A Multilevel Examination of the Distribution and Effects of Teacher Trust in Students and Parents in Urban Elementary Schools

Abstract

In this article we develop the theoretical argument that teacher trust in students and parents is critical to school success. Next, using survey data collected on 452 teachers and data on achievement in reading and mathematics and on socioeconomic status of 2,536 fourth-grade students in 47 urban elementary schools, we show that trust varied greatly among the elementary schools and that this variation was strongly related to differences among schools in socioeconomic status. Finally, results of the study showed that even after accounting for variation among schools in student demographic characteristics, prior achievement, and school socioeconomic status, trust was a significant positive predictor of differences among schools in student achievement. We discuss the implications of these findings for improving academic achievement in elementary schools and for future research.