Socialization discontinuity as an explanation for disparities in teacher-child relationships

Abstract

SES- and ethnicity-related disparities in teacher-child relationships are prevalent. An important cause may be that children of color and children from low-SES backgrounds are often perceived by their teachers to have lower social-emotional behavioral (SEB) competence. Besides the impact of poverty on SEB development, likely explanations for such gaps are cultural mismatch theory and teacher bias theory. Both frameworks point to a divergence between teachers' and students' expectations of classroom norms as well as their practice of them. Such incongruence can manifest in the extent to which teachers and parents (dis)agree on children's SEB skills. The greater the divergence between parents and teachers, the larger the discontinuity in socialization experiences a child may encounter during kindergarten transition. Using the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study data, the current study investigates the relationship between socialization discontinuity and children's demographic backgrounds, and whether disparities in teacher-child relationships can be predicted by the degree of socialization discontinuity. The results show higher divergence between teachers' and parents' assessment of children's SEB skills for children from low-SES backgrounds, non-English speaking households, and those who are identified as Black or Hispanic. Higher socialization discontinuity predicts both a more conflictual and a less close teacher-child relationship in general. Meanwhile, children from a non-English household tend to have less conflict with their teachers. Other factors that may affect teacher-child relationships, future research directions, and implications for policymakers and education practitioners are discussed.