Our country’s
most rapidly improving schools
are seeing dramatic improvements in their test scores. That’s really not a
surprise. What is surprising, however, is that they spend far less time focused
on standardized tests than most
other schools.
What’s their
trick?
They take a step
back, slow down and ask themselves three important questions:
·
“What do our
students need to know to be successful
in the world beyond school?”
· “What must our students do
to succeed in the world beyond school?”
·
And finally,
“What must our students be like to
succeed in the world beyond school?”
Three Ways Forward
The answers
may or may not surprise you:
·
Students must
develop and use what I call “guiding principles.” These are attributes like
responsibility, respect, perseverance, initiative, adaptability and
trustworthiness.
· Students must stay focused and fully engaged in their learning
environment.
·
Students must
stay focused on getting better at what they do every day. Basically, they need
to adopt a growth
mindset.
Changing Things Around
Educators at
these schools decided to emphasize those characteristics, not just test scores.
They changed their report cards to stress these characteristics. When they did,
students’ academic performance dramatically improved.
The approach
of these schools is if you focus on the soft skills (which I refer to above as guiding principles), student engagement,
and simply trying to help all students grow academically, then state tests will
take care of themselves.
A Powerful Tool to Help Achieve
Success
Based upon
the success of these rapidly improving schools, we created the Learning
Criteria to help schools we work with evaluate their students. It is also a
tool for teachers, administrators and parents to evaluate classroom experiences
and focus on high-engagement learning opportunities. The goal is to create
well-rounded individuals ready to succeed in school – and beyond!
The Learning Criteria consist of four
components:
n Foundation
Learning.
This is knowledge a school requires all students to achieve. It is
measured through standardized tests, and often is related to achieving “Adequate Yearly Progress.”
n Stretch
Learning. This learning takes place when
students push beyond the minimum requirements. Stretch learners participate in
interdisciplinary activities, enroll in honors courses and seek specialized
certificates.
n Learner Engagement. When learners engage with their teachers, peers and the overall
school community, they become more motivated and eager to participate in the
learning process. When students are engaged, they feel a sense of satisfaction,
belonging and accomplishment.
n Personal
Skill Development. Basically,
working on leadership and social skills. Does a student show empathy? Can she
control her emotions? Can she collaborate? Can she work as part of a team?
Through personal skill development, students will be better prepared for
lifelong success in business, at home and in their communities.
Racing the
Wrong Way
Most schools focus first on foundation learning before moving on
to the other three criteria. Sadly, many students never get past this initial
stage. One way to think about the Learning Criteria is to envision a race with
four hurdles. Most schools try to clear the hurdles in this order:
1.
Foundation
Learning
2.
Stretch
Learning
3.
Personal
Skill Development
4.
Student
engagement
Many schools
can’t get their students to clear the first hurdle. But they double down anyway
in an effort to score well on state standardized tests. They never reach the
three other hurdles. They’re running the race in the wrong direction.
Reverse Course!
Our country’s
most rapidly improving schools run the race in the opposite direction. They
focus on student engagement first, then move on to personal skill development
and stretch learning. Guess what? When you run the race this way, foundation
learning takes care of itself.
In future
blogs, we will focus on details of student engagement, personal skill
development and stretch learning.
Stay tuned!
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