Student Climate, Teacher Self-Efficacy, and Student Engagement: Direct and Indirect Associations with Social-Emotional Learning

Drawing on data from 794 teachers, 1,236 classrooms and 7,978 students (51.1% male) in Brazilian public schools, this study examined relationships between teacher-perceived student climate, engagement, teacher self-efficacy (TSE) and social-emotional learning (SEL). Path analysis and multilevel structural equation modeling indicated that teacher perceptions of student climate were strongly associated with teacher-perceptions of student engagement, which in turn was associated with both teacher- and student-rated SEL. TSE was associated with engagement and teacher-reported SEL outcomes but not with student-reported SEL outcomes, thus highlighting student engagement as a key classroom process through which climate and TSE become consequential for SEL. The implications of these findings for teacher education, professional learning, and future research are discussed.