The Influence of Educator-Student Relationships on Academic Outcomes in Indian Higher Education Institutions

Description

Kinnarie Singh (Institute of Banking Personnel Management (IBPS), Mumbai, Maharashtra)

Student-teacher relationships are increasingly recognized as a key factor in students’ academic motivation, participation, and educational attainment in higher education institutions (HEIs). This literature review examines Indian research and chronicles the nature, quality, and impact of such relationships within HEIs, including culturally unique dynamics such as the guru-shishya tradition, mentorship practices, and relationship pedagogy. Findings from various studies indicate that positive, trusting, and supportive relationships with teachers lead to improved academic performance, student satisfaction, class participation, and resilience, particularly among socioeconomically disadvantaged students. Deficient or transactional relationships, in addition to faculty shortages, heavy student-to-faculty ratios, and low contact hours, however, hamper learning achievements. The review also identifies areas in the current research where the gaps lie, including the absence of consideration of which aspects of relations are most effective, insufficient investigation of moderating variables such as socio-economic status and institution type, and absence of intervention studies that assess scalable methods for creating educator-student relationships. In summary, the review emphasizes the importance of relational practices within Indian HEIs and believes that institutional policies and faculty development programs on mentorship, emotional support, and relational pedagogy can enhance students’ academic performance and all-round development.