Abstract:

Problematic behaviour in students represents one of the key challenges in contemporary education, as it directly affects school climate, learning outcomes and the effectiveness of didactic strategies. Its emergence is shaped by a complex interaction of individual characteristics, family conditions and school-related factors. The school environment may act either as a risk factor that reinforces difficulties or as a protective factor that supports adaptation, motivation and academic success. The aim of this study is to analyse how students, parents and teachers perceive school-related risk and protective factors and to identify the aspects of teaching and classroom climate that most significantly influence manifestations of problematic behaviour.

The research employed a mixed approach combining a case study, semi-structured interviews and questionnaire surveys. The inclusion of students displaying problematic behaviour, their parents and teachers enabled a comparison of three perspectives regarding motivation, understanding of subject matter, perceived instructional demands and the quality of social relationships. The analysis revealed a substantial discrepancy between teachers’ perceptions and students’ lived experience. While teachers tended to view the school environment as supportive, students reported difficulties with concentration, frustration resulting from insufficient understanding, low motivation and tensions within peer relations. Parents’ perceptions aligned more closely with those of the students.

Identified risk factors included academic failure, insufficient individualisation, inappropriate instructional demands and distracting stimuli in the classroom. Protective factors involved supportive teacher–student relationships, clear communication, structured lessons and opportunities to experience success. The findings provide important didactic implications: appropriate instructional strategies, differentiated tasks and structured support can substantially reduce problematic behaviour. The recommendations derived from the study may inform lesson planning, preventive school programmes and teacher professional development. The virtual presentation format was chosen to ensure ethically secure handling of sensitive school-based data, to maintain full anonymity of the underage participants, and in accordance with the institution’s recommendation to disseminate this type of research exclusively within a controlled online environment.

Keywords:

Student problematic behaviour, risk and protective factors, school climate, didactic strategies, teacher practice.