Teacher-student relationships in the palestinian Beddawi Camp

Abstract

The aim of this study is to investigate and understand the quality of the Palestinian teacher-student relationships in the school at the Beddawi Camp which will help to design effective programs for teacher training. More specifically, it aims to investigate the presence of three domains of support including emotional, organizational, and instructional support in relationship to the context within which this support has taken place. Data was gathered from observing 47 Palestinian teachers in their classrooms according to a rating scale that encompassed ten indicators of the three domains of support. The 47 Palestinian teachers and the two head teachers were interviewed. The interviews, as well as, the existing statistical data about Palestinian socioeconomic conditions and Palestinian schools conditions were used to interpret the observations. In general, the teachers scored low on all levels of support: emotional, organizational, and instructional support. The results showed that the lack of support that is presented by the teachers to their students in the Beddawi Camp’s schools is explained by other contextual factors including socio-economic and school conditions.