What I read:
"Adults must have tons of patience and provide lots of modeling, practice, and encouragement to support the development of good planning and problem-solving skills." - Margaret Searle, Causes & Cures in the Classroom: Getting to the Root of Academic and Behavior Problems p. 42
"The ultimate goal is to enable the students to become more confident and independent." - Margaret Searle, Causes & Cures in the Classroom: Getting to the Root of Academic and Behavior Problems p. 30What I thought:
We've all worked with students and colleagues who have difficulties getting started and/or following through with tasks or initiatives; our first reaction often is to challenge the excuses folks that struggle with this always have, or to assume that they are lazy or oppositional.
In the classroom I saw this manifested in students who were always missing assignments, turning in assignments half done, or have grand plans end in mediocre finished products; in school leadership I see this manifested in staff who miss deadlines, create goals that are nearly impossible to meet, or want to improve in a certain area but have no concept of how to.
How we respond and how we as teachers & leaders communicate will determine if we will have any type of meaningful impact on their improvement.
Labeling or assuming takes the improvement process out of our hands; when we decide that our efforts will be wasted because of lack of motivation, laziness, etc, we've lost the opportunity to guide and support; we undercut our own capacity to lead and understand how to help folks move themselves in the right direction.
Getting frustrated or angry doesn't work; our relationships and the culture we manufacture in our classrooms, offices, schools, etc will either encourage or deter folks from seeking assistance. If they think we'll be mad or lash out, then they'll probably mask or hide the problem rather than seek our assistance.
If out of impatience we simply do it for them, then they become dependent on us.
If the same issue keeps happening despite our efforts, then keep trying something new; if they can't seem to get started or follow through, then help them:
- visualize the goal.
- see how by modeling using a "first me, then you" procedure.
- break down the process into individual parts
- visualize the action plan.
- verbalize potential obstacles before starting.
- verbalize the plan's details step by step.
- by building in class time for planning and clarifying questions.
- discussing what to do when they don't know what to do.
- engage in conversation about what went wrong last time and how to avoid this time.
- by showing them what you would do in same scenario.
The end goal with our students and staff is always confident independence; we don't want to respond to missing, incomplete, or poorly crafted work in a manner that will impede progress toward that overarching goal.
We want them to be able to do it consistently well without assistance, but we need them to be honest and timely when they require assistance.
Instead of reacting emotionally when planning and problem-solving skills lack we ought to think clearly, identify why the issue may be happening, and continue to utilize new strategies until they can move forward with a plan confidently and independently.
