The onset and stability of attachment and achievement expectations : a study of kindergarten teachers

Students in the same classroom, no matter how homogeneous the classroom, show great individual differences in their personal characteristics and the interactions "that they have with teachers. Among factors bridging the gap between the personal characteristics of the students and the teacher-child interactions are teacher attitudes and expectations. Consideration of teacher attitudes and expectations with regard to teacher intentionality will improve understanding of classroom processes and add to the knowledge base of effective teacher behaviors. Research in the classroom process of rule formation points to the first week of school as a crucial time period for study and observation. The Brophy and Good Model (1969) states that early in the school year, teachers formedifferential expectations regarding the achievement potential and personal characteristics of their students. At the same time, teachers begin to treat students differently in accordance with their differential expectations. Statement of the Problem. This study sought to determine the onset and stability of specific teacher attitudes and achievement expectations for individual children. It investigated the relationship between student variables and the stability of teacher attitudes and expectations. The following hypotheses were posited: Hypothesis I. Attachment of kindergarten teachers to specific children will not change during the first three months of school. Hypothesis II. Achievement expectations of kindergarten teachers for specific children will not change during the first three months of school. Hypothesis III. There will be a significant positive relationship between children named as targets of kindergarten teachers' attachment and children named as targets of kindergarten teachers' academic achievement expectations. [...]