The Canadian Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning - Issue 3 - Relational Teaching Behaviours in the Large University Class: An Observational Study

Oct 15, 2026

Larger class sizes in higher education can drive difficulties for educators, including higher rates of negative student evaluations of teaching. This study examines relational teaching communication behaviors in large in-person university classrooms and identifies encouraging participation and relaxed body positioning as the most prevalent among instructors with high course evaluation ratings. Correlations with student evaluation reports show that top-scoring instructors were more likely to make eye contact and smile, suggesting relational behaviors shape students’ perceptions of teaching quality.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

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Pages21

Reading Time53 min

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Relational Teaching Behaviours in the Large University Class: An Observational Study

Challenges of the Large Classroom and Student Evaluations of Teaching Quality

Relational Teaching Behaviours and Student Course Evaluations

The Canadian Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning | Volume 15 | Issue 3 | Article 15 | | --- | --- | | Winter 12-31-2024
Relational Teaching Behaviours in the Large University Class: An Observational Study
Simon G. Beaudry
University of Ottawa, [sbeaudry@uottawa.ca](sbeaudry@uottawa.ca)[ ](sbeaudry@uottawa.ca)Jenepher Lennox Terrion
University of Ottawa, [jlennoxt@uottawa.ca](jlennoxt@uottawa.ca)[ ](jlennoxt@uottawa.ca)Meredith Rocchi
University of Ottawa, [meredith.rocchi@uottawa.ca](meredith.rocchi@uottawa.ca)[ ](meredith.rocchi@uottawa.ca)Michelle Bartleman
University of Ottawa, [michelle.bartleman@uottawa.ca](michelle.bartleman@uottawa.ca)
Follow this and additional works at: [https://www.cjsotl-rcacea.ca](https://www.cjsotl-rcacea.ca)
[https://doi.org/10.5206/cjsotlrcacea.2024.3.17502](https://doi.org/10.5206/cjsotlrcacea.2024.3.17502) | | Recommended Citation Beaudry, S. G., Lennox Terrion, J., Rocchi, M., & Bartleman, M. (2024) . Relational teaching behaviours in the large university class: An observational study. The Canadian Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 15(3) . [https://doi.org/10.5206/cjsotlrcacea.2024.3.17502](https://doi.org/10.5206/cjsotlrcacea.2024.3.17502) Relational Teaching Behaviours in the Large University Class: An Observational Study Abstract Larger class sizes in higher education can generate many challenges for educators, notably increased negative student evaluations of teaching. This study suggests that one strategy for countering some of the shortcomings of the large classroom is to take a relational teaching approach. We coded the relational communication behaviours of professors teaching in large in-person classrooms and found that encouraging participation as well as having a relaxed body position were most prevalent among instructors with typically high course evaluation ratings. In addition, correlations between relational teaching behaviours and students’ course evaluation reports found that instructors with the highest scores were more likely to make eye contact and to smile. We argue that relational teaching behaviours may have an impact on students’ perceptions of teaching quality. These findings provide insights into more effective relational teaching in the large class, in particular demonstrating that the most prevalent relational teaching behaviours are not necessarily the most important or effective. L'augmentation de la taille des classes dans l'enseignement supérieur peut engendrer de nombreuxdéfis pour les éducateurs, notamment une augmentation des évaluations négatives de l'enseignement par les étudiants. Cette étude suggère qu'une stratégie pour contrer certains des défauts des grandes classes est d'adopter une approche d'enseignement relationnelle. Nous avons codé les comportements de communication relationnelle des professeurs qui enseignent dans de grandes salles de classe en personne et nous avons constaté que le fait d'encourager la participation et d'avoir une position corporelle détendue était le plus fréquent chez les enseignants dont les évaluations de cours étaientgénéralement élevées. En outre, les corrélations entre les comportements pédagogiques relationnels et les rapports d'évaluation des étudiants ont révélé que les enseignants ayant obtenu les meilleures notes étaient plus susceptibles d'établir un contact visuel et de sourire. Nous soutenons que les comportements pédagogiques relationnels peuvent avoir un impact sur la perception qu'ont les étudiants de la qualité de l'enseignement. Ces résultats permettent d'envisager un enseignement relationnel plus efficace dans les grandes classes, en démontrant notamment que les comportementsd'enseignement relationnel les plus répandus ne sont pas nécessairement les plus importants ou les plus efficaces. Keywords relational teaching, large class, teaching evaluation, student-instructor relationships, observational study; enseignement relation

FAQs

What problem do large university classes create for educators?

Large class sizes can lead to multiple challenges, including increased negative student evaluations of teaching.

Which relational teaching behaviors were most prevalent in the study?

Encouraging participation and having a relaxed body position were most prevalent among instructors with typically high course evaluation ratings.

How were relational teaching behaviors linked to student evaluations?

The study found correlations where instructors with the highest scores were more likely to make eye contact and to smile, indicating relational behaviors may influence students’ perceptions of teaching quality.

Oct 15, 2026

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