Support & Encouragement Can Foster Enhanced Self Esteem

Active listening is a wonderful way to collect information about those we teach.  Using that information to support and encourage our learners makes it extra wonderful, in that it values the information, and can encourage enhanced ownership of the learning process and outcomes.

It is well documented that leaners’ motivation and engagement is enhanced when they’re able to take ownership over their learning.  I’m regularly seeing some amazing classroom teachers make great efforts to understand their students.  In turn, I’ve been seeing them take that understanding to the next level by incorporating students’ needs, abilities, learning styles, background knowledge, and life experiences into account as they plan for and implement instruction.

I’ve seen these incredible educators:

– Confer with individuals and small groups

– Observe and take notes during class

– Check for understanding with regular/quick written and oral assessments

– Take interested inventories before instruction

– Use backchannels and other digital tools to generate data during instruction

– Facilitate a variety of Visual Thinking Strategies to unlock potential

Data collection is critical in any learning context.  More importantly, what is done with those data makes all the difference!

We are busy.  We are beholden to standards, stakeholders, policies, and plenty of other forces that guide our planning and prioritizing.  It is difficult to consider the individual needs of each of our learners.  It is arguably even more difficult to weave those needs into the systems and structures that serve to connect those learners to content through their needs.  However, we are sometimes gifted relatively easy pathways.  We have to take advantage of those gifts when they come along!

The other day I had a conversation with one of the organizers of our school’s computer coding club.  The conversation was about a piece of persuasive writing that she composed for another purpose.  It was stellar!  She wrote with passion, she expressed authority, she was thorough and clear with her intentions, and it was among the most engaging pieces of writing I’ve ever read (certainly from a middle school student).  It was truly exceptional!

The connection to data collection and application was extremely poignant to me.  During the summer, this student expressed an interested in creating the coding club.  She developed a plan and was given that opportunity to do so by our Principal.  She was listened to, and her voice was expressly valued.  It was a great example of a student offering information and an educator having the foresight and wherewithal to incorporate that information into the student’s learning paradigm.  Kudos to my boss!  Incidentally, it’s a great way to learn for the adults in our building as well.

During our conversation, this student told me that before she had the opportunity to develop the club, she would have never written the letter I referred to above.  She told me that she did not have the self-esteem.  She went on to tell me that the experience of being encouraged and supported in doing something that she was passionate about was powerful and transformative.  How cool!  This student brought a great idea to the table, she was given the green light and some essential guidance, and she took off running toward what became a life altering developmental experience.

Sometimes we have to work hard to understand and build relationships with our learners.  Students do not always come to us with such explicit ideas.  However, when they do, it’s essential that we listen, process, support, and encourage.

What is it that your students are looking to get involved in?  Listen closely, find out, and then make sure that they have opportunities and assistance.  It may contribute to their learning in ways that are truly meaningful and go well beyond the moment!

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Dream Big.  Work Hard.  Be Well.

 

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