Spotlights

[Research News] Effect of Teachers' Responses to School Bell on Social Tension in Classroom Interactions

A new study indicates that teachers can enforce social tightness through deliberate and defined responses to the school bell

A recent study by Associate Professor Mika Ishino found that teachers’ non-verbal behaviors play an important role in shaping social tension within the classroom. When a teacher responded to the school bell with controlled, deliberate actions and encouraged students to do the same, a norm of social “tightness” was reinforced. In contrast, more spontaneous and unstructured responses to the bell signaled that social “looseness” was acceptable. These findings suggest that teachers can influence the level of social tension expected from students through their responses to routine classroom cues such as the school bell.

Reference
Ishino, M. (2026). Body, podium, school bell: devices for establishing a social tension at the pre-opening of the classroom interaction, Linguistics and Education　(Volume 93).
DOI 10.1016/j.linged.2026.101514

For more details, please see the website of Organization for Research Initiatives and Development, Doshisha University. 
https://research.doshisha.ac.jp/news/news-detail-94/

This achievement has also been featured in the “EurekAlert!.”
https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1120853

Image title: Comparison of the two teachers’ classes at the beginning of greetings
Image caption: Researcher reveals that social tension in the opening phase of a lesson depends on the teacher’s response to the school bell. The teacher on the left continued to do her work as the bell rang, stopping later to greet students, indicating the opening phase as relatively a “loose occasion.” The teacher on the right stopped his work immediately as the bell rang, and gave students repeated prompts to stand straight and face him, indicating the opening phase as a “tight occasion.” 
Image credit: Dr. Mika Ishino from Doshisha University, Japan
Image source link:  https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0898589826000239?via%3Dihub  
License type: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
Usage restrictions: Credit must be given to the creator. Only noncommercial uses of the work are permitted. No derivatives or adaptations of the work are permitted.