Equity in Education: Underachieving Gifted Students

As an educator, I do my best to ensure that all my students have equitable access to learning, so I would have to say that one of the most frustrating groups of diverse learners for teachers, and parents, is underachieving gifted students. So many people automatically assume that students who well in school are gifted, and those who do not do well are not; however, gifted students do not always excel in school for a variety of reasons, including peer acceptance, family issues, boredom, and learning disabilities. Understanding the factors that lead to underachieving gifted students is crucial to helping these students succeed.

Post (2016) acknowledges that identifying gifted underachievers is difficult because they often do not fit the model of "gifted" students. Smutney (2004) lists common characteristics of underachieving gifted students as:

• Low self-esteem

• Consistently negative attitude toward school and learning

• Reluctance to take risks or apply one’s self

• Discomfort with competition

• Lack of perseverance

• Lack of goal-directed behavior

• Social isolation

• Weaknesses in skill areas and organization

• Disruptiveness in class and resistance to class activities.

Post (2016) states that the basis for identifying underachieving gifted students is that the students have a discrepancy between achievement and ability that must have happened for a year or more and that the students do not have a disability.

Some underachieving gifted students fall into certain characteristic categories (Post, 2016):

Involuntary Underachiever: these students do not have access to learning due to underfunded schools, poorly trained teachers and staff, and other school environmental conditions that do not allow students equitable access to learning. 

Classic Underachiever: these students typically start to underachieve in middle school and into high school in all areas of learning. They are often apathetic or even rebellious and can give logical reasons for their underperformance. They can show signs of depression and typically resist all efforts by parents and teachers to encourage or coerce them into learning.

Selective Underachiever: these students select the courses or areas of learning in which they will excel or fail, typically based on their respect for the teacher and interest in the subject matter. They enjoy challenges in their chosen classes but disregard learning in other classes.

Under-the-radar Underachievers: these students are rarely identified as underachieving because they do well in school and in all areas; however, because they do well, they are rarely challenged and find themselves lacking the skills for handling pressure and stress later in college or employment.

Underachieving gifted students can be difficult to deal with as a classroom teacher because the issues are typically behavioral. The instructional approach to teaching the subject matter may make all the difference with keeping them interested and active in learning at their level.

Some approaches identified by the University of Delaware School of Education (2013) are:

• Compact the curriculum and provide enrichment activities.
• Implement a multi-level and multi-dimensional curriculum. 
• Be flexible with the curriculum.
• Make the curriculum student-centered.
• Allow students to pursue independent projects based on their own individual interests. 
• Allow gifted children to assume ownership of their own learning through curriculum acceleration. 
• Teach interactively. 
• Remember that gifted children may not excel in all areas.  

Planning and delivering instruction modified for the diverse groups in the classroom can be a daunting task, but understanding what students need to excel in school is the first step in helping them learn to the best of their abilities.

References:

Post, G. (2016). Who is the gifted underachiever? Four types of underachievement in gifted children. Retrieved on March 5, 2017, from http://giftedchallenges.blogspot.com/2016/02/who-is-gifted-underachiever-four-types.html

Smutney, J. (2004). Meeting the needs of gifted underachievers – individually! Retrieved on March 5, 2017, from http://www.davidsongifted.org/Search-Database/entry/A10442

University of Delaware School of Education. (2013). Gifted students: Recommendations for teachers. Retrieved on March 5, 2017, from http://www.education.udel.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/GiftedStudents.pdf

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Reasons for Building Teacher Capacity

Reasons for Building Teacher Capacity

Research shows without fail that the top variable for student success is teacher effectiveness (Hall, 2014). Principals are the second highest determiner in affecting student achievement (Kaplan & Owings, 2015). Administrative leadership is fundamental to improving student and school outcomes, and leaders have a responsibility to develop their teachers into professionals and leaders. Unlike the measurements we use in math, teacher capacity is limitless, which means that school and student success if limitless, too. Principals need to build teacher capacity to share leadership, improve their schools and increase student achievement, and increase teacher morale.

It Really Is A Team Effort

Principals can't be experts at everything, but they can develop experts who in turn can serve as leaders for the staff, especially in schools and districts with limited resources and specialist positions. Also, schools with shared leadership are more likely to have staff cohesiveness (Kaplan & Owings, 2015). Harrison and Killion (2007) list 10 teacher leader roles that contribute to school success:

• Resource Provider: shares instructional resources, including websites, materials, professional articles, assessments, and more.
• Instructional Specialist: helps others implement teaching strategies, including differentiation, research-based strategies, and methodologies.
• Curriculum Specialist: leads teachers on understanding standards, creating standards-based pacing guides, planning instruction and developing shared assessments.
• Classroom Supporter: supports teachers directly in the classroom by demonstrating lessons, coteaching, observing and giving feedback, or any other way a teacher needs to see an instructional activity or concept in use.
• Learning Facilitator: surveys and works closely with staff to know professional needs and facilitates professional development for staff members.
• Mentor: serves as a role model and adviser for novice teachers, including providing personal support with instruction, curriculum, school procedures, rules, practices, and politics.
• School Leader: acts as chairperson for departments or grade-levels and represents the school on district or community committees or task forces, when necessary.
• Data Coach: responsible for ensuring that teachers use data to drive instruction and practices.
• Catalyst for Change: pose questions to provoke discussions regarding change, generate analysis of student learning, or explore relationships between data and achievement levels.
• Learner: demonstrate qualities of lifelong learners, use knowledge to improve student achievement, and model continual improvement practices.

School Improvement and Student Achievement

Teachers are directly responsible for classroom management, student behavior, and student academic achievement (Kaplan & Owings, 2015). Additionally, multiple studies have shows that shared or distributed leadership in schools increases student achievement (Kaplan & Owings, 2015). Principals should nurture a culture of communication, collaboration, trust, and high expectations to support teachers' knowledge and skills and increase their desire to improve student success.

Improve Teacher Morale

Morale is the enthusiasm and loyalty one has about a task or job. Principals can improve teacher morale by building teacher capacity in several ways (Mitchell & Patterson, 2015). Teachers need time to learn and improve, how to take ownership of their instruction and student achievement, and how to use feedback correctly. Principals need to develop a growth-mindset culture, where failure from risk-taking is seen as evidence of growth and is an opportunity to reflect, develop new strategies, and try again. Principals should support and scaffold their teachers in all aspects of teaching and school leadership, which includes using teacher leaders to support each other. Principals also need to be highly conscious of highlighting only the shining stars of the school. Principals should scaffold leadership and independence so that all members have the opportunity to show how they are improving and succeeding. Teachers who feel and know success will have greater enthusiasm about their jobs and increased morale.

References:

Hall, P. (2014). How to build teachers' capacity for success. Retrieved on December 17, 2017, from 
http://inservice.ascd.org/how-to-build-teachers-capacity-for-success/

Harrison, C., & Killion, J. (2007). Ten roles for teacher leaders. Retrieved on December 17, 2016, from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/sept07/vol65/num01/Ten-Roles-for-Teacher-Leaders.aspx

Kaplan, L. S., & Owings, W. A. (2015). Introduction to the principalship: Theory to practice. New York, NY: Routledge.

Mitchell, D. J., & Patterson, J. (2015). Building teacher capacity for success. Retrieved on December 17, 2016, from http://inservice.ascd.org/building-teacher-capacity-for-success/

Ensuring SWPBIS Works in Your Classroom

Ensuring SWPBIS Works in Your Classroom

School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (SWPBIS) is increasingly being implemented in schools and districts, and for good reason. Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is shown to support positive behaviors and provide a multi-tiered system of intervention for students who need additional support. The systematic approach to improving behavior uses research-based techniques to improve student behavior, as well as data-driven analysis to identify students in need of intervention. However, PBIS is not an immediate fix. Studies show that student behavior modification is only as effective as the teacher's knowledge and use of PBIS techniques. Teachers need to be mindful of their use of PBIS techniques in order for their students to be truly successful.

Keep Students Engaged and Learning

Teachers know that the more their students are engaged and actively learning, the less behavior problems their students have. Successful classrooms have students who know what to do at all times. Routines and procedures greatly reduce behavior problems (NEA, n.d.). Explicit directions and instructions with checks for understanding enable students to know exactly how to complete assignments, which maximizes learning potential (Archer, A. L. & Hughes, C. A., n.d.). Effective teachers prepare students for success by having well-prepared procedures, routines, and lessons. 

Clearly State Rules and Expectations

Students work best in environments that have 3-5 clearly stated expectations. Examples of behavioral expectations include being punctual, respectful, responsible, safe, productive, and cooperative. PBIS expectations are adopted by the entire school and are visually stated in all areas with behavior matrices. After being explicitly taught what is expected and how to act, students use behavior matrices to remind themselves and others how to act in a particular area or setting. The classroom behavior matrix is fundamental in reminding students what is expected in that setting. 

Reinforce Positive Behavior

Good behavior needs positive reinforcement. School-Wide PBIS models have reinforcements in place that are consistent throughout the entire school and allow students to be recognized on a school-wide basis. Additionally, effective teachers may have reinforcements in their own classrooms that meet the individual needs of their students and follow the teacher's creative niche. Praise is the easiest, cheapest, and most effective reinforcement teachers can use to support and modify behavior. In fact, the more effective and directive praise teachers give, the more students will be on task and productive (Reinke, W. M., Herman, K. C., Stormont, M., 2012). Research shows that specific task praise in ratios of at least four positive interactions to one negative interaction significantly reduces negative behaviors and increases positive behaviors (Reinke, W. M., Herman, K. C., & Stormont, M., 2012). 

Respond to Negative Behavior with a Continuum of Strategies

PBIS schools have procedures and protocols in place that assist teachers with negative behaviors. Tier 1 strategies are universal and are successful with most of the student population. But when students are having trouble, Tier 2 and 3 strategies allow teachers to provide assistance with more direct or intensive help. PBIS schools have teams in place that discuss student behavior based on data, and these teams provide teachers with strategies to improve student behavior. Strategies are documented with data and reviewed for effectiveness. Intervention is formed to meet the specific and individual needs of the student, with the intention of being able to place the student back into Tier 1 as soon as possible. 

Teacher Self-Efficacy

Student behavior greatly affects teacher performance, so much so, that most teachers who leave the field in the first five years of service state the reason is student behavior (Reinke, W. M., Herman, K. C., & Stormont, M., 2012). Teachers who feel ineffective with student behavior are less likely to try new strategies and interventions to improve student behavior, and conversely, teachers who feel effective with student behavior are more likely to try new strategies to improve student behavior (Reinke, W. M., Herman, K. C., & Stormont, M., 2012). PBIS strategies and interventions are research-based and data-driven, providing effective improvement in student behavior, increasing teacher self-efficacy, and increasing the likelihood that positive interventions and supports will be used to improve behavior and learning in the classroom.

References:

Archer, A. L. & Hughes, C. A. (n.d.). Explicit instruction. Retrieved on October 22, 2016, from http://explicitinstruction.org/

NEA (n.d.). Determine classroom procedures before school starts. Retrieved on October 22, 2016, from http://www.nea.org/tools/determine-classroom-procedures-before-school-starts.html

Reinke, W. M., Herman, K. C., & Stormont, M. (2012). Classroom-level positive behavior supports in schools implementing SW-PBIS. Retrieved on October 22, 2016, from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED540773.pdf

Long Term Goal Setting and Achievement

My recent course, Change and Continuous Improvement, for my school administrative credential through Brandman University has forced me to think of goal setting and achievement in a new light. Everyone sets goals every day about many things. These involve mental and physical lists, ideas discussed with or told to spouses, children, or friends, and those future ideas quietly kept in the back of our minds. In order for goals to be achieved, performance must take place, and goals affect performance in four key ways: direction, energy, persistence, and action (Locke & Latham, 2002)

Goals direct where we are going, and specifically goals direct our attention to what is relevant about achieving those goals. This is why feedback is so important. Feedback enables us to focus on the exact details in the goal process and alter our direction through the steps in achieving the goal (Locke & Latham, 2002).

Goals create energy. The harder the goal, the more likely people are to expend energy figuring out how to achieve it (Locke & Latham, 1985). Timelines also add to the energy process by creating a sense of urgency. Long term goals should be broken into smaller short term goals so the sense of urgency is maintained through the goal achieving process (Locke & Latham, 1985). 

Goals require persistence, and the harder the goal, the more persistent people will be when there is a defined and tight deadline involved. Research shows that persistence declines when timelines are vague or loose (Locke & Latham, 2002). People work more quickly and intensely with short deadlines, so keeping people persistent requires breaking long term goals into short term parts and holding to those short term deadlines. 

Goals naturally force people to take action. People first tap into the skills and knowledge they have that relate to that goal, and then they adapt what they know to the new goal and situation. If the goal is entirely unfamiliar, or people have little experience, allowing flexibility and creativity in achieving the goal produces greater results (Locke & Latham, 2002). 

So how do we make sure our goals are achieved? Moderating goal achievement requires goal commitment and feedback in relation to task complexity (Locke & Latham, 2002). Creating commitment to a goal can be varied, ranging from open declarations of commitment to creating an inspirational vision. Often times the most beneficial way of creating commitment to long term goals is involving key people in the goal creating process. Setting goals for others requires leaders to go through a motivational buy-in process (Case, 1998), whereas involving members in the goal setting process enables members to work collaboratively and cognitively, which creates an almost immediate sense of commitment (Locke & Latham, 2002). Goal commitment is also affected by self-efficacy, which means that leaders need to ensure that their members have adequate training, have proper role models to look to for help and inspiration, and are persuasively told that their leaders have confidence in them to achieve the goal (Locke & Latham, 2002).

Feedback is crucial in achieving long term goals. Not only must people know the long term goal and the short term steps for achieving it, but they must continually know how they are doing. People must know that their leaders are monitoring their progress and expecting results or the goals become ambiguous and people lose interest and motivation (Case, 1996). Continual feedback and transparent data are necessary for people to self-reflect and modify short term goals and practices to maintain the level of urgency necessary to achieve long term goals. 

People are motivated to achieve goals for various reasons, and this is true even when a group is working toward the same goal. In general, those who are part of the goal setting process are often motivated by personal investment and satisfaction, whereas those who are assigned goals by a supervisor are often motivated by extrinsic rewards, such as money (Locke & Latham, 2002). Regardless, take time to recognize and reward the short term wins during the long term goal process. Letting people know they are doing well is part of the crucial feedback process.

Explicit and planned long term goal setting is a process that can have many benefits for the workplace: people are more invested in their jobs and work, productivity and performance improve, people self-regulate their performances, and they create the self-efficacy to handle goal conflict which leads to higher goal setting and more creative ways to achieve those goals. 

References: 
Case, J. (1998). Keeping score. Retrieved on August 19, 2016, from https://eds-b-ebscohost-com.libproxy.chapman.edu/ehost/detail/detail?sid=60d01883-7814-49a7-8e30-bbd2fc7c0fb7%40sessionmgr120&vid=5&hid=114&bdata=JkF1dGhUeXBlPWlwLHVpZCxjb29raWUsdXJsJnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#AN=748962&db=aph

Locke, E. A., and Latham, G. P. (1985). The application of goal setting to sports. 
Retrieved on August 20, 2016, from http://fitnessforlife.org/AcuCustom/Sitename/Documents/DocumentItem/8790.pdf

Locke, E. A., and Latham, G. P. (2002). Building a practically useful theory of goal setting and task motivation. Retrieved on August 20, 2016, from http://www.owlnet.rice.edu/~antonvillado/courses/08c_psyc101002/Research%20Report%204.pdf

Communicating with Parents via Technology

Communicating with Parents via Technology

I attended the EdTechTeam Google Apps for Education (GAFE) Summit in Bakersfield in June and what a remarkable and overwhelming platform for educators to learn new, innovative ways to use technology in the classroom! Coupled with my June administrative course through Brandman University about school, parent, and community partnerships, I decided to give more thought about the basics of school-parent communication via technology.

My current school, which is a K-6 elementary, prides itself in using technology on a daily basis with students. We have a 1:1 ratio of iPads for students in Grades 3-6, and the lower grades have access to iPad centers, computer stations, and the computer lab on a daily basis. I can't imagine teaching and guiding learning without an iPad, and yet I rarely use technology to communicate with parents. Our school has seen a marked decline in parent involvement at family night events over the last several years, but we don't utilize technology to communicate events and activities with parents. We are a good ol' paper flyer school, but also complain that parents never check backpacks.

So, what is the reality of parents and technology? Is this something worth the time and investment? I did a little research to find out how likely our parents are to use technology for school communication. Statistica (2015) reports that 282.1 million people in the US use the Internet monthly, and adults ages 25-34 average 82.5 hours of app time on smartphones per month. Smith (2015) from the Pew Research Center states that almost two-thirds of Americans own smartphones. Duggan, Lenhart, Lampe, and Ellison (2015) indicate that 74% of parents use Facebook on a regular basis. Also, dads are more likely to use Twitter and LinkedIn, while moms are more likely to use Pinterest and Instagram.

So, looking at the numbers, I would say that parents are highly likely to access school and teacher communication about their students via technology, especially at the elementary level because those are the young, up-and-coming parents who thrive on technology. Gilgore (2015) cites a recent study that showed frequent texting about academic goals between teachers and parents increased student achievement. In another study, student summer school engagement increased with phone calls and text messages to parents from teachers. Gilgore underscores that "light-touch communication" is most effective when parents receive specific information about how to help their students, rather than just receiving generic messages. 

Given the research, I'd say that my school and I need to move forward and communicate with parents more frequently using technology. We need to spread school-wide information quickly and effectively with our Facebook page, and we need to start having teachers communicate with each other more via Twitter ("Hey, check out what we're doing with math today!"). We need to utilize our student information system, Infinite Campus, for parents to access assignments and grades. Overall, I just need to get connected and start communicating with parents with technology.

Paper flyers and report cards won't completely go away (at least for now), but I can be a more effective educator by using the digital platforms that my students' parents are already using in their every day lives. Hopefully we can improve our communication and our students' achievement.

Reference

Gilmore, S. (2015). Probing the impact of parent-teacher digital communication. Education Week. Retrieved on June 24, 2016, from http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2015/09/16/probing-the-impact-of-parent-teacher-digital-communication.html