Importance of student-teacher relationships

Two studies point to the power of student-teacher relationships to boost learning: http://hechingerreport.org/two-studies-point-to-the-power-of-teacher-student-relationships-to-boost-learning/
This article compares two studies, one on "platooning", teachers specializing in a subject area, and "looping", students staying with the same teacher for two school years.  The conclusion of the comparison is that students learn better when the teacher knows them and that looping is therefore more beneficial.