Teachers' attitudinal responses to differing characteristics of elementary school students.

Abstract

This experiment studied attitudinal responses of attachment, rejection, concern, and indifference among 53 elementary teachers as evoked by 16 descriptions of elementary school students differing in four personality characteristics, two levels of academic ability, and sex. A multiple linear regression approach to analysis of variance was used; main and interaction effects of student attributes on teacher attitudes were examined. Main effects for student personality characteristics were found on all four teacher attitudes, academic ability on three attitudes, and sex on one attitude. Interaction effects were found on all four teacher attitudes. Results indicate students' personality characteristics most strongly influence teachers' attitudes of attachment and rejection, academic ability most strongly influences teachers' attitude of concern, while academic ability and personality characteristics influence teachers' attitude of indifference.Recent research (e.g., Brophy & Good, 1974;Silberman, 1969; Good & Brophy, Note 1) provides evidence for differential teacher behavior toward students identified as the objects of four teacher attitudes (attachment, rejection, concern, and indifference). Given the possible effects of differential teacher behavior toward students on student development, it becomes important to identify what student traits tend to elicit these four teacher attitudes.Previous studies on this topic (Jenkins, 1971;Silberman, 1971; Good & Brophy, Note 1) have utilized classroom observation of students identified as objects of teachers' attitudes of attachment, rejection, concern, or indifference. Their classroom observations typically were made toward the middle of the school year to identify various student characteristics which are associated with these attitudes.Good and Brophy (Note 1) found that students toward whom teachers felt attachment were relatively high in academic achievement, actively sought teacher attention in relation to subject matter assignments, and refrained from answering out loud without permission. Silberman Requests for reprints should be sent to

The Impact of Elementary Children’s School Roles and Sex Roles on Teacher Attitudes: An Interactional Analysis

“…Results of this study and of replications by Brooks and Wilson (1978), Brophy and Evertson (1981), Brophy and Good (1974), Good (Note 3), Good and Brophy (1972), Helton and Oakland (1977), Jenkins (Note 4), and Willis and Brophy (1974) are pertinent to the subtle interactions between teachers' attitudes and children's school and sex roles.…”

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“…He further posited that teachers are more concerned with disruptive types of behaviors because of the institutional demand of conformity, a position also voiced by Silberman (1971). Studies by Feshback (1966) and Helton and Oakland (1977) found higher teacher feelings of attachment for students characterized as rigidconforming-orderly and passive-dependent-acquiescent. Other researchers have found teacher attitudes of indifference toward students who are passive and have low salience in the classroom (Silberman, 1969;Brophy & Good, 1974).…”

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