Alan is a head of year. He wants to shift from a culture of compliance to a culture of achievement: what should he do?
If we want students to change, we can:
- Specify the habit or steps to take
- Inspire and Motivate them to value the change
- PLan change: ask students to commit when and how they will act
- Initiate action: make starting easy
- Follow up: help students maintain change
Nice ideas (more, here) – but how do they work in practice? Here’s a real teacher dilemma – slightly adapted for anonymity – what should Alan do?
The situation
Alan wants to create a culture of achievement among students. All the basics are in place at his school: students feel safe and they do as they are asked, more or less. However, Alan is concerned that the school has achieved a culture of compliance. He wants students to work hard and try their best of their own accord. At present, he worries that only a minority of students value achievement for its own sake.
Alan is a head of year: eventually, he wants to create this culture across his year group and the school. However, he knows that asking both teachers and students to change is a complicated undertaking; he intends to begin with his own classes, before inviting his colleagues to change.
What would you do in Alan’s place? Please share your ideas for Alan in the comments box below.
Solution: The next post draws ideas together to offer a proposed solution to Alan’s situation: here.
Previous teacher dilemmas, and teachers’ suggested solutions, are here:
- How can Mark get his class to begin learning independently, without nagging or reminders?
- How can Lucia get her students to act on their good intentions to do homework and revision?
If you find this interesting, you may want to keep up with the guide I’m writing for teachers hoping to use behavioural psychology: sign up here.
Ooh, this is a big topic, but here’s my ten cents’ worth:
I’m trialling some habit forming strategies with y7&8. It’s going right back to basics like standing behind chairs and sitting down when told, handing books out in the same way each lesson, ending each lesson in exactly the same orderly way – I’ve spent ten minutes before drilling students in how to hand in books! It sounds petty, but you’re creating a culture of order and habits. Then you can move on, I hope, to developing that into a culture of achievement. I’m not a big fan of stickers and house points as they can end up being given to the same ‘good’ children all the time, or over-used to reward more challenging children to do what they’re supposed to be doing in the first place! I’ve used English Captain badges for students who have completed work to a high standard. They then assist other students. The badges are worn all lesson and are much-coveted, however, ALL students have to really earn the right to wear it, no one gets to be English Captain because it’s their ‘turn.’ Less able children get to be Captain as frequently as others as they may complete a low stakes task more quickly. I’ve found it to be hugely effective.
Finally, an obvious one, I know, but I have a couple of less able classes at the moment that I’m just not reaching so I’m modelling and scaffolding PEEL/PEA paragraphs line by line and not moving on until everyone in the class is 100% confident (I know, it’s going to take a few lessons!) Exit tasks/tickets help with this strategy.
Hope some of this is helpful.