UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Trust doesn’t automatically exist between students and educators. Educators can help build that trust by showing students they care about them as individuals, treating them with respect, communicating openly, following through on commitments and creating opportunities for genuine dialogue, according to new research led by Penn State.

Published in the Journal of Youth Development, the research examined how educators can build trust with students, particularly in environments where trust is low, to support meaningful student voice — the practice of engaging students as active partners in shaping their learning experiences and school communities.

For years, Dana Mitra, professor of education policy studies at Penn State, has studied student voice and its connection to improved engagement and academic outcomes. In this study, rather than asking whether student voice benefits students, Mitra and her collaborators asked a different question: How can educators build meaningful student voice when trust doesn’t already exist?

To answer that question, the research team surveyed more than 1,700 middle and high school students in a large Nevada school district with established student voice initiatives. Student interviews, focus groups and classroom observations were conducted in person, while some follow-up interviews with teachers were conducted via Zoom.

The researchers combined data from student surveys and from interviews, focus groups and classroom observations. This allowed the team to explore not only whether students viewed trust as important, but also what educators did to earn that trust.

“What was exciting about this project was that we saw something happening in the data,” Mitra said. “That helped us understand not only that trust matters, but how it develops.”

The team found that students do not automatically trust teachers simply because they are adults or authority figures. Instead, many young people actively evaluate whether educators are trustworthy, particularly in schools where students may have experienced bias, instability or other adverse experiences.

“They’re asking themselves, ‘Is this someone I can trust?’” Mitra said. “Students are paying attention to how adults respond to them, whether they genuinely care about them as people and whether they consistently follow through on what they say.”

The researchers identified two broad characteristics that students consistently associated with trustworthy educators: care and respect.

Care included making one-on-one connections with students, taking an interest in their lives beyond academics and recognizing that their identities, experiences and circumstances outside the classroom can affect their experiences in school. Students said educators demonstrated respect through transparency, reliability, adaptability and opportunities for genuine dialogue rather than one-way communication.

Together, those findings provide educators with a practical framework for intentionally building trust before expecting students to become meaningful partners in their education, Mitra said.

“What we found is that the real benefits don’t simply come from giving students choices,” Mitra said. “They come from conversation — asking students how they’re learning, inviting feedback about classroom practices and engaging students as partners in the learning process.”

That kind of partnership requires trust on both sides, she added. Teachers must feel comfortable inviting honest feedback, while students must believe their perspectives will be heard, respected and acted upon.

Researchers also found that intentionally building trust can be especially important in schools serving students who have experienced discrimination, violence or other forms of adversity. In those settings, Mitra said, students may approach relationships with caution, making trust-building particularly important before meaningful collaboration can occur.

Building on the research, Mitra and her collaborators are now seeking support to develop professional learning resources, classroom strategies and training that help educators intentionally build trust and implement student voice practices in schools.

“We have proof of concept from these studies,” Mitra said. “Now, we’re using those principles to build a model that schools can use to put them into practice.”

Mitra said she hopes the work encourages educators and policymakers to view students not simply as recipients of instruction, but as teammates in creating stronger learning environments.

“Viewing students as partners in learning and teaching can lead to stronger outcomes,” she said. “When students feel trusted and respected, they’re more likely to engage, contribute and help build the kinds of schools where everyone can succeed.”

The research was co-authored by Ghadir Al Saghir, a doctoral candidate in educational theory and policy at Penn State; Ashley Boat, research associate at the University of Minnesota Center for Applied Research and Educational Improvement; Jerusha O. Conner, professor of education at Villanova University; and Samantha Holquist, director of research engagement at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

The research was supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.