معرفی
Kristi Palk is a Research Fellow in Educational Science at the Institute of Education, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Tartu. She holds a part-time position (0.30 FTE) with contracts spanning from 2022 to 2025. Her academic work focuses on teacher-student relationships, student feedback systems, and digital learning materials in educational contexts.
Her educational background includes:
- PhD studies in Educational Science at the University of Tartu (2019-present), researching "Teacher-student relationships in class" under supervisors Liina Lepp and Äli Leijen
- Master's Degree in Teacher Education (cum laude) from the University of Tartu (2018-2019)
- Master's Degree in Educational Management from the University of Tartu (2015-2018)
Kristi Palk's research interests center around educational dynamics between teachers and students. She has conducted significant work on how teachers perceive and utilize student feedback for their professional development, as well as how digital learning materials impact teaching and learning in Estonian basic education. Her research bridges theoretical educational frameworks with practical classroom applications, particularly focusing on communication patterns and relationship building in educational settings. She has contributed to major research projects like DigiEfekt, which examined the effects of digital learning materials on education.
Her publications demonstrate a consistent focus on teacher-student interactions, with recent work (2024-2025) expanding into instrument development and validation for measuring these interactions. Her research trajectory shows progression from examining teacher attitudes toward feedback (2018) to developing assessment tools (2024) and exploring positive relationship dynamics in teacher training contexts (2025).
Kristi Palk has been involved in the DigiEfekt project (2020-2023), a significant 300,000 EUR initiative funded by the Estonian Ministry of Education and Research, which examined the impact of digital learning materials on teaching and learning in Estonian basic education. As a member of this project team led by Margus Pedaste, she contributed to research that informs educational policy and practice in Estonia.
While her current position is research-focused, her background includes practical teaching experience as a physics teacher at Lähte Ühisgümnaasium (2018-2021) and Tartu Descartes Lyceum (2014-2015), providing her with valuable classroom insights that inform her research.