Om den pedagogiska relationens gränser

Relationskompetens i gränslandet mellan närhet och distans

Abstract

A growing body of research reveals that a supportive, positive teacher-student relationship is an important element of successful education. From a Nordic perspective, a lot of research has explored teachers´ relational competence as a central part of teacher professionalism. The discourse focuses on the concept of relationship, and thereby also on the quality of closeness, i.e. on a close connection between teacher and student. This article aims at contributing to the field by conceptualizing relational competence in terms of both closeness and distance. The discussion is supported by three theories, Martin Buber´s, Thomas Ziehe´s and Gert Biesta´s, in which the relationship between the two poles is problematized and elucidated. The article proposes that relational competence should be located in the interface between closeness and distance, i.e. that it is rather is about developing a well differentiated- than a close relationship to the student.