Parental Trust in Teachers and Children’s Interest in Reading and Math: A Longitudinal Study

Abstract

This study investigated cross-lagged associations between parental trust in a child’s teacher and children’s academic interest across Grades 1–4 in primary school. Parents rated trust in their child’s teacher, and 576 children reported their interest in reading and math at each grade. The results showed that high parental trust in a child’s teacher predicted the child’s high interest in math. In addition, the child’s high interest in reading in Grade 2 was related to the father’s subsequent trust in the teacher.