As you enter…

▪ You will find a cultural quilt and crayons on your table. Read the instructions and complete as much as possible until your instructor says “stop.”

Creating Student Investment in the ClassroomJuly 31st, 2014

Todd Hawks, Presenterhawks@tindley.org317-373-9475

Tindley Accelerated SchoolsTeacher Institute 2014

Something to think about…

▪ “No coach has ever won a game by what he knows; it's what his players know that counts.” –Paul Bryant

▪ “Knowledge is proud that it knows so much; wisdom is humble that is knows no more.” –William Cowper

▪ “He knows nothing; and he thinks he knows everything. That points clearly to a political career.” –George Bernard Shaw

Meet and Greet

▪ Me

▪ You– Name–Where you teach–What you teach– A college you attended– Best teacher and why

Sessions Objectives

▪ Understanding how to help students become invested in academic performance

▪ How to help students become invested in cultural expectations

▪ How to help families become engaged in the school and classroom

▪ How to help students become self-directed learners

ISTEP + 2012-2013 % Passing by Ethnicity

American Indian

Black Asian Hispanic White Multiracial NH or PI0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

68.1

50.6

81.7

62.1

78.1

69.572.9

ISTEP + 2012-2013 % Passing by Meal Status

Free/Reduced Paid Meals0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

61.5

84.3

ISTEP + 2012-2013 % Passing by Special Education

Special Education General Educaiton0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

41.6

76.9

ISTEP + 2012-2013 % Passing by ELL

ELL Non-ELL0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

44.2

74.6

Understanding before we begin…

▪ Cultural Capital– An embodied knowledge that functions as power within specific

institutional settings…Cultural capital is not uniformly distributed, accessible, or produced in society” (deCarvalho, 2001, p. 9)

▪ Social Capital– Social capital refers to the collective value of all "social networks"

[who people know] and the inclinations that arise from these networks to do things for each other ["norms of reciprocity"]. (Better Together, n.d.)

“The task of resisting our own oppression does not relieve us of the responsibility of acknowledging our complicity in the oppression of

others” (Tatum, 1997, p. 27)

Laying the Foundation:

Building Relationships▪ How do you build relationships with students in your

classroom?– Turn and Talk

▪ Suggestions– Get to Know Your Students– Individualize– Watch What You Say– Keep Trying to Reach Your Students

Get to Know Your Students

▪ Spin a classroom web

▪ Bookmark greeting

▪ Google voice messages

▪ Me poster

▪ Class playlist

▪ Class discussion board

▪ Wordles

▪ Family crest

▪ Cultural quilt

▪ 2 truths and a lie

▪ Family interviews/entrance interview

▪ You’re the top card

▪ Attending events

▪ Name games

Student Engagement

▪ Taxonomy Techniques

▪ Popcorn Reading– Example

▪ Eliminate Dead Time– Take planning!!!– Go to bag of tricks

▪ Warm-Ups

▪ Brain Breaks

▪ Keep them moving!– Group responses– Use areas of the classroom– Movement for agree/disagree▪ Snaps, claps, cheers, etc.

▪ Quick writes/journals– Prompts– Sentence stems

▪ Fairness cup/track participation visibly

Student Engagement

▪ Classroom and School Rubrics

▪ Self-Created Rubric

▪ Use feedback

▪ Ask for feedback

Individualize

▪ Learning Plans– Spelling Lists– Weekly Goals– Collaborative Planning with Family

▪ Engaging Student Interests– Interview students– Give assignments that allow sharing– Student-centered classroom discussions– Attend extra-curricular activities– Visit a site in your student’s community

“The map is not a substitute for personal experience. The map does not take place of an actual journey” (Dewey, 1915, p. 198).

Watch What You Say

▪ THE “DO’S”– Precise praise– Sincerity– Positive framing– Direct language– Warm-strict • THE “DON’T’S”

• Sarcasm• Joking• Hurtful Words• Comments that can be

perceived differently than intended

• Shaming• Public Ridicule

Keep Trying to Reach…

▪ An apology goes a long way

▪ Meet them where they are

▪ Open communication

▪ Each day is a new beginning

"In schools, relationships are treated as luxuries. Relationship is a necessity for learning. We can't afford not to do it.“ (Sears, 2014)

Academic InvestmentAssessments

– Getting them excited▪ Motivational charts▪ Individual encouragement▪ Incentives

– Before the test▪ Must know previous score▪ Must have attainable goal▪ Post-it notes

– Post-test▪ Public praise/acknowledgement▪ Send letter home▪ Ceremony▪ Certificate

Academic InvestmentClassroom Motivation

– Engage them!– Make it relevant– Student-led discussion– Allow for collaborative

planning (teachers, parents, students)

– Tie it to co-curricular– Track progress– Have them track progress– Use competition– Group work– Self-reflection

– Help them find intrinsic motivation

– Set goals as a class– Have individuals set goals

Academic InvestmentHomework

– Track turn-in▪ Rewards

– Training for parents– Organization– Pink Slip– Parent Contact– Make it relevant!– How much is necessary?▪ Rigor vs. Quantity

– Uniform ways of completing homework

– If they don’t know how to do it, don’t expect them to

– Recording work to be done– It’s practice-not teaching– Consider resources– Provide feedback and in a

timely manner!– Homework hotline

▪ How do we know they are doing it?– No guarantees– Point value

▪ Do whatever it takes!

Cultural Investment

▪ Processes and Procedures– Examples

▪ Disciplinary Procedures– Stick to it, but be understanding

▪ Celebrations– Incentives– Publicly/equitably affirm

▪ Rituals/Rites of Passage

▪ Celebrate Success

▪ Track using qualitative and quantitative data

▪ Make it fun!

▪ Non-verbals

▪ Explain and coach

Family Engagement

▪ Consider capital

▪ Consider resources

▪ Offer multiple ways to be involved

▪ Various meeting places

▪ Claim to be the experts yet we ask for help.

▪ Doesn’t have to be visible

Follow-Up

▪ Fill out the sheet I have given you.

▪ How will you commit to engaging students?

▪ Include email address

▪ I will check up with you!

ResourcesBetter Together, an initiative of the Saguaro Seminar: Civic Engagement in America, Kennedy School of Government. (n.d.). Better Together, an initiative of the Saguaro Seminar: Civic Engagement in America, Kennedy School of Government. Retrieved July 11, 2014, from http://www.bettertogether.org/socialcapital.htm

de Carvalho, M. E. (2001). Rethinking family-school relations a critique of parental involvement in schooling. Mahwah, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Dewey, J. (1915). The school and society, (Rev. ed.). Chicago, Ill.: The University of Chicago press.

Five Easy Ways to Connect with Students. (n.d.). Harvard Education Publishing Group. Retrieved July 11, 2014, from http://hepg.org/hel-home/issues/27_1/helarticle/five-easy-ways-to-connect-with-students_492

Sears, N. (2014, January 1). Building Relationships with Students. Rss. Retrieved July 10, 2014, from http://www.nea.org/tools/29469.htm

Tatum, B. D. (1997). Why are all the Black kids sitting together in the cafeteria? and other conversations about race. New York: BasicBooks.