Tag: students

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Pass or Fail: Preparing Teachers, Parents and Administrators for Multi-Age Classrooms

pass or fail

In this multi-part series, I provide a dissection of the phenomenon of retention and social promotion. Also, I describe the many different methods that would improve student instruction in classrooms and eliminate the need for retention and social promotion if combined effectively.

While reading this series, periodically ask yourself this question: Why are educators, parents and the American public complicit in a practice that does demonstrable harm to children and the competitive future of the country?

Any large change in K-12 education in America will need backing from teachers and parents.

Both of these stakeholders tend to lack full understanding of the multi-age education, though. Parents often express resistance when faced with the possibility of switching to a multi-age classroom. Teachers also tend to indicate that they have not received adequate training to be confident teaching multi-age groups. The two problems tend to go hand in hand, and parents also worry about the multi-age environment because of the potential issues with instruction quality.

Parent education and teacher education are thus two crucial components of a successful multi-age classroom system, especially one on the scale envisaged here; one that will replace the graded approach and, among other things, remove grade retention and social promotion from the American public-education system.

The processes for parent and teacher education are different, and the focus of the education must likewise be different. Parent educa­tion and teacher preparation are essential but must, to be effective, target the respective groups independently. Parents must be educated about the multi-age classroom and its benefits and challenges from an educational perspective. They must receive information and support to help them understand not only what the benefits and challenges are, but also what the process will be for the implementation of a multi-age classroom.

It is necessary to make sure that parents have the opportunity to be involved in the process of reviewing implementation plans for establishing multi-age classrooms as the standard for education in America’s public schools. Furthermore, the elements of curriculum and teacher training and support should be understood by parents. Parents must be reassured that teachers will be able to meet the needs of all students.

It has been stated that age-balanced classrooms containing students of a similar level cannot be achieved easily if parents do not fully understand and support the philosophy it depends on upon, and this should also be a consideration in the implementation of a multi-age strategy.

Teachers, for their part, must be educated and prepared to manage multi-age classrooms and given intensive support to maintain an appropriate level of professional development over time. It is not enough to promise that there will be support available. The support must be in place and made use of effectively. Honesty and accountability are key factors.

As in any other educational environment, students may not enjoy optimal benefits from multi-age classrooms if teachers cannot implement best practices. In this instance, students may not enjoy the benefits of the educational model if teachers don’t have the ability to put differentiated instruc­tional strategies, environments, and assess­ments in place. Offering professional-development workshops on multi-age edu­cation and supporting differentiated instruction for teachers, as well as providing detailed information for parents, can help students implement multi-age programs successfully.

Learning from both current and past issues, alignment of the multi-age program with curriculum must be emphasized at all points of contact. Multi-age classrooms are often not aligned with graded and curriculum-centered educational agendas in the United States, and this contributes to the challenges of making the necessary shift.  One of the greatest difficulties for administrators looking to implement the multi-age pro­gram in traditionally organized schools is that they have to operate two different programs in one school or have to operate a program that is incompatible with the legal state and federal requirements of accountability.

Administrators, like parents and teachers, must be supported to make the shift and go beyond what has been acceptable in the past, in a bid to “make room” for multi-age classrooms. Whereas school administrators have gone about creating space for multi-age classrooms in the past, trying to force them into what already exists, administrators must instead be supported in creating multi-age classrooms that exist outside the graded system. Based on research, some of which is mentioned above, there is little argument that multi-age classrooms cannot fit within the traditional graded school system. To make multi-age classrooms benefi­cial to all students, administrators should envision the classrooms as a “school within a school.”

School administrators must do more than apply multi-age education as a quick-fix solution for the underserved or for those who are not succeeding in the traditional classroom. Multi-age classrooms should not be used as a dumping ground but should be considered, as part of an established multi-age program, to be something more substantial. Indeed, administrators must essentially revise their thinking to ensure that multi-age classrooms are seen as the best option for providing students with an excellent education.

Finally, there is the problem of federal and state accountabif5lity and how the existing systems of accountability depend on standards, assessments, and school performance accountability. Creating a K-12 education system that emphasizes the achievement of all students and the academic, social, and emotional development of students is crucial, but also something that cannot be rushed. The accountability issues currently manifest as supports for a system that emphasizes the achievement of the “bubble kids,” or stu­dents just below the passing rates or cut scores on standardized testing.

Of course, there should be an emphasis on students who are on the outside of the distribution of abilities, whereas the current emphasis is at the expense of students in these bounds. The lowest achievers and high-ability students don’t have a place with the current model, and creativity and innovation, of course, are lost in the drive to have students demonstrate a level of minimum competency.

Shifting to multi-age classrooms should also concentrate on this notion of providing individual students with access to challenging but developmentally appropriate instruction. More than this, though, there should be a clear effort to embrace the potential for creative and innovative learning. The opportunities for this learning and the obvious need for it should be emphasized as one of the principal reasons for the shift to multi-age classrooms.

The need to embrace the true principles of education is central to all the benefits, challenges, and subsequent recommendations for multi-age classroom development and management.

 

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Pass or Fail: An Ideal Multi-Age Classroom

pass or fail

In this multi-part series, I provide a dissection of the phenomenon of retention and social promotion. Also, I describe the many different methods that would improve student instruction in classrooms and eliminate the need for retention and social promotion if combined effectively.

While reading this series, periodically ask yourself this question: Why are educators, parents and the American public complicit in a practice that does demonstrable harm to children and the competitive future of the country?

Obviously a multi-age classroom has children of different ages – but other than that factor, what would an ideal multi-age classroom look like?

The often idealized model – the model that is more specifically targeted to educational outcomes and the developmental benefit of the child – concentrates on creating a diverse but balanced grouping of students of mixed ages and mixed abilities. In the most idealized model, the notion of having mixed abilities also extends to including both children who are gifted and those with special needs in the classroom at a ratio that promotes mainstream inclusion.

The theory behind this is that there are tremendous benefits to a social and natural setting that is enhanced with these levels of diversity (based on age as well as ability). Specifically, these types of multi-age classrooms can help to improve or otherwise enhance the social and emotional skills of students.

Some research on early childhood multi-age grouping has shown that stu­dent disobedience is much less common in multi-age groupings compared to single-age classrooms. Higher language development has also been noted in multi-age groupings compared to single-age classrooms. It is thought that this is because there is more language exchange among mixed-age children.

Research conducted in the 1960s demonstrated that there were significant gains in reading and language-skills areas for students in multi-age classrooms, especially compared to peers in single-age classrooms. Although there is little recent research to replicate these findings, some recent studies have targeted multi-age classrooms. These studies showed evidence of higher and faster cognitive development for those in multi-age classrooms compared to those in single-age classrooms.

Other research has found that the first day of school is far more relaxed and comfortable for students and teachers in multi-age classrooms in elementary schools. The pressures are lower, for two reasons. First, the environment is familiar to a portion of the student population. Second, the teacher is familiar with the students and, in the case of a teacher who has been in the same position for some time, with the process of managing the classroom and integrating new students moving forward. Student worries about grade retention or social promotion – a major source of anxiety for many students – are not applicable in the multi-age classroom, and thus the classroom is less stressful than its multi-age counterpart.

A key advantage of the multi-age classroom is that it lets students learn at an individualized pace, working to reach their full potential but in their own time. Teachers often tend to have more motivation to focus on the progress of individual students within the multi-age classroom. This focus is better supported in the multi-age environment, especially as an alternative to moving through textbooks or working on a rigid schedule, as so many teachers must of necessity do in a single-age classroom.

The student-centered, project-based learning environment is more likely to emerge when there is this kind of motivation and focus. Students of different levels are better able to pay attention to individual projects. The underlying curriculum can be designed to challenge the knowledge and abilities of the individual student. Work can be more easily designed to challenge specific knowledge and abilities with the student-centered, project-based approach, especially when compared to the common curriculum.

With the right approach, multi-age classrooms can meet the needs of each student in them and help break the unhelpful cycle of social promotion and retention.

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Pass or Fail: How Did We Get to This Assessment Place?

pass or fail

In this multi-part series, I provide a dissection of the phenomenon of retention and social promotion. Also, I describe the many different methods that would improve student instruction in classrooms and eliminate the need for retention and social promotion if combined effectively.

While reading this series, periodically ask yourself this question: Why are educators, parents and the American public complicit in a practice that does demonstrable harm to children and the competitive future of the country?

When it comes to assessing what students have learned, there is a mixed review from educators. A few view the current way we assess students as on point, while a few others feel it’s detrimental. Most educators hang out somewhere in the middle, with an understanding that current assessments are needed, but have perhaps gone too far to the detriment of students.

How can we improve student assessment?

Let’s begin with a review of the current status of assessments, identifying exactly what types of assessments are currently used, and their strengths and weaknesses. There are numerous types of assessments employed throughout the world to assess knowledge, skills, and even fundamental intelligence. Often, though, the advertised purpose of a test is not consistent with its capacity for assessment. The Intelligence Quotient or IQ test, for instance, is supposed to gauge individual intelligence.

Proponents of the IQ test stress that it is a viable model for gauging what someone’s academic or even professional potential might be. Culturally, this is widely accepted: a high IQ score is the equivalent of confirmation that an individual will succeed academically and professionally. The reality, however, is different. The IQ test itself is not an absolute gauge of a person’s intelligence and is far from being a perfect measure of intelligence. At best, it assesses a specific kind of intelligence with a reasonable degree of accuracy: a problem-solving ability, really, or the ability to recognize patterns in problems.

Like the IQ test, many other standardized assessments set out to gauge a particular knowledge or skill. For instance, SAT and ACT tests gauge individual capacity for verbal and mathematical reasoning. At least, that is how most of us view them. However, while the SATs and ACTs test analytical skills and comprehension skills, the alignment of these elements is not necessarily effective. As most seasoned educators are aware, the limitations established by the format of these tests and the reliance upon multiple-choice responses means that there is minimal scope for assessment. Many students with excellent academic potential may not score well on these tests. Others who have a more limited aptitude may score well and find themselves in academic settings that are too demanding for their ability level.

Since different types of abilities and many different skills play a role in academic success, the focus on analytical skills measured through multiple-choice questions and the focus on math and reading comprehension is inherently limiting. These assessments often overlook written and oral communication skills. They also overlook fundamental reasoning and argumentation skills, since students are limited in the scope of their answers. Finding a solution to that, of course, is not easy but is something we’ll explore more in-depth in future posts in this series.

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Pass or Fail: Multiple Assessments to Determine True Learning

pass or fail

In this multi-part series, I provide a dissection of the phenomenon of retention and social promotion. Also, I describe the many different methods that would improve student instruction in classrooms and eliminate the need for retention and social promotion if combined effectively.

While reading this series, periodically ask yourself this question: Why are educators, parents and the American public complicit in a practice that does demonstrable harm to children and the competitive future of the country?

Student assessment is a necessary evil of the teaching profession but what is actually most effective?

Ankur Singh, formerly a student at the University of Missouri–Columbia, took an English class in his junior year of high school that influenced him profoundly.

“It was the only class I’ve ever taken where the lessons I learned will carry with me for the rest of my life, and after completion, I felt ten times smarter,” he says. The teacher focused on the development of the students’ critical-thinking skills and ensured that they were able to analyze poems and essays. He was keen to allow each student to form his or her opinions.

Because Singh loved the junior-year English class so much, he expected the college-prep AP English course he enrolled in during his senior year would be equally enjoyable. However, it turned out to be an awful experience. The critical-thinking skills he had honed the previous year were of no use in the new class; instead, the classes focused solely on preparing them for the inevitable exam. “It frustrated me to no avail, and I ended up doing very poor in AP English,” Singh says. “And I found the same thing in all of my other AP classes, which seemed more focused on college preparation and standardized tests rather than genuine learning.”

Singh began to wonder what the real purpose of education was. “All around me were students studying diligently, stressing out about their grades, homework, the ACT, college essays, AP tests. And here I was not caring about any of those things. Were there no students in this school who wanted anything more than just a college degree and a job?” He began to feel lonely, and then angry. Finally, during an AP French exam, he used the time to write a furious letter to the College Board, expressing his misgivings.

Though he expected to be reprimanded by his French teacher for writing a letter rather than taking the exam, she listened sympathetically and told him that she felt the same frustrations with the system. Though she had wanted to take the French students on field trips to a French bakery or watch a French film, she was forced to teach to the test. “Maybe if the students themselves spoke out against it,” she said, “it could all change.”

As Ankur Singh’s story demonstrates, the current model of assessments can lead to frustration in students and teachers alike. In a previous article, we outlined ways in which administrators in education might manage the hiring of qualified teachers and how they might also use the availability of qualified teachers to promote student success in the classroom. In the following articles, we will look at the use of multiple assessment measures in determining a student’s abilities and academic potential.

The basic premise of this strategy is as follows: Many states and school districts rely on large-scale assessments when making decisions about student grade progression. Despite the evidence that such assessments are not always an accurate reflection of a student’s academic abilities and despite the reality that most testing experts warn that high stakes retention or promotion decisions should never be made by a single assessment, states and school districts rely on these assessments.

How can we change the way we look at student assessments – and how can they benefit our students as a result?

 

 

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How to Help Low-Income Students Succeed

By Matthew Lynch

Students from low-income homes hit the K-12 scene at a disadvantage. Materially, they often do not have the means for the resources they need for basic classroom functions. In non-tangible ways, they often do not have the same academic support as middle- or high-income peers and know less when they arrive in Kindergarten.When parents are unable to provide for their children, that responsibility then falls on the schools and the community. Ensuring that students from low income households succeed in K-12 classrooms is multi-faceted and must include:

Physiological considerations. According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, students need to have physiological needs met before they are able to learn. If a child is hungry, he or she will focus on that fact and not on the schoolwork. Federal law allows schools to provide breakfast and lunch for students whose families meet federal poverty guidelines. The law was created in an effort to meet the biological needs of each student if the parent was unable or unwilling to provide the necessary provision. If children have all of their physical needs met, they will be more likely to succeed in school.

Safety considerations. Another need that must be met is the safety of the child. Students need to feel comfortable and safe enough to learn. Students will not be able to focus unless they feel safe in both the home and the school. When teachers become certified to teach, they become mandated reporters of child abuse. This means that a teacher who suspects abuse in the home of a student is compelled by law to report this information, using protocols established by the school and/or the district.

The main job of schools is to deliver effective instruction for student learning. If the school needs to provide some or all of the necessary physical/biological needs, it should do so. Schools should be concerned about the welfare and the safety of the children they serve. The school’s purpose in the community is to ensure that students have the support and resources they need to be successful.

It is important to realize that the schools are not required to provide said support. Schools not operating as full-service organizations should advocate for their students whenever necessary. Ruby K. Payne discusses support systems in her book A Framework for Understanding Poverty. Payne posits that students from poverty need support systems to succeed. She believes that students with the right resources and support systems can succeed even if they are living in poverty.

Why should the burden fall on schools?

Local schools are the only community-service organizations that come in contact with virtually all school-aged children in a given area. Educators and administrators are in a unique position to understand the needs of children and the communities in which they live. Teachers are among the few people who understand children’s hopes, aspirations, and impediments; however, only a small percentage of teachers take advantage of this fact.

With all the problems and the issues that our children face, we can ill afford to miss opportunities to connect with them. A strong student-teacher relationship will in turn help the teachers better educate their students. One of the keys to the teacher-student relationship is the creation of mutual trust and respect. Once students understand that their teacher trusts and respects them, they will do everything in their power to live up to the teacher’s expectations.

How to help low-income students succeed

James P. Comer, a child psychiatrist who studied students from low income neighborhoods In New Haven, Connecticut, developed the Comer Process which focuses on child development in urban schools. The Comer process is based on six interconnected pathways which lead to healthy child development and academic achievement. The pathways are physical, cognitive, psychological, language, social, and ethical.

Comer believed that the pathways should be considered a road map to a child’s successful development into adulthood. If a child’s needs are not met in one of the pathways, there will be likely difficulties in the child’s ability to achieve. Comer explained that a child could be smart, but unable to be socially successful. He wanted teachers to be aware that they should not teach for the sake of teaching, but rather to help the child learn how to negotiate life both inside and outside of the classroom.

According to Comer, if a child is intelligent but cannot socially interact, then the school system did not do its job of preparing the child for the world. The theory pushes teachers to make sure that children are developing emotionally, physically, and socially before the child can learn the school-related topics. Comer believed that children will not be functioning members of society if he or she is only successful in academic skills such as math and reading.

Comer proposed that children need a primary social network—one that includes parents, and people from the child’s school and community.  Comer emphasizes that the people in this network are concerns all needs that are part of the developmental pathways. Children who have this level of support will likely be more successful in school. This is the main premise behind Comer’s idea of letters home to the parent or caregiver. He wants to make sure that the parents and caregivers are aware of what is happening in their child’s school life so they are able to share in creating a positive experience at school.

Comer’s notion of developmental pathways is now practiced in many schools across America. In fact, there is such interest in his theory that a field guide is now available for creating school-wide interventions to help students achieve academic success. Comer’s theory is concerned with the ways in which the world is changing. He foresees children needing to have more skills and more “book smarts” than previous generations. The future adults of this society will need to be socially accepted while also being “book smart tech savvy” and multi-taskers.

Educators today should understand that when they become teachers, their duty is to advocate for not only the children in their class, but also the students in the entire school. Teachers are often the creators of grassroots advocacy organizations and coalitions. Advocacy is an essential part of a teacher’s profession. When teachers advocate for a student, their action conveys to children a message that the teacher cares about their well being and creates a positive bond between teacher and student.

photo credit: katerha via photopin cc

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Decriminalizing the Classroom: School climate Bill of Rights

**The Edvocate is pleased to publish guest posts as way to fuel important conversations surrounding P-20 education in America. The opinions contained within guest posts are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of The Edvocate or Dr. Matthew Lynch.**

A guest post by Beth Ellor

“I believe the purpose of public schools is to educate not exclude children and to help identify and meet child needs, not make children serve adult convenience, self interest, and systems.” So begins the article published in the 9/26/14 Newsletter of the Children’s Defense Fund, written by Marian Wright Edelman. Please read the entire article, here:

‘Decriminalizing School Discipline’, Marian Wright Edelman, CDF Newsletter 9/26/2014

How often do you come upon an article that precisely aligns with your values and beliefs, as well as targeting a topic that has been resonating constantly in recent weeks? As a subscriber to the Children’s Defense Fund Newsletter, this will happen more frequently – talk about children, schools, poverty, injustice and discrimination is bound to resonate with a teacher these days!

This most recent article, however, is vital to the future of our schools and of a just society. It also bears hopeful news of documented efforts being made in Los Angeles, and in other parts of the country.

Click to follow the School Climate Bill of Rights initiative in Los Angeles, ‘a package of policy changes that rolls back “zero tolerance” discipline and institutes resource-based alternatives. Introduced by LAUSD Board President Monica Garcia, it was passed by the LAUSD Board on May 14,2013.’ (from their website).

‘The School Climate Bill of Rights is a project of the Brothers, Sons, Selves Coalition, of which the Community Rights Campaign is a founding member,’ under the auspices of Liberty Hill, an L.A. organization which ‘advances social change through a strategic combination of grants, leadership training and campaigns.’ See their website here.

What is at issue here? First off, dismiss all the rhetoric about the past, and ‘the effectiveness of classes of 50 which nevertheless succeeded in graduating whole swaths of the population.’ Whatever it was like then, whatever was true or manageable then is irrelevant, because guess what, the whole social landscape has changed, and it’s not working now! Again, the seemingly condoned and unchecked tendency of schools to over-value compliance and obedience at the expense of nurturing the variety and complexity of every person who enters their doors. This doesn’t mean anarchy or the ascendance of the ‘me’ generation, but compare self-regulation to the “Whole Brain” discipline approach favored by many reform/charter schools! See a nice glitzy presentation here,

Discipline becomes the canary in the mine when you ask yourself: “What’s not working?” If so many of our students are having such a hard time participating fully in their educational experience, it’s time to stop blaming the students, their families, and/or their ethnicities and start asking why learning has become so toxic to so many of them? Ask yourself – if the Kindergarten program you are using (Core Knowledge in this case) causes some previously mellow children to hide under tables and pitch chairs and books, while alternately screaming and mumbling unintelligibly; “Uh oh, a disruption – we’ll never get done with the 25 minute direct instruction piece!” – or to cry inconsolably when they are asked to complete a page in their workbook, or scramble onto the lap of a visitor (me) and snuggle into her shoulder, trembling, is it the children we should punish (with 3-day out of school suspensions – no point in taking away recess, that was gone long ago)?

Is our only option to call the Security Guard to manhandle the 4 year old out of the room with a combination of motherly bribes and fierce threats? In upper grades, we have to find out why the required subjects are so hard/uninteresting – apart from the lack of text books and materials, the social pressures of real life, and the cumulative deficits of poor learning conditions of whatever kind. Of course it is frustrating to confront classes day after day which seem to have no interest in learning, and are routinely rude, dismissive and disruptive. Remember too that being oppositional isn’t the only way we lose kids – there’s a great deal of well-behaved boredom, obedience and lack of stimulus in classrooms across the country that manages to fly under the radar but are equally significant losses.

Hearing the descriptions of the routine ticketing of low-income minorities in Ferguson, Missouri, which lead to the issuing of bench warrants, fines, and imprisonment for non-payment of minor local ordinances created for this very purpose leads me back around to the exact same practices in schools. Once you’re singled out for any infraction, the noose simply tightens around your neck continuously. Even in elementary schools, children will tell you – “Oh, he’s bad, he don’t listen to no-one.”

The efforts described in this CDF newsletter must become the new rallying cry for our schools. These are all our children, and acting compassionately towards them must not be confused with weakness. Having high academic expectations must not be confused with expecting the impossible when content has never been taught. The social cost is unacceptable, as are the economic costs. We’ve gone a long way down the path of this new normal, where families and whole communities are destroyed by criminalization and incarceration. What does it look like to turn this around? This is the generation where the tide must turn, and the power be given back into the hands of communities and individuals. A great many people and organizations are focused on this transformation and facilitation must be made to make this happen, from the creation of dedicated Professional Learning Communities for support within schools, to the structural changes needed to enforce the protections passed in the L.A. School Climate Bill of Rights. Let it be so!

This post originally appeared on Beth Ellor’s examiner.com page, and was republished with permission.

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Beth Ellor has explored the New York City schools as a parent, as an early childhood teacher, and as a retiree currently providing professional development to inner city schools (as an independent contractor for a celebrated i3 provider). Also a substitute teacher in a wide range of schools, she is a close observer of the reality behind the rhetoric of school success, struggle and reform.

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The trendy classroom management strategy you should never use

**The Edvocate is pleased to publish guest posts as way to fuel important conversations surrounding P-20 education in America. The opinions contained within guest posts are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of The Edvocate or Dr. Matthew Lynch.**

A guest post by Michael Linsin

There is a lot of bad classroom management information out there.

Now more than ever.

Not a month goes by that we don’t hear of another irresponsible method being promoted.

We hope to list our top ten worst strategies in a future article, but today we’d like to cover one in particular that is gaining considerable traction.

It’s a strategy that both surprises us here at SCM and leaves us dismayed anyone would think it’s a good idea.

Yet, it’s actually being encouraged in many school districts.

It’s a close cousin of the “caught being good” strategy, which we also don’t recommend, but is far more damaging to the targeted student.

The way it works, in a nutshell, is that when you notice a student misbehaving, you would first approach them so they’re aware of your presence. Then, instead of confronting them directly, you would . . .

Praise the students around them.

That’s right. You wouldn’t say a word to the offending student, but instead gushingly tell the students near them how well they’re doing.

“Wow, I love how you’re working, Ana!”

“You too, Javier. Way to go!”

“Emily is also working beautifully.”

You would give the students within proximity of the misbehaving student an enthusiastic pat on the back for not misbehaving.

The idea, in theory, is that the targeted student would see their tablemates receiving praise, and thus they too would begin behaving properly.

They too would desire your praise. They too would seek to be recognized for doingwhat they’re supposed to do.

Setting aside the troubling and bar-lowering message you’re sending to the entire class by offering false praise—which you can read about in Dream Class—the strategy attempts to manipulate or fool the offending student into better behavior.

It’s the classroom management version of a magician’s sleight of hand. But it’s cruel and dishonest and doesn’t help the student actually change their behavior.

It offers no helpful feedback, no meaningful lesson, and no opportunity to reflect on their misbehavior.

Although it may work in the moment—which is why proponents of the strategy are quick to cite its “research based” credentials—it will quickly weaken over time and train every student in the class to become extrinsically motivated.

It will make difficult students less inclined to get back on track in the future and turn your classroom into a petri dish of neediness, dependency, and underachievement.

So what should you do instead?

Well, first imagine yourself on the receiving end of such a strategy. How would it make you feel? How would you feel about a teacher effusively praising everyone around you while you’re being ignored?

Is this someone you would trust or admire? Of course not.

Like your students, you too appreciate a straight shooter. You too appreciate a teacher who tells the truth rather than tries to manipulate you, toy with your emotions, or underhandedly bend you to their will.

Being a leader students look up to and want to behave for isn’t so difficult. Have a classroom management plan that clearly lays out the rules and consequences of the class.

Hold all students equally accountable by letting them know exactly how they’re misbehaving (feedback) and what the consequence is.

Follow through. Be a person of your word. Do what you say you will.

Sadly, most difficult students have been on the receiving end of an endless procession of strategies that attempt to appease, manipulate, and deceive them into better behavior—which only makes them worse.

What they really need is your honesty. They need your truth and forgiveness. They need your accountability, your leadership, and your consistency.

They need your praise based on genuine achievement. The kind of praise that is real and heartfelt. The kind of praise that uplifts and informs.

That stirs internal motivational engines.

That matters now and forever.

PS – If you’re a principal and would like to improve recess behavior, click here.

Also, if you haven’t done so already, please join us. It’s free! Click here and begin receiving classroom management articles like this one in your email box every week.

This post originally appeared on smarclassroommanagement.com, and was republished with permission

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Michael Linsin is the founder of Smart Classroom Management, the top classroom management blog in the world with more than 60,000 subscribers.He has taught every grade level from kindergarten to eighth grade over the past 24 years, and is the author of three bestselling books about classroom management. He holds teaching credentials in Elementary Education, English, and Physical Education.

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Empowering students and lessons in giving constructive feedback

A guest post by Brooke Chaplan

**The Edvocate is pleased to publish guest posts as way to fuel important conversations surrounding P-20 education in America. The opinions contained within guest posts are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of The Edvocate or Dr. Matthew Lynch.**

Students today more than ever before need to be empowered to go on to live effective, successful lives. It is important students of all ages have good examples of learning and education in their lives. They also need constructive feedback from teachers that can help them to mature as learners and as people. As a teacher, you are privileged to be able to give them both.

 

Begin with a Passion For Teaching

Your love for teaching will be the first thing students notice about you as a teacher. It doesn’t matter if you particularly like an individual subject you may have to teach, although that certainly helps. What students need to see in you is a passion for the art of teaching that will tell them that it is important for them to learn.

If you have a passion to teach, it will be translated to your students in thousands of non-verbal ways throughout your classes. They will see it in your eyes, in the invigorating way you talk about your subjects, and even in your tone of voice. The payback for translating your passion to your students will be that some of them will emulate your example and become teachers themselves. If you can demonstrate the best parts of learning it can inspire others to be lifelong learners themselves.

Personal Interest in Your Students Is Vitally Important

The teachers that make the most significant impression on students are those who take a personal interest in their lives. You may be teaching a very large class of students, where it is difficult to get to know each child individually. Nevertheless, in any class there are those students who stand out to you as either being very talented or very needy. You should invest the time to reach out to both of them, because they both need your help in different ways.

Exceptional students need to be spurred on to greater growth. Take college students aside and encourage them to perhaps pursue and online Master’s in higher education. Talk to younger middle school and elementary school students about honing their talents and finding what they are good at. Help them to find out how they can use their personal talents to pursue the career they were meant for.

Needy students can need a challenge for any number of reasons. You will need to take the time out of your schedule to find out why. Perhaps they have a troubling home situation, or may have cognitive challenges. Unfortunately, many students today have chemical addictions as well. Whatever the reason, attempt to help them and put them on the right path. Even a kind note on an essay can be a good personal notice for more shy students.

Share Your Constructive Criticism When Needed

Constructive criticism always has a positive edge to it. Though it may be initially perceived by the student as being negative, it is intended to correct for greater positive growth. It does not beat down or demoralize. In any class of students, it is sometimes needed.

Constructive criticism is something that should always be shared in private. Begin by telling the student the good things you see about him or her. This will get you started off on the right track. Then tell them what you think is holding them back, and how they can make a positive change. After this is done, reaffirm your confidence in them as an individual. If you share your concerns in the right way, it’s possible that the student will heed your advice. Learning from mistakes and error is one of the most important parts of teaching and learning.

Being a teacher is not an easy job, but the reward is that you are allowed to help students to reach their individual potential as human beings, and see them succeed. With positive feedback and constructive criticism you can help student succeed. It’s up to them as much as you to see where the future can take them.

Brooke Chaplan is a freelance writer and blogger. She lives and works out of her home in Los Lunas, New Mexico. She loves the outdoors and spends most her time hiking, biking and gardening. For more information contact Brooke via Twitter @BrookeChaplan.

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The tech divide: An opportunity gap schools must close

By Robert Baker

Computer programming is growing at twice the average rate of national job growth according to Code.org —and by 2020 there could be nearly a million more IT jobs than U.S. college graduates available to fill them, representing a $500 billion economic opportunity waiting to be realized.

Living in Silicon Valley, I see firsthand the impact that technology skills make on one’s earning potential. Often times a college graduate with an IT degree can find a job with a six-figure salary right out of college.

Growing up with access to technology, and the opportunity to learn key IT skills such as coding and app development, gives students a huge economic advantage over their peers. But these opportunities too often are defined by a student’s family income.

While 90 percent of families with household incomes above $100,000 have broadband access at home, only 64 percent of those with incomes between $20,000 and $29,000 have home broadband, according to the Pew Internet & American Life Project.

Schools not only have an opportunity, but an obligation, to be the technology equalizer that levels the playing field for all students—but too often, we see a similar divide between schools in wealthier and poorer neighborhoods.

While virtually all schools have basic hardware and connectivity, there is a sharp contrast between those that have the high-speed wireless connections that can support devices for every student, and those that lack this sophisticated technology infrastructure. There is also a knowledge gap between schools that have savvy instructors who can teach students IT skills such as coding and app development, and schools without this expertise on their staff.

We need to do everything possible to get technology in front of more kids at an earlier age, accompanied by curriculum that teaches them coding and other IT skills. Fortunately, there are movements under way to help bring these skills to more students.

A growing number of states have passed laws allowing computer science to count toward math or science credits needed for graduation. Code.org offers free local and online workshops, curriculum, and instructional videos to help schools teach computer programming. Other nonprofit organizations, such as Yellow Circle, offer free online environments for students to learn IT-related skills.

Of course, none of these resources will do any good if students aren’t connected or don’t have access to devices.

Although 2014 marked the first time that the number of apps in the Google Play store exceeded the volume in Apple’s App Store, many app developers recommend starting with iOS first as their platform of choice. “It’s my contention that iOS development is quite a bit easier,” writes programmer David Bolton.

Add in the fact that Apple currently has a 90-percent share of the tablet market in schools, according to education research firm MDR, it’s clear that Apple’s platform is an important tool for students to gain exposure to.

But Apple devices also are more expensive than devices with similar specifications running on other platforms, which raises a significant question: How can schools in economically disadvantaged communities afford these tools?

That’s where companies like Mac to School help. We enable schools to save on the cost of high-quality Apple equipment by reconditioning and recertifying used iPads, iMacs, and MacBooks and selling them to educational facilities for a fraction of the cost of new machines.

Schools can purchase up to four times the equipment by purchasing recertified devices, which allows them to put that extra money toward wireless infrastructure, teacher training, and other essential ed-tech needs.

Given the huge demand for IT-related employees, and the technology divide that exists between wealthy and poor communities, there is both an economic need and a moral imperative to expose all students to technology skills at a young age—regardless of their ZIP Code or their parents’ income level.

Technology is a gateway to future success, but students from impoverished areas will need access to the same tools and devices if they are to be given the same opportunities as their peers from wealthier families—and schools have a critical role to play in ensuring these opportunities for all students.

Read all of our posts about EdTech and Innovation by clicking here. 

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Robert Baker is the co-founder and chief executive officer of Mac to School, which buys, sells, and recertifies Apple equipment for education.

 

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Diversity: Why Classrooms Need It

School climate and school culture directly impact student success. As a result, it is particularly important for the school culture (and the classroom culture) to reflect, acknowledge, and celebrate diversity.  Taking these feel-good ideals and making them a reality can be tough for educators, especially with so many other initiatives on their ever-tighter schedules.

Even diversity itself is not exactly straightforward. Not only must schools recognize diversity evident among broad racial and ethnic groups (e.g., Asian or Hispanic), but the diversity within these groups must be recognized as well. For example Chinese and Japanese students may share common cultural characteristics as a result of being Asian, but will also have distinctly Chinese and Japanese cultural characteristics that differ from each other. The same is true of Caucasian students who come from vastly different family backgrounds, even from the same neighborhoods. In the interest of treating students equally, giving them equal chances for success, and equal access to the curriculum, teachers and administrators must recognize the uniqueness and individuality of their students.

Diversity in Practice

Teachers have a particular responsibility to recognize and structure their lessons to reflect student differences.  This encourages students to recognize themselves and others as individuals.  It also encourages the appreciation of a diverse school population, and brings a sense of connection between disparate cultural heritages within a single school’s culture. It is certainly in the best interest of students and teachers to focus on the richness of our diversity.  Recognizing and acknowledging our differences is part of treating students fairly and equally.

One reason for seeking out and acknowledging cultural differences among students is the idea that learning involves transfer of information from prior knowledge and experiences.  To facilitate this transfer process, it is important to acknowledge the students’ background, and to validate and incorporate their previous knowledge into the process of acquiring new information.  All students begin school with a framework of skills and information based on their home cultures. This may include a rudimentary understanding of the alphabet, numbers, computer functions, some basic knowledge of a second language, or the ability to spell and write their names. It also includes a set of habits, etiquette and social expectations derived from the home.

If a student cannot relate new information to his own experiences, or connect the new material to a familiar concept, he may perceive the new information as frustrating, difficult or dismiss it completely, believing it to be in conflict with his already tenuous understanding of the world.  Teachers have the responsibility to seek out cultural building blocks students already possess, in order to help build a framework for understanding.  Some educational pedagogy refers to this process as “scaffolding.”  Recognition of a student’s cultural differences provides a positive basis for effective learning, and a “safe” classroom environment. Every group of students will respond differently to curriculum and teachers must constantly adjust to be sure their methods are diverse, both in theory and in practice.

What are some easy ways you’ve found to promote diversity in your classroom?

photo credit: woodleywonderworks via photopin cc