders: Giving these diverse learners what they need.
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Cefai, C., & Cooper, P. (2010) Students without voices: the unheard accounts of secondary school
students with social, emotional and behaviour difficulties. European Journal of Special Needs
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Coolaustralia. (2011). Activity: Can wildlife adapt to climate change? Year 10. Retrieved from
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Gall, L.R., Gall J.P., & Borg, W.R. (2015). Applying educational research: How to read, do, and
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Gentry, M., Peters, S.J., & Mann, R.L. (2007) Difference between general and talented students’
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