Teachers of students with externalising behaviour problems experience stress and find it difficult to be emotionally supportive to these students. Teachers also have difficulty to relate to these student and to implement adequate strategies to teach these students (Spilt & Koomen, 2009). Because of new legislation that promotes inclusive learning environments and places higher demands on teachers, supporting teachers is important. In other countries in Europe and the world teachers’ professionalism is also a key issue.

Recent observational research shows that interactions with children with externalising behaviour were less supportive, warm and positive, more defensive, unfriendly and sombre than interactions with children without externalising behaviour (Roorda, Koomen, Spilt, Thijs, & Oort, 2013). Such interactions may in turn have negative consequences for the child’s behavioural development, which may result in a vicious cycle of dysfunctional interaction patterns. Teachers often develop a conflictual relationship with students with externalising behaviour problems (Mashburn, Hamre, Downer, & Pianta, 2006; Spilt, Koomen & Thijs, 2011).

For students, a conflictual teacher-student relationship lead to more behaviour problems, lower academic achievement and social competence (Hester e.a., 2004). For teachers a conflictual relationship may lead to stress, burn-out symptoms and absenteeism (Mashburn et al., 2006; Spilt, Koomen & Thijs, 2011). A close relationship between teacher and student prevents teachers from leaving their job (Spilt, Koomen, & Thijs, 2011). Moreover, a close teacher-student relationship benefits students’ academic achievement, reduces externalising behaviour and increases social competence (Roorda, Koomen, Spilt, & Oort, 2013). An intervention focusing on improving the teacher-student relationship may promote the development of a close, non-conflictual relationship between teacher and a student with externalizing behaviour problems.

To improve the teacher-student relationship we developed an intervention called Multi-Method Coaching. MMC is partly based on the conceptual model for teacher-student relationships by Pianta, Hamre and Stuhlman (2003). They describe four components of the teacher-student relationship: teacher and student features (gender, temperament and personality), perceptions and beliefs about the relationship, information exchange processes or interaction patterns, and external influences. It is important to focus on mental representation of the relationship and interaction patterns between teacher and student. An intervention focussed on these components is most likely to improve the teacher student relationship, teachers’ sense of self efficacy and reduce teachers’ burn-out symptoms. MMC consist of three different methods; relationship-focused reflection program (RFRP-program), developed by Spilt, Koomen, Thijs & Van der Leij (2012), Video Coaching (Fukkink, Trienekens, & Kramer, 2011), and Synchronous Video Coaching (Coninx, Kreijns, & Jochems, 2012). Effects of this intervention are studied in the Key2Teach Study.

The main aim of the Key2Teach study is to investigate whether Multi-Method Coaching (MMC) of teachers has a positive effect on teacher-student relationships, teacher and student outcomes. The focus for the presentation will be on the methodology and the results of MMC on teacher-student relationship. The main research question is: Does MMC have a positive effect on teacher-student relationship, focussing on mental representation of the relationship and interaction patterns between teacher and student?

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