Associations between student-perceived teaching quality and students’ mathematics confidence and mathematics achievement
A study of Swedish grade 4 TIMSS 2019
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 9894810 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Lena Asp (0000-0003-2586-1651, University of Gothenburg, corresponding author), Alli Klapp (0000-0001-8818-0947, University of Gothenburg), Victoria Rolfe (0000-0001-8176-6718, University of Gothenburg) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 54 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Publication date | 2026-06-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Instructional Science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0020-4277 • E-ISSN: 1573-1952 |
| Publisher | Springer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1007/s11251-025-09767-y |
| OpenAlex | W7125436212 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 52 |
Students’ socioeconomic background is a strong predictor of academic achievement. Likewise, teaching quality is considered an important prerequisite influencing students’ educational opportunities and their academic achievement and affective outcomes. Empirically, there is still a need for research on these presumed relations. Especially on the associations between younger students’ perceptions of teaching quality and students’ mathematics achievement and mathematics confidence. Drawing theoretically on educational effectiveness research, this study investigated relationships between aspects of teaching quality (classroom management and instructional clarity) and mathematics achievement and mathematics confidence. These relationships were explored in a secondary analysis of students’ perceptions of their teacher’s activities and instructions as indicators of teaching quality. The rationale is that students experience and perceive the teacher’s actions in the classroom, and they may be influenced differently. Aggregating students’ perceptions at the classroom level will decrease the bias of individual ratings. The sample comprised grade four data from the Swedish 2019 cycle of the IEA Trends in Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) ( N = 3,965). Multilevel structural equation modelling was used to keep classroom variation separate from individual variation when exploring associations between classroom management and instructional clarity and mathematics achievement, and mathematics confidence. Results showed that at the classroom level, mathematics achievement is strongly related to aggregated classroom management. At the individual level, classroom management was associated significantly with mathematics achievement, and instructional clarity with mathematics confidence. Additionally, teaching quality could be beneficial for students with lower SES backgrounds, as findings indicated an achievement gap between classrooms in Sweden. Limitations and implications are discussed
Academic achievement · CLARITY · Educational psychology · Multilevel model · Multilevel modelling · Perception · Quality (philosophy) · Socioeconomic status · Education, Achievement, and Giftedness · Parental Involvement in Education · School Choice and Performance
Visible Learning and the Science of How We Learn
Student-perceived teaching quality
Generic dimensions of teaching quality
Student and teacher ratings of instructional quality
Reciprocal Effects of Self-Concept and Performance From a Multidimensional Perspective
Effective classroom management and the development of subject-related interest
Academic Self-Concept, Interest, Grades, and Standardized Test Scores
Student ratings of teaching quality in primary school
Socioeconomic Status and Academic Achievement
Positive attitudes towards mathematics and science are mutually beneficial for student achievement
Don’t blame the teacher? The need to account for classroom characteristics in evaluations of teaching quality
Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being
Exploring international gender differences in mathematics self-concept
Consistency of results regarding teacher effects across subjects, school levels, outcomes and countries
What matters for student learning outcomes
Conceptualization, Measurement, and Improvement of Classroom Processes
The "What" and "Why" of Goal Pursuits
Life-span development of self-esteem and its effects on important life outcomes
Instructional clarity and classroom management are linked to attitudes towards mathematics
| Highly cited | No |
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