The role of school-based relationships for school well-being: How different are high- and average-ability students?

BACKGROUND: Relationships with peers and teachers are keys for children's psychosocial development. However, it is unclear whether this also applies for high-ability children. This study adds to the literature by longitudinally examining the role of interpersonal relationships in the educational context for high- and average-ability students. AIMS: In this study, we examined whether high- and average-ability students differ in terms of peer acceptance, teacher conflict, and school well-being. Further, we studied the potential bi-directional effects between school well-being, teacher conflict, and peer acceptance in late childhood and examined whether the relations between these concepts differ between high- and average-ability students. SAMPLE: The total sample consisted of 3,101 Belgian students (49.9% boys, Mage = 9.76 years), with 348 high-ability and 2,753 average-ability students. METHODS: Cognitive ability was assessed in Grade 3 with two cognitive ability tests (for crystallized intelligence and fluid intelligence, respectively). The students were followed for three years (Grades 4, 5, and 6), and each year their current teacher filled out questionnaires regarding teacher-child conflict, peer acceptance, and school well-being. RESULTS: High-ability students showed lower teacher conflict, higher peer acceptance, and better school well-being than average-ability students. Cross-lagged analyses showed that peer acceptance consistently predicted school well-being over time, while Grade 4 school well-being impacted Grade 5 teacher conflict. Also, better peer acceptance in Grade 5 predicted lower teacher-student conflict in Grade 6. Multigroup analyses revealed similar associations for both groups. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that high-ability students in general display more positive school-based social relationships and school well-being than average-ability students. We found no differences in the links between these variables for both groups (i.e., high-ability students and average-ability students).

Social Acceptance of High-Ability Youth: Multiple Perspectives and Contextual Influences.

Peer relationships form a key developmental context. The current study investigated differences in peer acceptance between high-ability and average-ability youth, from the perspectives of teachers, peers, and students. Relying on the person-group similarity model, we also tested whether high-ability students' acceptance would depend on the peer group's mean ability level. A sample of 2,736 sixth-grade students from 188 classes in 117 schools participated. Students scoring in the top 10% of a cognitive ability measure were considered high-ability students (N = 274). Results showed that high-ability students were better accepted than average-ability students according to teachers and peers. However, the students did not show more positive self-perceptions of acceptance. Moreover, they nominated less peers as their friends. Gifted students felt more accepted in classes with higher mean ability levels. The authors call for a stronger integration of developmental theory and research into the study of giftedness.

Teacher Support, Peer Acceptance, and Engagement in the Classroom: A Three-Wave Longitudinal Study in Late Childhood.

Although research has examined the bivariate effects of teacher support, peer acceptance, and engagement, it remains unclear how these key classroom experiences evolve together, especially in late childhood. This study aims to provide a detailed picture of their transactional relations in late childhood. A sample of 586 children (M age = 9.26 years, 47.1% boys) was followed from fourth to sixth grade. Teacher support and engagement were student-reported and peer acceptance was peer-reported. Autoregressive cross-lagged models revealed unique longitudinal effects of both peer acceptance and teacher support on engagement, and of peer acceptance on teacher support. No reverse effects of engagement on peer acceptance or teacher support were found. The study underscores the importance of examining the relative contribution of several social actors in the classroom. Regarding interventions, improving both peer acceptance and teacher support can increase children's engagement, and augmenting peer acceptance can help to increase teacher support.

The role of teacher behavior in children's relational aggression development: A five-wave longitudinal study.

The present article examined the development of relational aggression in middle childhood and the effects of observed teacher behavior on this development. Relying on social learning theory, we expected that teacher praise would slow down the increase of relational aggression, whereas teacher reprimands would promote the increase of relational aggression. A sample of 570 children (49% boys, Mage=7years and 5months, >95% Belgian) was followed from second to fourth grade. Teacher praise and reprimands were observed at the beginning of second grade. Child relational aggression was assessed using teacher and peer reports, collected at five points in time: at the beginning and end of the second grade, at the beginning and end of the third grade, and at the end of the fourth grade. Multilevel modeling showed that relational aggression generally increased from second to fourth grade. Moreover, when teachers displayed more praise, students' relational aggression increased at a slower rate; when teachers displayed more reprimands, students' relational aggression increased at a faster rate. Overall, the results stress the importance of supporting teachers to reduce reprimands and increase praise when interacting with children.