Teacher-child relationship: a meeting of minds

From a Vygotskian point of view, this study highlights the relevance of considering the teaching-learning processes as characterized by the interaction of the child with the Other, where the other is both culture and person. The aim of the work is to explore the representation of the teacher-child relationship from both partners’ perspective, in connection with different functions linked to it, from the relational-affective ones to the teaching-learning ones. Thirty-five teachers, randomly selected among those that during a week spend the most of the time with children, were given The Teacher Relationship Interview (TRI). Thirt-five children, aged from 6 to 10 years, were given the Separation Anxiety Test (SAT) (Family and School versions) and the Child Relationship Interview. Analyses showed significant positive associations between the representations of the relationship that the actors establish (TRI and Child Relationship Interview) and the quality of the attachment the child has developed with the teacher (SAT School). The results showed that the adult-child relationship represents a “meeting between minds”, that is, an intersubjective process where the understanding of both our own and other people`s emotions and thoughts could become a rich opportunity for learning, and a protective factor for the child as well as an enrichment for both partners.