North Central Regional Educational Laboratory

By 2004, we knew how to do it. Citing the Learning Point 2004 publication, "All Students Reaching the Top:  Strategies for Closing Academic Achievement Gaps" by the North Central Regional Educational Laboratory.

Affirmative development of academic ability is nurtured and developed through:
(1) high-quality teaching and instruction in the classroom,
(2) trusting relationships in school, and
(3) supports for pro-academic behavior in the school and community.”

In the August 2004 article by Kiley Walsh Symonds titled, “After the Test: Closing the Achievement Gaps With Data,” Schools and districts may benefit from the following recommendations:
1. Schools need frequent credible data.
2. Teachers need support to use data.
3. Race matters.
4. Focus, especially on reading, is essential.

Closing the achievement gaps between white/Asian students and Hispanic/Latino or African-American students is a primary goal for school leaders.  We do not have to reinvent the wheel. We just have to act… NOW!

Teachers are not in this alone. Although it hurts to read Pedro Noguera’s article, “Closing the Racial Achievement Gap: The Best Strategies of the Schools We Send Them To” (August 2007) in which he states…
Children know when they are taught by adults who care about them and who believe in them. They typically respond by displaying the qualities that are so essential to school success – self-motivation, self-discipline and resilience.

How can we help ourselves recover from trauma

Resiliency (go to 19 minutes)

Carol Dweck - The Perils and Promises of Praise

In a course, Understanding Self-Efficacy, that my colleagues, Elli Stern/Jennifer Wolfrum, and I teach, we ask participants (teachers, counselors, administrators, tutors, nurses, etc.) to get into a group and "become the expert" on an article that we have assigned for homework.  To this end, we then ask the group to construct a graphic organizer, mnemonic, or other visual aid to help "teach" the other groups about the article.

P
Praise is connected to promoting students’ views that intelligence is malleable.
R
Recover well from setbacks/Resilience.
A
Ask questions and focus on the process of achievement.
I
Intelligence grows because your brain is a muscle.
S
Students praised for performance remained determined to learn, showed excellent performance, and continued to improve.
E
Escalate their efforts and look for new learning strategies when they face failure.

Mnemonic above created by Beth, Rita, JoAnne, Pam & Diana

NOTES & COMMENTS:

The number one reason why people are fired from jobs is the inability to work with others.  If you want kids to cooperate, you must give them time to practice bouncing ideas off of each other.  Brainstorming is a strategy which helps groups of students come up with ideas, categorize and find ways to share their ideas with the class.

"Motivation is fragile"  Using constructive feedback is very important.

Praise is recognition for student accomplishment, and feedback needs to be very specific to the task,  providing description and information that encourages a student to develop further.

Avoid using the phrase "I think …" when praising a student's work because it creates dependency on what others think of the student's performance instead of recognizing the effort a student has put forth.

Use "and" instead of "but" when critiquing work because it increases the effort factor. And don’t forget “yet” – it’s not that a student can’t or hasn’t, it’s that he/she “can’t yet” or “hasn’t yet.”

Non specific praise becomes empty to a student after a while or, even worse, it creates a student who is extrinsically motivated to simply please others.  Praising children for their intelligence puts them in a fixed mind-set and students who are "so wrapped up in their performance" can't admit their mistakes and, when faced with a challenge, lose their confidence.

It is easy to say, ” Good job!," however, it takes effort to be specific, to notice effort, and to clearly express this to students.  With specific praise, students realize their own skills. When "Good job!" comes out, just keep going, “good job (fill in the blank)” and with practice, the praise will be more specific every time. 

Carol Dweck’s research about people thinking their abilities are fixed or people thinking that they can develop their abilities includes the growth mind-set. It is positive for students, as well as teachers. Why teach, if you don’t think that a child can improve and grow? Kids don’t grow at the same pace, but they can put in effort and see improvement. It’s an important link to make.

“In the growth mind-set, students care about learning. When they make a mistake or exhibit a deficiency, they correct it. For them, effort is a positive thing: It ignites their intelligence and causes it to grow. In the face of failure, these students escalate their efforts and look for new learning strategies.” (from article)

“People nearly always perform better if they focus on things they can control, such as their effort, rather than the things they cannot.”  Directly teaching this to our students provides them with hope that they can improve; that they have some control over how they do. It’s a powerful message that reinforces strength in their capabilities.

Teaching Girls to Adopt a Growth Mindset

http://www.laurelschool.org/about/documents/CRG_GRWTHMNDSET.pdf

A growth mindset is based on the belief that your basic qualities are things you can cultivate through your efforts. Although people may differ in every which way – in their initial talents and aptitudes, interests, or temperaments – everyone can change and grow through application and experience.” The differences between these two mindsets have profound implications for how students approach academic challenges and academic setbacks – two arenas that essentially dictate a student’s ultimate academic achievement.

Start Where Your Students are At
The article about understanding the currency valued by students.
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/feb10/vol67/num05/Start-Where-Your-Students-Are.aspx

Brainology
www.brainology.us
I recommend subscribing to the free electronic newsletter.

History of Intelligence
http://www.iub.edu/~intell/index.shtml

More Dweck
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7406521

Grow your Brain
http://www.slideshare.net/swbrandt/grow-your-brain-interesting-version

What Research is saying about Brain-based Teaching and Learning
http://www.slideshare.net/swbrandt/grow-your-brain-dull-version?src=related_normal&rel=4557738

Brain Rules
http://www.brainrules.net/

Getting the Class I Always Wanted
Written by a teacher who writes about how she taught her students about the brain.
http://www.slideshare.net/mindsetworks/mindset-student-presentation-8666017?from=ss_embed

2011 C.A.R.E. Guide: Strategies for Closing the Achievement Gaps

NEA Guide for Educators  http://www.nea.org/home/2011-CARE-guide.html  The 2011 edition of the C.A.R.E. Guide contains student activities, educator reflection opportunities, and video clips of experts sharing research and practice tips for educating culturally diverse students and students from low-income families.  Download C.A.R.E.: Strategies for Closing the Achievement Gaps (PDF, 12 MB, 174pp) to learn strategies for improving the learning experiences of diverse students, especially those who are struggling to achieve at high levels. It focuses on four factors that affect student achievement: Culture, Abilities, Resilience, and Effort (C.A.R.E.).

Culture - Look at cultural differences by learning about the cultures that students bring to school - their everyday experiences - and connect these experiences to what is taught.

Abilities - Recognize the abilities students have learned in their homes and communities that do not show up on standardized tests, but can contribute to academic success.

Resilience - Cultivate resilience in students to help them persevere in school, despite repeated failure or discouragement they may have experienced in their environment.

Effort - Find out how students who are difficult to motivate are motivated outside of school and bring those interests inside the schoolhouse where they can be used to direct students toward academics.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Introducing students to the GROWTH MINDSET http://www.slideshare.net/mindsetworks/mindset-student-presentation-8666017?from=ss_embed:
Believing you can accomplish something is the first step to actually doing it. The brain is a muscle.
1.  Learn to hear your fixed mindset voice.
2.  Recognize that you have a choice.
3.  Talk back with a growth mindset voice.
4.  Take the growth mindset action.