Looking for High Expectations in the Classroom: An analysis of three lessons
Example 1:
5th Grade Physics
Donna Migdol, Oceanside School District, NY
Academic Expectations
During Ms. Migdol's physics experiment with her fifth graders she holds each student highly responsible for actions within the roller coaster assembly. She even holds the students responsible for their use of materials, charging them "money" for materials they use to construct their coasters, and highly restricts the amount of materials in general that the students can use.
Ms. Migdol asks the students to collaborate with each other, a challenge they rise to. They are repeatedly using the new vocabulary and communicating the concepts of the lesson, reinforcing all of their learning.
Ms. Migdol also works very closely with her students to determine their misconceptions and "welcome problems." This is another variable in the "high expectations" equation.
Behavior Expectations
The teams are working quietly together, concentrated on their tasks, and they listen well to Ms. Migdol's ongoing instruction. This is likely the result of two things: (1) Ms. Migdol likely communicated clear behavior expectations at the beginning of the school year, as well as the beginning of the lesson, (2) The lesson is beautifully designed and the students are engaged. They would be letting down their group, as well as their teacher, if they chose to goof off or argue with their classmates, and also, they seem to be enjoying the project.
Norms and Procedures
The teams are working respectfully together. No one is argumentative at any point in this video. They students seem very engaged in their assigned jobs. Part of this is the responsibility the students take on when they choose these jobs. The students are in touch with their strengths, and they are each bringing these to the team effort.
Criticism
The students in this exercise are limited to one activity within their group, one that they select themselves. This may limit the students' ability to learn. If that student who is talented in math elects to be the accountant, he/she may miss out on a chance to have been the leader. Ideally, these roles should swap either mid-project, or from project to project in this classroom.
Example 2:
Third-grade Chinese math
Crystal Chen
Academic Expectations
Ms. Chen held the students to a high standard: these are not native Chinese speakers, and they are asked to rattle off the Chinese multiplication tables in unison. Most of the students seem to be rising to the challenge as well. The three-digit subtraction problem that Ms. Chen puts on the board is fairly difficult for the average third grade student, but they seem to enthusiastically rise to this challenge as well, understanding which way to calculate the subtraction question.
Behavior Expectations
Ms. Chen's expectation seemed to be that the class follow along with the chant and then work together to solve the subtraction question. She did not seem to encourage 100% participation, but was content with about 80% participation throughout the exercise. Like Ms. Migdol's students, they were adequately engaged, and there was not a lot of room for goofing off or going off-topic. In this case they were so engaged because the teacher was leading the lesson almost 100%.
Norms and Procedures
The students seem to be in the habit of sitting on the carpet facing the teacher and reciting the chant of math facts together with her. They seemed to be pretty locked on her. I did notice that the young man in the third row, although he was facing the teacher and not misbehaving, was not participating. I wonder if that is OK for Ms. Chen, for example, if he is a new student in the class or has an IEP that specifies he is not required to participate.
Criticism
I would personally find this style of teaching exhausting if I were doing it for eight hours each day, since the students are not contributing much other than their assistance in calculating the subtraction question. This seems like the teacher is "on" 100% in terms of performing the lesson for the students. There is no "turn and talk"-type collaboration in solving the question, there is no individual white board calculation, there is simply a group solution after the chanting is done. I recognize that Chinese math teaching has many advantages, but I am not sure it is my style. I like to incorporate the personalities of my students in my lessons as much as possible and Ms. Chen has a different, lesson-focused approach. It feels like a conformist approach that I tend to shy away from.
Example 3:
Whole Brain Teaching
Roxi Shayne and Chris Biffle
Academic Expectations
In the lessons I observed by Roxi Shayne, the academic expectations were remedial. She explains in the comments of her two high school videos that these are remedial students who need this kind of review. I imagine that students who are very familiar with this material would be frustrated with the repetition of simple concepts they have already mastered. So in the Whole Brain Teaching videos I have seen, there aren't very high expectations in terms of what students have learned already. There are, however, high expectations regarding learning the materials, however remedial they may be.
Behavior Expectations
The rules that Chris Biffle lays out in his "How To Begin Whole Brain Teaching 1" video are very simple, and the students learn them quickly, and the process is fun. There is also no room for debate, which I liked. No student interrupts to say, "But what if....?" The rules seem to be taken at face value. Roxi Shayne also explained in the comments in her video that she simple explained these rules and the students never questioned them.
These are the specific rules that Mr. Biffle teaches the middle school students:
Rule 1: Follow Directions Quickly
Rule 2: Raise Your Hand for Permission to Speak
Rule 3: Raise Your Hand for Permission to Leave Your Seat
Rule 4: Make Smart Choices
Rule 5: Keep Your Dear Teacher Happy
I like that there aren't too many rules, and several of these can cover multiple topics. For example, "Keep Your Dear Teacher Happy" can encompass many aspects of in-class behavior, but it's pretty clear what it would mean.
Criticism
This technique seems to work very well with the middle school students taught by Mr. Biffle and the remedial high school students Ms. Shayne is teaching. The problem I see with this method is that it doesn't allow for the outliers in the classroom. For example, any student with an IEP for mild to moderate autism is going to be bothered by this level of clapping noise and expected interaction with classmates. In addition, a gifted student is going to become bored, and possibly upset, but the slow review of topics prior to a test.
It seems to me that the success of this method can depend upon how mainstream the students are. The outliers in the classroom may have a problem with it.
Setting high performance expectations among my own students
These three videos, and the similar videos and articles I have read regarding high expectations have been compelling. My own teaching future is up in the air: I have learned to live with the uncertainty as to whether I will be teaching fourth grade or 12th grade in the upcoming school year! Regardless, it's an excellent opportunity to use these videos to hone my own craft, and examine the expectations I have for my students.
It is difficult to admit how much I saw myself in some of the examples of teachers who left some students out of the conversation, just as Ms. Chen does with her performance-style classroom management. When I'm wrapped up in teaching a lesson, I will sometime not dwell on a student who isn't quite getting it, or doesn't feel like participating. This is a technique I read about in Rafe Esquith's "Real Talk for Real Teachers" -- basically instead of adopting a "No Child Left Behind" policy in one's classroom, you can just leave some of the students behind sometimes -- otherwise you cheat the rest of the students out of a quality lesson.
The Whole Brain Teaching methods used by Chris Biffle and Roxi Shayne are inspiring. I like the idea of using some of these components in my classroom, although spending the entire class time chanting sounds somewhat, well, socialist to me. It also doesn't allow for a lot of individuality.
I believe there is a middle ground -- I can expect more from my students while not dwelling on students who are reluctant to share. For example, telling a student I will be returning to him/her in five minutes and that I expect an answer communicates to that student that I have faith in them, that I know they can answer this question given additional time.
To that end, I believe Donna Migdol's teaching methods using project-based learning and teams of students resonate most firmly. I would like to be this organized, this responsive to my students (for example, offering materials I hadn't initially expected to need for the class), and holding them all to a high standard academically and behaviorally. It is my hope to emulate Migdol's teaching methods in my future classroom. In addition, I would be very grateful to have an in-school mentor who holds the same beliefs I do about teaching individual students and accounting for their differences.
References
Esquith, Rafe. "Real Talk for Real Teachers," published by Penguin Books, 2013.
"3rd Grade Chinese Math," published by Crystal Chen, June 13, 2011. Retrieved July 12, 2017 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7LseF6Db5g
"How to Begin Whole Brain Teaching: 1," published by Whole Brain Teaching. February 12, 2010. Retrieved July 12, 2017 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJw9mzCtWbk
"Roller Coaster Physics: STEM in Action" published by Teaching Channel. Retrieved July 12, 2017 from https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/teaching-stem-strategies
"Whole Brain Teaching Richwood High." published by Roxi Shayne, May 31, 2011. Retrieved July 12, 2017.
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