Award Date
May 2024
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Early Childhood, Multilingual, and Special Education
First Committee Member
Joseph Morgan
Second Committee Member
Kyle Higgins
Third Committee Member
Tracy Spies
Fourth Committee Member
Patrice Leverett
Number of Pages
166
Abstract
Outcomes of students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) have failed to meet the standards of educators and educational researchers. For several decades, such students have had worse academic and postsecondary outcomes than any other student population. This has led to emphasis on implementation of evidence-based practices to combat the negative outcomes associated with educational diagnoses of EBD (i.e., behavioral outbursts, suspension, and expulsion). Despite this increased attention, little improvement has occurred, leading to the question of whether practices implemented for students with EBD have been addressing the underlying causes of these students’ negative outcomes. Student–teacher relationships could be an underlying cause of negative outcomes for students with EBD. Student–teacher relationships have a large impact on the academic and behavioral outcomes of students. When a positive student–teacher relationship is present, student motivation and engagement increase—this in turn leads to better academic performance and an increase in academic self-efficacy (Roorda et al., 2011; Sakiz et al., 2012). Teachers also offer more support to students with whom they perceive they have more positive relationships (Bergin, 2016; Upadya & Eccles, 2014). However, few researchers have studied the impact of positive student–teacher relationships on students with EBD. The point of this study was to determine whether a relationship-based intervention (dialogue journaling) improves student–teacher relationships between students with EBD and their teachers. An exploratory pre-/postintervention design was implemented across two classrooms (two teachers and 10 students). Improvements of student–teacher relationships were minimal. However, stronger positive student–teacher relationships developed when intervention fidelity was higher. The findings lay a foundation for future research on student–teacher relationships and students with EBD.
Keywords
Dialogue Journaling; EBD; Intervention; Relationships
Disciplines
Special Education and Teaching
Degree Grantor
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Language
English
Repository Citation
Watts, Jack, "Enhancing the Relationships Between Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders and Their Teachers" (2024). UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones. 5095.
http://dx.doi.org/10.34917/37650922
Rights
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