Teachers’ Experiences in Building Responsive Pedagogical Interactions toward Students’ Psychological Well-Being Challenges

The increasing psychological well-being challenges faced by students at the junior secondary education level, particularly in urban school contexts, require teachers to move beyond an exclusive focus on academic achievement and to develop responsive pedagogical interactions that address students’ emotional needs. This study aims to explore teachers’ experiences in building responsive pedagogical interactions toward students’ psychological well-being challenges and to identify the strategies, dynamics, and constraints encountered in everyday classroom practice. A qualitative approach with an interpretative phenomenological design was employed. Data were collected through semi-structured in-depth interviews and classroom observations involving eight public junior secondary school teachers in Jakarta, Indonesia, The data were analyzed using thematic analysis to identify patterns of meaning and key themes emerging from teachers’ lived experiences. The findings reveal that teachers develop responsive pedagogical interactions through enhanced emotional awareness, empathetic communication, instructional flexibility, and the creation of psychologically safe classroom environments.