Error management behavior in classrooms: Teachers' responses to student mistakes

Only a few studies have focused on how teachers deal with mistakes in actual classroom settings. Teachers' error management behavior was analyzed based on data obtained from direct (Study 1) and videotaped systematic observation (Study 2), and students' self-reports. In Study 3 associations between students' and teachers' attitudes towards mistakes and their impact on students' domain specific emotions were investigated. Together, the presented studies contribute to the understanding of the interplay between teachers' everyday instructional routines surrounding mistakes and students' beliefs about (learning from) errors. The findings also emphasize the relevance of how students perceive their teachers' attitudes towards mistakes.

► Observational data and questionnaires are combined to investigate error climate. ► Classroom routines are dominated by adaptive error management behavior. ► Only few interactions include emphasizing mistakes as learning opportunities. ► More maladaptive patterns of mistake-handling activities in mathematics were found. ► Teachers' dealing with errors influences students' error attitudes and emotions.