Hammond argues for learning partnerships, which she defines as an academic and emotional partnership that teachers form with students, pillared upon three components: rapport, alliance, and cognitive insight. These three components work together as a formula, in which rapport added to alliance results in greater cognitive insight. These learning partnerships are more than friendly relationships; the goal is to promote higher order thinking and academic development by means of a productive, trusting relationship. In fact, Hammond refers to relationships as the “cornerstone of culturally responsive teaching” (87).

Hammond encourages teachers to intentionally discover what the state of rapport is within their classrooms. She suggests following a series of specific steps to gain a better understanding of the relationships being established between teachers and students. The first step involves identifying a specific student to cultivate a better relationship within the classroom context. The second step consists of using honest reflection to assess the quality of the relationship with the student identified in the previous step. Another step is to create a system where intentional listening and observing the focal student becomes regular practice. The subsequent steps involve tracking data that will serve to improve the quality of the relationship.