“Teachers through children’s eyes”: A mixed-methods study on children’s likes, dislikes, and the factors shaping teacher-student relationships in Ghana“

Framed within Attachment Theory, this study investigates how children in Ghana perceive their teachers, exploring both positive and negative sentiments, and predictors of children’s liking for a particular teacher. Data were collected from 4,186 children aged 8 to 17 through a cross-sectional mixed-methods design. The findings reveal that 86.3% of respondents reported having a particular teacher they liked, with factors such as kindness, effective teaching, and fairness contributing to positive perceptions. Negative sentiments arose from excessive punishment, unfriendliness, and unprofessional behaviour, which hindered secure attachments and led to disengagement. Age, educational level, religion, and region were significant predictors of children liking a particular teacher. Children in SHS and higher education (aOR = 0.61; 95% CI = 0.38–0.99) were less likely to like a particular teacher. The study highlights the importance of nurturing positive teacher-student interactions to enhance educational outcomes and emotional well-being of learners.