Session Outline

Over the last two decades, research on the importance of Teacher-Student Relationships (TSR) in Higher Education has gained prominence with extant literature increasingly suggesting that these have implications for student learning and engagement (Hagenauer, Muehlbacher, and Ivanova, 2022; Torrisi-Steele, 2018). Thus, raising awareness of the research in this area and how we can embed this in our practice can encourage professional development and assist us improving student retention when working as Academic Advisors. The purpose of this session is to explore literature within this area including a presentation of preliminary findings of my own (unpublished) PhD research, and how these could be applied to the role of Academic Advisors in Higher Education. My research explored HE teachers and students experiences of building TSR post-pandemic, and how they experienced the transition from virtual to face-to-face classrooms.

The session will engage practitioners in an activity on what effective TSR means to them, using a Diamond 9 exercise. The activity will help stimulate a discussion on our values and behaviours, and how these may contribute to the development of authentic TSRs with Higher Education students. Following the Diamond 9 activity with practitioners, preliminary findings from my own PhD research (an institutional case study) will be shared, with a specific focus on students' perceptions of TSR and strategies that help to develop them. The second part of the session will focus on sharing good practice, relating to individual and group activities that can be used to develop effective relationships with students in virtual and face-to-face environments.