High Expectations

High Expectations Addressing the needs of high poverty, minority kids. Based on the work of Ruby Payne, the TESA study and program, Lauren Resnick, Carol Dwek and others

The greatest single factor affecting student achievement is the teacher in the classroom. Robert Marzano

Questions? Can ALL students achieve at the levels that we want them to? Can students get “smarter”?

Summary Many of our students TODAY fit the model of what we only used to see in urban (Inner-city) schools They can learn . . . But we must learn first!

The Certainties • You want to reach more of your students. • You want all of your students to be successful. • You will not let who your students are todaykeep you from helping them become who they can be tomorrow.

The Learning Goals • I will understand that High Expectations produce Achievement, regardless of the intelligence of the student. • I will learn how to address the needs of my students by understanding how to interact with them.

Teacher Expectations Student Achievement The Self-fulfilling Prophecy Expectations Reinforcement 1 3 Fulfillment New Behavior 2 Robert K. Merton, 1948

A Self-fulfilling prophecy is said to occur when one’s belief concerning the occurrence of some future event … makes one behave in a manner …that increases the likelihood that the expected event will occur…. Eden, 1990

It is expectancy in the sense of that which what the expecter, or “prophet,”believes is likely to occur, rather than that which a person believes ought to occur, that leads to the behavior that fulfills the prophecy.

Your students need YOU to become the prophet of their success!

The reality of our existence is based upon our ideas about ourselves, our circumstances, and our prospects for the future. Other people play an important role in the development of our internal and external reality.

Discuss with a partner. . . • What role does student’s belief about her ability to achieve affect her ability to achieve?

Interpersonal expectancy effects are transactional.

Parent Expectations Teacher Expectations Performance Self Expectations Coach Expectations

Rosenthal [1973] suggests four mediating factors in this inter personal expectancy:• socioemotional climate• feedback• input• output

Socioemotional climate: is defined as behaviors that are nonverbal and mostly subconscious, that convey positive or negative feelings. Are we “telling” our students that they are successes or failures without telling them anything?

Feedback is an indispensable ingredient to any learning process. People give more feedback and more varied feedback to people of whom they expect more.

Input, in the form of teaching more challenging material, is provided to those expected to do well. We should not let our compassion for students interfere with our mission to educated them. Communicating high expectations is our most important task with our low performing students.

Output is defined as producing a learning result as in answering a question in class. Teachers give pupils opportunities for producing output by assigning them challenging projects or by calling upon them to do something extra, beyond the minimal requirements.

Teacher expectations Student achievement

Reflection Discuss with a partner. . . . What effect do teacher expectations have on student achievement?

Principles of Teaching and Learning • Effort produces achievement • Learning is about making connections • We learn with and through others • Learning takes time • Motivation matters

Aptitude v. Effort • Lauren Resnick and Megan Hall studying the research of social psychologist and cognitive scientist found that effort is “just as, or more important than aptitude.” • In addition they found that effort can improve intelligence! • Intelligence is “learnable”!

So how can you do that? Please state the following out loud: So how can you do that?

Building a “Growth Mindset” • Dr. Carol Dweck, “Mindset”, 2006 • Fixed Mindset v. Growth Mindset • Fixed Mindset - Belief that you have innate intelligence that does not change • Growth Mindset – Belief that with effort you can “grow” and get “smarter”

Fixed Mindset • This has been the standard belief of many educators for over 100 years. • Partially (and improperly) attributed to Alfred Binet. • “A few modern philosophers. . .assert that an individual’s intelligence is a fixed quantity, a quantity which can not be increased. We protest and react against this pessimism…”

Fixed Mindset – “Smart” Attributes • Children believe they are smart and will not attempt work that is challenging for them. • Children do not handle failure well because they have been told that they are smart.

Fixed Mindset – “Dumb” Attributes • Children believe they are not smart AND do not believe that they can achieve so effort is low. • They see no point in challenging themselves because they are “dumb” and always will be. • Children do not handle failure well because they see it as proof of their low ability.

Fixed Mindset – How do I get it? So who tells them they are “smart” or “dumb”? • Parents • Teachers • Schools • Assessment

Growth Mindset • The growth mindset happens when students believe that effort and hard work will get them where they want to go academically and non-academically. • It affects, achievement, self-esteem, relationships, etc.

Growth Mindset • When students have a growth mindset they look at failure as a challenge to improve. • Students (people) with a growth mindset believe that their intelligence is tied to their ability to improve who they are, both personally and academically.

High poverty, minority kids • Which category do they fit in and why? • Fixed Mindset (Smart) • Fixed Mindset (Dumb) • Growth Mindset Discuss with a partner where your students are. Where do we want them to be?

How do we Promote the Building of the Growth Mindset? Stakeholders in the student’s life need to promote it and build it? • Parents • Teachers • Schools • Assessment

How do we Promote the Building of the Growth Mindset? • Teachers need to believe and act upon the understanding that EFFORT produces ACHIEVMENT. • Teachers need to believe and act upon the understanding that EFFORT can improve INTELLIGENCE. • Teachers need to believe and act upon the understanding that HIGH EXPECTATIONS can GREATLY increase EFFORT in students.

How do we Promote the Building of the Growth Mindset? • When students BELIEVE that they can ACHIEVE then the self fulfilling prophecy becomes reality. • Teachers need to modify their behavior so that all students believe that they can achieve at higher levels through hard work.

Processing. . . • Based on your role in your school district what actions do you need to take to help support the building of a growth mindset in ALL of your students? • Once we set the –POSSITIVE self fulfilling prophecy in motion we need to build the Growth Mindset to to allow the student to internalize and perpetuate the belief.

Teacher Behaviors that Affect Student Behaviors Teacher Expectations = Student Achievement

1. Equitable Distribution: Beating the “T” • Teachers tend to call more often on students who sit in the front row and middle seats in the classroom (the T) and ignore students outside the T seating pattern. • Students in the back corners have the least likelihood of being asked to answer a question. • Moreover, by the middle grades, many students learn the strategy of distribution and sit themselves, given the choice, according to their desire to participate or not participate. • High performers go to the T, low performers to the corners.

1. Equitable Distribution: Beating the “T” • How to “Beat” the “T” • Teachers need to make a conscious effort to direct their questions to the corners and the back of the room. • When put into effect, the strategy puts students on notice of the expectation that all students, regardless of seating, would have an equal chance to be called on.

1. Equitable Distribution: Beating the “T” • Other implications- • What other ways do students who do not wish to participate at high levels behave in a classroom?

2. Feedback and Guidance • Teachers give less accurate and less detailed feedback to students they perceive as low achievers. Good (1970, Rowe 2004) • Teachers give students perceived as high achievers more detailed and more accurate feedback.

2. Feedback and Guidance Who needs the detailed feedback more… Low achievers or high achievers?

Feedback and Guidance • Anglo students are more likely to get accurate and detailed feedback than African-American or Hispanic students. Rubovits and Maehr (1973), David (2006) • 22 classrooms of mixed race students confirmed that this is still an issue • Very teacher dependent

Feedback and Guidance Teachers should make accurate comments about eachstudent's response. The feedback should note that an answer was correct or incorrect and, in the best circumstances, would explain "why.“ Good feedback/questioning would ask the student to explain why?

3. Proximity • A teacher's physical closeness to a student affects time on task. (Payne, Brophy) • Many of our “best” teachers use proximity to address discipline problems, yet not academic problems.

3. Proximity Teachers need to think about how to reseat students, how to rearrange seating for easier access, and how to move closer to students who are off task.

4. Individual Help • Sadker and Sadker (1985) noticed how the assertiveness of high-achieving students, especially males, resulted from more individual help from the teacher. • David (2006) confirmed this in his district • Note: Students who act out/call out in class also get more attention

4. Individual Help Teachers should identify the two or three students who received the least amount of attention, even when they called for help in a proper manner, and then make a conscious effort to assist these students in a non-threatening way.

5. Praise • Teachers are less likely to praise perceived low achievers for academic performance and more likely to praise perceived high achievers. Rosenshine (1971) and Good (1987) • Moreover, researchers noted that teachers tended to protect low achievers from criticism about wrong answers.

5. Praise Teachers should give energetic, positive feedback and rewards to all students, with a special concentration of attention for the perceived low performers.

High Expectations