Education Commons^™

The Teaching Alliance As A Framework For Advancing A Relationally Oriented And Jesuit Inspired Teaching And Research Agenda, Fernando Estrada

Journal of Catholic Education

While the interpersonal relationship between the student and teacher is important for learning, the quality of the student-teacher relationship in higher education and its effects on learning is understudied. Striving to enliven this area of study is the concept of the teaching alliance as understood through Jesuit tradition. The alliance defines the quality of the student-teacher relationship as the degree of shared agreement over the goals and tasks of a course, as well as the presence of a positive interpersonal bond. Through an Ignatian lens, this framework brings to focus themes in teaching that can bolster learning. An illustrative example …