Teacher Concern During COVID-19: Associations With Classroom Climate

Abstract

In the fall of 2020, many students and educators returned to school in person, despite the threat of the COVID-19 virus. Though safety measures such as masks and social distancing were put in place, educators remained concerned for their students’ health, well-being, and academic attainment. The current study examined teacher concern for students’ well-being amidst the COVID-19 pandemic in relation to classroom climate. Data were collected from third- to fifth-grade students (N = 1,022) and teachers (N = 52) across 11 elementary schools in the Great Plains region. Students and teachers attended school in person during data collection in the fall of 2020, despite rising COVID-19 numbers in the area. Structural equation modeling was used to determine whether student emotional problems and well-being had indirect effects on the association between teacher concerns and classroom climate. Findings suggest significant indirect effects of teacher concerns and classroom climate through student emotional problems and well-being. The results are important in the context of COVID-19, because teacher concern for students may indicate the overall health of the classroom environment.

Impact Statement

The current study can assist school psychology practitioners in understanding the need to support teacher and student well-being in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The findings emphasize the need for school policymakers and administrators to elevate teacher voices throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Considering teacher concern for student well-being may assist in improving classroom climate and supporting students as the pandemic continues.

Keywords:

• structural equation modeling
• student–teacher relationships
• teachers

Associate Editor:

• Pamela Fenning

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Anne Drescher

Anne Drescher, MEd, is a second-year doctoral student in School Psychology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She has a master’s in education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her research interests include school-based mental health supports, trauma-informed schooling, and reducing disparities in academic, emotional, and behavioral development for children who have experienced violence.

Alberto Valido

Alberto Valido is a graduate student in Applied Developmental Science and Special Education at the Peabody School of Education, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Valido’s research interests include intersectionality with a mental health prevention focus and randomized clinical trials, specifically among adolescents who experience discrimination or are victimized at school due to their sexual, racial, or gender identities.

Ashley B. Woolweaver

Ashley B. Woolweaver, MPS, is the research coordinator for the Espelage RAVE lab at the University of North Carolina. She has a master of professional studies in criminal justice policy and administration from Penn State University. Her research interests include improving social systems to better support youth and families to increase their quality of life as well as to reduce risky criminal behaviors and involvement in the justice system.

Dorothy L. Espelage

Dorothy L. Espelage, PhD, is a William C. Friday Distinguished Professor of Education at the University of North Carolina. She is recipient of the APA Lifetime Achievement Award in Prevention Science and the 2016 APA Award for Distinguished Contributions to Research in Public Policy and is a Fellow of APS, APA, and AERA. She is a member of the National Academy of Education. She earned her PhD in counseling psychology from Indiana University in 1997. Over the last 22 years, she has authored over 200 peer-reviewed articles, six edited books, and 70 chapters on bullying, homophobic teasing, sexual harassment, dating violence, and gang violence. Her research focuses on translating empirical findings into prevention and intervention programming.