The purpose of this study was to assess the changes induced in a regular classroom by the presence of a troubled child. In the course of the study, by focusing on the troubled child and their teachers and other pupils and investigating interactions between these three groups, some characteristics of their relationships were revealed. We conducted a quantitative analysis of the utterances of teachers and children in the class, as well as an interpretive analysis highlighting characteristic

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... ctions in the class. Thus, we were able to demonstrate the following. Through a comparison of teachers' utterances directed to the focus child with those directed to other children in the class, it was found that about one-quarter of the teacher's comments were directed to the focus child. Given this result, we suggested that the teacher might be having a special relationship with the focus child. In addition, through interpretive analysis of the interactions between the focus child, teacher, and other children in the classroom, we identified two different situations of interest : a "playing situation," which was not related to the learning of the focus child, and a "learning situation," which was concentrated on the learning of other children. We suggest that the teacher employed these two situations intentionally to ensure the progress of the class and alternated between them, with the "playing situation" being used, in particular, for the focus child.