If we teach today as we taught yesterday, we rob our children of tomorrrow. -John Dewey
“What the hell is taking you so long Joe!?!” I heard that phrase so much all growing up. I heard it from my parents, my siblings, and in a more professional tone, from my teachers. I heard it so much that for years I doubted everything I was doing, which of course ultimately caused me to be more hesitant in anything and everything that I would do. I was honestly scared to be given tasks because of how this simple phrase ripped me apart on the inside. I remember every time I heard this I would shut down, and once again, insults would fly like a Hollywood version of a drill sergeant towards me, as if I would magically know exactly what to do with precise rigor and stamina with flawless precision because of it. Honestly, I don’t think I will ever get over this.
“We are implanting the notion that if it isn’t perfect then they are not perfect.”
Looking in our classrooms, this is a common theme. Our intentions are to give the very best to our students, drive them to excel at the highest level and have them reach their dreams of success. Take a moment though and kindly put yourself in these students minds. We are implanting the notion that if it isn’t perfect then they are not perfect. If they don’t meet our expectations, then they have lost. If, if, if. We are setting our students up as cattle, and we are unintentionally thinning the herd from the very beginning of whom can reach these high rigor/stamina expectations, in turn quickly labeling who is a “good” student and who is a “bad” student. This ultimately spirals to “bad” student falling further behind, and “good” student excel on the path laid out for them. This, my friends, is crap.
“They just never figured it out.”
We all do it, and anyone that says that they do not, I question their argument. First, we as teachers are giving unreasonable expectations simply by being held accountable for our given standardized tests. Second, this brings the pressure upon our shoulders which slowly consume us more and more, festering throughout the school year, which becomes more reflective towards our attitudes to our own students. Lastly, teachers slowly start to separate the “good” and the “bad” students to increase their likeliness and reaching high marks on those stupid tests. Well, subconsciously the teachers, the administration and the parents figured it out; thin the herd and put your best dollar on the “good” student(s), and we move on. Sure we all hope the best for the “bad” student, and say things like, “If they only tried.” or, “They just never figured it out.”
At the core of this we have a few different variables that need to be taken into account if we want to at the very least begin a discussion about this plague of disproportional processing taken place from kindergarten and throughout our students’ academic careers.
“Figuring it out can actually be effective if done correctly.”
First, students will not figure anything out just because you magically put an expectation for them to know it and move on. There are countless journals and scholarly articles referencing the fragile psyche of a child from infant, adolescent and young adult. They are literally forming their own perceptions throughout this point of their world, their community and most importantly perceptions of themselves. We must take care of this fragile merchandise because it can literally be damaged for the rest of their lives.
Second, students come with instructions, but children do not. We are taught, trained, trialed and tested on the expectations of what it means to be a student and a teacher. We are taught to see our students as data numbers, and how to interpret this data to best quantify the data to meet the needs of the standardized test. All while we are going through this process, we slowly forget that these students are more than just numbers, they are children. Even a teenager is still a child. Very few teachers/adults will have the experience of working with extremely gifted students at such a young age, but we should not set the expectation level to be so unattainable that our children either will try and slowly chip away at their confidence or won’t try and be quickly labeled.
Lastly, we are with our students a lot, but not 100% of the time. There are so many variables in here that we could literally write a book about it (if someone hasn’t already!). Hunger, sleeplessness, crying siblings, deaths, break-ups, foreclosure, moving, and on and on we could list all of the numerous factors that can affect these students. Literally, all of these things have happened to a couple of my students in the same year, yet they were still expected to meet their goals and be proficient on their standardized tests. It is disgusting and unacceptable to me that they will only be marked as a number.
I’m not going to sit here and tell any of you that there is a magic potion so that all of our students are going to be proficient in all of their standardized tests, or even a way to meet all of our expectations. I will tell you though, a few simple techniques to allow the students’ to regain their perception in a positive tone.
Figuring it out can actually be effective if done correctly. Allowing the students opportunities to use trial-and-error, allowing them to stumble, allowing them to build off of their failures and success, and most importantly allowing them to set their own expectations can turn that “bad” student, not into a perfect little angel, but better. Given them the power to be a part of their own accomplishments increases their intrinsic motivation, which in turn increases their self-efficacy. With this, you have created a student with drive and determination to achieve. Set tasks for students to explore and tap into their own natural inquiry in whatever the subject may be will allow the student to feel safe to explore their own mental universe and reach for further insight. These are qualities that will last in one’s character for life in any profession.
Mixing the “good” and the “bad” students is a win for both students. There are numerous research articles supporting the power of peer-to-peer interactions within the classroom. They will build on self-confidence, cooperative learning styles, collaboration, and reflective feedback to one another. This will help in all aspects of their life as they get older.
Lastly, not all students finish at the same time, be patient. Do not lambaste students for not doing things according to your timetable, work with theirs. If you want quality work, then the student should deserve the opportunity to give quality based on their timetable. Not all students will be able to rush through quickly and give you their best. Remember, they are children first and students second. They will get faster as time moves on and with practice; you just have to be patient. I have experienced far to many older students that simply will not start a project because of years of incomplete assignments because they didn’t have enough time. Over the years they learned that giving nothing is the same grade as giving something, and nothing is a lot easier to do.
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