Abstract:

Rethinking the student teacher relationship is very complex in modern pedagogical science. Because of the complexity often the question arises what and how to contribute to our understanding of the interaction of student and teacher. However, the purpose of this paper is not to give an answer to the complexity of the interaction but to ascertain whether there is a link between student engagement and the quality of the relationship between the student teacher. According to some of the previous studies, the high level of involvement of students is associated with their achievement, reducing disinterest and dissatisfaction with school and their dropout (Fredricks et al., 2003), further connected to the positive social, behavioral and academic outcomes of students and increases their commitment learning, achievement, academic aspirations, satisfaction school, their self-confidence and a generally positive picture of the future (Furrer & Skinner, 2003; Covell and Howe, 2008).

Based on this small previous research insight, we can conclude that so far researchers didn’t consider to evaluate the contribution of student engagement in relation to the quality of relationships they establish with teachers, and consequently did not take into account the way students perceive their rights and duties in schools. Does the perception of rights and duties mediate, in some ways, the degree of involvement and quality of the relationship with the teachers? The aim of this paper was to determine whether there is a correlation between students' self-assessments of involvement, their perception of rights and duties, and the quality of student-teacher relationships. The research was conducted on a sample of 200 primary school students in the Zadar County (Croatia).

The results of this study indicate that the students surveyed negatively assess their own involvement in teaching, while positively assessing their rights and duties and the quality of the relationship in teaching. Also, the data obtained from the correlation analysis indicate that there is a positive correlation between student involvement, their rights and duties, and the quality of the relationship in teaching.

Keywords:

Student Engagement, School Rights and Duties, Quality of Student-Teacher Interaction.