“...if you relentlessly raise expectations, if you overpromise and add a bit of hype, you’re almost certain to fail to meet our dreams and hopes.”
Teaching has to deal with that fine line between high expectations and realistic dreams.
I think it is important to have high expectations so that students will do their best. They will give it their best effort.
When I first started teaching, I had many students tell me that they were too dumb to learn. Didn’t I know any better? It took many months for me to convince them that everyone can learn but people learn at different rates. This difference in the way we learn is normal for everyone. It depends on what we are learning, how we are learning, and why we are learning.
I confess that when I first started teaching students with down’s syndrome, I had low expectations. These students were so happy and filled with love that I didn’t want them to feel frustrated or unhappy. Thank goodness I had their parents who were willing to help me raise my expectations and have the students work harder at achieving more.
I learned if I don’t expect enough, all students will only work hard enough to meet my expectations. How can I expect my students to grow and work to better themselves if I don’t believe in them? And if I don’t believe in them, students knew it and acted accordingly.
Once I changed my mindset and believed in my students, it was amazing at the things they could do. I was amazed at the things they were willing to try and even face obstacles. Once they believed that I would be there with them facing these obstacles and willing to help them succeed, students tried harder. The more success they faced, the more they were willing to grow academically and even personally.
As a teacher, I needed to learn to change my own expectations before I could help students change their expectations.
Have you ever had to do this? Please share.
Photo by Yasin Yusuf on Unsplash
1 comment:
I am a future educator, and this is a great reminder for all teachers! You are so right about students following your lead regarding expectations. When I was doing my first field experience, that was a student who had some difficulties and I often worked with them. While many of the teachers expected her to not get much done, I put higher expectations for her. Guess what? She got more done with me than those who would give her lower expectations! Students strive to meet our expectations to make themselves feel good. If the bar is set low, they can meet that expectation easily and be done with it. Or, you can set the bar higher (but still achievable) and they will excel further!
Thanks for this great reminder!
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