Classroom
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by JVS
Chapter 8: Expectations: The engine that makes it all go. (From Transformative Classroom
Management, by
Expectations are ubiquitous. Whether intentional or
unintentional, conscious or unconscious, they define the feel and function of
any classroom. Expectations answer the questions in the class. These can be
simple questions such as:
Expectations answer the larger questions, as well, such as:
As we discussed in chapter 4, both implicit and explicit
expectations have a determining effect on what we can call the “socially
constructed classroom reality.” Therefore, recognizing and bringing to our
conscious awareness our basic assumptions about students, biases,
preconceptions, stereotypes and overall social conditioning is critical. It is
possible to project primarily intended expectations to our students, but it is
important to keep somewhere in the back of our minds that WE WILL STRUGGLE TO
PROMOTE HEALTHY AND FUNCTIONAL EXPLICIT EXPECTATIONS, IF WE HAVE A WHOLE SET OF
UNEXAMINED DYSFUNCTIONAL CONDITIONING ACTING LIKE COMPUTER VIRUSES TO CURRUPT
OUR INTENTIONAL EFFORTS.
How do students’ expectations develop over time?
We might begin with the recognition that all teachers are
constantly projecting expectations and all students are constantly interpreting
what they perceive as the expectations for the class. Things we say, things we do, our patterns,
our body language and tone of voice all send out information that students
invariable interpret. Over time, these interpretations lead students to make
judgments about what they have found is expected. Put simply, students learn
what to expect in the future by what they have experienced and observed to be
true in the past.
As teachers, the more deliberate and intentional we are
about promoting our classroom expectations the more effective we will be.
Moreover, the more the expectations that guide the class will be those that we
like.
As one examines how expectations are intentionally
cultivated in a classroom, it is evident that some strategies demonstrate a
greater capacity to affect behavior than others. We could say that the most effective
intentional strategies would be those that function to do the following:
Using this principle, if we were to rate the effectiveness of the most commonly incorporated strategies, according to their ability to create positive expectations, we would observe a substantial variation of effectiveness. An approximation of the order of these ratings is offered in Figure 8.A.
Figure 8.A: Approximate rating of common management practices related to their ability to create clarity of expectations and a positive association with the expected behavior, from most (four stars) to least effective (no stars).
|
Practice |
Clarity rating |
Affect rating |
Overall |
Comments |
|
Purposeful Action §
Consistency §
Follow-through Positive Recognition Clarifying statements Clarifying questions Written Expectations |
+ + + + + |
+ + N+ N+ N |
**** **** *** *** **½ |
Do a great deal to create cause and effect clarity and
positive associations related to the expectations. |
|
Personal Recognition or praise Warnings Requests |
N N+ - |
N+ N N- |
* * ½* |
Do a little to promote expectations and create
inconsequential or confusing emotional climates. |
|
Negative recognitions Irrational or Negative Actions Threats and put downs |
N- - - |
- - - |
½ * 0 0 |
Do very little to promote clarity and do a great deal to
create negative associations with the desired behavior. |
+ does an excellent job
N+ does a better than neutral job
N is neutral or
inconsequential
N- does a bit more harm than good
but has an effect
- does mostly harm
The ratings in Figure 8.x might be a little surprising. But
as we examine each in more detail, it will become clear that strategies and
interventions that might appear on the surface to have a positive impact can in
the big picture do very little, and/or actually do a great deal of harm.
Purposeful Action goes to the top of the list for
the simple reason that “actions speak louder than words.” No matter what we
say, students learn about us from what we do. In a sense words are technically
action, but in an operational sense, they can also be perceived as inaction.
Actions demonstrate that we are committed to our words. Actions take more
effort than words, so students learn what we value and who we are by what we
make the effort to do. Conversely, inaction sends a powerful message. When we
have set up an expectation that if the student does not do A (i.e, follow directions, show respect to other students,
fulfill their responsibilities, etc.), then the teacher is responsible to do B
(i.e., deliver a consequence, support the student’s efforts to improve their
behavior, etc.). It sends a very concrete and observable message to students
that the expectation is weak or non-existent. As we examine the idea of the
social contract in chapter 11, the powerful and essential role of action in the
development of an effective classroom governance system will be evident.
In chapter 14, we will discuss what could be referred to as “technical management,” the procedural dimension of the classroom management process. There we identify the key to effectiveness as being a constructive and purposeful use of action such as teaching and practicing one’s procedures, and the fundamentally useless of such passive strategies as verbal criticism.
What we are calling positive recognitions are
incidents where the teacher points out that something that is happening is
helpful. These incidents can take the form of recognitions of good ideas,
effort, or interactions. First, we need
to distinguish them from personal recognitions or praise. Positive recognitions highlight behavior,
where personal recognitions/praise call attention to the one doing the
behaving. As we will discuss in more detail in the following chapter related to
motivation, praise, by its nature, leads to dependence on an external source,
and is not readily associated with the learning. Positive recognitions create
clarity of the task and encourage the student’s own internal goals and
interests. Let’s examine an example related to listening. A common phrase that many primary teachers use
is, “I like the way Maria is listening.” Compare that phrase to, “It’s great
that we are listening so well, notice how much easier it is to . . . ?” The first phrase may sound like a positive
recognition on first site, but let’s examine it more closely. What do students
infer when they heat it? Maria, likely hears something to the effect, “the
teacher likes me because I am good.” The other students likely hear, “the
teacher likes Maria because she is good.” It does little to create clarity of
the expectation, or to reinforce the need for the expectation. It does more
than a negative recognition of who was not listening, but it runs the risk of
having the negative effects associated with praise (see chapter 9), that is
being an emotional extrinsic reinforcement of persons, not behavior.
The second phrase represents an example of a positive
recognition of a behavior. In this case a collective behavior. Positive
recognitions can be primarily focused on the collective, or on particular
individuals or groups. There are advantages to each level of attention.
The advantages of recognizing a collective accomplishment
are:
While these emotions are subtle, over time they can have a
powerful cumulative effect. The group
begins to feel pride and cohesion as they are recognized for their efforts.
Progressively, the group begins to associate collective function with meeting
the need for belonging. In addition, the
growing level of trust breeds acceptance and a feeling of emotional ease. Test this
emotional association for yourself. Recall a situation where you were working
with a group of people that you trusted. Recollect your level of anxiety. How
about your acceptance level of what was taking place? Now recall a situation
where you were working with a group that you did not trust very much. Where was
your level of anxiety throughout the process. How
critical were you of the outcome in the end?
Using or principle of expectations, we can see that the power of collective positive behavioral recognition comes from the fact that it promotes a high level of clarity, and satisfies a host of basic needs.
Exercise box:
Try recognizing a positive
behavior ever 5 minutes for an hour. Here are some useful recognition phrases:
·
This group just _______ that is a great idea that I
had not thought of.
·
I am seeing people doing a good job of taking the
time to ______ before they ____ .
·
I love the creative ways that we are approaching
_______ .
·
I appreciate that you are putting so much care and
attention into _____, it will pay you back when we ________.
·
You know we could not do this
2 weeks ago, and see how we are getting it.
The advantages of recognition of individual or individual
group behavior are:
Finally, positive recognitions can be even more powerful
when they come from peers. Find ways to incorporate this principle into how you
clarify your expectations. Chapter 17, and Appendix X
both outline an effective strategy for doing this. It involves asking the
students at the end of an activity to publicly recognize another classmate who
did a particularly good job of x behavior (i.e., one of any number of
expectations, for example effort, or encouragement, or conflict resolution,
etc.). Over time this technique can become increasingly more powerful as
students begin to look for ways to recognize and appreciate their classmates, and the behavioral expectation that are being
discussed are reinforced in a dynamic way.
Telling vs. Promoting Understanding (goes
where?)
“Give a person a fish and they will eat for a
day. Teach a person to fish and they will eat for a lifetime.”
When we tell a student what to do, we are in
essence, giving them a fish. When a student (or the class as
a whole) is new to a situation, or early in the year when expectations are
being internalized, telling is essential. For example, when we give a
new assignment, giving very clear, specific instructions is critical. So how do
we “teach our students to fish, without just telling them? Telling leads to
dependence on the part of the learner. So our thinking should be, tell when we
have to, and when we can, begin to simply recognize when expectations are being
met.
OK:
“The first group that looks ready will be the
first to go”
Better:
“I am looking for a group that looks ready?”
The results will be enough to sell you on the principle. The
explanation for why it works is a bit complicated, but worth exploring. It
involves the difference between students understanding the meaning of words
versus understanding the concepts underlying the expectations. Giving words is
like giving fish. Helping students to understand when and why expectations are
important is like teaching them to fish.
A clarifying statement is one in which the teacher (or in
some cases a student) simply states the necessary behavioral expectation. For
example, “we are making sure that we are getting all the notes we need to
present our ideas in a couple of minutes.” This kind of statement does not
assume that anything is happening or not happening currently. It is not a
positive or negative recognition, it is just a neutral
clarification, stated positively.
Clarifying statements work like focusing a lens. They do not
change the picture, or interpret it. They just help the students refocus their
efforts a bit more. When the teacher uses a clarifying statement such as “we
are all giving Sandra our undivided attention right now” (as fellow student
Sandra is sharing an answer), there is no judgment about what is not happening,
praise for what is happening, or new information. It is just a statement to
help focus the expectation lens a bit more clearly. It assumes the expectation
was already understood, it was just a bit fuzzy.
In chapter 14, we will discuss giving directions in more
detail. The importance of providing good directions to activities is critical.
However, consider the burden that is eased from the directions when clarifying
statements and positive recognitions are used to help define the task.
Finally don’t be afraid to use “expectation mantras.” For example, “in this class we . . .” No matter how familiar or unfamiliar the behavior
is to the students, or how hokey you think you sound, they work. For instance,
if you inherit a class that has a habit of disrespect, employ the mantra, “in
this class we do a great job of listening to each other and respecting each
other’s opinions.” While at first, it may sound a bit odd to the students, over
time, as they hear it over and over, and as you reinforce respectful behavior
and show no tolerance for disrespectful behavior, you will see behavior change.
The mantra begins to become internalized.
It sends a message that you believe in the students, will only accept
the best they have to offer, and will not give up on them. Over time you will
see not only the behavior change, but change in their concept of themselves
related to the particular expectation. You will know that it is really working
when you begin to hear your mantras come out of the students’ mouths as they
interact with one another.
Clarifying questions such as, “Looking at the clock, at
which stage of the process should you be right now?” have an added benefit when
compared to clarifying statements. Examine the differences in the 2 examples
that are addressing a similar expectation:
Clarifying statement – “Make sure we are all doing a
good job of our cooperative group roles.”
Clarifying question – “How would you say you are
doing fulfilling your cooperative group roles so far today?”
Both do a good job of focusing the expectation lens. Neither
is judgmental or distracting. However, what types of thinking does each elicit?
The first statement brings awareness to the task, but the clarifying question
adds the dimension of promoting reflection as well. In the statement, most
likely, few students will hear the implication related to the quality of the
task. Mostly, they will just hear “make sure you are on task.” In the question,
the students are encouraged to consider the quality and effectiveness of their
efforts to a greater degree.
When is it best to use a question rather than a statement?
When that particular expectation has already been shown to be clearly
understood and demonstrated at least once. Before then it will likely be more
frustrating than useful.
Putting expectations in writing is very helpful but not
sufficient to assume that they will be understood. The written word has a
powerful influence, especially to learners who are not strong auditory learners
or second language learners. When words are conspicuously displayed in the
class, students will read them many times over. But if the actions in the class
do not support the words, even the most dramatic and catchy posters will very
quickly become invisible. This is true for both directions for tasks, and for
broad behavioral expectations.
If we were to examine two groups of students who were given
a task, where one group had written directions and the other didn’t, who would
you predict would do a better job of the task? It may seem like a silly
question, but how often do we trust verbal directions when written directions
would have saved a great deal of misguided effort, the need to repeat what we said,
and frustration for both teacher and students? For early grades putting
directions at work centers and/or on the board is a very effective practice.
For upper grades, giving students or groups of students
assignment task sheets and rubrics results in a much higher level product in
the end, as well as a more focused process along the way.
Other ideas:
Statements by the teacher such as “I like the way
In terms of clarity, personal recognitions are not
especially strong either. Because the association is with the student being
praised, there is little sense of cause and effect between the behavior and any
resulting consequence.
Test the power of this intervention yourself. Observe a
teacher who uses it as the primary source of clarifying expectations, what do
you notice? Do you see a high level of clarity? How about the level of affect?
In most cases, what you will notice is that it becomes less powerful over time,
and at some point the teacher will (misguidedly) turn to something negative in
an effort to gain more control. This frustrating cycle could have been avoided
if they had used a more effective strategy for clarifying expectations for
desirable behavior.
When the teacher gives a warning to the class or a student,
he/she feels like he/she is sending a clear message that there is an expectation
in the class and it needs to be respected.
Warnings are typically effective at making the teacher feel a little
better for a little while, but they are not very effective at changing behavior
or clarifying expectations. In fact, if they are expressed in an angry or
frustrated tone they can exacerbate the undesirable behavior.
A warning is intended to portend an action, but it is in
itself an action. Or better said, it is a conspicuous and deliberate inaction. It sends the message that, in this class, the
cause and effect relationship between behavior and consequences is weak, or
that the teacher does not have the energy or courage to follow-through. If the
teacher makes warnings a routine intervention, students learn to assume that
they get a free pass the first time they choose to cross a line. Students do not need to be malicious to learn
quickly to take advantage of any system that gives them a buffer between their
choices and accountability. Test this principle yourself. Consider your own
response to a condition in which you knew that the State Patrol always gave one
warning to speeders, versus a condition in which they gave tickets to all
speeders without warnings. Would your
driving behavior be affected?
So when is a warning useful? Not very often, but if an
expectation is new or is only in place for a particular event, warnings can be
a nice consideration to those who did not understand the direction/expectation
very well. But many of the expectations that we have are for things that we do on
a repeated basis (i.e., line up, have discussions, turn in work, work in
groups). In these cases, warnings water down the cause and effect relationship
between what is expected and what happens when expectations are met or not met.
Every warning today makes the clarity of the expectation a little weaker for
tomorrow.
Strictly speaking, a request does not affect the clarity of
the classroom expectations. However, what happens afterward and the context of
the request have a significant effect. For example if the teacher asks that
class for attention, expects them to be listening, does not speak until they
are attentive, and follows up with consequences if there is not 100% attention,
promotes a strong expectation that listening is not optional (see chapter 14:
Technical Management for a more complete discussion of this idea). If the
teacher requests attention, does not get it, and then begins to talk anyway,
the students quickly learn that the teacher really does not have an expectation
that they will be listened to. And when the request comes in the form of a plea
such as “I want you to listen to me,” students learn that the teacher’s
requests are essentially meaningless (and maybe even pitiful).
New teachers especially, keep in mind an important principle
related to requests and expectations – NEVER MAKE A REQUEST THAT THE STUDENTS
DO SOMETHING THAT THEY ARE EXPECTED TO BE DOING ALREADY. An expectation implies
that there is an understanding between parties, and part of the understanding
involves what happens if the expectation is not fulfilled. When the teacher
makes a further request, rather than taking the action that is implied by the
expectation, the students learn that the expectation is weak. And in the end
the teacher will not follow through, but instead use a passive tool like a
further request. Chapter 12 will explain the dynamics of consequences in more
depth.
A negative recognition could be considered any message from
the teacher that identifies a particular behavior that they want to stop. It
could also be referred to as chronicling misbehavior (see 10 biggest classroom
management mistakes made by teachers). They can take the form of comments to
individuals, such as “Cornell, I want you to stop bothering Michelle.” Or they
can take the form of comments to the collective, such as “It is getting too
noisy in here,” or “Shshsh!”
As with warnings,
negative recognitions of unwanted behavior feel like action and in the short
term make the teacher feel like they did something to address the problem. Yet,
over time, the net result is that the expectations in the class are getting
weaker and the climate in the class gets more negative. It is like drinking salt water to quench a
thirst. There is a momentary sense of
resolution, but one is just making the problem worse. Lets examine why.
If we use our principle that sound expectations come from
strong cause and effect relationships and a positive association with the
behavior expected, negative recognition of behavior fails on both counts. First, as with warnings and threats, pointing
out an unwanted behavior is essentially a conspicuous inaction. We are showing
in very public behavior that we are too lazy or weak to take any meaningful
action. The cause and effect that is created
in this case is that when there is student misbehavior, the teacher does
nothing, but pretends to do something.
Because there is no action that is meaningful, the students quickly
learn to tune out the message that comes with the “inaction.”
Second, consider what negative recognition does to the
association with the behavior. Take for example if the behavior was quality
small group interaction. A typical negative recognition might be something
like, “You guys over there, quit socializing and get to work!” What has the
teacher done to create a positive association with the desired task? The
distressing fact is that what that group and indirectly to the whole class just
heard the teacher say was something to the effect, “Socializing is what you want
to do, and this task is not very enjoyable, but you are supposed to do it
because I am the teacher and I decide what we do in here.” The teacher has just
contributed to the students’ perception that the work was not very enjoyable,
thus creating a more negative association with the task.
Compare the language of negative recognitions of behavior to that of positive recognitions. It may not appear that there is a profound difference semantically, but as you can see, there is a powerful difference between the outcomes of each.
“If you guys don’t stop messing around before I get over
there, you are all going to be in trouble.” On the surface a threat such as
this can appear to be a powerful tool to encourage behavior. It can on some
level seem “threatening.” However, recall the qualities that give an
expectation its power. Consider a threat in those terms. A threat is hostile and passive. It sends the
message that the teacher is willing to externalize his or her negativity, but
is too weak to take any action. Is it
apparent why threats were rated “0” stars for their ability to promote
intentional expectations? However they are pretty effective at creating the
implicit and unintentional expectation that the teacher is not trustworthy or safe
to deal with, and that they are pretty lazy as well.
Put downs work with a similarly superficial, but faulty
logic – if I tell you enough times and in cruel enough terms how inadequate you
are, you will change. Unfortunately,
most of us have a great deal of day-to-day experience with put downs. They do have power. The power to destroy
relationships and deflate the motivation of others, but they have no value for
promoting desirable expectations or changing behavior for the better. Like
threats they are hostile and passive. The pain and hurt that you see on the
face of the person that you just put down is like the tip of the iceberg. There
is a great deal more under the surface. And sooner of later all the pain that
one gives out will come back in some form or another – multiplied by the number
of students in the class.
Figure 8.x. A short phrase that might describe each of the 4 orientations as it relates to expectations.
|
Type 1 – “How does it feel when we (meet the
expectations for the class)?” |
Type 2 – “I need you to (meet the
expectations of the class).” |
|
Type 3 – “There is not enough (behavior that
is meeting my expectations).” |
Type 4 – “There is too much (behavior that
is not meeting the class expectations).” |
Both 2 and 1-style management orientations share clarity, positivity, and proactivity in
how they approach the idea of expectations. Each approach is intentional and
deliberate. However the goals will be a bit different and they will end up in
different places. The essence of 2-style expectations is clarifying the
respective roles, duties and responsibilities of both the teacher and the
students. The goal is for students to become experts in knowing and showing
what to do to be a functional part of the class, as defined by the teacher. The
essence of 1-style expectations is collective responsibility to promote the
“common good.” Because the common good of any group evolves over time with the
needs and development of the group dynamics, in this approach the expectations
will need to evolve as well. Therefore, in the 1=style class helping the
students understand what an expectation is intending to accomplish can be as important or more important than just making it operational.
Strategies such as class meetings may be helpful in accomplishing this goal.
As we will discuss in chapter 25, Moving from 2 to
1-style practice, it may be most effective to begin the year thinking in a
2-style, and then, if one is so inclined, begin to work toward a more
internalized and self-directed 1-style approach to classroom management, after
a groundwork of behavioral habits have been put in place. This will be
especially true if the group of students that you have inherited is unfamiliar
with a high level of self-direction or democratic participation.
[1] Shaping is the practice of reinforcing a behavior that is a close approximation of the desired behavior. For example, if the