Research highlights < Interactive teacher characteristics, such as social congruence, subject-matter expertise, and cognitive congruence, significantly influence the level of students’ situational interest in the active-learning classroom; < Cognitive congruence is the most significant predictor of situational interest; < Overall, teachers play an influential role in increasing students’ situational interest in the active-learning classroom. Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Teaching and Teacher Education journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/tate 0742-051X/$ e see front matter Ó 2010 Published by Elsevier Ltd. doi:10.1016/j.tate.2010.06.025 Teaching and Teacher Education xxx (2010) 1 TATE1460_grabs ■ 14 July 2010 ■ 1/1 Please cite this article in press as: Rotgans, J. I., Schmidt, H. G., The role of teachers in facilitating situational interest in an active-learning classroom, Teaching and Teacher Education (2010), doi:10.1016/j.tate.2010.06.025 1 2 3 4