In chapters 1-3 the author helps us get to know and understand students living in poverty. Chapters four and five start to address the policies that can be put in place in order to have the greatest positive impact. Chapter four introduces the successful policies that can be implemented at the school –level, whereas Chapter five looks at the classroom level. In order to come up with these policies Jensen consulted several studies of “turn around” schools. He first came up with a list of approximately 20 policies, but felt that it needed to be narrowed down. After much of consideration Jensen came up with five main factors that the successful schools had in common and came up with the acronym SHARE. At the school level these factors are as follows: Support the Whole Child Hard Data Accountability Relationship Building Enrichment Mind Set 1. Supporting the whole child all comes down to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. If a student’s basic needs are not being met, he or she simply cannot perform to full capability. Schools need to commit to meet the basic needs of these children. This involves a survey to find out what the exact needs are and then developing community partnerships so that the school not only reaches out to the students, but to the adults as well. Jensen states, “ that we must remove the real-world concerns” so that they can concentrate on learning. The students, and their families, must know that school is a place where their needs are met; they need to feel safe, secure, and cared for. At the very bottom of Maslow’s Hierarchy is food. Personally, I have always noticed just how important a mid-morning snack is to my students. Providing a snack to my students has always seemed to make a great improvement in not only their ability to attend, but their desire to as well. I have tried to provide snacks for my students, but it has been hit and miss because of financial and time constraints. I would love to be able to provide a small nutritious snack for every student every day. 2.Hard Data is next on Jensen’s list. This is simply looking at all the available data and using it to guide instruction. However, it is not so simple after all, because tough decisions have to be made by the school as a whole. Decisions have to be made about what is the most critical data and practice is required to collect that data and that data only. Many schools collect too much or not enough. The data then needs to analyzed, shared, and then developed into a plan of action to apply the results. In order for all this to be effective, it has to be done in a timely manner. This is all easier said than done. I have attempted to do this in my classroom for the past several years. It is a daunting task. I usually end up with way more data than I have time to implement, or I spend hours collecting that data (i.e. Study Island). However, I will have to say that I am getting better with practice. Likewise, Jensen made the comment that schools usually don’t get it right for a couple, or more, years. It takes practice, and trial and error. It also takes everyone being on board, which brings us to the next letter in our acronym. 3.Accountability, as opposed to a sense of responsibility, can be evaluated. In order to achieve accountability a “compelling , comprehensive goal” has to be set and then progress toward that goal has to be assessed. Jensen points out that educators only have students for 28% of their waking time. Not much really. With that short about of time, everyone has to be on board working toward a common goal. He is also quick to point out that teachers need to be supported and feel appreciated in this endeavor. True to form he also provided recommendations to administration on how to help staff get, and stay, on board. The whole time I was reading this section I was thinking two things: 1- Everyone of us, at one time or another, has wavered and wondered, “ is all this really going to make a difference?” and 2 – the aforementioned doubt is not coming from Kara, because she does a great job making her staff feel valued and supported. So, exactly where is the doubt coming from? I think it changes from day to day. Some days it is fatigue, other times it could be an unsuccessful lesson, or uncooperative technology. I fear I concentrate more on these little blimps rather than the whole picture. I know I need to concentrate on the good that gets done, on the data I did use effectively rather than the data I did not get to. 4.Relationship Building is something we all know is important. However, Jensen reminds us that it is also important for students to see their teachers get along and support each other. Students also need to build positive relationships among each other. Here again, this fits in with Maslow’s Hierarchy as a good relationship among all the students creates a feeling of safety and belonging. Most important, however, especially for kids of a low SES is the teacher/student relationship. Building that all important relationship is something I feel very passionate about. Jensen provide what I think is a very important list on how to treat your students, so I am going to take the time to type it out …please take the time to read it… Avoid raising your voice unless it’s an emergency Do what you say you are going to do Acknowledge a change in plans if you need to make one Always say “please” and “thank you”: never demand what you want Take responsibility for any mistakes you make, and make amends Be consistent and fair to all students; show no favoritism Offer support in helping students reach their goals Positively reinforce students when they do something right Show that you care more that you show authority or knowledge Disclaimer: I am not saying I do all these things all the time, I am saying I aspire to. J 5.Enrichment Mind Set means to change our mind set of “those poor kids” to “our gifted kids.” Stop thinking remediation and start thinking enrichment. Do everything possible to offer a challenging, engaging learning environment. As in all the sections of this chapter Jensen provides Action Steps teachers and the school as a whole can take to provide a more enriching environment. Cindy is a big advocate for enrichment and does a great job of providing it for her students. I have always agreed with her that it is important, but I always felt like we needed to get the “basics” first and then worry about the enrichment. I know see that enrichment is a “basic” we need to provide for our students to reach their full potential. For each one of the above five factors Jenson provides theory and research, examples of what “turnaround” schools have done, and action steps we can take to reach that goal. He also provides a list “achievement killers” to avoid. 1. Overdoing the pep talks and hot air. 2. Planning endlessly. 3. Putting kids first and staff last. 4. Creating a climate of fear. 5. Measuring improvement solely through test scores. 6. Treating the symptoms, not the cause. 7. Counting on big wins early. I know it will be work, but Jensen’s acronym makes a daunting task seem doable, I can’t wait for Chapter 5 to see what I can do at the classroom level. Comments are closed.
|
Archives
May 2021
|