Too High? Teacher Expectations and their (Curvi)linear Associations with Students’ School Engagement, Academic Achievement, and School Performance Pressure

Higher teacher expectations are generally linked to higher school engagement and achievement. This study tested whether overestimation could also have negative effects. We examined (curvi)linear associations between teacher expectations (relative to actual achievement) at the start of the school year and students’ engagement, achievement, and school performance pressure at year-end. Participants were 716 upper primary school students (Mage = 9.72, 46.5% girls) and 45 teachers. Multilevel analyses showed that teachers tended to overestimate their students’ future achievement. Overestimation was greater for boys and higher-SES students at the individual level and, at the class level, in classrooms with more students from minoritized ethnic backgrounds. We mostly found linear associations indicating that overestimation was positively related to engagement and achievement. However, a curvilinear effect emerged indicating that both under- and overestimation were associated with higher performance pressure. Overall, findings suggest that especially underestimation, but also overestimation can have adverse effects on students.