Chapter 1: Leveraging Affection: Embedded Tensions in a Teacher’s Relationships With Students

This article presents a case study of one high school teacher of English for speakers of other languages and how he conceptualizes and enacts relationships with his students. It explores themes of affection and leverage along with the tensions that exist between these vastly different aspects of the teacher-student relationship. It proposes care ethics as a framework that can help resolve these tensions by centering the student’s perspective on the needs that should be prioritized.